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[phantomchaosfangirl]

To Al: I just wanted to know when and how you first found out about your “other” self. It’s must’ve been pretty awkward…

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oof

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This is most interesting. I’m fascinated by adaptation, so I must chime in on this. 

Video game (especially a mobile one) to manga doesn’t actually have a lot of examples I know of, so this adaptation has been an interesting one to be reading.

The comedy is most notably different with more of an emphasis on expressive gags in comparison to the game’s emphasis on more dialogue based ones. (A change, of course, highlighted by the two mediums. The manga had more room for their art, while the game was restricted by their sprite library.)

Fascinatingly, I think that I find myself disagreeing with OP about Prof’s personality being “cheery” over “laidback” but I do agree that tonally the manga has a brighter feeling. But I actually don’t think aspects of that feeling weren’t present in the original game ―it was just disguised with things the manga doesn’t have access to in its medium.

What the manga is missing is Mystery Room’s music and graphic motion. In Mystery Room both the game’s pacing and mood was controlled and tempered by the movement of the graphics and the music.

Without it, the manga is paced up faster, which in turn makes everything seem “snappier” and more in your face. It doesn’t have the slower pacing to make everything feel more mature and laidback.

Those are just my thoughts on it though! I love me some adaptation observation and inspection.

i’ve read some of the new lbmr manga, with some help from some friends who are translating it, and i hate to say it but i’m not a big fan of it so far. maybe once the plot starts kicking up i’ll enjoy it more but at the time being i’m just underwhelmed and disappointed.

i honestly prefer the more laid-back, ‘chill’ feel prof has in the game than the cheery feel he has in the manga. lucy is energetic as always but the manga makes it feel like she’s all pep all the time.

lbmr, to me, is a very laid-back and mature take on the layton setting, and the manga is making lbmr feel more like lmj than anything. it’s too bright.

[phantomchaosfangirl]

What I love about this the most is that it just goes to show that the twins both share a terribly off sense of humor.

I love how Mr. Curtain's like "ah yes you can't do anything against me shall we continue the Evil Plan?" and Reynie's reflex is to start telling the worst 'walks into a bar' jokes you've heard in your life

[phantomchaosfangirl]

What I love about this the most is that it just goes to show that the twins both share a terribly off sense of humor.

I love how Mr. Curtain's like "ah yes you can't do anything against me shall we continue the Evil Plan?" and Reynie's reflex is to start telling the worst 'walks into a bar' jokes you've heard in your life

[phantomchaosfangirl]

Tony Hale is actually super cool and amazing! He has asthma that is actually worsened by his anxiety, so he advocates heavily for therapy and speaks openly about his journey with setting boundaries and self-care.

It actually inspired him to work with his wife to create a place in New York for young creatives going into the entertainment business, to be given the tools prepare themselves mentally and to survive moralistically.

He mentions his anxiety is actually why many of his characters (Mr. Benedict) are anxious/neurotic and why he finds playing angry, hurt characters so cathartic. (Dr. Curtain.)

Source: Interview article

I didn’t know who Tony Hale was prior to MBS disney coming out so Mr. Benedict/Curtain are the only people I associate him with, so I watched his instagram ad for that asthma thing where he was not playing any character but my brain was like

that’s Mr. Benedict

that’s Mr. Benedict’s voice in a weird outfit with weird hair

and apparently he has asthma

[phantomchaosfangirl]

Holy CRUD. Dr. Curtain's lack of wheelchair and narcolepsy actually came together super well from a narrative perspective with a unique take on it, and I am FLOORED! HOLY CRUD!

(I'll give a better write-up on it tomorrow, but WOW! I was enthralled. I'm so glad that they pulled it off in the last episode.)

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I just wanted to say that it's been pretty amazing being a part of the Mysterious Benedict Society fandom, and I'm so thankful to the show for introducing me to you guys.

The books were really only something that I read amongst my peers, so it's been so cool meeting people who have also read and enjoyed them! Also, this is probably one of the most analytical, but chill-in-discussion fandoms I've been able to experience, so I'm quite pleased by that.

I just wanted to say thanks for everything!

