by Robin Reed
I keep hearing about the book series The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher. I haven’t gotten around to reading the books, but they’re on my list. Recently I stumbled on a Dresden Files TV series, that ran for one season on Sci-Fi – when it was Sci-Fi – in 2007. Set in Chicago, my home town, it is a Canadian production. I assume Toronto or some such place is the background in most of the episodes, but they insert enough Chicago shots, the El and the skyline mostly, that it gives a flavor of the real thing.
Harry Dresden is a wizard, and he advertises his services in the yellow pages. This is not some magical Chicago where magic is an everyday thing, it is the real, gritty Chicago. Most people think Harry is a fraud. He has one police lieutenant on his side, who brings him in on her weirder cases. Harry has an advisor, a tenth century wizard whose soul lives in his own skull. Harry calls him Bob. Bob can dispense advise, but he can also be annoying.
I am watching on Netflix, knowing that the twelve episodes of that one season are all that were or ever will be made. I am enjoying them more than many shows that lasted a lot longer. The books have moved higher on my to-read list.
2007 was not a good year for me, and I didn’t have cable TV. So please forgive my talking about a show that most people have forgotten. If there were magic in the world, The Dresden Files would be a long running hit and some other shows would be shirt-lived memories.
