Today Teen Vogue released the teaser trailer for the upcoming She-Ra and the Princesses of Power series, which will premier on Netflix November 16th. The cartoon has been the subject of backlash by some grown men who refuse to let a show for girls be for girls.
Teen Vogue got to speak to executive producer Noelle Stevenson about the upcoming She-Ra series:
“It was a really exciting opportunity for me because it’s about this female hero with such a complicated and interesting backstory. And also, one of the few legacy cartoons from the ’80s that really showcases a cast of female characters. Not just female heroes, but female villains and female comic relief. Kind of the whole spectrum of characters.”
Much like the original, in this reboot, Adora is an orphan who was raised by the Horde, but when she stumbles upon a magic sword that transforms her into She-Ra, the Princess of Power. Adora then discovers that the Horde is actually an evil army trying to conquer the planet so she joins a rebel force to help defeat the Horde. No mention so far if her twin brother Adam (aka He-Man) will be showing up.
However, she will be having some friends: Catra (AJ Michalka), Adora’s childhood friend in the Horde, and as the show is called She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, there is another princess, Glimmer (Karen Fukuhara), and Bow (Marcus Scribner), an expert archer. Noelle adds that there will be other princess characters that Adora meets during her journey.
From the interview, it seems as if the show is going to be focusing on also trying to show who Adora is as a person outside of costume and what coming into all this power means for her.
“I also think, just as somebody who is this young woman who’s been sort of catapulted into a position of great power and a great destiny, that there was something that I really wanted to get into with her internal life,” she says. “Like, who she was trying to be. How she saw herself, and sort of the fear and anxiety that comes along with that. Of trying to be the best person you possibly can. So that’s very central to her character.”
“We did decide to make her younger, again, because she had sort of led this sheltered life up until now,” Noelle says. “To find that line in the middle between who Adora is at the start of the show, and sort of what she’s trying to be, as this aspirational hero. So, that was what we were sort of thinking of when we were designing her. I really hope that everybody tunes in to watch the show and sees what we’re doing with her, because as much as we love the original She-Ra, this version of her… I hope that she can also make that place in people’s hearts and that they’ll grow to love her just as much.”
Full disclosure, I have zero context for She-Ra, it was not a show I watched as a kid, and even when I did get into 80s cartoons, I was more into Jem, but watching this new trailer for She-Ra, I got chills. She looks badass, like a blonde Utena, and I’m just here for everything this show is trying to be for young girls (and boys). They had me at the magical girl transformation scene and I’m looking forward to meeting Adora in this updated series and seeing where it goes.
What did you guys think of the new teaser trailer?
(via Pajiba, image: Screengrab)
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