Season 1, Episode 5: You Reap What you Woe
Episode 5 starts with Nevermore’s parent’s weekend, which means the rest of the family is back for a cameo. So there are some interacts between Addams family characters as well as between Enid’s and Bianca’s families which are stained and toxic. Though all these interactions are isolated from each other are more or less B-plots from now.
This episode felt long. It should have some comedic interactions between the Addams members or maybe the other families but instead the episode is too consumed by a murder that happened 30 plus years ago. While it does factor in the overall plot the Addams family typically is a character-interaction based IP and that is sorely lacking as this show wants a plot that cleanly stitches all the threads together, much like Thing. So Morticia and Gomez’s past murder cover-up that was further covered ties back to main narrative involving Goody and the Burton monster. But of course we only learn what really happened in past because of exposition visions.
So how are the Addams Family members in this iteration? Their characterizations feels like affectations. They are trying hard to be a version of these characters and missing them at the same time. Morticia is all grace without any spark of passion. Gomez has a restrained passion but lacking charisma. And Pugsley had moments where he seemed more akin to the old-school “Addams vibe” but it was fleeting.
A prequel of Morticia and Gomez would be a compelling spin-off. Though Morticia had the wrong reaction when Gomez was fighting in the flashback.
While this episode had the potential to be comedic in the same vein as classic Addams Family, it was too bogged down by the plot. But that is the fault of having only 8 episodes with a very bloated plot.
Also it’s odd that Wednesday is so off-put by the idea that father could have murdered someone when she has no qualms with doing so herself or when Morticia revealed that Goody killed Crackstone, that all fine in her book. The real-real resolution of who killed the rich teen-aged stalker turned out it was poison and he was doomed anyway plus self-defense, which would have been the natural defense instead of Gomez taking the blame. All seemed very contrived which could have been forgiven if it was comedic because this show is pitched as comedy but it’s comedy-light at best. I just want a “Malibu Barbie” moment. Is that too much to ask?
