Introduction
“Velma” – the new adult animated series on HBO Max – has received poor reviews from both critics and audiences. The show, which re-imagines the classic cartoon “Scooby Doo” in a more mature format, has a 50% rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes and a 9% rating from audience scores. The show’s creator, Mindy Kaling, has faced criticism from both sides of the political spectrum. Some viewers have accused her of making a conservative show, while others feel the humor falls flat and the diversity casting feels forced. Despite a strong cast, including Constance Wu, Sam Richardson, and Glenn Howerton, “Velma” has failed to connect with its intended audience.
Critical Reception
Critics have not been impressed with the first two episodes of Velma. They’ve found the show to be poorly executed, and the humor falls flat. The show’s creator, Mindy Kaling, has been criticized by both sides of the political spectrum. Some viewers have accused her of making a conservative show, while others feel the humor falls flat and the diversity casting feels forced.
Audience Reviews
Audience reviews for Velma have been brutal. The show has only a 9% rating from audience scores on Rotten Tomatoes. It’s not clear if the poor reviews are a result of people review-bombing the show because of its diverse cast, or if it’s because the show’s humor and execution are poor.
What went wrong?
It feels like the humor just is not connecting for really any audience. The show feels like it’s trying to annoy anyone that watches it, and the Scooby Doo IP almost seems secondary to the entire concept. Scooby Doo has found great success over the years as both a kids cartoon and with live action movies, and while it’s possible some adult animation version of the concept could have worked, this iteration seems to have rubbed all potential audiences the wrong way. This is a show that finally has Daphne and Velma share a kiss, and yet its potential liberal audience is writing it off because of how antagonistic it all feels.
It’s a shame, because this really is a stellar cast here. Constance Wu, Sam Richardson, Glenn Howerton. And I’ve certainly liked Kaling’s work before, whether that was back in The Office, The Mindy Project or most recently, Never Have I Ever. But Velma? Something went deeply wrong here, and it’s getting roasted harder than pretty much any new show I’ve seen since The Witcher: Blood Origin on Netflix. Though even that climbed to a 13% audience score eventually. Right now, Velma has really nothing else to compare itself to in terms of how badly it’s scoring, and it cannot blame a politically driven review bombing campaign given that both sides of the aisle dislike it for different reasons. What a bizarre situation.
Conclusion
Overall, it seems that “Velma” has not been well received by any group of viewers and is being compared to other poorly-reviewed shows such as “The Witcher: Blood Origin”. Despite the diverse cast and a strong cast, the show’s humor and execution has failed to connect with its intended audience. While it’s unclear if the poor reviews are a result of people review-bombing the show because of its diverse cast, or if it’s because the show’s humor and execution are poor, one thing is clear, “Velma” has failed to impress both critics and audiences.