Emma Approved

[osprey_archer]

I have given Emma Approved four episodes. I will continue to give it more episodes, because it definitely succeeds at being entertaining (and Harriet is adorkable)...but I’m not so sure about its successfulness as an adaptation

Comments

[osprey_archer]

They got Knightley almost right, which makes the Harriet thing more frustrating. It messes up his concern about her egotism and also suggests that he can't/doesn't want to deal with her.

If he finds Emma so irritating that he needs to offload her caprices onto a hapless assistant - and there seems to be no real business reason for Emma to need an assistant - it's going to be hard to buy Emma and Knightley's romance.

The fact that Emma gets an assistant she doesn't need also points out the EA's Emma's self-importance seems awfully hollow. In the book, Emma's a little full of herself, but it's a slightly exaggerated reflection of her actual abilities: not only is she rich, clever, and beautiful, but she's of central importance to her social circle and has clearly been running her father's social life for years, in such a way that he enjoys himself and his companions also have a good time, despite his gentle selfishness. Of course she believes she knows best.

EA Emma is still beautiful and rich, but she doesn't have the same background of actual competence to explain her delusions of grandeur.

[asakiyume]

Yeah, I love the way actual Emma manages her father. It shows the real power that a young, female person could actually wield, and how she does it. And you're right: she manages it so that everyone can have a good time.