TV review: The Mysterious Benedict Society
I first read this children's book by Trenton Lee Stewart - the first in a quartet - several years ago, thanks to my son who was a huge fan.
Disney+ premiered two episodes of the mystery adventure series adaptation of the award-winning bestseller last week, and we have been hooked.
From the casting to the vivid Wes Anderson-like set production, everything is spot-on. The theme song is an earworm too.
However, the story development can be a tad slow and confusing for those who have not read the book.
Four gifted children - Reynie Muldoon (Mystic Inscho), George "Sticky" Washington (Seth Carr), Kate Wetherall (Emmy DeOliveira) and Constance Contraire (Marta Kessler) - are recruited by the enigmatic Mr Nicholas Benedict (Tony Hale) to find out who is sending subliminal messages hidden in television signals that are causing an international panic.
Hale may be brilliant as the narcoleptic genius, but the child actors are the real heroes, especially the scene-stealing Kessler.
There will be six more episodes of The Mysterious Benedict Society, and I hope Disney+ will adapt the other books too.
THE MYSTERIOUS BENEDICT SOCIETY (PG)
SCORE: 4/5
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