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Description

Nostalgia is a powerful drug, and as all shrewd providers know, their customers’ demand for it can save them a lot of work. In some ways fantastic worlds and their imaginary characters are like cities filled with real people. It is always easier to build on secure foundations than lay new ones on unproven ground, though as with real urban planning, too much interference from too many lobby groups can slow construction, increase costs, and leave everyone dissatisfied.

When one optimistic studio rebooted one beloved franchise, reactions were so negative the next attempt was far more cautious and even added child protagonists. All this, of course, is widely known; but true pop afficionados know this franchise shared its name with an old live-action series whose makers kept the TV rights, and in a time of renewed interest, launched a new animated show. It bore scant resemblance to the films but this worked in its favour after their poor to mixed reviews. The second cartoon reboot looked much better than the old one but followed the same formula, and in classic 1980s style, every episode ended with a short piece of moral instruction. In the old animated show, this task fell to a character who was meant to be a bat, but looked more like a flying pig due to his pink skin and odd proportions. In the new series’ sole concession to progressive sensibilities this character was gender swapped. Her new look caused an instant stir and brought in legions of new fans. Cosplayers who liked dressing up as another famous bat soon found themselves being ignored at conventions while hordes of admirers surrounded the new character. Fanfics that would have shocked de Sade appeared in several languages and equally bizarre fan art gained much attention on DA.

The show’s producers were elated, if surprised at this success. The bat was given more screen time and her horde of admirers grew. She appeared on clothes and bags, in comics, games and major films, as a cheap toy or rare collectable. Politicians and celebrities repeated her most famous lines and no parent sent their child to school without bat-related merchandise. In recent weeks, however, a string of inexplicable deaths has undermined her reputation. Dozens of obsessive fans have been found lying stiff and cold beneath frozen computer screens displaying horribly corrupted versions of their favourite character.

(This image was created in Neural Love and edited in Photoshop).

Description

Nostalgia is a powerful drug, and as all shrewd providers know, their customers’ demand for it can save them a lot of work. In some ways fantastic worlds and their imaginary characters are like cities filled with real people. It is always easier to build on secure foundations than lay new ones on unproven ground, though as with real urban planning, too much interference from too many lobby groups can slow construction, increase costs, and leave everyone dissatisfied.

When one optimistic studio rebooted one beloved franchise, reactions were so negative the next attempt was far more cautious and even added child protagonists. All this, of course, is widely known; but true pop afficionados know this franchise shared its name with an old live-action series whose makers kept the TV rights, and in a time of renewed interest, launched a new animated show. It bore scant resemblance to the films but this worked in its favour after their poor to mixed reviews. The second cartoon reboot looked much better than the old one but followed the same formula, and in classic 1980s style, every episode ended with a short piece of moral instruction. In the old animated show, this task fell to a character who was meant to be a bat, but looked more like a flying pig due to his pink skin and odd proportions. In the new series’ sole concession to progressive sensibilities this character was gender swapped. Her new look caused an instant stir and brought in legions of new fans. Cosplayers who liked dressing up as another famous bat soon found themselves being ignored at conventions while hordes of admirers surrounded the new character. Fanfics that would have shocked de Sade appeared in several languages and equally bizarre fan art gained much attention on DA.

The show’s producers were elated, if surprised at this success. The bat was given more screen time and her horde of admirers grew. She appeared on clothes and bags, in comics, games and major films, as a cheap toy or rare collectable. Politicians and celebrities repeated her most famous lines and no parent sent their child to school without bat-related merchandise. In recent weeks, however, a string of inexplicable deaths has undermined her reputation. Dozens of obsessive fans have been found lying stiff and cold beneath frozen computer screens displaying horribly corrupted versions of their favourite character.

(This image was created in Neural Love and edited in Photoshop).