Review of "The Reptile Room" (Netflix)

SPOILERS

Much like “The Bad Beginning”, “The Reptile Room” was very true to the book. In the little trilogy of the first three books, this is probably my favorite, and this story is my favorite of the series so far. It was funny, charming, nail-biting, awesome, and tragic, pretty much in that order. Of course there were minor differences from the book, like Uncle Monty’s appearance and the elaborate way the Reptile Room is locked on the show and how the siblings still had the same room together instead of their own unique rooms like in the book. But they still got most of it right and these details were so minor I didn't even care!

The biggest change I loved and it reinforced the background story of the VFD so much more, since at this point in the books it’s not even mentioned yet. This was the inclusion of the movie, which they did see in the book, but what wasn’t included was the decoder spyglass with the hidden message. I loved this decoding game; it reminded me a little of The 39 Clues. In the books, they were supposed to go to Peru for fun and to accompany Uncle Monty on an expedition. On the show, the audience is lead to believe that their parents are in Peru and Uncle Monty got that message and is trying to get them there. This is about when I started questioning how realistic these scenes with the parents were. There’s no way they are still alive, right?

I remember when watching, while trying to remember if there was a Jacquelyn in the books, also wondering about Gustav. Gustav was a book character; he was still Monty’s assistant who disappeared, killed by Count Olaf. However, there was no indication that he was a member of the VFD. That’s fine with me; there’s probably people out there who are determined to make every minor character in the books a member of the VFD or at least having knowledge of it (much like the Game of Thrones “everyone’s a secret Targaryen” theories). Let me say again that these inclusions of the VFD are something that could only be done in a setting like this and blend in seamlessly with the rest of the narrative.

Yet again, this was a very well done episode, hitting all the right emotions without being too over-the-top about it. You feel what you’re supposed to feel, you’re confused when you’re supposed to be confused. And the narrative just keeps on rolling. Next stop, Lake Lachrymose!

VFD noticed:

Verified Film Discount

Vitiated Film Distribution

Vincent Fig Demetrios

Come back next Sunday for "The Wide Window"!

Click here for my full series review!