[phantomchaosfangirl]

Uncharacteristically short post for me, but--can we acknowledge how messed up it was of the orphanage director and adoptive parents that no one took either boy aside in private to break the news to them? (It isn't written unbelievably though, because it was alluded to not being the best place.)

Also, the beautiful juxtaposition between the twins of Curtain changing everything about his name in adulthood, while Mr. Benedict held onto his and never took his adoptive parents' names. (Likely out of guilt.)

[phantomchaosfangirl]

You actually prompt some really interesting points in the "messy ramblings" so I love that! Here are more thoughts prompted by your response, so thank you so much!

I think that Nathaniel definitely is not lacking in confidence in his abilities. He's also clearly been a pretty overbearing person from childhood too. But you're right, I don't think he thinks he's better than his brother out of any malicious intent. (If anything, I could reasonably see him seeing them equal in intelligence, but him being more charismatic/clever--again, because he expresses it more openly.)

I think what's really sad is that there is a lot of justification for both boys and their sides on the matter. Here I'm going to speak a little more from Curtain's viewpoint, because I feel as if Mr. Benedict's side is much more clear cut.

From Curtain's viewpoint, despite being children--they were both extraordinary children. Extraordinary brothers with genius minds who could have always found an answer. And I bet that with no doubt, if he had been the person to be solely adopted instead, he would have devised every way to gain control of the situation so his brother was sitting at that table with them. (Despite the couple saying they couldn't, there's a number of reasons why that could be that most likely are solvable.) And if for any reason he couldn't, he'd leave and then find a way to regroup with him so they could make a situation that did work for them.

He loved his brother. He loved them, as siblings.

Maybe he failed to notice that his brother's needs weren't being met. But perhaps more heartbreakingly, maybe Nicholas also didn't express his needs to him.

Communication goes both ways...and between both brothers I see one who struggles to listen and another who struggles to speak.

This is not at all to vilify Mr. Benedict. He was a child. And a child who had a brother who could be exhausting and finally had his own space. But it can't be ignored that what he did was selfish as every kid does as some point in their life, especially with siblings.

Those are just my thoughts though!

jesus CHRIST "it should have been me" "I know" "what do they even SEE in you" "I don't know" "you'll come back for me though, right, nicky?" "of course!"

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Funny enough, I was thinking about this and I'm pretty sure this was one of the few non-manipulative things Curtain has said in the series without an angle.

It initially came across very "put-down" of his brother--but I think that the underlying subtext to the statement was: "What do they see in you that I didn't present much more obviously?"

I think he knows they're both geniuses, but he sees his brother as someone who keeps it to himself, so he's always had to sell his genius for him.

Nathaniel seems like he has always been more outward than his brother.

jesus CHRIST "it should have been me" "I know" "what do they even SEE in you" "I don't know" "you'll come back for me though, right, nicky?" "of course!"

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Another point of interest is Tony Hale's portrayal of the twins in comparison to the books. I feel as if Mr. Benedict and Mr. Curtain are the one of the most fascinatingly different part of the show compared to the books.

I couldn't put into exact words a certain feeling I had about them, but then in doing my usual Dungeons and Dragons rounds, I figured it out.

In the show, both men have equally high Intelligence--it's undebated that their book smarts are through the roof.

Mr. Curtain in the books however, was easily: Charisma >> Wisdom

His book smarts? Undeniable. But whether it was arrogance or something else, he had awful reads on people. Which is why he never suspected Reynie and Sticky as spies, and why when it came to people he could only control them using the means his smarts could provide. Physical punishments in the Waiting Room, traps around the island, etc.

Dr. Curtain in the show is different:

Charisma = Wisdom

You can imagine how shocked I was as a book reader in the first scene of the new episode. Nothing slips past this Curtain. He knows something's up with the boys and that they didn't just arrive together by coincidence...and he also uses psychological tactics against them. (In a way, you could actually argue he and the Institute are way deadlier in this incarnation.)

Then comes the most recent revelation I had regarding Mr. Benedict in turn.

Mr. Benedict in the books is:

Charisma = Wisdom

He's very good with the children, and an extremely empathetic man with an almost sixth sense about what people are thinking and feeling.

