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Fans of Scooby-Doo braced themselves for cringe after reading a supposed summary of the Mindy Kaling-led HBO Max reboot of the series titled Velma, an "origin story" and a particularly liberal reimagining of the iconic characters of the series.
The plot synopsis for HBO Max's new VELMA animated series starring Mindy Kaling is certainly something pic.twitter.com/kbOMMU16eD
— Lights, Camera, Barstool (@LightsCameraPod) January 10, 2023
A supposed "plot synopsis" of Velma shared by Lights, Camera, Barstool (an offshoot of Barstool Sports) earlier today stated that the show "is certainly something," with many commenters immediately reacting negatively or perceiving it as an unbearable barrage of social media pandering.
“At Crystal Cove High School, Daphne (Constance Wu) is a popular mean girl orphan who deals drugs because of a dark family secret. Her boyfriend Fred (Glenn Howerton) personifies mediocre white richness. His mansion holds a dark secret -- and he has teeny widdle privates, a subject of much conversation. “Shaggy” has become Norville (Sam Richardson), a school-newspaper striver friendzoned by his beloved Velma. He worries he’s a beta male; remember that lame humor concept from 20 years ago?”
The summary recalled visions of the ill-fated gritty Powerpuff Girls reboot from 2021, which was said to have reimagined Cartoon Network's beloved trio as drug-doing, sex-having nihilists — much to the internet's collective distaste. The "plot summary" of Velma inspired much the same on Twitter.
sounds like a joke plot someone would make up to mock adult CW remakes 😭 https://t.co/MhAG3WV8zt
— alex 👽 (@angeldebiI) January 10, 2023
that whole paragraph feels like it was written to upset people, and it's having its desired effect. not really sure who this is for but it's going to be a really annoying discourse several times over. The Rot Consumes https://t.co/IX83HgjmVF
— Ed Zitron (@edzitron) January 10, 2023
I'm fucking dead this show is just this meme https://t.co/N5LB4iqVgz pic.twitter.com/Qax4tVDQSW
— James (@xPlantFuckerx) January 10, 2023
If the "plot synopsis" inspires disgust in you, then perhaps it's done its job. That's because the paragraph is not the official plot synopsis but a section from a scathing review of Velma by Entertainment Weekly published late last week. It's intended to make the show sound awful.
Whether or not it's as awful as Entertainment Weekly writer Darren Franich says will of course be decided by the viewing public when the series releases on Thursday, but for now, it's worth noting that Entertainment Weekly doesn't represent the critical consensus on the show, merely one perspective. The AV Club, for example, was much more positive on the series, writing:
At its best, Velma is a meta coming-of-age tale for the titular star along with Daphne (Constance Wu), Fred (Glenn Howerton), and Shaggy Norville (Sam Richardson). It’s a frothy mix of murder mystery and soapy teen drama that never takes itself too seriously. The eight of 10 episodes watched for review run less than 30 minutes each, so Velma boasts a well-structured narrative with jokes, suspense, interconnected plotlines, and evolving relationships instead of a “case-of-the-week” format and various monster antics.
It's fully possible that Velma will be remembered as a folly of "adultified" reimaginings of children's pop culture icons, a trend that's grown tiresome to many viewers of late, but at the very least, know that's not what HBO wants you to think of it despite what you read on social media.
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