My Netflix Adventure: 13 Reasons Why
I had to sit and
think about this one for a day, but I’ve come to the conclusion that it did the
book justice.
I’m just going to say
it now, if you want a 100% faithful adaptation, this is not the one for you.
Honestly, a lot is different, but that is not always a bad thing. The main
difference is the time line and how that affects certain aspects of the story.
The novel takes place over the course of one night with Clay listening to the
tapes rather quickly, the movie takes place in at least a week and Clay listens
to the tapes really slowly. This extended timeline allows the viewer to see
Clay actually interacting with other people on the tapes. It also gives the
viewer a chance to see how the tapes are affecting Clay long term. About
halfway through the show, Clay looks rough so you really understand what the
tapes are doing to him. But the great thing is that you also get insight into
how the tapes have affected everyone else on them, since the POV often switches
from following Clay to someone like Justin. In the novel the reader gets a very
one-sided view of other characters, but by expanding the POV you learn that
these characters aren’t all bad. This adds depth to many side characters and
makes the show feel more real.
Overall, 13 Reasons Why was a completely
different show than I expected but I think it did the book justice. If you are
a fan of the book and open to a new interpretation, check it out.
Keep Watching…
Elise
I liked it, and I think it looked at a lot of topics that are really important. I wish everyone would put their pitch forks down on social media. I feel like some people just want to boycott and censor things for the sake of social justice, which is scary, because it would cause the next generation to be completely oblivious to issues and problems which need to be discussed. You need to listen to yourself and not everyone else. It's really scary how most young people think that it's normal to group think like this when they don't even know what they are going against.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you agree! I've heard a lot of praise for the series but all of the criticism saying the show is bad for teens REALLY irks me. I wish people would just let people who want to watch the show enjoy it and, if you don't think people should watch it, just don't watch it! I've gotten a lot from the book and show so I'm glad I've read/seen both.
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