Strange and deranged – it’s The Addams Family (well, one of them)
Created by: Alfred Gough & Miles Millar
Starring: Jenna Ortega, Hunter Doohan, Percy Hynes White
Rated TV-14 for language, violence, and intense scenes
Release Date: November 23, 2022
This review may contain spoilers
Presented by Netflix
Creepy, check. Kooky, check. Mysterious and spooky, check and check. Dark atmosphere, naturally, check. Mutilated dead bodies, uhh, check. Wait, what? Murder mystery… check? Okay, seriously, stop. What is this, Netflix? This actually sounds good.
Wednesday has gone too far
After getting revenge on the boys’ swim team for bullying her brother, Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega, Scream) is sent to Nevermore Academy, a private school for vampires, werewolves, mermaids, and shapeshifters. Even in this school, Wednesday out-creeps everyone, much to her liking. But a string of grisly murders surrounds the Nevermore grounds and the small town of Jericho, along with an elusive monster looming in the woods. Wednesday takes it upon herself to solve this murder mystery with her family’s favorite severed hand, Thing, and her new psychic powers.
Wait, psychic powers and monsters? Were these usual things in The Addams Family movies? I thought they were just rich weirdos fascinated with the macabre and spooky things. But now you’re telling me there are actual supernatural elements to them? That explains a lot about Uncle Fester…
Or maybe I really didn’t know The Addams Family as well as I thought.
Jenna Ortega!
At first, I was gonna let this show pass on by. Yes, Jenna Ortega looks great as Wednesday, and Thing looks cool as hell, all stitched up Frankenstein-styled. But it’s a Netflix show about teenagers in school solving a mystery. This is just doomed to be awkward dating match-ups, “adults not understanding what we’re going through,” and “maybe my gothic, dark ways aren’t really who I am.”
Thank Hell that didn’t happen.
I give all the praise to Ortega; she is just awesome! She perfectly captures an apologetic dark version of Wednesday. Her portrayal never sacrifices the character while learning and understanding change (she’s still a teenager, after all).
Ortega pushed herself for this role. She had to learn cello, fencing, archery, German, boxing, AND canoeing (and I struggle to even handle social media). She also made herself not blink in character and refused cringy lines that would have betrayed the Wednesday character.
Brutal
I like that kind of dedication. I also like that it showed the brutality of Wednesday’s torture tactics. In the movies, she is always about to do something fatal to her brother, Pugsy. Every time, she’s interrupted just in time. But when she sets revenge on the bullies by dumping piranhas into the school pool, the main bully gets attacked. He’s brought up later that the piranha attack left him in the hospital, and he lost a testicle. HA!
Psychic powers, supernatural monsters
So, I brought it up earlier, but I wasn’t aware of The Addams Family having actual monsters in them. I do remember the grandma being a witch, but I don’t remember her casting spells and flying on a broomstick. At least, I don’t think I do.
The point is, I wasn’t expecting all of this. A blood-thirsty monster hunting humans, Wednesday having psychic powers, and ghost hauntings. So, it’s a big surprise, and I love that all this horror stuff exists in The Addams Family world. Full-on jumping into monsters and the supernatural gives Wednesday a fresher feel and not feeling like another spin-off from the movies.
Again, unless I’ve completely forgotten that the supernatural is real in the movies, it’s fresher. I might have to rewatch those movies again.
“Goo Goo Muck” Dance
In the fourth episode, Wednesday busts out what is now a famous dance scene on the internet. Choreographed by Ortega herself, it’s a crazy number of different dance moves to the ‘80s “Goo Goo Muck” by The Cramps. Wednesday maintains her deadpan look as she rocks out her moves, dancing around her date and putting everyone to shame.
Also, everyone gave her a ton of free space to perform her dancing. That always cracks me up in these dance scenes.
The dance quickly became a hit with viewers and spread even further on social media, like Tik Tok. Fans film themselves mimicking Wednesday’s moves as a new challenge trend. Eh, it’s better than the morons climbing stacked milk crates..
Wednesday Addams, psychic detective
Ortega’s version of Wednesday has an added fascination with detective novels, writing several herself. Yet, none have been published due to their macabre nature. Once she realizes people are dying around her in Nevermore and Jericho, she takes it on herself to solve who and/or what the creature is and stop it.
There is also a dark prophecy that foretells Wednesday bringing the end to Nevermore Academy and killing all outcast students. Wednesday also wants to stop this from happening.
And that is part of her character that feels off to me. I’m sorry, but aren’t these things that Wednesday would enjoy? I mean, it would make more sense to solve the mystery to catch the monster as a pet or something.
The family
While this show is all about Wednesday, the rest of the family appear in small roles. Gomez and Morticia Addams (Luiz Gusman and Catherine Zeta-Jones, respectively) are even given their own past mystery from Nevermore that Wednesday will solve. Pugsy and Lurch appear, too, but not a lot of attention on them. This is weird since Pugsy and Wednesday are usually pretty close.
Uncle Fester shows up randomly in a later episode to help Wednesday tie up loose ends in Jericho. Fester is more of a tutor for Wednesday, in both solving mysteries and torture. Armisen’s acting as Fester is another part I really enjoyed. His Fester hits closer to what I’ve seen from the original ‘60s show instead of Christopher Lloyd’s movie version.
The OG Wednesday
Christina Ricci herself is back. This time, she plays a quirky “normie” botany teacher for Nevermore. It’s ironic when she tries to help Wednesday adjust to being open with her classmates and roommate. It’s great to see her, but man, how did they not cast her as Morticia Addams? Nothing against Catherine Zeta-Jones, but how cool would it have been to have the former actress of Wednesday now playing her mother in a new series? I’m just saying…
Eagle-Eye references
The series is loaded with cultural references. Some were obvious like Nevermore is clearly referencing Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven.” A less obvious one was Nevermore’s principal Larissa Weems’ (Gwendoline Christie, HBO’s Game of Thrones) appearance matching Tippi Hedren’s hair and clothes from Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds.
Also, there are a few callbacks to the Addams Family theme song. In one scene, Wednesday is called “kooky,” and she responds by saying she prefers “spooky.” I always enjoyed subtle references like those. Also, the code to enter a secret door in Nevermore is a double snap – the same snap from the theme song.
Tim Burton
Another surprise I found was Tim Burton directing four of the episodes. I haven’t watched anything he directed since Dark Shadows. The reason why is because I saw Dark Shadows. I could talk a bit about how much I hated that movie (or how I really fucking hated that movie), but I’ll save that rant for another review.
I will say I have avoided his movies over the last 10 years.
Anyways, Burton not only directed but was also one of the executive producers for the show. It’s funny because it always seemed The Addams Family would be something he would be involved with. But a quick IMDB search showed he had nothing to do with the movies. So, Wednesday is the first time he has had his influence. And it is so fitting; it’s like seeing the ‘80s and ‘90s Burton feeling again. The good Burton.
Season 2
Netflix has already announced a second season is in the works. However, it’s uncertain if Netflix will keep the show. Amazon recently acquired Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (the logo with the roaring lion), which owns The Addams Family rights. So, there’s a chance that season two will premiere on Amazon Prime.
A well-done morbid surprise
Wednesday was a surprisingly entertaining show. I had my doubts, but something about a kid swimming for his life from piranhas really drew me in. The show is dark, atmospheric, and still hilarious. Wednesday herself is uncompromising, and Jenna Ortega is just perfect for this role. With her attached, I can see this show lasting for a long time.
Wednesday is streaming on Netflix.
