How attached are you to your children’s favourite TV characters? Terribly, it seems, judging by the public’s reaction to a recent makeover of 1998’s beloved Bob the Builder.
Really? This is a cartoon, people. Get a grip. But it just shows the extent of our attachment to these loveable characters, that we should get so worked up over their updated appearance.
Bob is the latest victim of the CGI facelift that blighted Thomas the Tank Engine and Fireman Sam before him. In Bob’s case, the original didn’t even reach his tenth birthday before his makers felt he needed revamping. Mattel claims the new Bob "retains the emotional warmth that has always given Bob the Builder a firm place in the hearts of young viewers.” But fans, especially the older, crustier set, beg to differ.
When Mattel decided to give Bob a modern facelift, he faced the wrath of the adult masses, which found his new computer-generated look highly objectionable. The new and not-so-improved Bob was described as “monstrous” (@Barsby3), and another user (Fallout911) claimed that he “looks like the type that overcharges for his work.” Ouch.
In the case of Thomas, the modern cartoon was a vast improvement over the shifty-eyed originals, yet the “tweenifying” of Nickelodeon’s Dora in 2009 was met with disdain.
The full CGI treatment may be necessary in blockbusters, but it doesn’t always do our cartoons any favours, as evidenced by the film adaptation of The Magic Roundabout.
Sometimes, especially in the case of young Bob, it’s a case of don’t fix what isn’t broken. Seems to me that adults are the ones with the nostalgia issues here. It’s doubtful that the new generation of kids is put off by computerized graphics, which is all they’ve ever known.
You tell me: What do you think of the new Bob?
People were also upset about the new CGI-version of this children's TV show.
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