The Magicians Episodes 1-4 Reviews: If Harry Potter Went To College (Series Premiere)

There seem to be a glut of YA (young adult) shows currently on television. We have "Shadowhunters" over on FreeForm (previously ABC Family). Girl Meets Invisible Angel Boy Who's Trying To Save The World From Various Demon Hybrids. See my reviews here: Shadowhunters Reviews

We have "The Shannara Chronicles" on MTV. Girl And Boy (And Girl) Go On A Quest To Keep Trees From Unleashing Nasty Demons.

Now SyFy brings us "The Magicians". Possibly Crazy Boy Dumps BFF For New Magic School. BFF Is Pissed And Enrolls In The University Of Phoenix Magic Program Instead. But How Will She Pay Off Her College Loans?

How do these shows stack up against each other? All have lots of pretty people. It's too difficult to pick the most attractive cast-- although I'd give "The Shannara Chronicles" the edge. It's hard to "out pretty" elves. "The Magicians" is the most adult and has the best CGI of the three. The sets are impressive. The complex hand gestures used for spell casting are a fun addition. "Shadowhunters" on the other hand went low budget with their special effects and opted for demon dust and sparkles instead.

In terms of story line, the three are very different. "The Shannara Chronicles" is definitely heavy fantasy. "Shadowhunters" reminds me of a light version of "The Witches Of East End". Oh, how I miss that show. "The Magicians" is of course fantasy but also has a little horror and YA angst thrown in for good measure.

"The Magicians" is based on the Lev Grossman novels. Our introduction into this world is Quentin Coldwater. He appears to be a little cray cray. His BFF is Julia Wicker. Quentin is stuck in his childhood fantasies which involve a book series called "Fillory and Further". Julia still believes in magic but encourages Quentin to move on with his life. In episode 1 they discover the Brakebills College for Magical Pedagogy. Quentin is accepted into the school (he is the Chosen One) but Julia is not. She is devastated but a rival magic society soon comes calling. Julia's memories were supposed to be wiped after leaving Brakebills but she manages to retain them.

Over on campus Quentin meets a number of other students (such as Alice, Penny, Kady, Margo and Eliot). They spend their time doing magic, having sexy times, and throwing quick one liners at each other. Quentin and Alice try to conjure up Alice's brother Charlie (but instead they unleash "The Beast"). In what I think is the best scene of the series, The Beast attacks the students during class and pulls out Dean Fogg's eyeballs. He makes a macabre smiley face with them. We never see The Beast's true identity since it's obscured with moths or some such insects. Very powerful scene!

Julia is locked in a storage room with a young woman named Marina. Julia must "magic" her way out. Luckily Julia passes and learns that Marina is actually the head hedge witch. She's also working with Kady. Marina has an agenda against Brakebill (because they kicked her out in her last year and stole her magic). And yes, Marina is played by Kacey Rohl of "Hannibal" fame. She's always compelling to watch regardless of the role.

Quinten's episode 4 trip to the loony bin and his love of Taylor Swift were great fun to watch (even if it was all caused by a spell from Marina and Julia). Julia is thrown out of the hedge witches after saving Quentin. I fear for her life.

Episode Guide:
Episode 1: Unauthorized Magic
Episode 2: The Source Of Magic
Episode 3: Consequences of Advanced Spellcasting
Episode 4: The World In The Walls

Grade: 4 Monsters (out of 5). "The Magicians" is the best of the current crop of YA shows. It has lots of potential and plenty of eye candy. I'm just not sure there's enough here to keep me watching weekly but time will tell. The show was already renewed for a season 2 so the magicians wont be disappearing any time soon.