On January 22nd2021, the new seriesFate: The Winx Sagahas been released. It has been created byBrian Youngand produced byArchery Picturein association withRainbowfor the streaming platformNetflix.
We have watched it and in this article, we are going to talk about our impression about it.
THE ANIMATED SERIES
Fate: The Winx Sagais based on the animated Italian series ofWinx Clubcreated byStraffie produced byRainbowin co-production withRaiandNickelodeon.
The animated series, aired between 2004-2019, tells the story ofBloom, a 16 years old girl who discovers to be a fairy.
To learn how to control her power, Bloom enrolls to the Alfea Academy for young fairies, placed in the magic world of Magix where humans are not allowed. During her time in the school, Bloom meets and befriends withStella,Flora,Musa,TecnaeAisha.Together the group of fairies forms theWinx Clube faces different adventures in order to protect the magic dimension. With them there will also be some warriors calledspecialists.
THE LIVE ACTION SERIES
Fate: The Winx Sagais an fantasy English and Italian series that tells that, hidden in the magic world calledOther World, there isAlfeaan academy where young fairies are trained since millions years.
Bloom, a young fairy, arrives at the academy. She is different from the other students because she was born and raised on earth. Bloom hides inside her a great power and in order to learn how to control it and to discover the truth about her past she enrolls to Alfea.
CAST AND CHARACTERS
InFate: The Winx Sagamany of theoriginal charactersappears but they aredifferent from their animated version.
BLOOM
Bloom, played byAbigailCowen(DorcasinThe Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) is a 16 years old girl who comes from Gardenia. One day she lose control of her power and hurts her mother. After the accident, Found byFara Dowling, she decides to enroll toAlfeato learn how to control her power and to discover who she really is.
Indeed, Bloom has been adopted, she is achangeling. A changeling isa baby fairy who has been exchanged with a baby human.
In the series, like her animated version, Bloom is determined to find who she is and to be able to control her power. She is afraid to lose control and hurts her beloved ones. In both the versions, she is found by the principal of Alfea who convice her to enroll to the academy.
In the animated series become immediately Stella’s friend and share the room with Flora.
In the live action instead, Stella at the beginning doesn’t like Bloom andFlorahas been replaced, at least for now, withTerra, her cousin.
STELLA
Stella, played byHannah van der Westhuysen, is a light fairy and the princess of Solaria, the world where Alfea is placed.
In the Netflix adaptation,Stella appears as egocentric and snob. However, during the series we discover that her behavior is a mask that she wears to hideher insecurity and fears. She is indeed afraid to not be able to fulfill her mother’s expectations,Queen Luna.
Moreover, in the live action she is jealous of Sky, her ex boyfriend who is charmed by Bloom from their first encounter.
InWinx Clubinstead, Stella appears sunny and a bit frivolous but always ready to help her friends. She becomes Bloom, Flora, Musa and Tecna’s friend and she is in a relationship withBrandon, Sky’s best friend. Tecna and Brandon have not appeared yet in the Netflix adaptation.
MUSA
Musais played byElisha Applebaum. In the Netflix series,she is a mind fairy.Empathicandextrovert,she can feel the thoughts and moods of everyone. In order to isolate herself and to have a little pace,she often wears a headphone. During the series, she develops a secret relationship withSam,Terra’s brother.
In the animated series,Musa is a music fairy. She appears as anAsian girland has a relationship withRiven.
AISHA
Aisha, played byPreciousMustapha, is a water fairy. Her hobby is swimming and since their first encounter is immediately ready to help Bloom with who she share the room. She is one of the main protagonist from the beginning. In the animated series instead, Aisha appears only in the second season and shares the room with another fairyFrancis. Moreover, she is the princess ofAndros.
In Fate: The Winx Saga her reign is never mentioned neither if she is a princess.
TERRA
Terra, played byEliotSalt, is an earth fairy. She appears like a happy and sensitive girl but at the same time strong. During the series, she develops a crash on Dane, one of the new specialists of the school. Unfortunately, he will disappoint her because he will make fun of her with Riven for her weight.
She is Flora’s cousin, she has grown up in Alfea with her brother Sam and her father who is a teacher of the academy.
SKY
Sky, played byDanny Griffin, is the son of the war heroAndreas ofEraklion. He is the best specialist of the academy and he has been raised bySilva, the specialist trainer. Since their first encounter, he is charmed by Bloom.
