If the rule for covers of widely cherished songs — make it your own, or leave it alone — holds for adaptations of beloved television shows, then in one respect, HBO Max’s “Velma” is a towerin…
” is a towering success. To be fair, this thoroughly modern reimagining of “Scooby-Doo” maintains the load-bearing beams of the over 50-year-old cartoon’s lore. It’s still set in Crystal Cove, a coastal enclave known for its gem deposits, teenage busybodies and, depending on whom you ask, an overpopulation of either ghosts or fallen magnates with a passion for cosplay.
Much will be made of the demographic swaps, as “Velma” is indeed a “Scooby-Doo” that looks like America. 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 . Only Fred retains his identity as the boy next door in the all-white neighborhood, and much is made of his privilege throughout the series.
The problem, however, is that this isn’t the first queer Velma in the Scooby Cinematic Universe. Velma was bisexual in “Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated,” which was also modeled on a dark, sexy teen drama and foregrounded the gang’s romantic entanglements. That show sadly lasted only two seasons, so many viewers will be seeing these characters in such a hormonal and violent environment for the first time.
Norville as a drug-free square is what passes for meta-humor in “Velma,” which goes out of its way to deconstruct or lampoon every aspect of the source material. Velma’s famous catchphrase — “Jinkies!” — is contextualized as part of one of the overworked plot lines, and another character accuses her of trying to coin a catchphrase. As a joke, it kind of works. As a reference to “Scooby-Doo,” it adds nothing.
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