Justice for Anadil

17:20 the worst thing Sophie does in the movie is like, cause a fight between Good and Evil which ends in no one remaining dead. meanwhile in the book she kills like 200 wolves and fairies after learning theyre humans trapped in bodies

To me, it feels like they wanted a different moral basis for the movie and gutted the story to get that across, using the story as a skeleton for a different telling if that makes sense.

The thing that bothered me in the visuals was a decision to make many pretty dresses, not the uniform. I see what they wanted to make, but it is the school, so the uniform should be present, as well as the reaction of Agatha and Sophie about them. For me it's a detail, but it's really important in my vision of the characters and their future transformations.

The trailer for the books was more interesting than the whole Netflix adaptation

Honestly every book adaptation should be an animated series (cept lotr) imo

SPOILERS for books 1-3

Honestly I'm torn on the Gregor inclusion. I think having him fail is a great adaptation decision, the stakes of failing were only ever hypothetical in the book. That seemed like a flaw even at the time, and it'd be even weaker without the internal monologue, so having a sacrificial lamb is definately the best change the film made. That said, having him replace the Gargoyle is a mixed bag. On the one hand, it does make the interraction more personal. But, the fact the interraction wasn't personal is what made Agatha so good. Trying to save and being upset when a friend is killed isn't any special degree of goodness, it's basic decency. Agatha trying to save and getting upset over the death of a stranger who tried to kill her simply because they were a person in pain is what showed what a genuinely good person she was. Movie Agatha isn't all that good, and movie Sophie isn't all that evil. The point of the book characters is that even though they sometimes take actions that align with the other side, like most of book 2, fundamentally, Agatha is truly good and Sophie is truly evil.

Pacing-wise, I think the movie actually has a better climax. The book climax is very rushed IMO, and kind of breaks its own rules. (the nevers and evers keep switching roles every time they perform an action that aligns with another side. But they've been breaking the rules in microchosm for the whole book without this happenning. The big switch makes sense since it was the entire student body choosing to act like the other side, but it effecting them individually doesn't make much sense) The film's climax sees the fight last a lot longer, and it makes more logical sense that Sophie's side is winning; I get what the book's going for with the Storian bending reality specifically to help good win, but then how did Sophie win the circus of talents if the Storian literally will not let evil win? So I prefer the movie's climax - Refal aside - but unfortunately the trade-off is ... the entire rest of the story. The first two acts blow by so quickly, they may as well be a power point presentation.

And lastly ... the Blood Magic makes me so irritated. I've only read the first three books, so for all I know, it is a thing at some point in the series, but Refal certainly never mentions it - in fact his prime colour is blue in the books. But it's just so dumb, it's a corruptive influence that turned Refal more evil apparrantly ... Refal ... the guy who was pure evil, the guy picked as one of the School Masters because he was pretty much the embodyment of evil? How do you CORRUPT pure evil? The original point behind killing his brother was seemingly that his nature and desire for dominance eventually overtook him, and led him to making the greatest mistake of his life which he spends the rest of it trying to correct. The books have Black Swan Gold, which, yes, does make pure evil Sophie more evil. But that's not because that wasn't inside her all along, it's because Refal doesn't have the time or patiance to watch Sophie keep struggling to be good, he needs her to embrace her truely evil self immediately and wholely. It makes her torture children, but that's not because she didn't have it in her to do that before, she re-opens the Doom Room after becomming Dean after all. The gold just removes her inhabitions, making her evil less targetted and more innate. Hester and Lady Lesso believes evil has purpose, whereas Refal believes in evil for its own sake, its why Lesso wants to defeat good, whereas Refal wants to annihalate the concept of good entirely. It's that fundamental difference in ideology that leads the entirety of New Evil to turn on Refal. Movie Refal is so boring by comparrison, Book Refal wanted to protect the students, because of course he did, he was School Master for 200 years, if he wanted the school destroyed, he would have done it, and he would have approved of people like Evelyn Sader. Book Refal is wholey committed to evil, he has to prove evil can be truly happy without good, because if it can't, that means he destroyed his own one chance at happiness when he killed his brother. He's desperation and denial crystalised into pure evil that matches Sophie perfectly. Movie Refal wants to destroy the world so he can rule the ashes just because. Book Refal is so interesting because he is pure evil, but his ultimate ambition is true love, and his motivation is to be happy, the same as Sophie. He spends the third book trying to stop the end of the world - allbeit on his terms - not cause it. Movie Refal is just insane because evil magic, which is antithetical to evil as a whole in the books; evil is a central aspect of the world, ergo: evil does not seek the world's destruction.

Haven't read the books.  But want to now.  Sounds like it's structure needed to be a series, not a movie.

