Netflix has a new original series: The Baby-sitters Club! The first season covers the first eight books plus a sort of adaptation of of the second super special, Baby-sitters Summer Vacation. AND...it's set in the present day (2019/2020), updated accordingly, and much more diverse. The plots are broadly the same as the original books, although here the focus is more on the school dance and Claudia's relationship with her parents in regards to her grades, and the only phantom calls we see on-screen aren't a shy boy trying to ask someone out. Here are some other things that I noticed:
What stood out as surprisingly (not necessarily good or bad) different to me:
Trevor is an artist like Claudia instead of a poet, which is how he and Claudia notice each other in the first place. Because he knows her better in this version, he actually asks her out to the Halloween Hop in the first place instead of calling, getting nervous, and hanging up.
Stacey offers Claudia her own math test to pass off as Claudia's, since Claudia failed hers and her parents won't allow her to go to the dance with a failing grade. Claudia takes her up on the offer, too. Claudia does come clean on her own to her parents, rather than being found out. Her parents aren't thrilled about her lying, but they do acknowledge that she's putting in an effort and has improved a bit. They don't let her attend the dance, but they are more obviously supportive of her than some of their book appearances seem.
Janine is more overtly antagonistic toward Claudia in the series, which makes Claudia's reactions to her more understandable. Janine's the one to suggest that the Kishi parents not allow Claudia to attend the Halloween Hop if she fails her test.
Karen has more of a creepy child vibe than an overbearing one.
The titular phone call turns out to be Mary Anne, calling from an old phone to talk to Kristy.
What I was happy stayed the same:
I love the scene with Claudia and Mimi cooking together.
Mary Anne and Kristy communicate by flashlight.
Other interesting touches:
Mary Anne has to use a flip phone as part of her punishment for not calling her dad to let him know she's running late.
Claudia dresses in a style evocative of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, hoping it will inspire her to understand math better.
2 comments:
They've done a good job adapting and updating these. I was curious how this would be, as it seems to be a book that's forgotten or not as popular, it was even skipped over in the graphic novels adaptations.
The tie in to phantom phone calls was a bit of a stretch, but I did enjoy seeing Claudia's homelife and her and Trevor were cute together. Also the RBG outfit was very fun.
Yes, Lorrs, I'm impressed with the show!
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