So because my life is chaos, I am again without my beloved laptop, and this will be my first attempt to write and edit a post using only the WordPress app. Let’s hope this goes well!🤞🏾 (I guarantee there will be grammar and spelling, but I’ll come back to edit things after my laptop gets back.)
Also, obviously, there will be some spoilers for the show.
I first found Bee and Puppycat on Frederator’s YouTube channel around 2015 or 2016. I can’t remember if the series had come out yet or if it was just a pilot. All I knew was that it was cute and weird, and I wanted to see more of it. Eventually, Fredorator partnered with VRV, and I watched the new Bee and Puppycat episodes there. After that, the show went on hold for a couple of years for reasons I’m too lazy to research why.
Also, I keep hearing that the second season got leaked, so while some fans might have already seen these episodes, I only saw them when they were released on Netflix.
This isn’t technically a first-watch review of the series, but it has been so long since I watched the original that I can’t say I’ll be an expert on all things Bee and Puppycat.
With what little I do remember, I can tell you that the Netflix show does a bit of recycling of the version of the show on VRV. The first 3 episodes have elements of the show I remember for the original run, with episode 2 featuring a speedrun of the old shorts. Episode 3 ends at the same place the VRV run ends, with episode 4 being the technical “season 2” containing all the new content. Some people and fans making that distinction confused me enough that I didn’t really bother doing all that much research for this review.
On to the review!
Netflix’s Bee and Puppycat is just as weird and fun as I can vaguely remember the original being, but I did notice there is now an element of depth behind the story. Not to say the original lacked depth, but I can’t really remember there being much indication of the bigger story that the new content reveals.
This version provides a structure to the world that I think the other version lacked. It’s clear the creator is more interested in telling a story than enticing viewers with mysteries. The years of hiatus have definitely given the series time to iron out some kinks in the story.
Bee and Puppycat follow the adventures of, well, Bee and Puppycat as they take on different temp jobs and just hang around with the people on Bee’s island. As the story continues, you learn little things about the character’s backstories as weird space magic messes with their lives.
We learn that Bee is a robot (or maybe a cyborg 🤔) and that Puppycat is a cursed space outlaw pretty early into the series compared to before. This information is treated more like a set piece and less like a massive reveal. Bee tries to keep her space adventures and robotic nature a secret from the human characters but the reason Bee feels the need to has yet to be explained.
This version of the show focuses more on exploring Bee’s connections with the Wizard family and establishing them as characters. In the earlier versions, Bee only really had a relationship with Deckard and (kind of) knew Cas. I don’t even think we knew the other characters were their brothers. We are told Bee is close enough with the family that some of them think she should be present for a family pic. She also has an intimate yet vague history with one of the brothers.
There is also a random character named Toast who is just hanging around the Wizard’s home to torment Cas. She contributes nothing to the main plot and is just kinda there. I don’t think she’s ever met Bee, but she gets so much screen time. She is weird and wacky. I love her, but she is ultimately pointless to the story.
The romantic subplot between Bee and Deckard was removed or minimized. Bee does spend a lot of time texting and thinking about him, but it doesn’t feel the same as the blushing interactions I remember from the original. Bee seems relatively close to all the Wizard siblings in different ways, and her focus on Deckard appears to stem from her desire to help him through a rough patch, similar to her caring for Cardamom. Speaking of which…
Cardamom is Bee’s child landlord, around 5 or 6 in his first appearance. We find out that Cardamom’s mother is comatose and that he seems to be in charge of the building. Because of a gift from Bee, his mother is now producing magic tears that do some weird things to organic matter. While it feels like it should be meaningful, it’s not. The character is important, but his plotline has no real answers or consequences.
Unfortunately, Bee and Puppycat suffer from a lack of direction despite the extra structure. As it is presented on Netflix, the series spends more time acquainting the viewer with the world and characters that one doesn’t know much about what is going on. There is even weird contradictory information in the series.
Bee is called a weird old young lady for not aging, but a flashback shows she’s around the age of Merlin Wizard, who isn’t all that old. The mystery of Bee’s body and Cardamom’s mom are just left hanging even at the end of the season. Deckard mentions that no one has ever been fired from the cat cafe, but later we find out that it’s owned and run by his brother, and Bee is the only nonrelative employee, so it’s not that surprising. It is also a reveal about their island that doesn’t really make sense that no one knows about based on the implied timeline. I mentioned Bee has a connection to Crispin Wizard, but there is no indication of this until the episode it’s revealed.
The settings are also confusing. I don’t really understand if the show takes place in a version of our world or if the weird magic stuff is semi-normal. The streetlights are strange crystals implying that the show magic-science-alchemy stuff is standard, but Cas regularly comments on the weirdness of their island.
There is an overarching plot connected to Puppycat’s backstory, but it is very surface-level. Giant black hands that are implied the be affiliated with the Space King are chasing Puppycat across the universe. While this does create tension and a sense that there is more to come, none of the characters treat it like it has any weight. If you cut out the giant hands, it would be the same chill story about a girl and her weird space pet. Hopefully, next season we’ll get more details on the hand dudes, but for now, it just conflicts with the atmosphere of the series.
I’ll give this show 3 Wish Donuts out of 5. I had considered ratings it lower, but I just enjoyed watching it too much for that. The show is a fun, atmospheric timesink but lacks actual substance. If you have a few hours to waste, give it a watch, but don’t go looking for a deeper story for the time being.
I Think Thinks 