Oh the infamous words that begin Jane Austen's timeless classic, Pride and Prejudice! A very good friend of mine introduced this book to me when I was 12 years old. And ever since that moment, I've been reading this story at least once a year. I've seen the numerous adaptations, including 1995 BBC version, starring Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle; the 2004 film, starring Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen; 1940 film, starring Laurence Olivier and Greer Garson; and, of course, the modern adaptation Bridget Jones' Diary, starring Renee Zellweger and Colin Firth (again!).
This is a story that NEVER gets old, no matter how many times I've read it. Seriously, I've replaced two copies of it already because they were coming apart.
However, the most MARVELOUS thing happened that changed how I perceived this story.
THIS.
And you thought Bridget Jones' Diary was a modern adaptation!
The Lizzie Bennet Diaries is a modern adaption of Jane Austen's beloved story. Elizabeth Bennet, or "Lizzie" in this case, is a 24 year old grad student (this sounds really familiar...). The story of Pride and Prejudice is told in the form of 100 vlogs on Lizzie's channel on Youtube, averaging about 5 minutes in length.
Similar to the fashion of how I was introduced to the story by a friend, a friend (who also shares a love for all things Jane Austen) from college introduced this series to me April '12. And what a GLORIOUS journey it has been for the past year.
Unfortunately, today was the last episode. And this is me pretty much releasing all the feelings that this show has created in me for the past year.
Story/Plot *Spoilers**Spoilers**Spoilers*
You would assume, since I've been reading this story for 12 years, that I would not be surprised by what's in store. Oh...how wrong that assumption was. Of course, I knew it was a modern adaptation. Therefore, there were going to be some tweaks on how the story was going to go. They did mix up some of the happenings in the story (such as things that happened later, were shown earlier; things that happened earlier, happened later).
Like many viewers, I was quite intrigued of how the creators/writers of the show were going to portray the Lydia/Wickham drama. I was highly intrigued when the drama consisted of a sex video. Some viewers were not pleased by that and I can see their displeasure. However, I thought it fit perfectly. I'm sure there were other ways they could've of shown this, but I was quite pleased of with the creators/writers choosing a sex video to portray the Lydia/Wickham drama arc.
If you have read the book, you know what originally happened. In short, Lydia did something in which her reputation, and the reputation of her family, is on the brink of ruin. I believe that is why the creators picked a sex tape. A sex tape is FOREVER and can be readily available on the internet. If the sex tape between Lydia and Wickham were ever released, it will be difficult for Lydia to find any semblance of a normal life.
While the main focus of the book and the LBD series was on Lizzie's life, the creators made several spinoffs during the progression of the series. Lydia had her own vlogs and we got to see a different side to her and saw how the Lydia/Wickham drama developed and escalated. Maria Lu (Charlotte's little sister) showed how Charlotte was doing in Collins and Collins, away from Lizzie. And of course, the Pemberley Digital Domino videos, which showed how Darcy, Gigi, and Fitz tracked down Wickham. The series not only showed Lizzie's perspective, but also the perspective of other characters and showed a different angle to certain plot elements.
Transmedia
I sometimes forget that the characters of Lizzie, Jane, Charlotte, Lydia, and etc. were not real. The transmedia team did a FANTABULOUS job of incorporating every aspect of these characters' lives in the modern world. Like many people today, we have facebook, twitter, and tumblr accounts. Similarly, these characters have facebook, twitter, and tumblr accounts...and a plethora of other accounts.
One of my favorite aspects of this story was reading the dialogue between certain characters (particularly between Gigi [Georgiana Darcy] and Fitz [Colonel Fitzwilliams]) as they happened on twitter (yes, I follow these characters on twitter...DON'T JUDGE ME). It showed a different side to the story...and made me much more attached to certain characters that I was never really attached to in the book.
Part. 2 of this blog post will be tomorrow (or later today) in which I give my thoughts on each (yes each) character of the show.
Stay tuned!
