This Emmy-award-winning web show was the first of its kind.
This Emmy-award-winning web show was the first of its kind.
T urn anywhere in a bookstore, and you’ll run into Jane Austen’s handiwork. Whether it’s the author’s beloved stories in the classics section, or Pride and Prejudice and Zombies over in horror, the stories of this leading literary light have deeply penetrated our culture. Spin-offs (Death Comes to Pemberley), teen-lit rewrites (Prom and Prejudice), and even board books (Pride and Prejudice: A BabyLit Counting Primer) fill the shelves. Television isn’t immune either, and a glance at any library’s movie section or streaming service’s offerings will reveal numerous Regency-era renderings of Austen’s tales. Added to that list are playful reimaginings such as Clueless, Bride and Prejudice, Austenland, and Bridget Jones’s Diary. The endlessly creative human spirit was not to be discouraged by this seeming glut of Austen, however, and in April 2012, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries aired on YouTube.
A decade later, the series holds up remarkably well. Set in a modern-day U.S. (presumably somewhere on the West Coast), it’s presented as a vlog-style diary narrated by one Lizzie Bennet, complete with cellphones, Twitter, and mildly amusing mid-2010s fashion. Before you pass judgment on yet another potentially mind-numbing Austen adaptation, though, wait.
Our Lizzie (played by Ashley Clements) is a grad student working on her communications degree. These five- to seven-minute vlogs are part of her thesis project, and through them, we meet her family, learn about her friends, and delight in her spunk. As with all worthwhile adaptations, a few well-chosen liberties are taken. Lizzie has one older sister, sweet Jane, and one younger sister, rambunctious Lydia. A cousin Mary and a cat named Kitty complete the set. Charlotte Lu, Lizzie’s dearest friend (and editor of the videos), makes many appearances throughout the series. Yes, Bing Lee and his sister Caroline feature prominently, as do George Wickham, Ricky Collins, Fitz, and the man himself: William Darcy.
Created by Bernie Su and Hank Green, this show isn’t just an updated retelling. It’s also a clever analysis of the original story. Elizabeth Bennet is an almost universally admired heroine, and because of that, it can be easy to overlook or dismiss unpleasant parts of her character. She does indeed despise Darcy for much of the book, disparaging him to herself and others over the course of many pages. Watching LBD, however, gives a new perspective to her words, as we see her mock Darcy, whom we don’t meet in person for nearly 60 episodes, relentlessly. In the book, Elizabeth eventually learns that she has been a rather poor judge of character, and so it goes for our Lizzie. From Darcy to Bing to Caroline to even Lydia, Lizzie discovers that her self-proclaimed excellent instincts about others were not always correct.
Not only does the script reflect the energetic, witty prose of Austen, the show is equally well-paced. Even though it follows the plotline of the book, the creative powers-that-be withhold some character appearances until late in the telling, while surprising viewers with others at unexpected junctures. As this venture was a low-budget project (though very professional in its production and cast), characters such as Mr. and Mrs. Bennet and Lady Catherine are cleverly depicted by Lizzie’s dressing up and impersonating them to the camera. Introducing them in this manner keeps the scenes and the plot from becoming cluttered or too long, and heightens the humorous aspect of the videos.
It also brings Austen’s auxiliary characters into sharper focus, as we see certain characters only through Lizzie’s eyes. The hesitancy of her friends to agree with her projections gives us pause, and within this amusing gimmick, we see major character development, as Lizzie begins to realize where she went wrong and how her portrayals are hurting others.
The writers mix humor and drama adeptly, from Lizzie’s breezy gaiety to some major disagreements between friends and sisters. There are fights (verbal ones), tears, surprises, and romance — all the elements of a captivating story happen in plausible ways with very few (but quite effective) scene changes. It moves you to tears and laughter, sometimes in the same episode.
This Emmy-award-winning web show was the first of its kind and used all means of social media available to further the production’s popularity. Twitter, Facebook, spin-off episodes (which help further minor bits of the story), and Q&A videos immersed viewers in the story and brought them into the lives of the characters like never before. The show also expertly navigates the effects that being “very online” can have on relationships, and just how difficult communication is.
That said, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries certainly won’t be everyone’s cup of tea. Jane Austen diehards may prefer their adaptations with period dress and without the slang and the (minimal) swearing. And they might object to the character arc the show gives Lydia. While we may vaguely grasp the utter scandal of her elopement in the book, this show brings home just how disastrous it really was by how the writers translate that event to our day. This element makes the show’s last 15 episodes fairly heavy, but gives Lydia’s character some redemption — yes, this is a departure from the original tale, but it’s one I’m willing to allow, owing to the larger message of family and healthy communication it promotes.
So if you have a few hours during these slow, gray January days, consider giving The Lizzie Bennet Diaries a chance. What you see will amuse and surprise you.