On Mar. 6th, the canceled CW Powerpuff Girls appeared on a Reddit post. The following trailer shows the concept of each Powerpuff, the changes from the show, and the villains who will cause havoc in Townsville. Throughout the weekend, many reactions have been posted on social media showing how viewers would have perceived this live-action adaptation.
What CW Powerpuff Girls Reveal
CW first announced the live-action adapted Powerpuff Girls in August 2020. The show would have acted as a soft reboot and simultaneously be a sequel to the original Cartoon Network hit. Oscar-winning director Diablo Cody is confirmed to be responsible for the project. Sources have informed Variety that the footage is real, but there was never an established trailer. At the time, the production team was filming a pilot in Spring 2021. Someone may have compiled the footage for its upcoming premiere, but the series was canceled in May 2023.
CW’s Powerpuff Girls was planned to present the girls in their 20s. CW cast Chloe Bennet, Dove Cameron, and Yana Perrault to play Professor Utonium’s daughters. Mojo Jojo was no longer an exposed-brain lab monkey born in his lab. Instead, he’s presented as two human characters. Mojo (Actor unknown) is a businessman who hates the Powerpuff Girls, and his son, Jojo (Nicholas Podany) follows in his father’s footsteps. Playing the Professor himself is Donald Faison, who’s known for his role in Scrubs as Dr. Christopher Turk.
The Show’s Concept
The Powerpuff Girls split up after causing Mojo’s death by accident while saving civilians from monsters. Blossom ran away from home, Buttercup became a firefighter, and Bubbles tried to be famous as a sidewalk actor. Professor Utonium invited the girls back to Townsville for their 25th birthday. He warns his daughters that “darkness may be returning.” He does recognize that they do not want to reunite as they grown tired of each other’s company.
Meanwhile, Jojo plots with a young girl who can manipulate people’s minds. He tells her, “I want them to know what it’s like to lose their father.”Professor Utonium soon causes Townsville to cause chaos. The Powerpuff Girls were told that they had grown into boring adults and should just give up. Instead, Blossom slaps the professor out of the girl’s control. The end of the trailer shows that Jojo saw that these girls weren’t always seen as screw-ups.
The Trailer’s Reception
After making a public appearance on Reddit, many reactions were posted on YouTube. A couple of people have described it as an SNL skit or a “bad commercial parody”. Most of the criticisms come from the massive changes the live-action has made including trying to be more inclusive. While I don’t mind the cast, CW Powerpuff Girls’s direction feels very forced. The writers should have studied the original characters’ personalities to figure out their adult counterparts.
Buttercup being more progressive makes her dialogue feel intolerable. Her personality is meant to be tough while at times she learns to soften up. Blossom’s constant anxiety sort of matches her original cartoon counterpart. The original cartoon had Blossom described as smart and caused trouble by overplanning. The ditzy Bubbles has become a party girl which mentions why she’s into drinking. Her live-action counterpart waters down her nice and kind personality.
CW Powerpuff Girls’ shows how cheap the production looks with little thought put into it. Especially with Mojo’s weak motive to hate the superpowered girls. The costume designers should have updated their superhero uniforms when they grow older. Seeing a grown woman in a bright Powerpuff Girl dress is disturbing. The only thing that makes the live-action interesting is testing their sisterly chemistry after being apart for years. However, the writing pushes viewers away from wanting more.
