There's a pleasing level of total mystery surrounding Netflix's impending series based on Lemony Snicket's 13-book Series Of Unfortunate Events. We still don't know who's working on it either behind or in front of the camera, but it seems that one Eleanora Poe is responsible for the marketing campaign, and she's just released a teaser trailer. Warning: contains extreme spider violence.
Ms. Poe, readers of the gloomy tomes may remember, is the sister of Arthur Poe, the banker charged with managing the Quagmire fortune and the Baudelaire orphans' estate. So it's fitting that she should be stepping in to oversee their affairs in this regard.
The mournful ditty playing over the promo is a version of the Dresden Dolls' Missed Me, but note that the record on the gramophone is by Stephin Merritt's Snicket-influenced The Gothic Archies. There are plenty of visual gags and references like that included to ensnare the Snicket faithful, including a shadowy glimpse of the dastardly Count Olaf himself.
“On the search for fantastic material that appeals to both parents and kids, the first stop for generations of readers is A Series Of Unfortunate Events,” Netflix’s Cindy Holland said last year. “The world created by Lemony Snicket is unique, darkly funny, and relatable. We can’t wait to bring it to life for Netflix members.”
Snicket – the nom de plum character for author Daniel Handler – isn’t so sure. “I can’t believe it,” he said, from an undisclosed location. “After years of providing top-quality entertainment on demand, Netflix is risking its reputation and its success by associating itself with my dismaying and upsetting books.”
The series - which still doesn't even have a name - will cast its leaden pall on the streaming platform sometime in 2016.