If there is one good thing about an increasing number of streaming platforms, it’s the competition for them to produce quality content. Many have their own writers to create unique and compelling stories, while others take great works from other media and mold them into something new. In 2019, WarnerMedia announced an upcoming 10-episode miniseries for HBO Max, based off Emily St. John Mandel’s best-selling book Station Eleven -- and fans deserve an adaptation worth its salt.
Published in 2014, Station Eleven focuses on a global pandemic and the lives of its characters before and after the event. While HBO Max has not announced a release date, there are some factors of the book many fans would love to see, as well as some they wouldn’t.
What Fans Want
Television is obviously a visual medium, which allows scenes from books like Station Eleven to come alive. One of the most stunning visuals the book brought to life is that of The Traveling Symphony and its performance. This survival story is not about how humans survive after society collapses, but rather how humanity and art do. The book outlines a few of the different performances the symphony plays and it would be stunning to see these in the HBO Max series. The candlelit stage at dusk and the small intimate audience would make for a scenic treat.
Another special visual that the book brings to life is Miranda Carroll’s comics Station Eleven, which are fictional media within the book. These art pieces are often described in great detail and tie together the old world and the new. This comic could work in favor for the media team on the show, because it creates tie-in opportunities and promotional ideas.
Since Station Eleven takes place both before and after the collapse of society, there are major differences between the two times. The lack of transportation after the collapse makes the journey these characters take feel slow and suspenseful. There is little violence because, without doctors, any trauma could be a life sentence. The slow and quiet moments keep readers in suspense about what is going to happen next, while also allowing characters to have their time to shine.
On the other hand, the time before the collapse is fast-paced. Each chapter jumps many years through the characters lives. The pacing of the book is inconsistent, but both sides of the story complement each other. This is something that needs to be considered when writing a series. The story can’t only be about the characters before the collapse or the characters afterwards, they all tie in together.
What Fans DON'T Want
It would be best if HBO Max and the creative team behind Station Eleven avoid including too much information about the disaster. Although Station Eleven was a sci-fi pandemic piece published in 2014, the world has changed significantly since. The story can’t take place without some sort of global disaster, but it might be best if the TV series plot focuses on other aspects of the story.
One of the best things about this book is how realistic everything felt. Nearly everything about the book can be done through live action rather than CGI. The characters and setting are well-developed and realistic; while the timeline and coincidences can get a little far-fetched, they still feel grounded. To accomplish that same feeling in the HBO Max series, the creators should avoid CGI and focus on telling the human story at the core of Station Eleven.
Despite filming for Station Eleven beginning in Chicago, it seems likely the show will be put on hiatus until the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has become less of an immediate threat. This will leave plenty of time for fans of the book to speculate, as well as for new readers to pick up the wonderful, if uncomfortably topical, story.