Have you heard about The Magicians? That new show on SyFy that is frickin amazing? If not, shame, shame on you and everything you stand for as a person. The Magicians, another show that is based on a novel, can only really be described as a mixture of Harry Potter and The Chronicles of Narnia. Quentin Coldwater has just been accepted into Brakebills, a school that trains magicians. He feels like his real life is about to begin, but knowing about magic is only the beginning of this crazy ride. So let me give you 10 reasons why you should watch this show.
One: Magic! Duh
What would a show about magicians be without magic? Well, a show about crappy magicians but that is beside the point. The visuals in The Magicians are simply stunning. The show seems to capture the wonder and excitement of doing magic. Not just something you can see, but something you can feel.
Two: Hogwarts For Adults
Magic isn’t for the lucky, it belongs to the incredibly disturbed. The sad and the longing. Magic is born out of pain. Brakebills isn’t a happy place filled with mystical wonder. It’s work.
Three: No Good Guys
It would be hard to find the “good” side in The Magicians. Every character has their own selfish goal that they are trying to build to. No overwhelming moral compasses here. No one is trying to fight the greater evil, (I mean they are but not really) most of them are following a path that becomes visible with time. In fact, the main bad guy only brings them together in the end.
Four: Interesting Secondary Characters
Most tv shows are broken up into acts. They follow both what the main characters and what the side characters are doing. In some cases, this leaves us with an interesting and a less interesting storyline. That is simply not the case here. We are getting to know the entire magical world as all the characters figure out what magic means to them.
Five: Brakebills
No one is holding your hand here and spellwork is known to kill. If you are attending Brakebills then you are proceeding at your own risk. No one is holding your hand here, which only makes the situation even more intense. Plus, look at that beautiful campus.
Six: Bad Ass Women
If you were looking for strong female characters kicking ass then look no further. Most of the girls on this show are running things, with the best magician being Alice of course. I wouldn’t want to be on the bad side of any of these women.
Seven: A Beautiful Adaptation
Nothing will ever follow the original source material to the letter. That being said, The Magicians is actually a pretty good TV adaption. There are some choices that made me scratch my head a little, (why the hell is Josh only in a few episodes), but for the most part, the path that they follow works. So much so that the two could possibly be in the same timeline. So to speak.
Eight: Real Consequences
For the most part, no one is swooping in to help. You won’t see an older magician come in the nick of time to save the day and if you do it won’t go the way you think it will go. This has managed to always keep me on my toes. For the most part, everyone is fair game. Everyone isn’t getting a happy ending here, but that might not be a bad thing after all.
Nine: The Feels
The show manages to make you feel for a different character each episode. Whether it is bad ass Penny, neurotic Quentin, lonely Alice, elegant Eliot, or smart mouth Margo, each character brings something to the table that makes you want to just give them a hug. Magic is pain remember.
Ten: It’s A Great Guilt Pleasure
You will laugh. You will cry. You will cry again. You will cry a third time. You will curse yourself for laughing in the first place. You will forget what laughter felt like. What it sounded like in your hollow voice. How it made you feel. Then, you will slumber. It’s a great time.
Pause For Snacks 