In the show though, Mr. Benedict is actually:

Wisdom >> Charisma

Mr. Benedict is still a wonderfully warm, understanding, and compassionate man--but compared to his book self I realized that he is simply awful at explaining himself. (As exemplified by his scene with Ms. Pemural.)

I am fascinated by this and hope that I get to see it explored further. Just thought that I'd share my revelation with all of you though!

[phantomchaosfangirl]

Something interesting that was highlighted to me as a notable difference between the show and show is that they're endeavoring to give all of the kids more of a personal connection to the Institute, rather than as the group as a whole.

In the first book, the POVs were largely group oriented with Reynie as perhaps the member of the most focus. Sticky was secondary as with his status as a Messenger as well, with Kate coming in third with more specific spotlight moments for her specialty, and then Constance clutch in the end.

I'm seeing a lot more personal journeys and connections being focused on it this iteration, especially highlighted in the last episode.

Reynie's journey is largely the same from the books. Curtain has a noticeably more empathetic angle with Sticky, with him now being more of the favorite. Kate is having a coming of age and some involvement with Martina. And while Constance so far seems to be the outlier, she does have more independent involvement in the story.

This is an interesting angle that the writers are taking, and I'm excited to see how it plays out by the end. So far though, (especially with Sticky) it has been pretty fascinating.

[phantomchaosfangirl]

The Waiting Room is by far my favorite change from the book so far in the show.

Many of the show's changes have usually ranged in either mild pleasure, or a measure of curious confusion for me. (Those are usually the ones where we'll have to wait to see the full scope of the mystery and pay-off.)

The Waiting Room is something I can genuinely say is a fantastic idea, and might even be better than the books.

From a production standpoint, keeping to the original source material would have been difficult to shoot while also gaining full emotional impact. You would have had to have budgeted for enough mud (that would have been safe for the actor) bugs, and rigged something to account for safety measures for the actor not to get hurt. Also doing that in COVID could have also been a factor in making it difficult.

Alternatively, they could have not shown any of the Waiting Room at all, and instead simply cut to Sticky returning back to the room in his dazed state. (This would have harkened back to Alfred Hitchcock's form of horror, leaving things to the viewers' imagination to catastrophize it more.) However, pacing-wise in this instance I could envision this possibly leaving too little to the audience and not giving enough context to land a full enough emotional blow.

Speaking from a writing perspective, this Waiting Room really is brilliant to me. The Institute's potrayal in this leans heavily into the brainwashing element. Not just through the actual subliminal messages they're sending out, but through their schooling and rules. (Mr. Curtain himself in the show is leaning much into a life-coach kind of figure.)

A part of me always did feel that while the Waiting Room in the books did serve as a great threat to raise the stakes, the idea of being drowned in mud and bugs in hindsight seemed a bit...off, for the normally controlled Mr. Curtain. A child covered in mud dragging himself back to his dorm room evoked a sloppier and more overt threat to me.

Here--the Waiting Room is pure psychological torture. It's possibly displayed as being both sensory deprivation and overstimulation at the same time. And most horrifying of all--little time seems to even pass in it.

And it's untraceable.

Curtain could even have plausible deniability. After all, it doesn't hurt truly anyone. You're just sitting in a room for a while. Harmless.

That is terrifying. And it is brilliant.

It accomplishes the goal of a threat of punishment to the Society and raises the stakes--but also finds a way of rearing best of the Institute's darkest strengths against them.

You are as helpless outside of the room as you are being in there.

(And the biggest props to the writers--they even caught me off-guard.)

[phantomchaosfangirl]

SDCC Mysterious Benedict Society Panel with Cast and Crew!

On July 25th at 11:00AM PDT, the showrunners Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi along with the cast members of the show are all going to be discussing the Mysterious Benedict Society on a livestream!

[phantomchaosfangirl]

Regarding the New Story Direction in Episode Three...

I may or may not do a proper write up on the third episode with my fellow Mysterious Benedict Society fans, but I did want to talk about the peculiarity of the massive shift in story elements from the original book from episode 3!

Fellow fan (Society member? We really should have cooler monikers for ourselves.) isfjmel-phleg already wrote an absolutely wonderful observational piece speculating the motivations behind the writing changes and what threads they could be leading to, and what they serve as.

