The Magic School Bus, a high-tech, sentient, and anthropomorphic school bus created by Joanna Cole and Bruce Degen, was an influential children’s show that ran on PBS from 1994 to 1997. The series was based on a book series written by Joanna Cole and Bruce Degen, and it broke new ground for science education on TV. The concept was developed by Craig Walker, former Vice President and Senior Editorial Director of Scholastic Entertainment.
The Magic School Bus was first broadcast on PBS from September 10, 1994, to December 6, 1997, on several PBS stations across the United States as part of the PTV Park block. The show featured various characters, including the Frizzles, who built the bus during a Gizmos that Go contest about magic. In “Three in One”, the Frizzles build the bus during a Gizmos that Go contest about magic.
The Magic School Bus has since been adapted into an animated series by Scholastic Entertainment, with its latest season, “The Magic School Bus Rides Again”, premiering on September 13, 1997. The show is known for its fun, engaging content, and ability to appeal to multiple generations.
The Magic School Bus is the longest-running kids’ science series in history, shown in approximately 39 countries and earning an Emmy Award. While some of the science may be dated, the show remains fun and engaging, teaching kids to ask questions and explore the world around them.
📹 What Happened to the Magic School Bus?
In this video, we discuss the 90s educational cartoon The Magic School Bus, and what the changes made in the 2017 reboot may …
Did Ms. Frizzle retire?
The speaker takes pride in the individual’s advancement and the fact that she has assumed the role of the next Frizzling to educate the original class, thereby replacing her sister, Fiona Frizzle.
What is Mrs Frizzle’s first name?
Professor Valerie Felicity Frizzle, PhD, also known as “The Friz”, is a former fourth-grade teacher at Walkerville Elementary School who uses various magic devices to teach students scientific concepts. Her most notable tool is her magical school bus, a shape-shifting vehicle that has a mind of its own. Voiced by Lily Tomlin, she has frizzy red hair in a bun and wears a dress that corresponds to the class’s learning topic.
Her earrings light up or glow when she talks, and when she snaps her fingers, says certain phrases, or wears certain clothes, she does something, causing one of the students to ask her how she does it.
What is Ms. Frizzle’s first name?
Professor Valerie Felicity Frizzle, PhD, also known as “The Friz”, is a former fourth-grade teacher at Walkerville Elementary School who uses various magic devices to teach students scientific concepts. Her most notable tool is her magical school bus, a shape-shifting vehicle that has a mind of its own. Voiced by Lily Tomlin, she has frizzy red hair in a bun and wears a dress that corresponds to the class’s learning topic.
Her earrings light up or glow when she talks, and when she snaps her fingers, says certain phrases, or wears certain clothes, she does something, causing one of the students to ask her how she does it.
How old is the Magic School bus?
The Magic School Bus is an American edutainment media franchise that includes a book series, TV series, streaming series, and video games. The franchise revolves around the antics of a fictional elementary school teacher, Ms. Valerie Frizzle, and her class, who board a “magic school bus” to explore unusual times and locations. The books include At the Waterworks, Lost in the Solar System, In the Time of the Dinosaurs, The Magic School Bus (1994–1997), and The Magic School Bus Rides Again (2017–2021). The franchise has been owned by Scholastic Corporation since 1986.
Is Liz from The Magic School Bus a boy or a girl?
The Magic School Bus is a Brazilian Portuguese language series that follows an eccentric teacher who takes her class on educational field trips using a magic school bus. The series is a valuable tool for teaching complex science subjects to children, as it helps them understand and appreciate complex concepts. The show is a popular choice among children, with many finding it useful and fun. The plot outline for the series is based on the story of a male Jackson’s chameleon, Liz, who is actually a female.
The series is a fun and educational way to teach complex subjects, and it is recommended for parents to watch it to help their children begin their education at a young age. The show is a valuable resource for children to learn and grow in their understanding of science and other subjects.
Is Miss Frizzle a witch?
Frizzle, a talented witch, was proud of her No-Maj background and believed that the wizarding world was blind and prejudiced. She decided to teach science in a unique way, using her magical skills to teach students about various subjects, from outer space to the human body. She even developed a Time-Turner to return to the time of dinosaurs. Despite the risks, Frizzle believed that children could learn unless they made mistakes, and no student ever got injured under her watchful eye.
