'Barney's New Look Slammed by Fans Ahead of Franchise Reboot
Cosmetic Surgery
They gave Barney contacts, a nose job and bigger veneers. Sad. pic.twitter.com/D2aWosH8AZ
— Veronica McDonald🗣 (@Purify_toast17) February 14, 2023
Barney got the buccal fat removal pic.twitter.com/eS8rveyuiX
— Taietsarón:sere (@tai_leclaire) February 13, 2023
Fans joked that Barney had gotten some cosmetic surgeries to prepare for his main stage comeback.
prevnextAnimation Style
Literally thought this was Barney in fortnite I am fucking sad https://t.co/2XJpSNPjaC
— Jump Shujinkou (@JumpShujinkou) February 14, 2023
Some fans were put off by the animation style, feeling that it looked too similar to other franchises children will be familiar with. For the series creators, this will undoubtedly be an advantage.
prevnextEerie Memories
In honor of Barney coming back, here’s this pic.twitter.com/lm9NLIpPCi
— King of Drum and Friendship (@wasteofdaylight) February 14, 2023
While many commenters poked fun at the new Barney design, others reminded them that Barney was always a little off-putting in the 1990s. Some even shared old photos or screenshots to show how his look had evolved over time.
prevnext'Culture War' Fatigue
adults getting full on mad about a possible Barney reboot… I just don’t have that kinda thing in me. Where the fuck does the ability to culture war everything come from
— 🏜🔋, fka ☕️ (@coopercooperco) February 14, 2023
I’m a guy that talks about Nintendo games for a living, and even I say we gotta draw the line somewhere:
No one over the age of 5 should have an opinion on this. It’s fucking Barney. https://t.co/oLqEO2Wo7X
— Josh Busker (@JoshBusker) February 14, 2023
Many people dreaded the idea of this new Barney franchise sparking earnest debates on social media. They did not look forward to "culture war" takes, nor media criticism.
prevnextNothing New
This is especially funny to me because when the original Barney came out the same type of people said he was clearly gay for being purple and singing songs about love. https://t.co/mWuv1g4rs8
— Craniel Daig (@ColtHandsome) February 14, 2023
While some commenters were incredulous at the idea of Barney inciting another "culture war" debate, others remembered the same thing happening two decades ago. They reminded each other that Barney had stirred up some surprising conversations even then.
prevnextMissing the Point
I’mma be PISSED, if those woke cultural Marxists force Barney to……sing about love and acceptance. pic.twitter.com/4JbnPp9BeB
— The Millennial Snowflake (@Teh_Snowflake) February 14, 2023
In predicting the "culture war" discourse to come, many people worried that the U.S. is more fractured than it has ever been. Even concepts that seemed nonpartisan and unimpeachable in the 1990s might strike a nerve in today's day and age.
prevnextWorse Reboots
Rebooting Barney is whatever, sure the meme is that he is terrible, but who cares.
But at least it makes more sense than the recent Cailou reboot. At least kids liked Barney, even if the parents didn't. EVERYONE (even the kids) abhorred Cailou. pic.twitter.com/7hQD2XiYTb
— Drew Doniger (@sandleswagger) February 14, 2023
Animation fans and fans of children's media assured casual viewers that there have been worse reboots in recent years. Barney, they argued, deserved this treatment more than many of the characters who had already gotten it.
prevnextAdult Reboot
Fuck that Animated Barney thing, where is this? pic.twitter.com/soAZKFVggB
— Saint 🎬 (@Saintrow1981) February 13, 2023
Finally, some fans joked that a Barney revival should be aimed at Millenials, not children, and they recalled old reports that such a project was in the works. For now, Mattel's announcement seems to be the only legitimate one.
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