Hello, hello friends!

I felt like talking about books becoming TV series, or sort of TV series in general because the Shadow and Bone trailer thingy (idk, announcement? it was on twitter lol) for netflix was dropped the other day and I am... conflicted! >_<

So, I will admit that the last few years I've been watching TV series less and less because they disappoint the hell out of me. A lot start out well, seasons 1 to 3 tend to be strong then they fucking plummet. I do think one of the reasons is the fact that there are soooo many series now that a lot of ideas are repeated, only incredibly badly lol Obviously you can make a trope original by giving a little twist, but I certainly don't see it happening a lot. And you can have repeating tropes, but many just aren't done... well.

Many series are dragged out for the sake of popularity (which is an issue with a lot of media) and the more they are dragged out, the worse they get. There's also a big fixation on making TV series "realistic," and yet they are so unrealistic that it actually hurts lol

Speaking of which! If you don't know who Kennie J.D. is, she's a youtuber that you should totally watch. She has a video about Euphoria where she talks about realism in shows. She articulates how I feel about a lot of shows nowadays very well. I'll leave a link in the description if you're interested. Definite recommend. Now back to the point!

If you don't know what the Shadow and Bone series is, it's a young adult fantasy series by Leigh Bardugo. There are other series that are tied to the story, thus making the Grisha Verse. I am a bit late to the scene because I read S&B as well as the Six of Crows duology only this year. I absolutely adored both series, although I definitely loved Six of Crows more, like, I can't recommend it enough *chef's kiss*

Obviously my worry is that netflix is gonna screw it up. Why? Because when media adapts books they somehow regularly manage to colossally fuck them up, although they have a damn manual on how to make a good show. JUST FOLLOW THE DAMN BOOKS! *flips table* They also announced that they are combining Shadow and Bones with Six of Crows so they will have to change a few things, which is even more terrifying. If they fuck up the story and characters with Six of Crows, I will throw hands!!!! >_<

I would say that I have faith Leigh Bardugo wouldn't allow them to destroy her hard work, but that isn't how contracts work. I have no idea how involved she is with the series or if they take her opinions into account. Rick Riordan is a good example of someone that was completely shoved out of the adaptation of his novels and because the studio didn't listen to him, the movies were flops, to say the least. I hope Bardugo got a good deal with netflix and I hope she is heavily involved in the adaptation process, otherwise I will have very little hope this series does well (for me, at least.)

I'm wondering if I should watch the series in April or pretend it doesn't exist lol I do like most of the cast that was announced. Don't like the actor they chose to play the main villain, the Darkling, though.

I'm not sure if I simply am not the audience that TV series are trying to connect with, or if shows really are just getting worse. There are a rare few that I've been genuinely interested in over the last few years. I was pleased with The Witcher, Kingdom, Game of Thrones (up to a point lol), Umbrella Academy, The Mandalorian, and The Boys. There are other series that I watch and, yeah, they're technically good, but they don't have me coming back for more. They don't make me feel anything for the characters or the plot. A lot of them are so infused with pointless drama and incredibly exaggerated lives, of teenagers in particular, that I'm more interested in the apps on my phone than what is on the TV screen.

I admit that I watch a decent amount of korean dramas now. While 9 times out of 10 they are predictable and unoriginal, I think I like them because they end quickly enough that they don't exhaust me lol About 16 to 20 episodes then it's over, compared to our series that run 6 seasons and I'm ready to punt the MC's by season 2 or 3. Of course, I don't get too attached to characters or plots in those dramas either. Due to constant disappointment, I've become very picky about what shows to watch. I tell myself to give the series 3 to 5 episodes to see if it'll catch my interest. If it doesn't then I'm gone. If I get bored later on, I give another 3 to 5 episodes to see if it picks back up. If it doesn't then, again, I'm gone.

What about all of you, though? Are you a big fan of TV series? If so, why? If you aren't, why not? What are some of your favorite shows you watched this year? Are you excited or dreading the Shadow and Bones series? Let me know!

Also, I am terrible at blogs, as you have seen by my absence, hehehehe! If you have any writing questions or topics you'd like me to discuss, leave them in the comments and I'll get around to them if I can! ^^

Until next time, toodles~