Carmen Sandiego (TV series)

Carmen Sandiego
Promotional material for the upcoming series
Genre Animated
Educational
Mystery
Based on Carmen Sandiego
created by Broderbund
Voices of Gina Rodriguez
Finn Wolfhard
Production company(s) Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
DHX Media
Release
Original network Netflix
Original release 2019
Chronology
Related shows Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?
Where in Time Is Carmen Sandiego?
Where on Earth Is Carmen Sandiego?

Carmen Sandiego is an upcoming Netflix animated educational series that is based on the media franchise of the same name. It was created through a partnership between Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and DHX Media, and will contain a "serialized look at Carmen’s backstory that is told from her perspective".[1] Serving as an origin story for Broderbund's fictional thieving villain, it will be the fourth Carmen Sandiego television show after the PBS game shows World and Time, and the Fox animated series Earth; it is also the first Carmen Sandiego show since the end of Earth in 1999.

Voice cast

Main

Production history

On April 14, 2017, Hollywood insider information site The Tracking Board reported that they had exclusively learnt of an animated Carmen Sandiego project at Netflix, that Gina Rodriguez as the voice of the titular character. The site reported that the 20-episode series would aim to be "as educational as it is entertaining", in keeping with the style of the franchise.[2] It was later confirmed that the series will be called Carmen Sandiego. Rodriguez confirmed the story via her Twitter feed the following day in response to a Hypable story, which compared the news to that of a Kate McKinnon-led revival of The Magic School Bus.[3][4] Carmen Sandiego was set to appeal to a wider audience (ages 6–11), plus the parents of those kids and fans of the original series.[1] On April 18 and 19, the news began to be published by reputable news sites, where it was confirmed that Netflix had rebooted the franchise on TV by ordering twenty 22-minute episodes of Carmen Sandiego, which is set to premiere in 2019 and with Gina Rodriguez in the starring role. Rotoscopers noted that this was "more than most Netflix Originals receive".[5] The Hollywood Reporter noted that Rita Moreno, who voiced Carmen in the FOX animated series Where on Earth Is Carmen Sandiego?, had recently guest-starred on Rodriguez's show Jane the Virgin. The new series was described as having "thrilling adventure and intrigue", while offering an "intimate look into Carmen's past" and what inspired her career choices, essentially answering the question "Who in the world [is] Carmen Sandiego?" while simultaneously following her on her thieving escapades.[6]

The show's co-executive producer and showrunner is Duane Capizzi, while CJ Kettler serves as executive producer. Caroline Fraser is another executive producer, while Kevin Dart serves as visual designer. The chromosphere animation studio is DHX Media.;[6] this company is the successor to DIC Entertainment, who provided animation for Earth.[7] The series is produced by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, who own the rights to the franchise after their corporate predecessor Riverdeep acquired the property in 2002.[6][8] The Hollywood Reporter wrote that the series followed in the wake of Bill Nye Saves the World and Julie's Greenroom.[6] Finn Wolfhard is signed on to lend his voice to the character Player, who is described as Carmen's chief accomplice and friend.[9] Another character called "Player" was featured in Where on Earth Is Carmen Sandiego?, but this character was a fourth wall-breaking live action boy who bookended the show and interacted with Carmen, implied to be the player of a video game featuring her. E Online reported that the new series would be called, simply, "Carmen Sandiego".[10]

Rodriguez, who had first learnt about the series through the PBS gameshow Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?, asserted that the new Carmen Sandiego origin series was "tight", "well written", "really, really good", and "unbelievable". She mentioned that Netflix was a home for great programming and that the show had partnered with talented illustrators. She added that despite being entertaining, the show would still provide geographic and historical education.[11]

Andy Yeatman, Netflix director of global kids content, noted “We think there’s a huge benefit of having a program that parents remember fondly and grew up with. We are giving them the opportunity to introduce it to their kids and spark a conversation", noting that while the service pitched reboots of many 80's and 90's shows, Carmen Sandiego was one that "made sense" and "really stood out". They responded to the fact that this is not a show that is perennially rebooted (the last Carmen Sandiego series ended 20 years before this series is due to premiere), and that there are interesting ways to retell the story.[1]

In March 2018, Netflix also ordered a live-action film of Carmen Sandiego, once again with Rodriguez as the title character.[12]

