Book to TV: The Dresden Files
Review of the Short-lived SciFi Series Based on Jim Butcher's Novels
The Dresden Files was based on a popular series of urban fantasy novels featuring Chicago wizard Harry Dresden. Airing from January to April of 2007 on the Sci-Fi Channel (now SyFy), the series only lasted a single season of twelve episodes, plus a pilot movie that was shown in full in early 2008. The cancellation appeared to have been due more to production issues than to ratings, though ratings were not as high as the network would have liked.
Jim Butcher’s Harry Dresden
The Harry Dresden of Jim Butcher’s novels is a wizard in Chicago who works as something of a paranormal private investigator. His relationship with the local police is shaky at best, though he has an ally in Karin Murphy, with whom he often pairs on investigations. His relationship with the local magic community is arguably even shakier, since he’s wanted by the White Council for the murder (in self-defense) of his Uncle Justin, and use of dark magic.
With complex plots and a richly layered version of a Chicago filled with paranormal danger, Butcher’s Dresden novels have gathered a legion of loyal followers. The audio book versions, narrated by James Marsters of Buffy the Vampire Slayer fame, have also brought in an additional bevy of fans who arrived at Dresden’s doorstep while trailing after Marsters.
These fans were understandably concerned about how these books would translate to television, particularly as regarded Bob, Dresden’s ghost lab assistant, who is largely confined to a human skull as his major place of residence. The final adaptation of the novels was met with mixed reactions.
Television’s Harry Dresden
In spite of a push among fans to have James Marsters play Harry Dresden, English actor Paul Blackthorne finally landed the role. (Marsters did not want to relocate to Canada for the show, citing family obligations.) Blackthorne did a solid job with the role, but many fans disliked the way the character was adapted, as well as the way the show runners pulled some elements from the novels and ignored others.
Several episodes of the show are loosely based on elements from Butcher’s novels, including “Storm Front” and “Hair of the Dog.” In both instances, the hour-long format is simply not long enough to allow for a full story to be told. Even the original 90-minute adaptation of Storm Front proved sparse compared to the novel. Given the success of later adaptations, Dresden might have done better to devote an entire 13-episode run to a single book, much as True Blood has done.
Another point of contention among fans was the treatment of Bob. In the book, Bob is a ghost who speaks primarily through the human skull where he resides. In the show, he is represented as a full-fledged person, played by Terrence Mann. While many fans were offended by this change, the full-length pilot, in which Bob is confined to his skull, aptly demonstrates the drawbacks of this approach.
As an adaptation of the original novels, The Dresden Files fell short in many ways. On its own, though, free from comparison to the novels, it is a fun watch, and a strong addition to the list of paranormal television. Unfortunately, its short run did not allow it to achieve any additional growth.
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