The amount of puns and wordplay in the Netflix original series Ever After High, produced by the toy company Mattel, is a work of pure genius. Mattel also produces the sister series Monster High (which was produced first), making these merchandising campaigns to the tween market swift, easy, and profitable. The concept is easy: take an existing group of fairy tale characters and cleverly expand on plot points from the original stories. This isn’t exactly a new concept, but it is a fun one. We’ve seen it with movies like the Shrek series, Hoodwinked, Young Frankenstein, and countless others. The series Once Upon a Time wouldn’t be around without such a re-imagining. That being said, it’s quite witty and smart to have a series such as these geared towards a younger audience.
With characters like the daughter of Snow White: Apple White, the son of Robin Hood: Sparrow Hood, and Madeline Hatter, the quirky daughter of the Mad Hatter, it’s quite entertaining. Watching it as an adult, I was reminded of how much I have always enjoyed stories, fairy tales, and legends. Even though the show is categorized as a children’s show, I am also interested in the voice acting done within said series (which is great.) It’s entertaining, and if developed further, could be a breakout original children’s series for Netlfix. Coupled with merchandise of dolls and accessories, and books, the relatively new series has the potential to make a name for itself as the future in children’s programming. Plus, the school is run by none other than the Brother’s Grimm. It’s worth checking out if you’re a fairy tale fan, or just want a different type of series to watch with your kids.