Critical reception

Pre-release

The announcement saw a positive response by the media, who appreciated the 90's throwback, and a return for the Carmen Sandiego franchise to the small screen. TVShowsOnDVD wrote "It's awesome to see this franchise return to television".[13] The Rolling Stone thought the TV series' origin story subject matter offers what was once one of "golden age of television's favorite thematic trappings".[14] Commenting "children of the 90's rejoice", Maxim suggested that the Netflix enlist the talents of World game show theme song performers Rockapella to provide music for the show.[15] ScreenRant noted that "those who still hold fond memories of the property" would be intrigued as to what type of shape the new series will take; adding that it has a "storied legacy" to live up to and will likely take some inspiration from Earth.[16] Dark Horizons expressed sadness that the show was two years away.[17] 11 Alive said the news "has the Internet buzzing wildly".[18] Toonzone wondered if the new show would maintain the established backstory of the red fedora-wearing villain, which in min-to-mlate 90's canon involved Carmen Sandiego beginning as an ACME agent before finding the work too easy so wanting to outsmart her former colleagues.[7] Gizmodo thought the new series would "bring the character's trademark blend of edutainment to new audiences".[19] Mashable said "fans demanding the series NOW".[20] Pedestrian thought the trend toward series such as this was a sign that producers were aiming to " trap people in a downwards vortex of nostalgia ".[21] Fortune suggested that the new show offered Netflix "huge merchandizing potential", and that the company could follow in the footsteps of Disney by creating a merchandising arm to support its shows.[22] Rom-Game saw this as a sign that Netflix was "indirectly interested in gaming heritage".[23] NerdHQ noted that the new series offered an opportunity to resuscitate the "once-dormant" and "dying" franchise.[24]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "So '90s? Netflix talks rebooting content for today's kids". Retrieved 2017-06-17.
  2. ↑ "Gina Rodriguez to Voice "Carmen Sandiego" for Netflix as Two Movie Studios Battle for Her Next Slot (Exclusive)". The Tracking Board. 2017-04-14. Retrieved 2017-04-18.
  3. ↑ "Netflix developing 'Carmen Sandiego' series, Gina Rodriguez to star". Hypable. 2017-04-18. Retrieved 2017-04-18.
  4. ↑ "Kate McKinnon to voice Ms. Frizzle in Netflix's 'Magic School Bus' reboot". Hypable. 2017-02-08. Retrieved 2017-04-18.
  5. ↑ North, Jonathan (2017-04-29). "Netflix Announces New Carmen Sandiego Animated Series". Rotoscopers. Retrieved 2017-05-06.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "Netflix Reboots 'Carmen Sandiego' With Gina Rodriguez". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2017-04-18.
  7. 1 2 "New Carmen Sandiego Cartoon In Development For Netflix - ToonZone News". ToonZone News. Retrieved 2017-04-19.
  8. ↑ "www.bizjournals.com/boston/blog/mass-high-tech/2002/08/riverdeep-buys-broderbund-for-572m.html". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2017-04-18.
  9. ↑ "Carmen Sandiego With Gina Rodriguez Is Officially Happening". E! Online. Retrieved 2017-04-18.
  10. ↑ "Carmen Sandiego Is Officially Happening With Gina Rodriguez at Netflix". E! News. Retrieved 2017-04-19.
  11. ↑ "Gina Rodriguez Details What's New With 'Carmen Sandiego'". Vibe. 2017-05-05. Retrieved 2017-05-06.
  12. ↑ http://deadline.com/2018/03/gina-rodriguez-carmen-sandiego-netflix-live-action-movie-1202353421
  13. ↑ "Where on Earth Is Carmen Sandiego DVD news: Re-Release for The Complete Series | TVShowsOnDVD.com". tvshowsondvd.com. Archived from the original on 2017-04-19. Retrieved 2017-04-19.
  14. ↑ "'Carmen Sandiego' Reboot Headed to Netflix". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2017-04-19.
  15. ↑ "Children of the '90s Rejoice, For Carmen Sandiego Is Getting Her Own Animated Netflix Series". Maxim. Retrieved 2017-04-19.
  16. ↑ "Netflix's Carmen Sandiego Animated Series Adds Stranger Things Star". Screen Rant. 2017-04-18. Retrieved 2017-04-19.
  17. ↑ Franklin, Garth. "Netflix's "Carmen Sandiego" New Details - Dark Horizons". www.darkhorizons.com. Retrieved 2017-04-19.
  18. ↑ TEGNA. "'Carmen Sandiego' is coming back to your world soon". WXIA. Retrieved 2017-04-19.
  19. ↑ Whitbrook, James. "Netflix Could Be Bringing Carmen Sandiego Back". Retrieved 2017-04-19.
  20. ↑ Gilmer, Marcus. "Gina Rodriguez has the internet freaking out over Carmen Sandiego thanks to this Instagram post". Mashable. Retrieved 2017-04-19.
  21. ↑ "Fire Up Your Old PC, Because A New 'Carmen Sandiego' Is Coming To Netflix". Pedestrian.TV. Retrieved 2017-04-19.
  22. ↑ "This Popular 1980s Cartoon Is Getting the Netflix Treatment". Fortune. Retrieved 2017-04-20.
  23. ↑ "On a enfin retrouvé Carmen Sandiego... sur Netflix !" (in French). Retrieved 2017-04-20.
  24. ↑ "Nostalgia Time: Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?". Retrieved 2017-05-06.
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