I've loved it! I don't watch any soaps as a rule, but this series was a bit like watching a Victorian version of Eastenders - in fact, the writer Tony Jordan, IS an Eastenders writer. I know which version of his writing I prefer...
I'll admit to not having read much Dickens... I cried over Tale of Two Cities, wrote essays on Great Expectations for CSE English Lit, and that's probably about it. But I know Oliver Twist (the musical version!) and A Christmas Carol (who doesn't?), so I'm familiar with quite a few of the characters that appeared in the show.
Last night, as I said, I watched the last episode. I'm not going to put too much detail here, as I don't want to give you any spoilers, but suffice to say, we found out why Miss Havisham never got married.
For me as a writer, it was a fabulous lesson in how to turn an unsympathetic character into someone I actually felt sorry for in spite of all he'd done. (Merriweather Compeyson) and how to turn a character you felt really sorry for into a bit of a monster (Arthur Havisham). But you'll have to watch the episode to see what I'm talking about...
I've loved the mash-up of all the characters, the authenticity of Victorian life, and the relationships portrayed which Dickens never, ever put together originally. I know screen writing is very different to novel writing, but it shows what can happen if you are prepared to play around with something familiar and take a new direction with it. I suppose it's like fan-fic in a way, but for me personally there has to be enough of a sense of the original author within what you try to create anew; in the murky world of Dickensian, there is a definite flavour of the outraged Dickens yet there is enough of a modern approach in the writing for you to fully expect the 'bum-bum-babadum' moment that always closes an episode of Eastenders. You certainly get that moment - you just don't get the drums...
Can't wait for the next series...
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