Book adaptation

Adventures – Comics – Drama – Fantastic & Heroic Fantasy – History – Murder & investigations – Romance – Science-Fiction

When you watch a series after having read the book, or the other way round, you cannot relive the same emotions. The rythm/tempo is not the same, the context in which you read/watch isn’t either. Above all, when you read, you can visualize what you want. But when you look at it, the production team has made artistic choices, good or bad, that will never match yours.

And, well, obviously, the surprise of discovery cannot happen twice.

But that doesn’t mean we can’t experience new emotions. Even if it’s different from what you had pictured in your mind, there is a pleasure in seeing “real” costumes, real settings, fights and so on. Music helps too. When I visualise a book, there is no music to convey the emotions. Or the actual voices and sounds, for that matter.

Series love to re-exploit tried-and-tested stories. But, as we all know, the higher the expectations, the greater the risk of disappointment. At least, the length of a series means the production doesn’t have to make as many cruel choices as is required by a 2-hour film.

If a series makes you want to read, or a book makes you curious to see it adapted into a series, then the bet on the first medium is won, and you have a positive a priori for the second. For example, I read the Grisha / six of crows saga thanks to Shadow and Bones, I watched Game of Thrones thanks to A song of Ice and Fire. Of course I will prefer a medium to the other (usually the book, but not always). But I accept that both are different, have their own constraints and limitations. If I like both, so much the better!

To be noted, an exception : books (graphics and novels) were written based on the characters developped in an excellent 2014 series : Star Wars Rebels

All the series below are good. My favorites series are in bold

Adventures

• Lupin / Netflix / A free adaptation from Maurice Leblanc’s novels. Nowadays, Assane Diop takes inspiration from his hero Arsène Lupin to avenge an injustice

• Batman caped crusader / Amazon Prime / [Animated] A faithful adaptation that returns to the roots of Batman’s genesis. Inspired by the DC Comics created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger
• Lucifer / Netflix / Derived from Neil Gaiman’s Sandman character (another series), Lucifer comes to life in a comic series that explores existential questions.

Drama

• Apple Cider Vinegar / Netflix / “The Woman Who Fooled the World: Belle Gibson’s Cancer Con”, by Beau Donelly and Nick Toscano. Australia, 2012-2015. the journey of two young women battling cancer. One of them lies.
• Boy swallows universe / Netflix / From the semi-autobiographical first novel by Trent Dalton, which tells the story of two brothers growing up in a poor and violent area of Brisbane. A beautiful story, sad and strong.

• A discovery of witches / Netflix / “The all souls trilogy”, by Deborah Harkness. Vampires, deamons and witches live along humans, but they are declining. The forbidden love between a witch and a vampire could change all.
• Game of Thrones / HBO / The event series of the 2010s, based on the unfinished series of novels by George R.R. Martin, “A song of Ice and Fire”
• The new legends of Monkey / Netflix / The series is based on the 16th-century Chinese novel Journey to the West. Funny, smart, with great fights and endearing characters. I adored it.
• The rings of power / Amazon Prime / The series uses some material from the appendices of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings. A book so idolized (including by me) that one is bound to be hyper-demanding. It’s a half-success. A success for the costumes, the music, the sets, some of the actors and the action in certain episodes. A failure for the script and a good half of the cast. But I will still be watching it.
• Sandman / Netflix / Adapted from Neil Gaiman’s novel. I may not be a fan of horrific stories, but I was wowed ! By the characters, the casting, the story, the settings… And let’s be honest, also by Tom Sturridge / Lord Morpheus’s voice.
• Shadow and Bone / Netflix / Here we are two sagas intertwined, the “Shadow and Bone” trilogy and the “Six of crows” duology, by Leigh Bardugo. And that’s an excellent idea ! Both stories work very well combined. The costumes and fights are spectacular.
• The Wheel of time / Amazon Prime / Amazon certainly has good taste in heroic fantasy. The series is based on the book series of the same name by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson. Obviously a challenge to adapt. The scenario is not exactly perfect, but the characters/casting and the universe are definitely worth a look
• Wolf King / Netflix / [Animated] based on the Wereworld novels by Curtis Jobling, the series is aimed for a young audience. It’s far from the top notch quality of Arcane, but it’s cute and may improve with season 2

• All the light we cannot see / Netflix / Based on a novel by Anthony Doerr. Saint-Malo, August 1944. In these last days of the war, a young blind woman, persists in reading “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea” on the radio
• My lady Jane / Amazon Prime / A bold and funny fantasy reimagining of the life of Lady Jane Grey, from a novel by Jodi Meadows, Brodi Ashton, and Cynthia Hand
• Outlander / Netflix / Scotland, 1748 and 1968. Based on Diana Gabaldon’s novels, the story of a passion that spans wars and eras
• Poldark / Netflix / Cornwall, 1780. Based on Winston Graham’s novels, an epic series with a classic style that blends romance and history
• Shogun / Disney+ / Shogun, a novel of Japan, by James Clavell. Japan, 1600. Several nations interfere in clan wars to gain influence in Japan
• The last kingdom / Netflix / Based on The Saxon Stories series of novels by Bernard Cornwell, this epic series shows the creation of England (around 880)
• The Leopard / Netflix / Il Gattopardo, written in 1958 by Giuseppe di Lampedusa. Sicily, 1860. A conflict between generations in the midst of the turmoil of history
• Those about to die / Amazon Prime / Based on Daniel P. Mannix’s book. Rome, 79 AD. An epic series that stages great fights and horse races, without neglecting the political background from the beginnings of the Roman Empire

• A good girl’s guide to murder / Netflix / Novel by Holly Jackson. A teen girl reoppens by herself a cold case about the death of a schoolmate
• Bodies / Netflix / Based on the DC Vertigo graphic novel of the same name, written by Si Spencer and illustrated by Dean Ormston, Tula Lotay, Meghan Hetrick and Phil Winslade. London. 1890, 1941, 2023, 2053. Four police detectives find a body in an alley. Same alley, same body…
• Miss Fisher’s murder mysteries / Amazon Prime / Phryne Fisher novels, by Kerry Greenwood. Sydney, in the roaring 1920’s. A a daring young woman improvises as a private detective
• Sherlock / all platforms! / The legendary detective created by Conan Doyle, in a very contemporary adaptation where texting is part of the investigation. An impeccable cast
• The Lincoln lawyer / Netflix / Based on a novel by Michael Connelly. A gripping story about a lawyer and his team solving crimes
• The perfect couple / Netflix / Novel by Elin Hilderbrand. A slightly pretentious and disappointing series about a murder at a wedding in a wealthy family, but a fine cast in a dream setting

• Bridgerton / Netflix / Novels by Julia Quinn. London, 1810, during an alternative version of the Regency. Wedding and gossips rule over the lives of rich families
• Sex and the city / Amazon Prime / based on the newspaper column and 1996 book by Candace Bushnell. glamorous series, which tackles all the issues that concern women, without taboos. But rather conventional and not totally convincing

• The Expanse / Amazon Prime / novels and short stories by James S. A. Corey, the joint pen name of authors Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck. A fascinating space opera with an excellent casting that invites us to question the concept of civilization. Brilliant!
• The man in the high Castle / Amazon Prime / An alternative history novel by Philip K. Dick : Hitler won the war, the US are now divided between the Japanese and the Germans. But mysterious films bring new hope, and their origins are far more supernatural than they appear.