The Nice and Accurate Good Omens TV Companion

Companion books to movies and TV shows are always a bit of a dice roll when it comes to their quality. While they're usually filled with interesting anecdotes and tons of pictures, they have a habit of feeling little more than a fluff piece used as advertisement for that film/TV series. Luckily, this isn't the case with either of the two books released as tie-ins for Amazon Prime and BBC's recent adaptation of Good Omens. Both books - a traditional companion and a book featuring all of Neil Gaiman's scripts for the series - are excellent reads, managing to be both informative and worthwhile reads even for those who know everything there is to know about the series and its creation. This is a gargantuan of a book. Dimension-wise, it's as big as a sheet of paper and as thick as a textbook. Between its covers is a very well-written account of the creation of the Good Omens TV adaptation, from its infancy all the way through its post-production. Included are an enormous array of interviews with the cast and crew, plenty of photographs from behind the scenes, and a litany of other tidbits that should please even the biggest fan of the series. Whyman's time spent on the set has given him a great vantage point from which to write this account of the making of the series and the interviews throughout the book reveal plenty of new information about the creation of the series that fans won't be able to find anywhere else, making this a must-read for those who want to know everything about this series. I appreciated how well-structured this book was. Many other companion books of this nature hop around from subject to subject as they detail the creation of whatever thing they're covering, but here, it's formatted (more or less) in an episode-by-episode basis, covering topics as they appear within the narrative of the show. It's a great way of formatting such a book and lets readers read behind the scenes secrets of the episodes they just watched as they can pretty easily tell when the subject switches to something that hasn't occurred yet. That being said, I wouldn't read this until you've seen the series as it does contain some spoilers for the show and how it differs from the novel. I don't often talk about the physical aspects of a book - as I'm typically an ebook reader - but with this one, I must. It's simply a gorgeous book. It's bound very well - though slightly tighter than I'd prefer - which makes it very easy to lay on a table and read. It's very big, which does make it a bit hard to hold but it's no worse than holding a textbook (and weighs a bit less than an average textbook). And, best of all, are the pages themselves. They're thick, glossy pages that reproduce color remarkably well. It feels like a very high-quality book which, for the price, is pretty impressive. Overall, The Nice and Accurate Good Omens TV Companion is an excellent companion book to an excellent TV series. It's filled with a massive amount of information, lots of wonderful photos, and a ton of revealing interviews, all bound together in a beautiful book. It's a must-read for fans of the series and I absolutely recommend it.

IMO as far as TV or movie companion books go, as mentioned by others they can vary in quality. Personally, I like my companion books stuffed with great still shots, as well as storyboard sketches. Even if "obviously" the viewer in theory can take all the screen shots they want, I still prefer lots of pictures, and details. Outside of this companion book feeling well produced in hand (and I still appreciate the feel of a well-crafted book), happily it is stuffed with chapters on ALL of the characters of this "miracle" of a series. Love that, as I loved the aesthetics and costume design and even the camera framing in this show - like, for instance, the overhead shot of Aziraphale walking toward the bandstand with the grey twisted trees all around. He's the one gleaming white note in the scene, as there's sort of a hint that he is descending into hell. Sort of. Just from that overhead shot. Aside from the badass Crowley and angelic Aziraphale, there isn't one character whose "look" I wasn't delighted by - Lord Beelzebub and Gabriel being other favorites of mine (like the flies buzzing around Beelzebub and Gabriel's pastels LOL). IMO it's the delicious attention to details that are part of making this series so stellar, so was very happy with an unstinting companion book to go along with the completely binge-worthy, completely rewatchable Good Omens. And picked up a second one, because, eventually, like a lot of books it will most likely go out of print. I'd rather scoop another copy now. I don't do that often, but every now and again there's a book I'd just like a second copy of. Just in case there's an accident or something "eek". Because IMO if this series isn't regarded as iconic, and showered with awards, it should be - one of the top adaptations I have ever seen, from design to music to, of course, the inspired performances of leads Sheen and Tennant (BTW Amazon thanks for co-funding the production with the BBC!) And it goes well on the shelf with my aged, tattered, copy of Good Omens which was hysterical when I first read it years ago, and is just as funny now. I don't buy so many hardcopy books any more but every now and then, there's one I really need for the shelves. Or two - just in case the cat hacks up a hairball in the wrong place, or when there is a demonic spill of coffee.

I read the Good Omens novel only a few weeks before watching the Amazon-BBC miniseries. I enjoyed the novel, and absolutely LOVED the show. With co-author Neil Gaiman as showrunner, a brilliant cast and a dedicated director, the show perfectly captured the spirit of the novel. It had new material to surprise long-time fans, but much of the original story as well. I enjoyed it so much that I ordered this companion book as soon as I discovered it. The book provides a lot of context for the show, including concept art and abundant information about the adaptation process. There’s also some historical background on previous attempts to adapt the show and an exploration of the filmmaking process (location, casting, special effects). One running theme throughout was the desire of Gaiman, and by extension all the filmmakers, to honor Terry Patchett. In addition to his famous fedora and many of his books in Aziraphael’s shop, Gaiman took extra pains to ensure the parts of the novel that were distinctly Terry’s made it into the adaptation- such as Agnes Nutter. Moreover, there are several heartwarming anecdotes about the friendship between the two authors. However, the best parts for me were when the book addressed the changes from the novel to the screen. Episode three’s unusually long precredit sequence is once such instance and Gaiman goes into detail about why he created it for the show. As a screenwriter, he is keenly aware of the differences between the two mediums and what audiences need from each. Overall, this is an excellent tie-in for fans of the show and novel. It’s a beautiful book, with many behind the scenes pictures, artwork and interviews. Highly recommended.

DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK ON KINDLE. I know that most books are on kindle. I buy most of them there myself. This is NOT a book to buy on kindle. It deserves a hard copy. It is beautiful and rich. The book paper is heavy. The binding is good quality. This is something you want in a hard copy. Great pictures. Great explanations and writing. Absolutely required for any Good Omens fan. I particularly enjoyed the description of the actual owner of the real Bentley used who was on set to make sure his baby did not suffer a single scratch. Is it worth the $40 price? Yes. A rare book which is worth it. However, mine was a like new remainder in Excellent condition. Buy used, but definitely buy it in its real form Rather than kindle.

This book adds text and images that explain the colossal effort and complexity put into the unspeakable job of making a blockbuster book into a very believable television show. These people have the right to call this effort their crowning achievement.

What I really, really enjoyed are movies that can suspend my disbelief & between the acting & the whole production, this series managed to do that perfectly.

A nice book for those of us that can’t get enough Good Omens. Hoping they do a book for the movie (aka season 3.) Would prefer if the sticker wasn’t placed directly on the book though.

I never go in for these sorts of things, but the obsession with this series is Strong, and this book was just too gorgeous to pass by. It offers some lovely photo stills with details that were easy to overlook on screen and insights by the cast and crew that I haven't come across elsewhere. A section in the beginning is devoted to Neil Gaiman, which is great considering we're likely not going to get much in the way of authorial commentary on the dvd. There's also a few pics from at least one scene that ended up being deleted from the final version. Well worth the price of admission, in my estimation.