Wednesday–Mother-Daughter Witchery
In this cleverly written sequel to the 1960’s Addams Family television series as well as to the movie, we see Wednesday Addams (the electrifying Jenna Ortega) as a fifteen-year old sorcerer attending Nevermore, a Hogswarts-like institution for Outcasts.Wednesday. has trance-like states of consciousness wherein she sees the future. Each teenage Outcast as well as the Nevermore faculty has a unique superpower. All the teenage students are dealing with some major family dysfunctions as well as high school flirtations and insecure self-centeredness and vulnerability. Wednesday’s dictum at school: “Everyday is about me.”
In season one Wednesday is the newbie who desperately wants to escape yet another school before the principal expels her. Principal Weems (Gwendolyn Christie: the amazon Brienne of Tarth in “Game of Thrones”), a shapeshifter, is a former Nevermore student who knew Wednesday’s mother (the remarkable Catherine Zeta-Jones). Very angry at being assigned to be the roommate of Enid Sinclaire (scene-stealing Emma Myers), Wednesday does everything imaginable to torture Enid into requesting another roommate. [Enid is a new character to the Addams Family story and perhaps the most essential in making this sequel fresh and revealing of Wednesday’s deeper character and values.]
Other characters are retained from the classic storyline but in new evolving backstories. They are all about five years older now. There are Pugsley, Wednesday’s brother; Lurch the family driver and go-fer; and Uncle Fester (the unrecognizable Fred Armisen), the only family member who can make Wednesday smile effortlessly. And of course, there is Gomez (Luis Guzman), Wednesday’s devoted father who is helplessly enchanted by his beautiful wife, Morticia (“Tish”).
But, above all, the most creatively re-imagined character is Thing, the sutured hand who is Wednesday’s guiding light, literally her “right hand”, and the anchor for the Addams Family’s origins and dynamics. Thing’s importance as more than a sutured, dismembered hand, is slowly revealed in Season 2, brilliantly “suturing” many of the characters from both seasons. Sometimes it is not easy to follow each character’s contribution to Nevermore mayhem and their agency in contributing to another character’s actions, both creative and destructive.
Those who love family saga [in a gothic Edgar Allen Poe-like setting, no less] will see the impact of family lies and secrets from one generation to another, There is the introduction of Grandma Hester Frump (the accomplished Joanna Lumley) who antagonizes her daughter Morticia and attempts to sever her daughter’s relationship with Wednesday. A grandma to mother to daughter concert of catastrophes and betrayals. Absolutely bewitching!
Season 2 is darker than Season 1: more sinister, and more psychological in its depiction of family–particularly mother-daughter “witchery”– as well as female friendships. Season 1 has a more linear narrative with a series of murders to solve, creating a beginning-to-end sequence that is easier to follow with rather straightforward clues to resolution. There are a number of unexpected twists and turns, however. Season 2 requires major flashbacks for character development, which are almost always a difficult cinematic device to accomplish. Here the flashbacks can be irritating, especially with some unnecessarily long “monster” morphing and battles.
Nonetheless, Wednesday is one of the most recent binge-worthy Netflix series to watch. The entire cast’s chemistry is a wonder to behold. Jenna Ortega owns the role of Wednesday, a modern teenage goth painfully aware of her family to the point of humiliation. Isn’t that the case for many teenagers? Catherine Zeta-Jones channels Anjelica Huston, star of both the classic television series and the movie. Emma Myers gives heart to the friendship between Wednesday and Enid. Almost channeling the Good Witch and Elphaba of “Wicked”, Emma Myers plays the insufferably popular and cutesy high school girl that other girls hate. From start to finish, anchored by Jenna Ortega’s and Emma Myers’s flawless performances, Wednesday is addictive to watch. With surprise guest stars like Steve Buscemi, Frances Connor, and Lady Gaga, what’s not to like?
Can hardly wait until Season 3. Wednesday is for viewers who love mysteries and psychological drama more than tales from the crypt.
Availability: Netfix
Note: This series about a fifteen-year-old girl is a coming-of-age story with gothic overtones. But Wednesday may not be for young viewers 10-14 years of age who are frightened by monsters that look super-powerful in a beastly form, in intense combat. Some monster scenes are painfully long, even for this adult viewer.