Story Hangover Thoughts: Winx

  Why can’t live-action adaptations ever stick to the material they’re based on? 

 For example, the reason the Netflix original, Fate: The Winx Saga, based on the internationally popular Winx Club actually has fan petitions to cancel it is because they got almost everything wrong. You can’t even tell it’s supposed to be the same show. They cut out half the main characters and made the entire plot resemble the Vampire Diaries films. 

Note the original group's diversity 

Just because it’s directed by the same person doesn’t mean it has to be exactly the same story. The reason the first season was in the Top Ten Most Watched list when it first aired was because fans, myself included, thought we were going to get to see our favorite episodes, (even though I swear I only watch it ironically, because I definitely wouldn't find being a fan of this kind of thing to be slightly embarrassing), adapted by popular actors. Instead, we got an edgy show about teenagers at a magical boarding school that has little to no policy on drugs and alcohol. 

They also got the main characters they did include completely wrong. Everyone who’s ever actually watched the show knows that Mike and Vanessa are actually both fully aware that Bloom is not their biological child and they couldn’t have their own kids. That’s partially why they adopted her in the first place! Besides, it’s pretty obvious that they’re not blood relatives. Vanessa is a brunette; Mike is blonde, and it’s natural. I know because I can always tell when someone uses hair dye. The reason I mention this is because of a basic fact about basic human biology.

Fun Fact, Did you know that if two people without red hair don’t carry the MC1R gene, that it’s genetically impossible for them to naturally give birth to a redhead? (Am I the only one who remembers the basics of genetics from science class?) And yes, I know that either my dirty blonde mother and/or my brunette father carries said gene because I’ve seen my birth certificate. 

Back to my point, Musa’s mother has been gone for much longer than a year, thus she was raised by her father, and Stella’s parents are divorced, and her mother is not abusive. Queen Luna is a wonderful mother. Her marriage to King Radius just didn’t work out. And Netflix doesn’t even include the entire animated series! They start right on season 7! 

Netflix, if you’re reading this, can’t you at least give us the rest? Please?  If you’ve done so since I’ve written this, thank you. At least you’ve canceled the remake. Thank you!

On a related note, I looked it up and yes, the ex-wife of a king is still technically considered a queen, albeit she’s traditionally called a Dowager Empress or Princess Mother.

 

But the worst part? They’ve whitewashed the cast! As you can clearly see in the picture above, the original group was only ⅓ white. (½ counting Roxy, the last fairy born on Earth living among humans and the occasional seventh member who isn’t seen in the picture), while Fate features 99% Caucasian.