The Mystery Inc. are back but in a different way to what fans might expect in HBO Max's Velma, which premiered on Thursday, January 12.
The difference between Velma and previous series and films in the Scooby-Doofranchise is that this time Velma Dinkley is taking center stage in an adult animation set before the classic show.
Velma presents the origins of Mystery Inc. by following the gang during their time at Crystal Cove High School, where Velma begins to investigate a series of murders. She enlists the help of her BFF-turned-nemesis Daphne Blake (Constance Wu), Norville "Shaggy" Rogers (Sam Richardson) and Fred Jones (Glenn Howerton) to solve the case.
Mindy Kaling's 'Velma' Sparks Backlash Among 'Scooby-Doo' Fans Over Race-Swap
Velma may not feature the talking Great Dane that defined the original Scooby-Doo animated films and series, but it does feature diversity by race-swapping three of the original show's four main characters.
Kaling's Velma is now Indian, while Wu's Daphne is portrayed as Asian, and Richardson's Norville is African American rather than being white. Fred is the only Scooby-Doo character to remain the same.
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The Mindy Show star Kaling has explained why she and showrunner Charlie Grandy decided to make Velma Indian in an interview with Entertainment Weeklymagazine.
Kaling said: "We knew it would be fun for me to play Velma, but we had a conversation where Velma is white, and we have this new choice to do the show and if I'm voicing her, should she be white or should she not?
"We were really inspired by [the animated film Spider-Man:] Into the Spider-Verse — it's animation, we can do anything. The essence of Velma is not necessarily tied to her whiteness. And I identify so much as her character, and I think so many people do, so it's like, yeah, let's make her Indian in this series."
Despite this, viewers appeared divided by the decision to race-swap several characters in Velma, and some took to Twitter to share their opinion.
One Twitter user wrote: "U know I'm willing to accept the new design but I'm sorry this ain't a race thing people are mad because this doesn't feel like the scooby gang what's worse is each Character other then velma seem like there one note with out much in terms of growth mystery incorporated is best [sic]."
Another fan tweeted: "TRUE DIVERSITY is about creating and standing by original content as opposed to using cheap 'parlor tricks' like race-changes. VELMA is about cheap race-changes as opposed to creating something original, with original/new diverse characters that stand on their own."
Some Twitter users criticized the show for being "woke" for race-swapping characters, while others tweeted that they felt the animated show was poor because of its writing and how little it felt like the original Scooby-Doo.
One fan defended the show's decision to race-swap multiple characters, writing in a series of Twitter posts: "you can make velma asian, black, white, etc and she would still be velma because... her character is not based on her race. she is just velma lmao.
"if a character isn't specified racially, why do we default them to white every time? it doesn't hurt to make them black. but we all know the truth to that answer and tbh... its tiresome to continue these conversations when we KNOW people are just being antiblack and colorist.
"i love how that velma is SEA and the focus is on black people. never fails."
The first two episodes of Velma are available to watch on HBO Max now, and the show will air a further two episodes a week until February 9.
U know I'm willing to accept the new design but I'm sorry this ain't a race thing people are mad because this doesn't feel like the scooby gang what's worse is each Character other then velma seem like there one note with out much in terms of growth mystery incorporated is best pic.twitter.com/4oegfi7FA3
— RamenRetro🍩 aka the Donut lord (@ramenretro1) January 12, 2023
TRUE DIVERSITY is about creating and standing by original content as opposed to using cheap "parlor tricks" like race-changes. VELMA is about cheap race-changes as opposed to creating something original, with original/new diverse characters that stand on their own.
Mindy Kaling's 'Velma' Sparks Backlash Among 'Scooby-Doo' Fans Over Race-Swap. Velma may not feature the talking Great Dane that defined the original Scooby-Doo animated films and series, but it does feature diversity by race-swapping three of the original show's four main characters.
Titled Velma, the series will follow an adult-oriented and metafictional "love quadrangle" Mystery Inc. with Velma portrayed as being of Indian descent, although aware that she is normally white.
" In the end, she and her team could not find a way to reinvent the show "in a fun, modern way" that also included Scooby in the story: "We couldn't get a take on it that was like, 'How do we kind of do this in a fun, modern way?' That felt like what made it a kid show was, Scooby-Doo."
In the new TV-MA-rated series, Velma Dinkley is Indian. This decision to change the character's background (she's been a white character since 1969) was partially inspired by Peter Ramsey, Bob Persichetti, and Rodney Rothman's animated film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, which features a Black Spider-Man.
Mindy Kaling used the Warner Bros Discovery Upfront presentation Wednesday to let everyone know she doesn't care what you think about her Scooby-Doo animated spinoff Velma on HBO Max. If a dog can solve crimes, she told the crowd, then her Velma “can be brown.”
"We were really inspired by [the animated film Spider-Man:] Into the Spider-Verse — it's animation, we can do anything. The essence of Velma is not necessarily tied to her whiteness. And I identify so much as her character, and I think so many people do, so it's like, yeah, let's make her Indian in this series."
This resulted in a South Asian Velma, an Asian Daphne and a Black Shaggy, reflecting the respective racial backgrounds of actors Mindy Kaling, Constance Wu and Sam Richardson.
Shaggy decided to break up with Velma in favor of his relationship with Scooby, ultimately deciding that he wasn't ready for a committed relationship. Velma became irate and inconsolable at the realization that he chose a dog over her.
Get ready for more sleuthing and spookiness as the adult animated series "Velma" is set to return to HBO Max with its second season on April 25. Despite facing criticism, the show has been renewed, promising more laughs and thrills for fans of the Scooby-Doo spin-off.
Unlike Scooby, Shaggy is present in the show. He is just not called "Shaggy" and is only referred to by his real name, Norville. Also, Shaggy aka Norville, like Velma and Daphne, is race-swapped and is now an African-American man instead of a Caucasian.
Violence is a shade more intense than viewers might expect given the comic tone. We see dismembered body parts, dead bodies, dripping blood and brains, bones. Velma hallucinates a werewolf-like monster who appears and sometimes invades her body, bursting out of her belly and sending tentacles into her eyes.
But the series does lean into the character's history and queerness, while also giving fans a little something else in canon that they've wanted for decades. With or without the haters, Velma Dinkley is a lesbian.
Mindy Cohn (born May 20, 1966) is an American actress. She starred as Natalie Green in the sitcom The Facts of Life from 1979 to 1988, and is known for voicing Velma Dinkley in the Scooby-Doo franchise from 2002 to 2015, succeeding B. J. Ward, before being succeeded herself by Kate Micucci.
Race-swapping is a large part of this show — Velma is South Asian Indian, Daphne is Asian, Shaggy is Black and Fred stays white. That is a large reason why the show has received criticism, calling it forced diversity and accusing the switches of ruining popular franchises.
Velma is Indian American, Norville is Black, and Daphne appears to be of Asian descent, though she's the adopted daughter of married lesbian detectives Donna and Linda (Jane Lynch and Wanda Sykes).
Previous “Scooby-Doo” writers and producers have said that Velma was a lesbian, but said pushback by studios would not allow them to depict her as one on screen. The new movie, which was directed by Audie Harrison, leaves no doubt as to her sexuality.
She is best remembered as the voice of the nerdy-and-intelectual Velma Dinkley in the Scooby-Doo cartoons from 1969-1973; before actress Pat Stevens picked up the role.
With a Rotten Tomatoes score of 7%, it can be claimed as a flop. Several reasons have contributed to this. The show's decision to race-swap the protagonist and two other characters has caused mayhem among fans. Kaling is the executive producer of the show along with Charlie Grandy, Sam Register, and Howard Klein.
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