After retiring, her former student Dorothy Ann started writing children’s books based on her notes from Frizzle’s classroom. These magical tales took the No-Maj world by storm, teaching hundreds of young No-Maj children science. MACUSA became suspicious, but they never found Frizzle. Despite the mystery surrounding her and her bus, No-Maj children worldwide thank her for her fearless conviction and skill, bringing magic and wonder into their lives.
Is Ms. Frizzle divorced?
Mr. Frizzle, a divorced man, began dating her after her husband’s divorce. Ms. Frizzle was jealous of her husband’s new wife. When they returned home, they discovered Ms. Frizzle was removing her belongings. Mr. Frizzle threatened to call law enforcement, but Ms. Frizzle and the children escaped in a Magic Hyundai. He claimed it was not his fault, as he didn’t love her because she was mentally ill. Ms. Frizzle transformed her car into a smaller one and drove inside Mr.
Frizzle’s ear to show his heart. When Mr. Frizzle felt weird, she turned the Magic Hyundai into a bomb, causing Mr. Frizzle’s girlfriend and the entire living room to be covered in blood. Ms. Frizzle and the children escaped in the Magic Hyundai off-screen.
How old is Ms. Frizzle?
Valerie Felicity Frizzle, a well-known instructor at Hogwarts, is known for her exceptional teaching skills. She is a natural teacher, adept at creating engaging lesson plans, and capable of teaching nearly every subject students aged eight to eighteen might need. Frizzle is also known for her trivia and preferred transport. She is also known for her exceptional field trips. Her notable Mundane Attributes include her ability to create detailed lesson plans and her ability to engage students.
Who is Ms. Frizzle’s sister?
The Magic School Bus is a popular science fiction series that began in 1986 with the publication of the book series. The series, created by Joanna Cole and Bruce Degan, features a loveable, often wacky science teacher named Ms. Frizzle. The show has been adapted into a television series, The Magic School Bus Rides Again, which was released in 2017. The series follows Ms. Frizzle and her sister Fiona Frizzle on exciting field trips on the school bus, taking students to various destinations such as the human body, outer space, and the Arctic.
The series is notable for featuring a woman in science, Ms. Frizzle, who is independent in her fashion choices and teaching style. She is unattached to any male character, a radical choice for the 1980s. Some have even called Ms. Frizzle an LGBTQ+ icon, as Lily Tomlin, who is public about her marriage to Jane Wagner, voices Ms. Frizzle, and Kate McKinnon, who voices Fiona Frizzle, is also out in the public sphere as lesbian.
Despite their eccentricity, Ms. Frizzle and Fiona Frizzle take their field trips seriously and encourage their students to think for themselves. They never shame students for making mistakes but encourage them to think more deeply. Both Frizzles are supportive of all students, but the creators of The Magic School Bus aimed to make the classroom more girl-centric, with 51 of the students being girls, their teachers being women, and even Ms. Frizzle and Fiona Frizzle’s pet lizard Liz being female.
Who voiced the original Ms. Frizzle?
The animated television program, Miss Frizzle, which featured the voice of Lily Tomlin in the original iteration, was broadcast in the United States for a consecutive eighteen-year period.
When did Magic School Bus end?
The Magic School Bus was a popular TV series that aired on PBS from 1994 to 1997, becoming the first fully-animated series to be broadcast on the network. The series was among the highest-rated shows for school-age children. After its final episode, it continued in reruns on PBS until September 25, 1998. In September 1998, PBS dropped the original series to make room for more preschool-focused programs. Fox Network acquired the original series in December 1997 and broadcast it on the Fox Kids block as a weekday offering.
Reruns continued on Fox Kids from October 5, 1998, until September 6, 2002. After Fox Kids reruns, TLC and Discovery Kids aired the show on TLC from 2003 to 2008 and Discovery Kids from 2004 to 2009 as part of the Ready Set Learn! block.
