Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry has nothing on Brakebill University.
Quentin and Julia get magically drafted to take an exam at Brakebill University, a place they believe to be a regular school. Julia takes a turn for the worst after failing the test. However, after Quentin’s success in the exam, he learns magic is more than real.
Quentin and his friends learn magic, but become rushed once they learn evil is hiding behind the mirror.
This show isn’t your typical wizards with wands running around a school. It has a lot of intense, action-packed moments.
In an interview, Lev Grossman, creator and author of “The Magicians,” said, “The same way George R.R. Martin is rewriting Tolkien, I was going to re-write ‘Harry Potter.’”
While doing some research on the creator of the show, I was able to discover he struggled with depression, which explains why there is a dark tone to the show.
According to Grossman, “The books do well among the clinically depressed, that’s a key demographic for ‘The Magicians’ book. It’s something a lot of people have had experience with and people have responded to about the books.”
In my opinion:
Overall, the show is catchy but fails to keep the audience’s attention. Each episode has its really good moments that draw you in, but they don’t last. In each episode, we learn more and more about the plot, which at times is unclear.
For example, there is this magical world Fillory, which resembles Narnia. We have limited information on this world. It gets brought up often in the show but the lack of information makes it a little confusing.
The way magic is presented in the show is different. They use specific hand movements to create the magic. This is something we don’t see often, which makes the show original. It is a cool concept and an interesting take on showing something often left to interpretation.
The lack of “magic” in the show surprises me. For a show to revolve around magic and mystical ideas, there isn’t a lot portrayed. Each episode has a limited amount of magic cast by the magicians.
Season one of “The Magicians” is available now on Netflix. Season two premieres Jan. 25 on Syfy.