The Adaptation hosts discuss Mulan (2020), their criteria for liking these Disney live-action remakes, and what exactly makes stories like Mulan empowering
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Episode #307: The Subtle Art of Traveling Between Worlds
Jess and Kendyl discuss The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman, the introduction of other words and characters, and the religious symbolism.
Continue readingEpisode #306: Rebecca of Manderley Estate
Jenn, Dorin, and Kendyl discuss the choices made in Rebecca (2020) compared to the book by Daphne du Maurier, which they agreed with and which they could have done without.
Continue readingEpisode #305: Our Mrs. de Winter
In their discussion of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, the hosts talk about the unintentional unreliability of the narrator, despair over why our romantic leads can’t just talk to each other, and break down the problems with fully vilifying Rebecca.
Episode #304: The Turn of Certain Old Corners
With so many story lines in The Haunting of Bly Manor (2020), the hosts struggle to touch on everything they loved in the series. Not that they are without complaint, but this follow up to The Haunting of Hill House (2018) definitely hit the mark on everyone’s feels.
Episode #303: The Witches Who Lunch
The Adaptation hosts watched The Witches (2020) and could truly go on-and-on about all the visual elements, from the updated way the witches look to every piece of clothing. But there’s more to talk about with our hero, the grandmother, and the addition of a new mouse friend.
Episode #302: The Ghosts of the Mind
Dorin, Jenn, and Kendyl have a lot of theories as to what the heck happened in The Turn of the Screw by Henry James. Basically, everyone is sus, children are terrifying, and always pay attention to what’s in the corner of your eye.
Episode #301: The Case of the Missing Cleverness
With some hosts that have read the book by Nancy Springer and some that have not, Adaptation covers the film adaptation Enola Holmes (2020), complete with a rant about corsetry and concerns about the tone of Holmesian mysteries.
Episode #300: Being Human on a Boat
Jess, Jenn, and Kendyl discuss clearing away preconceived notions, the division of labor when doing crime, and the intensity of love in the context of Agatha Christie’s Death on the Nile.
Episode #299: Colin Firth in Every Role
Dorin and Kendyl talk the magic of The Secret Garden (2020), the themes it pulls from the source material, and the changes made.
Episode #298: So Much Nightmare Fuel
Not shying away from taking this children’s book too seriously, the Adaptation hosts discuss The Witches by Roald Dahl: the politics, the reproductive process, and the entrepreneurial possibilities of a traveling mouse circus that fronts as a witch hunting operation.
Episode #297: Fine Wholesome Fun
The Adaptation hosts discuss the characterization, modernization, and representation in the 2020 Netflix series, The Baby-Sitters Club.
Episode #296: A Passive Hero
In what might be the biggest difference of opinion Dorin and Kendyl have ever had about a film, the two discuss The Personal History of David Copperfield (2019), the structure and tone, and most importantly, the waistcoats.
Episode #295: In Need of BSC Merch
In this episode, the hosts do their best to cover the extensive series The Baby-Sitters Club by Ann M. Martin, reminisce about childhood reading, and find that choosing your favorite baby-sitter is a lot like therapy.
Episode #294: The Cheese Is Thick with This One
In this episode, the Adaptation hosts break down their issues with Artemis Fowl (2020)…and there are many.
Episode #293: Bright Places Will Guide You Home
Jess and Kendyl cover the film All the Bright Places (2020), how it played with audience focus and expectations, and how fixing someone else doesn’t fix you.
Trigger warning: Just like the novel, this episode contains discussion of suicide, depression, mental illness, abuse, grief, and death. Please, keep yourself safe and skip this episode if these topics could be harmful to you. If you do proceed, please keep in mind that we are in no way mental health experts.
Episode #292: Only Seeing the Bright Places
Jess and Kendyl discuss Jennifer Niven’s All the Bright Places, mental health, grief, recovery, and seeing the whole of a person.
Trigger warning: Just like the novel, this episode contains discussion of suicide, depression, mental illness, abuse, grief, and death. Please, keep yourself safe and skip this episode if these topics could be harmful to you. If you do proceed, please keep in mind that we are in no way mental health experts.
Episode #291: Genius, Billionaire, Criminal, Philanthropist
Jess, Jenn, and Kendyl discuss the first two books in the Artemis Fowl series by Eoin Colfer, its calculating protagonist, middle grade humor, and their favorite play on words… ever?
Episode #290: That Which We Call a Daisy
Dorin and Kendyl tackle David Copperfield by Charles Dickens—a marathon novel with a large cast of outlandish characters—with a focus on identity, David’s surprising faith in people, and an even more unexpected defense of Dora.
Episode #289: The Magic That Connects Us
Is The Secret Garden the perfect book for quarantine? Dorin and Kendyl think it just might be, with it’s fresh-baked-bread-wholesomeness, themes of how nature connects us all, and early meditations on mental health.