I was glad to see that this show managed to overcome my skepticism. With Tim Burton this seemed like it should have been a perfect match of artist and muse, but the trailers had me concerned.

I still find the casting of the majority of the Addams family as the biggest disservice to the series, but they play such brief supporting roles that it allowed Jenna Ortega to be the primary focus and do an excellent portrayal of an older Wednesday Addams.

Thanks to the amount of screen time she was allotted, there was ample time to overcome the odd casting choices of the rest of the family. The writing was also exactly what I expected for the character, cold and sharply cutting quick-witted rebuttals that Ortega delivers with the emotional vacancy needed to fit the role.

The overarching story is a simple "who dun it?" plot that limited the chances of being exposed to plot holes while serving as a vehicle to explore the expanded setting with.

All new characters are pretty much high school tropes, even falling into nicknamed cliques and social circles based on what kind of spooky monsters they are, but thankfully Burton dialed back the teen drama that tends to ruin shows like Cobra Kai.

I still can't get over the fact that Gomez looks like a meth dealer, and Morticia went from being agelessly regal to looking old and tired. Overall, it still succeeds in being entertaining and accomplishing what it wanted to, with enough plots lingering in the background for more seasons. Each episode had a lot going for it, making them feel longer than they were.