📹 THE MAGIC SCHOOL BUS: Doppelgänger Theory (Alex Bale)
This video is not related to the DON’T FEED THE MUSE ARG/Webseries. The finale is still coming out in 2023, and I’m still gonna …
I really like this article! I was hesitant about this because of people talking about how it was whitewashed, and the characters’ designs are bad. Though those are problems I think should be addressed, this article made me realize most people who don’t like the show aren’t angry because of them. They’re only mad because they think that because they used to enjoy the old show in school, they should enjoy the new show as well. Honestly, I really don’t like people who think that way. I 100% agree that we should be thinking of the target audience, not ourselves, when criticizing media.
your points are valid and you changed my mind. I didn’t want my son to watch the new one because i wanted him to watch what i did but your right that while the old show still works with many topics in science it doesn’t have the application to all of the worlds new going on’s I’ll probably have my son sit down and watch the new show sometime and i hope to explain any of his questions he has. Thanks for the article, well done 🙂
Man, if only the animation style isn’t so damn cheap. It’s like the series wanted to honour the original show, but didn’t have the budget or creative manpower. The same face syndrome of all the children is a big turn off to me from first glance, as one thing I liked about the original was the diverse, yet naturalistic cast. I’m glad the new show sticks to the spirit of the old in other ways though. (In other news, I’m shocked by the fact that I’ve literally memorised every single frame of the original show. Like wow! Really??)
I was in elementary school kind of in the middle, so the new reboot was out but the old show was still widely accepted. I have distinct memory of my class always perusal the old version, and then for one reason or another we went to a different teachers class and she put on the new version and we protested until she found the old version on youtube
So I am a kid that just got out of elementary, now in middle school. And yes, I have watched both series. I love the original one but I believe the reason they rebooted is to be more available to teachers and to make new updated episodes. Like the one episode when their is 9 planets, even thought that was true years ago. Their is now 8 planets. And imagine students perusal that today, they would agree that the show is correct and not the teacher. This could effect a student very much. And I like the reboot. But I still remember those old episodes like the bat one, and when Arnold got sick. The magic school bus will still be teaching kids. It has since the books.
Im all of 22 and with no kids, so I will admit that I haven’t watched it myself. I will agree that combing for continuity errors or crying for the old style back are a little strange for grown adults; but I really am bothered by the whitewashing of the characters. The original show was beautifully diverse, and to see that the reboot has whitewashed the POC characters and made the Jewish ones far less Jewish is really heartbreaking to me. I dont think that a kids show like this has an obligation to the nostalgia of old fans, but they should be true to the spirit of the source material. Putting in more episodes about tech is absolutely in the spirit! I think if it were as big in the 80’s as it is today, the original show would have included it to begin with. And changing the animation style has little to do with the heart of the show, this is what new elementary school kids are used to. Removing representation and the opportunity for marginalized children to see themselves in the shows they watch is not, in my opinion, in the spirit of the old and is really disheartening to see.
I did grow up with the old one, I haven’t seen the new one yet and I hear it’s ok, but I know until I experience it myself, the concept of miss frizzles sister taking is interesting because she reminds me of a new teacher starting their new job, and I love that because no new teacher starting their job is ever prepares so do have to learn along with the kids. It doesn’t hurt to be on the same page as your students I think it would help you develop closer bond with your students and have a teacher on a kids pov then an adults pov, because you’ll know better how they’ll feel then how you feel.
As a kid from now who somehow gets references from 90’s shows cause that’s what my country had on TV for most of my childhood I can confidently say. Yeah both of them are good. Neither was really more memorable and I enjoyed them both. Since I enjoyed them within the same I guess window of my life (cause I’m a teenager now) I can’t say one was better than the other.
My primary criticism is the art style and messaging. Part of the reason they seem to have gone with a corporate art style is so that they can add detail easily when using their technology. When the view shifts to a tablet or goggle view the amount of detail essentially doubles and underscores a message common in the episodes that technology makes life better. For a show called The Magic School Bus there isn’t much of any Magic or at least mystery. Similarly all artistic expression has been reduced in the show even when viewed through the “techno vision” present in every episode. One of the great things about the original series was its encouragement of artistic expression and frequent activities by Miss Frizzle that seemed magical. I’m not sure where they are going with this show’s intent but I feel very strongly that it will encourage kids to ask for more tech from their parents.
