Somehow, Velma escaped the wrath of viewers and critics and has been renewed for a second season. The spin-off to the classic Scooby-Doo series (which oddly doesn’t have Scooby-Doo in it) has Velma taking the lead this time around and she tries to solve the mystery regarding the disappearance of her mother, as well as the murders of local teenage girls. The first season was trashed by fans and critics.
Though the series was far from perfect, it did have some potential that warrants it deserving a second chance at redemption. Making the series into an adult comedy is a bold choice that allows it to venture into topics that the original Scooby-Doo couldn’t. Coming off a lackluster season one, here’s what the second season needs to avoid.
The Unlikable Velma
Look, I could care less that the Velma characters has been diversified. It’s a completely new story in a universe that isn’t particularly connected to the original Scooby-Doo cartoon. Velma wasn’t unlikable because she was a queer Indian. Velma was unlikable because she was a racist and sexist narcissist. Even her own mother abandoned the baby girl because she was a terrible child growing up.
The series had an unnecessary hate for Fred. It was bad enough that they turned the character into a rich boy who had the mind of toddler, but Velma hate towards him was disgusting. When Fred became a suspect for the murder of two girls, the motivation in Velma’s mind was that he was a rich white guy with a tiny dong. Her racist and sexist was rampant throughout the series, so it was hard to feel any sympathy for a character who does nothing but make snarky remarks about some form of politics.
If the series wants to keep Fred as this pompous rich boy then find, but hopefully the second season gets rid of the racism completely. Fred’s whiteness has nothing to do with his character. At least not in the classic series. Velma was always this shy and sweet girl who happened to be the smartest one in the group. It’s okay to make her a bit edgy. It’s not okay for her to be a terrible human beings who judges others based on the color of someone’s skin.
Going Out Of It’s Way To Feel Crass and Edgy
As previously stated, a mature themed Scooby Doo show sounds awesome! The problem here is that the jokes within the series feel forced. Velma is able to get you laugh at one or two jokes, but a good portion of the jokes are either non-sensical or don’t have any relation to the story. Exactly how is two roaches having human sex relate to the subject in the series?
The story goes for crass humor just for the sake of it. That humor should bring out the dimension of the characters onscreen, or at the very least, pop some fun at the mystery within the series. The other brand of humor was all of the forced Fred insults; whether it was about his tiny dong, his ability to even take care of himself, or his whiteness, his jokes didn’t land because it felt mean-spirited.
The best jokes about someone’s culture or race is perfectly fine if it making fun of some truth that relates to it. It felt that the series poked fun at Fred because he was white. That’s it. Daphne only escaped that wrath because she was mixed and had Lesbian parents. The jokes also made the series come off as narratively unfocused. When the jokes don’t have much to do with the topic or character, it was a distraction from the overarching narrative that had wasn’t really all compelling in the first place.
A Disjointed Narrative That Doesn’t Bring Out The Best Of Velma
I love dark humor. If the show found a clever way to bring out the dark humor as Velma solved her mysteries then it would be a welcome change of pace for the series. The central mystery did more harm than good to the Mystery Gang. Daphne started out as a terrible person in the series, but she does develop into a better character towards the end. Norville comes across as the best in the series. He’s far from perfect, but he’s at least likable and his references to the old Shaggy and Scooby are genuinely funny.
But this is Velma’s show. The purpose of following her perspective should’ve been to add more complexity to her character. Velma can be an interesting character. And it’s great that they don’t go down a generic path. However, a generic path would’ve been better than what we’ve been given so far. As stated in the first sub-topic, cut back on the racist and sexist human and focus on bringing the Mystery Gang together. Have their personalities compliment and bring out the best of each other. On paper, Velma is a great idea for a series. I just wish the execution was better.
Follow Us
