Velma’s season 1 finale couldn’t pass without doing one more thing to annoy Scooby-Doo fans – messing with the Mystery Machine.
HBO Max
Velma has not made many friends on HBO Max over the last several weeks. As the season finale was possibly one of the least anticipated closing episodes in HBO Max history, the show had one final kick for those who decided to tune in. For a series that has changed almost everything possible about the Scooby-Doo franchise it takes its inspiration from – in character names if not much else – it is not surprising that nothing is left as it was in the long-standing history of the franchise and even the Mystery Machine is not sacred in that respect.
The final episode of Velma certainly did nothing that has not been seen in its previous episodes, and once again, the majority of new reviews were not kind. Along with the usual complaints around the show’s “mean-spirited” humor and “unlikeable” characters, the latest reviews also includes a number of gripes aimed at the way the Mystery Machine is handled in a way that serves no purpose other than adding to its list of bad taste jokes that are aimed to prove its “adult humor” nature.
Since Scooby-Doo made his screen debut in 1969, the Mystery Machine has always had a very distinct appearance. This has not changed in all the years and reboots since, including the live-action movies. Still, for Velma, it seems that the option of dismissing the iconic look of the vehicle proved too much to resist, with the van ending up being a white van with bad decorations that exists only for the characters to make jokes about pedophiles and “creeps in windowless vans.” It is not unfair to say that, like every other change made to Scooby-Doo canon, the change has not given the show any new fans.
Related: Here’s Why Mindy Kaling’s Velma Hasn’t Been Well-Received
Will Velma Get a Second Season?
Warner Bros. Television Distribution
From almost 60,000 people who gave the series a 1-star rating on IMDb, and the thousands who have helped give the show just a 7% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the answer to that will is a hope that the answer is no. However, it was reported that Velma’s second season plans had already been instigated before the debut of the first episodes of the Mindy Kaling-led series.
The real question now is whether Warner Bros. will be willing to put money and effort into a show that is clearly playing to a very limited audience when so many other much-loved shows have been scrapped in the last several months. The initial audience numbers for Velma were impressive, but only if you didn’t then look at the resulting avalanche of reviews that included comments like “couldn’t make it to end of the episode,” “hate this show more than any other,” and “only watched to confirm it was really this bad.”
For those who have yet to witness the cultural phenomenon that is Velma, all episodes are streaming on HBO Max.
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