The old Magic School Bus actually got me a brownie point with a teacher in *college*. Be fall 2006, Biology 1 in nondescript, rural Southern community college. Mid-semester, we were doing plant reproduction. Old Southern guy was talking about how pollen made plants reproduce, and dropped the question.”so how does the pollen get to the bottom of the plant?” All I remembered in that moment was one of the old Magic School Bus books about plants, with Ms. Frizzle going “Get messy, take chances, go down pollen tubes!” I half-muttered “Pollen tubes” while the rest of the class was silent. Guy instantly snaps to me and points. “I heard somethin’, say it louder!” “Pollen tube?” Still pointing at me “Pollen tubes!” – EDIT: After perusal your article (thanks for the review!), I had mixed feelings on the show. Me and most of those in my circle had a problem with the art style and applied art techniques towards it, and it was basically animated with something like Adobe Character animator for the characters. It wasn’t enough for me to not watch it, but I think the sentiment comes from when “there’s a reboot”, everything’s changed so drastically and bad that there’s nothing recognizable anymore. And you’re right, people just saw the screencaps/trailer, immediately saw “this wasn’t hand-drawn like the old show”, and dismissed it. One person I know has refused to even look at the show up to this day. Hope that helps give a different insight on someone who didn’t give it a high score.
out of all the shows that exist that could’ve pulled off a ‘next generation’ style of a sequel, magic school bus was the top contender. original kids, now adults, drop off their kids to their old class, are a bit surprised to see the Frizzle sister. the kids react disappointed by not seeing their parents’ old beloved teacher, but the parents comfort them that change happens and they should all trust Frizzle’s judgement in having her sister take over. the magic *school* bus is for kids, if it’s still wacky and educational then it’s doing it’s job.
Personally I didn’t know they had a new Magic School Bus, but as long as people are learning from it and it’s entertaining, I really don’t think its a problem. I loved the original show and I will defiantly insist my sister let my niece and nephew watch this new rendition of a classic. I hope it continues for years because many shows nowadays aren’t as educational.
I’ve only seen and heard about this reboot on a surface level and I initially had a negative reaction to it as well, but I think my opinion has changed after perusal this article. Having the first episode of the show being about invasive species and the new student being a tech geek is a really smart decision. It’s a mediator. A way to make the transition to one show to another much smoother than it would’ve if they didn’t. Personally, this demonstrates how much thought and care the writers are putting into this. They have my respect.
When you said this was made by 9Story, I couldn’t help but think of Wild Kratts (the “new” zoboomafoo). I was too young to grow up on zoboomafoo but I have seen a few episodes. To 8 year old me in 2013, they felt extremely outdated with their extremely low budget animation and tacky effects. I grew up with the new animated wild kratts, which, as a kid, I thought was amazing. Even looking at it today, the art was incredible, especially with the animals. It was able to seamlessly integrate fun storylines with educational topics, it never insulted the viewer’s intelligence by spoon-feeding them information. It could even be surprisingly mature at times, such as the episodes dealing with predator-prey dynamics. They explained to children that in nature, it is the natural order of things that animals are killed for food because all animals are important (all of the killing is still off-screen of course). The show is in the same boat as the new magic school bus for being a reboot of a cherished older show. I mention this because there are many parallels with zoboomafoo vs wild kratts to old vs new magic school bus. When we watch old Magic School Bus, the choppy animation and cheesy jokes are part of the charm. But in the new series, the art style and attempts to be “cool” or “funny” are seen as “cringe”. I believe that most of that is true regarding the new Magic school bus series, it feels soulless and unwatchable to older audiences. But, similarly, I think older fans of zoboomafoo might have similar criticisms to wild kratts, “the “cool” new creature power suits are just used to appeal to zoomers”, “anime esque art style trying to appeal to zoomers”, “thinks it is funny when it is not, lessons feel forced”.
I watched the reruns since I was born in 1997. The original Magic School Bus was something I watched every morning before school. I was for the reboot even though I was way older by that point. Even though I loved the 90’s show. A lot of that info was probably outdated over 20 years later. So feel a reboot really could work with all the accomplishments of the last 20 years.
Damn I haven’t seen The Magic School Bus in such a long time and this honestly almost made me cry like 4 times and like damn. It’s made me remember being like 5 or 6 and just staying up all night to watch it on the TV since it always came on so early in the morning (since it was an older show) and having my enthusiasm as high as Ms.Frizzle as the adventure went on and now that I’m almost out of high school I’m just so broody and have a destain for almost everything. It’s weird how a clip of an old show can carry so much memories with it.
