How many times do you say an actor is the best thing on TV and mean it?
Literally.
But during Wednesday’s eight glorious hours of Netflix drama, Thing steals the show.
In the latest Addams Family spin-off — currently the platform’s most-watched title in a single week — the four fingers and thumb captivate viewers with a performance that’s alternately hilarious, endearing, and heartbreaking at one stage.
The thing first appears when Morticia (Catherine Zeta Jones) and her husband Gomez (Luis Guzmán) drop off their morbidly sinister daughter Wednesday (Jenna Ortega) at their new school, Nevermore Academy.
Needing someone to keep an eye on them, they secretly free Thing from the bottom of the car from where it scurries off like a frantic spider on its secret mission, only to be quickly discovered on Wednesday, denouncing her parents as “evil puppeteers.” ‘She wants to pull my strings.’
Thing steals the show during Wednesday’s eight glorious hours of Netflix drama.
It runs, points, opens pockets, argues, sulks, makes friends, goes on rescue missions, sets fire traps – “My hands are clean,” says Wednesday – and is even the victim of an assassination.
In a show that’s essentially a war between “normies” – the seemingly normal people – and “outcasts” – the entire school and pretty much everyone else, Thing is not only an ally of Wednesday, but of her werewolf roommate as well Enid (Emma Myers).
You have to trust Victor Dorobantu, the Romanian magician and illusionist behind the link whose character Thing T. Thing – but known only as Thing – was created for the first Addams Family series in 1964.
Wednesday director Tim Burton, the goth flick legend behind ‘Beetlejuice’, ‘Edward Scissorhands’, ‘Nightmare Before Christmas’ and more, reportedly insisted ‘Thing’ be played by a real actor, who during filming had to be on set – and that wasn’t an easy part.
Despite some necessary special effects, it is Dorobantu’s real hand that carries the plot.
It runs, points, opens pockets, argues, sulks, makes friends, goes on rescue missions, sets fire traps – “My hands are clean,” says Wednesday – and is even the victim of an assassination.
The contortions require Dorobantu to manipulate himself in various ways – he finds himself upside down, poking through cutouts and hiding behind walls in a blue body suit that has been digitally removed from the final edit.
When the action is physically impossible, there are a number of prosthetic substitutes.
That thing is the James Bond of the Metacarpus world.
But the real magic is in the way Thing pulls at your hearts.
Thing helps Wednesday in her attempt to escape, turning her sheet music over when she plays the piano and delivering messages written on the palm of his hand. And when Wednesday is captured by the Normies, Enid is left to interpret Thing’s messages through his every move. talk to the hand She does, brilliantly.
It’s the greatest normalization of the odd, and their relationship is the focus of a show that celebrates love and friendship in utterly bizarre and often zany ways.
The contortions require Dorobantu (above in the blue suit) to manipulate himself in a variety of ways – finding himself upside down, sticking through cutouts and hiding behind walls in a blue body suit that has been digitally removed from the final edit.
A late blooming monster, Enid is an all round happy comic creation and her connection to Thing is delightful.
The surprise birthday party she and Thing arrange for a decidedly unimpressed Wednesday is touching in its effort to show two people who love the odd girl and are desperate to please her – and Thing’s party hat is the cutest and funniest prop.
Her hand-held communication is where we see why Thing gripped audiences. Stripping away all modern film tricks, character counts – and it’s Thing’s distinct relationships with each individual that give the hand its own distinct personality.
Enid’s relationship with Thing is the opposite of her relationship with her parents, who are disappointed that she hasn’t turned into the werewolf that is her destiny. All she has to show for this until the final episode is the occasional long nail, and they are keen on her participating in the lycanthropy conversion at a summer camp for werewolves.
Lycanthropy – an actual condition defined as a type of insanity involving delusions of being an animal.
“Don’t you want to let off steam and finally be normal, sweetheart?” her mother asks, using the example of cousin Lucille, who after seven weeks in the Balkans “howled at the moon in no time – as it should be”. It’s just one of many laughs.
When Uncle Fester (Fred Armisen) shows up in episode seven, it’s clear there’s bad blood between him and Thing.
How can a hand show resentment? It’s nothing short of miraculous, and throughout Thing’s scenes, Dorobantu manages to make each sinew speak through its own unique sign language to convey meaning.
The tenseness of a finger, the clenching of a fist, the gentle relaxation of the whole hand that, judging by its stitches, has seen so much in its little life.
And then there’s the moment of death when Thing gets stabbed. It’s one of many moments where the perfectly chosen and written music – a mix of well-known hits and original music – provides another emotional layer that, in the case of Thing, helps to understand this complex character. yes character I dare you not to delve deeply into the disembodied appendage.
The thing first comes up when Morticia (Catherine Zeta Jones; pictured left) and her husband Gomez (Luis Guzmán; pictured right) drop off their morbidly sinister daughter Wednesday (Jenna Ortega) at their new school, Nevermore Academy
That thing is the James Bond of the Metacarpus world. But the real magic is in the way Thing pulls at your hearts.
When Uncle Fester administers electric shocks to try to revive Thing, it seems all is lost.
I haven’t been this emotional about bringing a creature back to life since ET lay dying in an incubator. But phew! Like ET, Thing’s wound is healing and alive to fight another day, with Wednesday even more determined to take on the normies – “It ends now.”
Given the success of Wednesday and the genius of Thing, another spin-off simply called Thing would be a natural step – maybe a movie. The next big thing?
That thing is to Wednesday like Buzz Lightyear is to Woody in the first Toy Story – the hero who saves the day.
The thing is your favorite pet, your playmate, your savior, and the thing will always be with you when the rest of the world seems to be conspiring against you.
I’m predicting an Emmy and a Golden Globe for Dorobantu – don’t you just want to see this hand take an award? Perhaps awards shows could take it a step further and have Thing on stage alongside the hosts and interpreting what they’re saying with their signing.
The warning at the beginning of each episode promises “speech, violence, menace,” but pay attention to the characterization, writing style, humor, exquisite cinematography, and extraordinary special effects. But most of all, pay attention to the performance of the best actor of Dorobantu.
You have to leave it to Netflix. Literally.