The dreadful history of the Baudelaire children begins with a deadpan narrator, a terrible fire and the ominous arrival of a distant relative.

While Mr. Poe's secretary works overtime, Count Olaf casts Violet and Klaus in "The Marvelous Marriage," a work of theater with alarming implications.

Various parties converge at the Hotel Denouement, where the mysterious "J.S." has called the V.F.D. together -- and things aren't always what they seem.

Big secrets are revealed when Count Olaf goes on trial in the hotel lobby. The Baudelaires are the first to take the stand, but will justice be served?