In the animated series,Sky is the prince of Eraklionand for half of the first season he pretends to be his best friend and Squire Brandon.
In the Netflix adaptation, it is not clearly said that he is a prince but we can guess it from a conversation between him and Stella where he claims to know what means to be a royal one.
RIVEN
Riven, played byFreddieThorp, is one of the specialist and Sky best friend. Rebellious and borderless he from the beginning attracted byBeatrix.
At the beginning Riven appears like a bully but during the series we discover that it is only a mask he has started to wear to survive in the school and not to bullied. He is indeed smart and he has changed his behavior to hide it.
In the animated series,Riven appears like his live action version rebellious and lonely. At the beginning, he feels to bein competition with Skyand becomes an ally of the Trix. He is indeed attracted byDarcyuntil he discovers that she has used him to get to theWinx.
FARAGONDA
Faragonda, played byEveBest, in the Netflix adaptation becomesFara Dowlingand she is Alfea’s principal. She appears like astrong, mysterious and authoritarian woman. She has found Bloom in the human world and has brought her to Alfea. In the past, she was one of the students of Rosalind, the past principal of Alfea.
InWinx Club,Faragonda is a strong and wise fairy with a calmer and more comforting personality.
NEW CHARACTERS
With the main original characters, in the live action adaptation we findnew characters. The first one isBeatrixplayed bySadieSoverall. She an air fairy and appears like an ambitious girl, passionate of Alfea’s history.
Dane, playedTheo Grahamis another new character. He is an unsure new specialist who let Riven’s personality influence him. He is indeed attracted by him.
Samis played byJacobDudmanis Terra’s brother and an earth fairy with the ability to pass through walls. During the series, he develops a relationship with Musa.
Other new characters areSaulSilvaandBenHarvey. The first one is the specialists trainer and Sky’s mentor, he is played byRobertJames–Collie. The second one is Terra and Ben’s father and the botany teacher, he is played byAlexMacqueen.
As enemies, in the series appear theBurned ones, monstrous and skeletal creatures. They appear like a mix between theCranksof theMaze Runnerand theBoneysofWarm Bodies.
THE INCLUSIVITY IN THE SERIES
One of the aspects that is immediately recognizable in the series is the evident respect of theinclusivityprinciple. Inclusivity has becomean important and essential principle in the production and in the character’s characterization. Examples of it areTerra’s aspect,Dane’s sexual orientationand the evidentgender equalityin the academy that is composed by fairies and specialists of both the genres.
THE STYLE AND THESETTING
The shooting began inWicklow,IrelandinSeptember2019and ended onDecember13of the same year. The main locations of the first season wereAshfordStudiosinAshford, whereVikingswas also filmed,KillrudderyHouseandArdmoreStudiosinBray. The setting of Fate: The Winx Saga isdarker, the colors are not bright and lively as in the animated version.Alfeais very similar to that of the cartoon, it looks like alargecastlewith pink walls, blue roofs and a large garden surrounding the school.
As for the style, it has gone from afairytaleone, suitable for children, to adarkerand morematureone.
THE ORIGINALITY IN THE SERIES
The series certainly does not lackoriginality. To justify the lack of wings, Principal Dowling explains that fairies haveevolvedto the point of not needing them. During the dialogue between her and Bloom, adigis also thrown at the fairy Tinker Bell that Dowling claims to be an air fairy while inDisney’s imaginationshe is atinker-talent fairy. Another element is themanifestationof their power. In the series it’s possible to understand when the protagonists use their powers from theireyes that change color. Also Bloom manages to “transform” by making flaming and indefinite wings appear.
The wings are very reminiscent of Touka Kirishima’s Ukaku-type kagune from Tokyo Ghoul. Another innovation is achangeling, a baby fairy that is exchanged at birth with a human baby. In the animated series Bloom was simplyadoptedafter being saved from the flames by her father while in the live action they introduced this new figure.
IN CONCLUSION
The series has had a lot ofcriticismsince before its debut. Thefans of the cartoonhave protested about many of the elements that have been changed but the live action, as specified several times by the authors, isonlyinspiredby the animated series, creating an original plot for ayoungadultaudience. Despite theprejudicesandcriticisms, it has met with greatsuccessthat will perhaps lead to arenewal.