I’m just glad they didn’t throw the og away and make it into something completely different and that they acknowledged the original. I agree with everything you said this show is ment for the kids of this generation they’re the ones that are targeted for the most part. Plus kids will wonder why it’s Magic School Bus Returns and will go search up the og out of curiosity, maybe watch some of it and maybe even fall I love the way we did 🤷🏾♀️
That was beautiful, the part about the first episode being about change made me tear up. Like sure maybe the new series is a bit ugly, but the important part is the educational and entertainment value, and I’m happy to hear that the new one brings that. I like that the content is with the time and its focusing on tech, and I like the new teacher. This is just based on your vid, I haven’t seen the new series myself. Also her voice acting sounds really good from the clips shown. It’s nice to hear where shows went right sometimes. As for the old one, I’d seen it a couple times in class but the one I remembered most was the digestion episode hahaha.
Appreciated the article, it’s a good take on knee jerk reactions to stuff like this. That being said I’d disagree with your more general take on children’s media and the idea that such a show being educational is a valid end unto itself. For kids, a tv show like the Magic School Bus or Zaboomafoo isn’t just informing their knowledge of the world; it’s shaping their understanding of aesthetics, of quality, of good storytelling. After all, there’s a reason people are so mad about this decades-old show and that’s because children’s media is formative, foundational. Making art and media for children is a really important task with a lot of responsibility attached, and I think a lot of people recognize that even if they can’t put it into words. I can’t say if this show is a soulless cashgrab or a blow against artful children’s media, but I can say that the response to reactionary judgment isn’t uncritically acceptance.
The character design gets me. The original put more effort into making the kids look distinct while here they feel like they’re made from the same template and their ‘features’ only go as far as being cut-n-paste from a default collection akin to GoAnimate. Edit: I want you to look into Filmation’s show ‘Mission: Magic’. There are so many parallels to that show to the MSB series I wouldn’t be surprised if it were an inspiration for it.
13:30 pretty sure there were more technology focused episodes, like the one where they made a robot (ok, the actual topic was about muscles, veins and arteries and bones and hoe they are the basis of a human body, but still), the one we’re they fixed the magic school bus by going through its exhaust port and learning how a car functions and the one where they fixed miss Frizzle’s doorbell
I loved the original so much. While I like and accept change, and of course understand the parts that needed to be changed, such as how the older technology needs to be updated for more modern times, (like who uses a flippy disk anymore?) I feel like it is the animation itself that is used here that was such a big change. I don’t have kids, but when I do, I want then to see both the old and new shows, as they both achieve the purpose they were created for, education. As for me, I just feel as if the older animation style had a lot more effort put into it, as I am sure many other people who have a nostalgia for the show think as well. There is one point where Arnold says, “Please let this be a normal field trip!” And the original VA for the original show had a lot more character and personality into their lines. The newer show, I felt, lacked that character and personality, as well as enthusiasm. My main concern is this: if the characters are not enthusiastic about something why should children? I feel as if that lack of joy and enthusiasm could be reflected onto my child, and that would undermine the excitement and eagerness to learn about the world that was intended by the creator.
I will admit that I miss the original version of the Magic School Bus as I remember seeing some of them when I was kid, but even though I don’t always watch any reboot as it often doesn’t entertain me as much, the reboot of The Magic School Bus became something I like a lot. Shame that there were not many episodes.
I can agree with this guy, I think the reboot actually isn’t that bad. Now before ya reply with something like “no your wrong it sucks”, theres some reasons why it ain’t bad. The main reason why I would think it ain’t bad is that I wasn’t around when the original show was still on the air. From what I’ve seen, 90% of the people that dislike the reboot are people who were around when the original show was running and rather popular. That was one of their childhood shows, and I can see why they would hate the reboot, as it does have rather cheap animation and not as many seasons and popularity as it’s original counterpart. But this doesn’t mean the reboot isn’t exactly the worst either. Sure, it may not be as detailed as the original, but it IS better than other rebooted shows (such as the Thomas and Friends A.E.G. reboot). The reboot also does turn to more modern technology. Such as the students now have friz tablets instead of… idk what it was before then lol. There is also new types of field trips in some of the episodes of the reboot, such as camouflage related Hide N Seek in Season 1 Episode 7, or a farm that is literally ran by robots (a modern technology related thing) in Season 2 Episode 3. Even going as far as the Mariana trench at some point. The only thing I can agree on is that the original Ms Frizzle got replaced with her younger sister in the reboot, and that Phoebe went back to her old school, with Jyoti replacing her. However it doesn’t mean that they are bad either.
