For the past year, the world has been obsessed with the eighties and nineties – the revival of the fashion, the celebrities and of course the films and television shows.
Following in the footsteps of blockbuster films like Jurassic World and television shows like Fuller House, the latest reboot is a childhood favourite. Cartoon Network has commissioned a reboot of the beloved Powerpuff Girls.
The three sisters returned to Cartoon Network in America at the beginning of April. However, it won’t reach our shores until April 25th.
So what can fans of Professor Utonium’s creations expect?
Firstly and unfortunately, the original voice actors of the Powerpuff Girls, Cathy Cavadini, Tara Strong and E.G. Daily, will not return to the rebooted version of show. Tara Strong took to Twitter to share her feelings on the reboot. She said the decision to recast was “a stab in the heart”. She had announced that this was a “strictly creative” decision by the network, although later that year said the network had never contacted either her or her colleagues prior to the decision to recast.
Amanda Leighton, Kristen Li, and Natalie Palamides were announced as the new voice actors of the main characters Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercup. Tom Kenny will reprise his roles as the Mayor and narrator. Tom Kane will continue as Professor Utonium.
Although the art style seems very close to the original television show, there are certain changes. While some fans welcomed the changes, others felt that they should have kept it more true to the originals.
The marketing for the reboot was subtle with several online shorts released on YouTube. A website where the public can turn themselves into Powerpuff girls and boys was also set up. The website urged people to share their image around social media using the hashtag “PowerpuffYourself”. This became popular for a while, with the images popping up on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Of course, with it being such a beloved TV show, opinions were divided when it premiered in America. Fans took to Twitter to express their views.
Some people seem to love it, saying that it “brought back good childhood memories”. However, the vast majority of viewers were not happy with the reboot. There was outrage about the new voice actors and the fact that the episodes were much shorter.
“Sugar, spice, and everything nice… these were the ingredients chosen to create the perfect little girls,” and the perfect television show the first time around. Here in Ireland we have to wait a little longer to judge if the reboot can live up to the hype of the original show.
Bronwyn O’Neill
Image Credit:
Leave a Reply