The Addams Family was first introduced in the 1930s by American cartoonist Charles Addams. An aristocratic family with ties to supernatural beings displaying comedy became a quick success in America.
The comic series was adapted into TV series, live-action and animated movies numerous times. The Addams couple had its influence on recent Halloween trends too, with people dressing up like them and this Halloween dress-up being popular on social media.
Recently, Netflix took the initiative to revive the fame of the ‘90s Addams Family films by creating a spin-off show based on the eldest Addams child, Wednesday.
Tim Burton was chosen to direct half of the episodes; he is acclaimed for his Gothic Fantasy genre shows. With him as director, Wednesday is set to maintain the macabre vibe of the famous Addams family.
In the previous depictions, Wednesday Addams was a child. But in this show, she is now an adolescent, getting kicked out of multiple schools for torturing her peers and finally admitting herself to the Nevermore Academy, where her parents went.
This boarding school is a reminder of Hogwarts from Harry Potter, with a gothic tinge. This is a haven for outcasts such as sirens, werewolves, and vampires—also for Wednesday. There she finds Enid Sinclair as her roommate, a cheerful and trigger-happy werewolf, a perfect foil to Wednesday's dark character.
The Addams Family is nothing without mystery and drama, and Wednesday is no exception. Even before going to the Nevermore Academy, she has future visions of whoever she touches. While studying in the academy, she gets visions of her classmates getting killed by monsters and also witnesses them, but the victims seem to survive the next day.
Everyone questions her sanity, but she doesn’t stop until she finds answers. She enlists the help of Thing, just a disembodied hand and one of the Addams family mysteries, Tyler – a normal teenager and son of the local sheriff, famous uncle Fester, and obviously, Enid.
Wednesday finds out this murder mystery involves the nearby town of Jericho and even her parents, who were suspected of murder 30 years ago.
As a teenager with an adult mind, Wednesday finds a variety of challenges. She seems to enjoy being the outcast among other outcasts, but deep inside she struggles to socialise with her friends.
Meanwhile, the murder mystery starts to get convoluted more and more, even resulting in her expulsion from Nevermore. Can she solve this mystery while trying to save herself? This series has the answer.
Tim Burton is excellent at depicting gothic-influenced drama, and Wednesday is no exception. The first four episodes were a treat to watch. The last four episodes seem to disrupt the Tim Burton flow as they were directed by different directors. Yet, they manage to keep Wednesday in the spotlight.
Wednesday is a misanthrope and has a dark, twisted mind. But she deeply cares for people she finds reliable. With hints of another season, the audience will get to see more shades of this complex character.