I honestly think that the new reboot is better because the style that they chose doesn’t usually make skin tones very dark so they couldn’t really do much without making it look strange if your used to the style, I think it’s awesome! It won’t fully replace the original version but it’s still awesome
You can like a media while knowing it’s bad from a critic point of view. Liking something doesn’t erase it’s flaws, it simply mean that those flaws matter less to you personally. From the perspective of an artist working in the educational industry aimed at 8-12yo (comic books and illustration in France and Belgium), I can assure you that matching your audience is extremely important, but ultimately the children are not your only audience. You have to think about their parents, their teachers, etc. Feedback from children will often be positive and simple (or random) compared to the very specific feedback of an educator for exemple. In a review from a class room a little girl said to us she liked the story but asked if we could add a cat. All that to say, if you want to review a piece of media, taking into account the feedback from its main audience is important, but it’s not everything. If a media fill its purpose, that makes it ‘good enough’ not ‘great’. Ultimately the artists are only human, and often have limited time to make a product. ‘good enough’ is always better than mediocrity.
That’s what I tried to instill into my son at such a young age. Nothing is too weird. Nothing is too crazy. Make mistakes, learn, and get messy! What is dirt made of? What lives in it? What is ANYTHING even if it’s gross made of? Ask questions, never stop asking the questions! I accidentally chopped off part of my finger once while making dinner, and I saved the piece, and we both were excited to save it for looking under the microscope later. That’s how we learn and make new discoveries, by doing crazy, curious things, that others think are strange! If he has a question, specially if I’m not there, I want him to be able to have the drive to find the answer himself. So of course, he LOVES Magic School bus, old school!
It’s less of a reboot, and more of an evolution. It’s interesting to think about changing shows. My Little Pony was one of those shows that actually made me learn the same thing. I was devastated that a reboot came along when I was little, but I gave it a chance. I ended up perusal it, and I appreciated how well it taught kids the concept of change. It taught us that we have to grow and accept new things into our lives. Why? There will be a new generation of people someday. A generation that we have have to be ready to raise. We have to be ready for them to be different, just like the TV shows we watched. – ❤️Jess
I find my main problems were the show were not only the lackluster character designs and style, but also with some of creativity behind the story. Like you said in the article, a large part of the original show was definitely how wacky the stories were. However, I genuinely don’t see that creativity as much in the reboot with like that scene with teaching erosion through superheroes. It just seemed less creative since so many edutainment books or shows already have used the theme of superheroes and other things they already did during the reboot countless times to teach stories. Aside from that, the new Frizzle character and enthusiastic feel to the story does appear to be quite well replicated and reminiscent of the original series. In terms of animation as well, it is genuinely smooth and improved in that sense. Just its pairing with the unappealing design and art direction that they went with brought the appeal of the show down. (Not to mention the whole controversial parts of the designs.) I also slightly disagree with your more black and white take on specifically seeing the show as for education rather than appeal to show watchers and older fans. If one is to reboot a show, it’s automatically expected that the show will receive criticism from older fans. If you want kids to watch a edutainment show as well, they need to first find the content appealing. Some children obviously don’t mind poorer quality shows, but there are also many that certainly are. Not only that, if a show were to teach more young children, you’d likely want more episodes, and if a show cannot deliver on its expected amount of audience members, you will lose the support of producers to create another season.
Hmm…. to be honest, if the animation style and illustration style were the same or very similar to the original, I would be far more amenable to the reboot. I often refuse to watch follow ups to original movies or shows I’ve loved because, for me, they usually disappoint. The one late exception was the new movie, A Christmas Story Christmas. I genuinely enjoyed it, especially the ending. Anyways. Happy New Year!
