It’s quite tragic, really. The story of the Baudelaire orphans from the beloved book series by Lemony Snicket came to life as a Netflix Original Series in 2017, but it has come to a close this January 2019. A tale of misfortune and horror lay ahead, look away.

With the title theme song being “Look away, look away” you would think to actually do it, but the Baudelaires are just too pure to abandon. A Series of Unfortunate Events is an episodic adventure of the wealthy Baudelaire orphans ( Malina Weissman, Louis Hynes, and Presley Smith) as they travel from guardian to guardian after their parents perish in a house fire. All the while their distant relative Count Olaf tries to steal their inherited fortune clad in ridiculous disguises as the orphans try to escape him.

This show has a lot of layers, and it would be a very long article and less fun if it was all explained here. Just know that you will most likely be confused for a little bit, as this show tends to leave a lot of loose ends for suspenseful purposes. There is no specific time period or setting so it’s hard to judge the accuracy of costuming and speech. The writing consists of lots of sarcasm, comedy and crude jokes that might go over your head if you aren’t paying attention. The simplicity of the premise might turn some people off to the show, but it gets more and more complicated as episodes go on, expounding on the simple and mixing in storylines that might not make sense at first, but get tied together in the end. The timing and anticipation the show provides is sometimes a little too much, but most times is just right to keep you reaching for the remote to tell Netflix you are still watching.

The cast of the show has multiple heavy hitters, and people you wouldn’t expect to see. Patrick Warburton plays Lemony Snicket, the beloved author and narrator of the series, Lucy Punch plays Esme Squalor, the lead henchwoman alongside the main antagonist, Nathan Fillion, plays Jacques Snicket, brother to Lemony. Will Arnett and Cobie Smulders play parents….that’s all that can be said about that without spoilers. But we can’t forget the cruelest of them all Count Olaf, played by the talented Neil Patrick Harris.

The show as a whole has a consistent theme of questioning a person’s morality and how the decisions they make affect others. Mix that theme with great acting, simply funny writing, and a sarcastingly melancholy atmosphere and you get a good Netflix binge. The show has come to a close in its third season this January 2019 so all seasons are available. This show will amuse you, frustrate you, and maybe even rid you of your misfortunes.

4.5/5 Stars