Well, we're here. Something has been added to Zootopia's universe after 6 years of silence and that thing is Zootopia+. Whilst one could expect something more grand given the success of the original movie, it could be explained by the possibility of producers having a sequel in works. If there's any Disney movie that needs an actual sequel so badly it's Zootopia.
Zootopia+ managed to wrap up some really unique stories for side characters, gave them more exposure, added their perspective during the original movie's run in the background and perfectly schowcased what each of the characters struggled with. Stories like the Godfather of the Bride is a good example of origins story and struggle in the humble beginnings, while others like Duke: The Musical seems to focus more on entertainment value and character's personality. Stories told more boldly seem to do better than those existing just for the sake of entertainment.
Animation is indistinguishable from the movie, so there's no complain about it. Humor is debatable, but definitely not the worse I've ever seen. Some lines actually managed to crack me up. The whole premise of Z+, on the other hand, seems like it's about just giving some of the side characters more exposure that they lacked in the original movie. Notice how characters that had fairly well explained backstory didn't receive any sort of big appearances. The main characters from the movie have short appearances and even though most of the scenes with them were recycled from the original movie, while camera angle was changed a bit, they still managed to steal the audience and leave them questioning - "Is that it?"
"We need more!" is what I take from this short episodic series. It could work as a bonus between first Zootopia and a sequel before its release, but given the fact that we still need to wait for any sort of announcment, it leaves a bad taste of just being not enough to please the fans. It's enjoyable, sometimes funny, but definitely not enough.
8/10.
Zootopia+ managed to wrap up some really unique stories for side characters, gave them more exposure, added their perspective during the original movie's run in the background and perfectly schowcased what each of the characters struggled with. Stories like the Godfather of the Bride is a good example of origins story and struggle in the humble beginnings, while others like Duke: The Musical seems to focus more on entertainment value and character's personality. Stories told more boldly seem to do better than those existing just for the sake of entertainment.
Animation is indistinguishable from the movie, so there's no complain about it. Humor is debatable, but definitely not the worse I've ever seen. Some lines actually managed to crack me up. The whole premise of Z+, on the other hand, seems like it's about just giving some of the side characters more exposure that they lacked in the original movie. Notice how characters that had fairly well explained backstory didn't receive any sort of big appearances. The main characters from the movie have short appearances and even though most of the scenes with them were recycled from the original movie, while camera angle was changed a bit, they still managed to steal the audience and leave them questioning - "Is that it?"
"We need more!" is what I take from this short episodic series. It could work as a bonus between first Zootopia and a sequel before its release, but given the fact that we still need to wait for any sort of announcment, it leaves a bad taste of just being not enough to please the fans. It's enjoyable, sometimes funny, but definitely not enough.
8/10.