The big issue here is that people who feel nostalgic about it today were kids the first time they saw it and probably haven’t seen it since. They remember it through children’s eyes. Does the new one have some elements that feel color-by-numbers? Yeah. But so did the original. You just didn’t notice it as a child. You’re perusal today’s version through adult eyes and comparing it to the feelings you got through child’s eyes
I really think a lot of the hate stems from other shows that people really loved getting a lackluster reboot, most infamously Teen Titans Go, where it has absolutely nothing in common with the original, other than the general cast of characters. I’ve seen the series on Netflix a while back, but never got around to watch it. Since it’s been updated a little, I may give it a shot. Even though I’m an adult, in my 30s, it’ll be nice to share with my nephew when he’s old enough to understand what’s going on. I hope it will help him as much as the original helped me.
I’m gonna be honest, I was more of a curious george person than a magic school bus person, but it wasn’t terrible imo either and I never really was disappointed when I heard we were gonna watch an episode 1:39 tbh this was the only magic school bus scene that I remember besides the intro, mainly because I was laughing so much that the teacher had to pause the article and give me a yellow card for interrupting I also liked bill nye a lot bt we didn’t start getting him until 3rd grade, while the other 2 mentioned were k-1
I want to give this soft reboot a shot, but for me the biggest obstacle is the animation and designs. I’m of the opinion that anyone is free to like the reboot, and I like that this beloved childhood classic has a new audience. I’m willing to accept many of the new changes, but there’s just that one change that’s hard for me to swallow, and it applies to way more than just the Magic School Bus Rides Again. And it’s the designs, art style, and animation. But besides that, I’m willing to support the show and its effectiveness as an entertaining educational program.
I’ve watched the 90s Magic School bus and when I heard of the reboot I kinda Imaged the 2017 Magic School Bus was going to be a next generation type show of the original and was even hoping that students were going to be the kids of the original, but while not what I expected it isn’t to bad of a show either. I kinda like the 2017 animation style a bit more then the 1990s and the current Ms Frizzle feels a bit more realistic to me at least compared to the teachers I’ve had when I was a kid.
Only thing I’m really sad about is Liz’s redesign and the fact that she didn’t stick with the Friz. In my mind, they were inseparable, like she was more a TA than a class pet? But it isn’t for me, so I can respect that. The last question got me thinking though. Less about who reboots should cater to and more to the fact that we reboot so much, and other than the first episode about change, the TMSB skin seemed irrelevant. I guess my return question is, why not make something new that caters to the same line and energy? All in all though, can’t complain too much. It is still educational and fun, and I would argue on the side that my opinion no longer matters, so long as the kids are having fun and learning! (Also is a good break from Cocomelon for the youngun’s XD)
I see the issues the fanbase was considered about I didn’t mind that they made a continuation (mistaken for a remake) the og fanbase is just saying we have standers god damnit. (A nice move on the animators part was addressing some of the concerns that the community had) I am an Og member from the old series and I have seen the entire series (flexibility is important and it’s important to acknowledge what audience it’s aiming for)
Honestly, the reboot isn’t perfect but it isn’t bad at the same time. Ms Frizzle has loads of relatives as seen in the old show, so it’s not jarring to have another Frizzle teach the class. Kate has her own spin for Fiona and she has honestly made me laugh a lot. Valarie Frizzle is definitely the more experienced teacher so having the contrast of her younger sister having the same energy as her but basically the whole fly by the seat or her pants vibe is probably the best way to word it. And that has been pulled of really well. The kids are solid actors (obviously the original cast have grown out of their roles by this point) but I think it would have been better to have a whole new set of kids instead of trying to revamp the original kids. Build new personalities, new dynamics and so on. Take inspiration from the books and use characters that weren’t used in the original series. The kids are different from their original versions (apart from some similar stuff like Arnold being nervous, Carlos making jokes, etc), so you might as well create a new cast of characters to make their own mark to be as rememberable as the original. Like how they did with Fiona Frizzle. Hands down, Fiona is one of the best parts of the show. Because it’s a school setting, you can have a whole new class of students. We never had a episode where we see the kids meet Ms Frizzle for the first time, this would have been the perfect chance to do that. Have the kids used to having regular lessons and classes then their lives get turned upside down when they find out they have Ms Frizzle as their teacher.