One of the things that really irked me as a book reader is that the fusion of Lesso and Evelyn completely ruins any possibility of a second movie. I don't want a second movie, and I know they probably knew they couldn't make another, but the concept of starting your story screwing off anything tied to it's sequel book is so messed up. I actually think ultimately them writing the script knowing there wouldn't be a sequel is what created the bs with Rafal. Also I'm so upset August was taken out. He's another victim of the no sequel curse because I feel a lot of his purpose was to foreshadow Agatha's connection to Stefan(sorry if that's spelled wrong) but he would've been the perfect replacement for the school master popping up randomly. I just miss him revealing stuff. I also thought that his taxidermy and the student reveal was one of my fav eerie moments. Sad

I read the trilogy when I was sixteen or something, and I liked the first book, but neither of the sequels. It bothered me that the second book found Agatha regretting her choice of Sophie over Tedros.

I didn't even know they were making a film adaptation until I saw this video lol. I've had the first book since it came out but I've never read past it cause I was always content with the story it provides. However, I am now much more intrigued to read the others

Yoooo I love how you brought up story thieves, I read that book around the same time I read SGE, I love books that subvert tropes and agree Sophie should have been actually evil like she was in the book. Another thing about the movie (and this is a small grievance I have but still) is that Kiko was barely in it. She was one of my fav characters and one of the only ppl who was nice to Agatha and hung out with her. idk I just wish she was there more

You're a great presenter (speaker? video essayist?) I completely forgot about this series. Might have to pick it up again

Please do more SGE videos, my bff and I finished the original run, watched the movie, and are now reading the prequels.
She just showed me your video cause she knows I've been starving for book content, and I completely fucking agree with all of your takes iin this video.

I have watched so many videos talking about this adaptation and yours is the best one I've seen! I came into this series when the 2nd was still pretty new (the fact that I was in my mid 20s isn't important lol) and, as a lifelong fan of fairy tales and fairy tale adaptations, loved how dark and rich the character arcs were especially for a series found in the kids section of my local B&N. The movie was extremely flawed and I had to practically beg some people to read the book because after only watching the movie their response was, "Seriously? This is the series you love so much?"

Ironic realisation that I want to share: I started to read School for Good and Evil after a while when I finished reading another crazy book series - The Sisters Grimm. I was born to read such fairytale retelling series, lmao. 🤪
Thank you for your review of the books and the movie! I really like it.)) P.S. The books are the true winners here. 🏆

There is a newer series, by Jessica Townsend you may enjoy.  It has 3 books so far:
Nevermore: The trials of Morrigan Crow
Wundersmith: The calling of Morrigan Crow
Hollowpox: The Hunt for Morrigan Crow
Silverborn: The Mystery of Morrigan Crow is due in 2023.

It is a really fun fairly unique world with fascinating characters and an interesting magic system.

Hort is the best character in the movie for me.) I like this actor a lot for his energy he gave for this character. 😊

35:10 omg, someone finally addressed the possibility of callis being in permanent blackface! and it also implies that vanessa lightened her skin and bleached her hair in order to look more like her daughter

I LOVED the books but the movie was a complete disaster, they Percy Jacksoned it. I also dare you to make more videos about this fandom and agree that Tedros is the worst in every media.
Spoilers for the books



Agatha didn’t look and think she was ugly, erasing any chance for character development. Sophie didn’t kill the Beast and her evil was toned down a lot, she really was a horrible person. Every day of her life was dedicated to her becoming a princess, so she did “good deeds “ with selfish motives and never thought of herself as evil. Tedros was changed, his whole thing about not repeating his father’s mistakes gone. He didn’t look like the perfect prince we know. Sophie wasn’t a social outcast. The whole town knew about the school and tried to stop the kidnapping. Sader was gone, so were Castor and Pollux. The Trial by Tale wasn’t just for Sophie and Tedros, but for others too. Surviving Fairy Tales, the rules of good and evil and the Circus of Talents, erased. Sophie and Agatha had to ride a stymph to get to the School Master’s tower, there wasn’t stairs. Tedros was attracted to Sophie’s normal form and not her goth. Agatha and Tedros HATED each other in the beginning. Lady Lesso doesn’t have a crush on Rafal, that was Evelyn Sader. Anadil wasn’t an albino like she was in the books. Lady Lesso’s hair’s black and has violet eyes and that wasn’t there. Gregor and blood magic don’t exist in the books. Rafal isn’t white haired and pale like he is the books, and his name isn’t revealed until the third book. He isn’t supposed to pop up everywhere in the story and doesn’t manipulate Sophie in the first book. The Snow Ball never happened in the books but did in the movie. Agatha doesn’t use Excalibur to defeat Rafal, his brother comes back from the dead for a minute to defeat him. Tedros and Agatha don’t kiss until the end of the second book. Agatha doesn’t ask him for permission to leave, she and Sophie just leave suddenly. Their fingerglows are different colours, and they don’t have them in Gavaldon. The friendship between Sophie and Agatha wasn’t genuine from the start, it grew to be real. That’s what I remember for now.