Gaiman has talked about how he made this show to honor Terry Pratchett. He went all in as well. Showrunner and wrote all 6 episodes.
It hits Amazon Prime streaming tonight, I think, and I’ve been looking forward to it for awhile.
Anyone else looking forward to it? Thoughts?
Note: It is indeed online here on the East Coast. I thought it hit at midnight tonight, but it is almost 8 PM and it is online through Amazon Prime.
Will watch first one tonight for sure.
OOoo! SQUEE!
I thought it wouldn’t be here until tomorrow!
::: scampers off :::
We’re not going to watch until this weekend, but it isn’t like I don’t know what happens. I know Neil changed the ending somewhat, but I trust him.
Nice inside joke with Arthur Young referring to Crowley as “Doctor”… 
I’m cautiously looking forward to this. I love Pratchett to death and have mixed-to-positive opinions on Gaiman’s work. Good Omens was never really a personal favorite, though; I think it’s good fun but doesn’t QUITE have either the vivid characters I love Pratchett for or the intricate storytelling and world-building I love in Gaiman.
At the same time, it’s also one of Pratchett’s works that I’m least precious about, which means that enjoying the show on its own merits is a lot more likely.
I’m willing to give it a shot, but the book was mostly dull.
I’m 2 episodes in and loving it so far. I’m noticing a few slight tweaks, but they’re to the good I think.
I liked the first episode, but was also not a huge fan of the book. Very overrated, hoping the adaptation improves it.
OK, the baby swap. Explain it to me.
Antichrist went to regular family. Named Adam.
Regular baby went to family where he was influenced by Demon/Angel. Named Warlock.
Third baby is who and what happened to him/her?
I honestly forget.
3rd baby:
What happened to him? The authors aren’t specific. They imply that he had a normal childhood, raised fish and liked model planes. “If it makes you feel any better…” as they put it.
In the book, it was more or less outright stated (in a footnote) that the 3rd baby became the child known as Greasy Johnson.
Which is only fitting.
I was hoping I’d like it more because it brings together things I like a lot to varying degrees. I enjoy Gaiman, I love Pterry, and I am celebrating my 25th anniversary in this waning month of my devotion to my #1 all-time fave, Tori Amos. (She did the song over the closing credits of the final episode. That episode also featured a reference to one of her songs so I was doubly happy).
I wouldn’t give it an A+, but it was an enjoyable way to spend a lazy day. A solid B+. Definitely something I’d recommend to the sort of person I think would like it, but not a general recommendation.
There were some changes from the books, but like typoink, it wasn’t one I am super protective of and Neil himself made those changes. I wasn’t like “That’s NOT what happens!” at all and usually I’m a major book snob. I easily got over it here. So at least I learned I can appreciated an adaptation that isn’t 100% faithful.
I spent a good chunk of this week crying my eyes out reading things about Pratchett. There’s a quote about how neither of them will believe an adaptation will occur until they’re sitting in a theater with popcorn and people put his hat and scarf and a bag of popcorn in a reserved seat at the premier and I just lost it. Plus it’s getting a lot of Pterry fans to shout their love and it’s bittersweet… kind of like him.
GNU, Pterry.
Overall it was pretty good, and was reasonably faithful to the book, there were a couple of very minor points I wish were included, like when Crowley was “feeding”* the ducks in the park pond, and I wish the Other Four Bikers of the Apocalypse were there, and the throwaway gag line describing CHOW**
**It had the nutritional equivalent of a Sony Walkman
In the last episode, towards the end:
In the bookstore, the camera lingered over a series of books (that reminded me of The Hardy Boys), and the angel made a remark about them being new. I didn’t get it. What did I miss about the books?
Adam “put things back”, but some things were a bit different. Instead of Aziraphale’s bookstore stocking first editions of bibles and books of prophecy, it had complete first editions of vintage childrens’ adventure stories. So while the books were vintage (and not new by reason of age) they were not stock he’d ever carried before, so they were new (to him and in the store).
I think I rather like the bit of change Gaiman introduced at the end. It made more sense, since neither side struck me as the sort to just let things go unless something *really *made them back off. I did miss the Four Other Horsemen, but this was pretty danged crowded with events and 6 hours long already; they didn’t really add anything to the story, so cutting them out didn’t really change anything.
Really, the only two things that irked me were the completely anachronistic armor that Crowley and Aziraphale were wearing (for a very short period of time) and that Death just … well, Death really wasn’t all that impressive. I expected … more. A darker voice. Something.
I haven’t read the book. I’m guessing from context that the change Neil made was:
At the end, when they masqueraded as each other to avoid the death by holy water/hellfire. I very much liked that bit. I admit to being fooled: They hung around each other so much and were so influenced by each other, I thought they HAD changed enough that the fire/water wouldn’t hurt them.
After watching The Colour of Magic, I think I’ll always hear Pratchett’s, “Death” as Christopher Lee. They should have given that role to Benedict Cumberbatch. Any deep, processed, booming voice would have done for The Devil.
As for the books:
Thanks for explaining that. I like that Adam would put loved children’s books in place of the religious and prophecy texts.
Finally, I was disappointed when Anathema:
Burned the prophecies. Wouldn’t Agnes have predicted that and not bothered to write them? Also, that hurts the sequel possibilities, though I guess they never wrote a follow-up to the first book, and Neil probably didn’t want more of it made without Terry’s help/input.
Re: Anathema:
I feel it was in keeping with the “test to destruction…but not really” theme.
Burning the books was the same as Adam choosing to be on the side of the humans.
Free will triumphs over predestination.
Just FYI:
[spoiler] The book series was Biggles. British adventure series.
At least it was in the novel. I’ve not seen the TV version, but I’m assuming it’s the same. [/spoiler]
And (not like it matters) Aziraphale knows what they are worth. An Imperial shit-ton.