I grew up alongside a reboot – Transformers: Animated. It’s the most enjoyable Transformers series I’ve watched, and I always hated seeing negative reviews with no constructive criticism. If I were part of the creative team and wanted to appease to people unwilling to let go of the past, I’d just make the original students older and be parents of the new class.
I didn’t even know a reboot existed. I think it’s really cool tbh. I loved the original as a kid and I think that the new generation needs something like that for them. Techology and science are always changing and kids are learning faster than we did as kids so it’s not fair to make then learn somewhat “outdated” info. They really didn’t need to address the original, but they did. They brought back the original miss frizz and gave her a part in the new installment. The voice actress for the new miss frizz was such a good choice. The animation might be off but unfortunately that’s the style these days. I think they should do another reboot as time goes on to keep up with education. Would I watch it? Lol no, but I definitely will watch it with my kids if I ever have any.
Yes and No. When I think of “Modern” reboots in comparison to this one, my mind immediately goes to Teen Titans, which also got an updated reboot in Teen Titans Go . However, I think the main difference between Teen Titans Go and The Magic School Bus Rides Again is, in fact, continuity. Not necessarily literal continuity between episodes, or even from one version to the other, but in style. Let me give an example. Say when they decided to reboot The Magic School Bus, they decided they were gonna go whole ham with it. Keeping only the basic premise of a Teacher with a magic vehicle using said magic bus to teach kids science, but aside from that, they teacher, the kids, the setting, everything thing else.. It would still be easily identitified as The Magic School Bus . Now do the same with Teen Titans Go . If you changed the characters to be different characters than the Teen Titans, you would functionally have a different show because the remake is so very different than the original. I think that reboots should be geared towards their new target audience, however, the history of the show should still be respected, and I think that’s why there are so many people who hate on TTG . It doesn’t respect it’s source material, and even worse, it makes fun of the people who complain about it not respecting it’s source material. From what I can tell, The Magic School Bus Rides Again, while not as aesthetically pleasing, does respect it’s source.
Your question at the end is a bit tricky to answer for me as it’s very case by case. In the case of the Magic School Bus where one of it’s most important factors is to educate young’uns I feel like focusing on Entertaining, educating, and getting the attention of said Young’uns is first and foremost the most important and probably shouldn’t prioritize the nostalgia of adults. But at the same time I don’t understand the point of rebooting something if it isn’t at least in SOME part for the old fans. On the other hand, when rebooting some other shows I feel more strongly about their choices and the ever occurring phrase of “This one isn’t for YOU it’s for CURRENT KIDS!” Things like Cartoon Network’s insistence on rebooting action shows I grew up on (Teen Titans, Thundercats, Powerpuff Girls) as Lol-meme-wacky-derp comedy shows is a good example of reboots I generally don’t enjoy at all mostly because they don’t FEEL like the originals. Sure guy who did Thundercats Roar said that there was a ton of potential for comedy there and some people defended it saying “Have you even WATCHED how cheesy and corny the original show was?! Of COURSE it would be rebooted as a COMEDY” when to the kids perusal the 80’s show in the 80’s, it was an action epic and all the cheese came from it being a kids show in the 80s. But here’s the major thing. I’ve watched a few episodes of this magic schoolbus reboot and the thing is… as much as there’s things I’m not fond of like the art or the replacing of the Frizz, it still FEELS LIKE THE MAGIC SCHOOL BUS!
Woah. Phoebe, nothing to offer? She’s the group activist! She’s the most emotionally sensitive, but also the most compassionate and ALWAYS the first to rush to action if she sees injustice, especially if it’s regarding an animal. Not to mention, she’s the best at keeping Janet in line (and in fact motivates Janet into being her own personal cheerleader), and she was already the audience reaction insert, being the “new kid” who can’t help marvel at everything weird going on. I’m not saying the reboot can’t have introduced a new character, but saying Phoebe was useless is just plain selling her short. Also I just realized this is likely the most relevant my avatar has ever been on something I’ve commented about. lol
Honestly I think that if you’re going to reboot or revamp a show, you should really appeal to two audiences, those who have watched the original, and those who are new to the series, so that you’re not overbearing the original viewers but it’s still fresh to those who are new to it, so really just go for both