On my own end from the production standpoint, a recent interview with the showrunners Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi answered an inquiry I’ve had since development: If the show is renewed for more seasons--how are they going to do that with aging child actors?

This is always the dilemma with shows that have child-centric casts. Production takes time. And while the kids in the books can remain timeless, in reality kids grow like weeds.

The answer is that they have to diverge from the main story after book one.

And yes, that is disappointing. I know that isn’t something any fan wants to have to hear about their favorite series. But trust me when I say that there is promise in that and something to even look forward to!

Trenton Lee Stewart is a consultant on this show. The changes are very different, but they’re new takes and ideas that he’s presumably either had or enjoyed enough to greenlight. I don’t like seeing this as the story being rewritten, but almost the equivalent of us getting new books--except, a TV show. We’re getting new content from him with our favorite characters. It’s a new run after all this time!

Do I like everything they’ve done that’s new? No, but that’s alright. Because at least they’re trying to give us new and interesting things--giving even the old fans new mysteries to try and unravel! And that’s very exciting.

In a previous post I mentioned that bad adaptation is born from meaningless decisions to change things.

Bad adaptation is also born from an unwillingness to change anything at all. We’re all familiar with the recent Disney live-action movie remakes...and the core reason why they’re considered largely unentertaining are due to an unwillingness to change almost anything at all, and repackage the same content to us. But then that makes you question...why wouldn’t I just watch or read the original material for that story?

That’s not what we’re being given here, and I’m so thankful for that. I’m definitely going to miss seeing a lot of scenes I was hoping to adapted on screen--but honestly, I’d rather be surprised with new, fun content. (Number Two chopping the tree down in the background of a heartfelt talk wasn’t in the books...but I am so blessed to have gotten to see it.)

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I’ve done some thinking on Mr. Curtain’s lack of wheelchair and noticeable wardrobe change. From a writing and production standpoint, (with a reminder that Trenton Lee Stewart--the author of the books--was consulted on these changes) they’re doing an interesting concept between the twins.

In the books, the concept between Mr. Benedict and Mr. Curtain was the idea of parallels. The same green plaid, identical facial features, etc. The idea of the two being virtually the same man, but their attitudes were what diverted them into their two different paths.

In the show, they seem to be the idea of exploring contrast between Mr. Benedict and Mr. Curtain. This is displayed in their wardrobe changes of warm toned greens for Mr. Benedict and cool toned blues for Mr. Curtain. A softer texture and silhouette for Mr. Benedict, while Mr. Curtain has a noticeably sharp silhouette and smoother textured fabric.

Reynie even states in the show proper that the two men have the same face, but their body proportions are different from one another. (With Mr. Curtain being much thinner.)

Why is his wheelchair missing is also another interesting query, but fellow fan its-just-a-dream-away wrote up an amazing theory crafted from their own personal experiences with narcolepsy. To surmise and add onto it, I believe that we are operating on different rules on the twins’ narcolepsy as opposed to the books, purposefully done with new story in mind. The wheelchair isn’t necessary for them.

Mr. Curtain is a huge mystery right now for even the original fans of the books, and a part of me feels treated to be left guessing with the non-book viewers alike.

I think the reason we haven’t seen Curtain’s narcolepsy yet is because we haven’t seen him angry yet. Curtain’s narcolepsy is usually brought on by extreme fits of anger whereas Benedict’s is usually brought on by happiness. So that’s why Benedict didn’t fall asleep when he was angry and why Curtain hasn’t fallen asleep yet because we haven’t seen him angry yet. I do wonder why they got rid of Curtains plaid suit and glasses and wheelchair though since the plaid was so that he would keep calm and the glasses and wheelchair were so that no one would notice when he’d fall asleep. We know the plaid thing is canon in the show because Rhonda and Number Two use it to calm down Mr Benedict so I wonder what the reasoning is for getting rid of those things. (I know that happiness and anger are not the only reasons they fall asleep because I think that if I’m remembering correctly at one point Mr Benedict falls asleep out of fear but I think those are the main reasons they fall asleep. Anger for Curtain and Happiness for Me Benedict)