First off, I'd like to say that I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book Good Omens. There was nothing wrong with it (apart from the occasional use of the f slur to refer to gay men), it was a very good book. I think there were a few things that dated it. I liked that they updated those for the special. I also liked that they made God a woman by casting a female actress to narrate (as God) even though they kept Metatron (the voice of God) as a man. There were some things they added to the plot for the special, a special bit at the end, for instance. I'm going to warn you right now that this post is going to contain spoilers for the show Good Omens. If you don't want to see these (although you really should have watched already, I mean I covered this show in my blog once before) stop reading now.
Okay. Moving on. The book explores the human characters a little bit more (especially the Them and Adam in particular). I really liked this aspect of the book the best and it was worth the read if only for the added bits you uncover about these characters and their interactions with each other. The book insists that Aziraphael is not gay even though he bears all the hallmarks and most people assume he is, because angels don't have a gender. I think this, added to the fact that Neil Gaiman (one of the authors) has previously confirmed he and Crowley love each other, could have been a way to get their relationship past the gay panic of the 90s and has less bearing on the story than people give it credit for. Their interactions in the book are mostly the same (except there are fewer). There is a lot of back and forth banter between them that is in the show only.
Another thing they changed with the show (besides making God a woman) was that they made Pollution an enby (non-binary individual). I really liked this aspect of the show as well. The bit at the end that was added to the plot was the bit about Aziraphael and Crowley swapping bodies to face each other's punishments. In the book their last interaction is right after everything is set to rights. There is no kidnapping and no judgment. I really liked the addition of this scene because it made their relationship so much more intimate.
I also liked the addition of scenes showing their past together. The book gives a vague indication that they've known each other and been seeing each other all this time, but it does not give any details about their past. My favorite part is when Aziraphael is about to be discorporated by the French revolutionaries and Crowley saves him. I really like their exchange about the oysters as well.
The original story is well written and I liked the characters but the best part of the story is the improvements that were made to it for the special. I rarely say that about an adaptation, but this is one that I feel it suits.
Thank you for reading. I have not yet decided what my next post will be about. Catch you next time.
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