I cannot even recount how many times I have recommended the novel 11/22/63 to someone. It struck me in such a way, that I had truly felt that it was I who was sent back into the early 1960s and asked to spend a few years in the past. When I first heard of Hulu's adaptation of the novel in September 2014, I eagerly awaited further announcements, casting details, and most of all, the release date. The series premiered this year in February and just wrapped up last week. I will admit that like any book lover, I was constantly repeating a line that Miss Sadie Dunhill says in the first episode of the series, "the book's always better." However, the finale of 11.22.63 struck that same string inside of me, and plucked harder on that string than the words of the novel were able to. The changes that I had been so particular about had finally made sense to me, and successfully brought about what the story is truly about. Despite the misleading title of both the novel and the series, this is not a story about saving the 35th President of the United States; it is much more than that. At it's heart, 11.22.63 is a love story.
During the first few episodes, I was frustrated with some of the decisions made in Hulu's adaptation because I felt that not only were some of the scenes so memorable in the novel (Jake's first few actions when he appears in 1958 and his time in Derry) but also played a part in the idea of the past repeating itself. Take for instance when Richie from the Ditchie and Bevvie from the Levee are dancing to Glenn Miller's 'In the Mood,' the theme song in the novel for Jake and Sadie's love (136-145). (Sadly, the song was not included in the adaptation because of it's rhythm, but I appreciated Jake and Sadie dancing to 'Little Brown Jug', another Miller tune.) There were so many scenes that demonstrated this idea, and their exclusions did not make sense at the time, but now that the series has finished, they certainly do. 11.22.63 is about the past repeating itself, but in a different way than the novel. In the novel, history just repeats itself over again in different forms. The series takes this approach as well, but it's not history that is caught in a loop, it becomes the time-traveler himself, Jake, Al, or the Yellow Card Man, who finds the past acting obdurate. The Yellow Card Man warns Jake in the final episode that by continuing to pursue his love interest, Sadie, he creates his own loop, because by being in a relationship with her, she is always destined to die. I preferred this idea of being caught in a loop over the strings of time featured in the novel. King's approach seemed a little too technical, while the adaptation's was more believable and allowed the true story to shine.
I only wish that the series had presented more of the tender moments, not only between Jake and Sadie, but between Jake and the people of Jodie. The entire scene where Jake and Sadie chaperoned the dance seemed too rushed and their dance felt too much like a tease of what could have been because of Jake's sudden departure. His time as an English teacher and his relationship with Deke, Miz Mimi, and the students was not highlighted as well as it could have been, and during this time the Kennedy story began to overshadow what the story is truly about. In the novel, Jake fell in love with Sadie and the town of Jodie. He was admired by the students and teachers for his ability to bring out the best in the students and as he states in the novel, he loved them all and continues to love them when he returns to the present (616). His brilliance as a mentor and teacher is featured in a memorable production of Of Mice and Men, where Jake nurtures the talent of Mike Coslaw, a football star, whose portrayal of Lennie delivers an emotional response from every character in the audience. Miz Mimi tells Jake that “What you did with Mike Coslaw—what you did for Mike Coslaw—was the most amazing and wonderful thing I’ve ever seen” (329). He deeply cares for Mike (325) and claims that seeing him develop his talent is the best thing about teaching, and that there is no other feeling on Earth like it (322). In the series, his relationship with his students, passion for teaching, and his abilities as a teacher are never fully explored.
He embraces life and the people in Jodie. While describing the town, Jake states: “And Jodie was good—good for me. In Derry I was an outsider, but Jodie was home [...] Home is watching the moon rise over the open, sleeping land and having someone you can call to the window, so you can look together. Home is where you dance with others, and dancing is life” (398-399). Jake finds love with the community of Jodie in the novel. This is where the series tends to be a little weak because it does not capture the same essence of Jake's passion for Jodie. Although there is a comment referring to the play, I just wish there was one more episode that just featured Jodie as Jodie. King created an amazing town and memorable residents and they are portrayed very well in the series, but they should have been given more time to show that Jake is losing both Sadie and the people of Jodie. When Mike visits Jake's home because he is so nervous about the play, Jake claims "it was when I stopped living in the past and just started living" (318). Jake is essentially a man out of place in the 21st century and a man out of place in the 1960's, but he finds his true home with the people of Jodie.
The series features two poems. One is shown in episode 4, The Eyes of Texas, when Jake leaves it as a note in Sadie's mailbox at school. This poem is W.B. Yeats' "When You Are Old". A more fitting poem could not have been used to fit the relationship between Jake and Sadie:
And nodding by the fire, take down this book,
And slowly read, and dream of the soft look
Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep;
How many loved your moments of glad grace,
And loved your beauty with love false or true,
But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you,
And loved the sorrows of your changing face;
And bending down beside the glowing bars,
Murmur, a little sadly, how Love fled
And paced upon the mountains overhead
And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.
The other poem that is read by the older Sadie at the 2016 Jodie Jubilee is an original by Stephen King that was written for the series:
We were invited in.
Therefore, because the dark surrounds us,
Let us turn our faces to the light.
Let us endure hardship,
To be grateful for plenty.
We have been given pain to be astounded by joy.
We have been given life to deny death.
We did not ask for this room or this music,
But because we are here,
Let us dance
-Nicholas Joyce