#lizzie bennet diaries

Pride and Prejudice strikes again!  In the world of P&P adaptions (of which there are many, and of which I will cover a number of) I think this one stands out.  The format was the key here, with episodes released over time that clock in at roughly 3 min each.  The storytelling had to be tight, and the humor that was injected into this modern day version was well timed and well placed.  They cut out things that weren’t going to contribute much (two extra Bennet sisters that didn’t feature largely in the books) and gave more agency to secondary characters (Lydia and Charlotte) which was beyond smart.

What this series brought home for me is how this story, while driven by Lizzie and Darcy (and to a great extent Jane and Bing) is carried by its female characters.  We experience everything important through their narration, and this just distills that concept into a highly enjoyable liqueur of fast talking fun people.  It’s not that the men are not on screen, but their appearances are few and far between.  Casting for all the characters was on point.  I would have watched this movie, and given that there’s 100 episodes it certainly adds up to having watched a couple movies at least.  Lizzie and Darcy somehow never get stale.

I remember the first time I watched this the part that made me laugh the most was Darcy’s sister.  I know in the books Georgiana Darcy is used more like a cautionary tale rather than a character, but in this adaption I dug her shipping her own brother with Lizzie in real time.  It was the flag waving I needed to tip this story from great to golden in my mind.  We are all Gigi.