She-Ra: The Sword pt 1 Review

I didn’t watch She-Ra when I was younger. Neither she nor He-Man appealed to me in the slightest. I was too busy wanting to become a Super Saiyan and fight alongside Goku. I was aware of She-Ra but I didn’t care about her. Now though, I’m 25 and She-Ra is getting a reboot. An announcement that made the internet explode. Normally, I’m not down for reboots. I think they’re lazy and unoriginal, however, the news of a She-Ra reboot gave me pause. My aunt is a huge fan of She-Ra, she talks about her a lot and I was never able to relate to the love she has for this woman with a sword and a Pegasus. But with Netflix’s new bright and colorful reboot, I think I’m finally starting to see why my aunt loved the old show and I’m able to carve out my own reasons for loving the new one.

To start, Netflix’s “She-Ra” is beautiful. I love when things are allowed to be bright and bold. The colors in the show are amazing and I was instantly drawn to it within the first couple of minutes.  Not to mention our protagonist, Adora, immediately solidifies herself as the hero we’ve been waiting for. She’s strong and she’s dedicated to being the best. Adora knows what she wants and she’s going to get it.

In the first episode, which is the first half of a two-parter, Adora is promoted from cadet to captain by the chillingly daunting Shadow Weaver. The mysterious Sorceress has every bit of confidence that the young woman has reached the end of her training and is ready for the next level. Word is traveling fast that Adora could be the one to lead Hordak and his evil The Horde to victory over Etheria. She’s an amazing soldier and the only one who can control the equally amazing Catra. The destruction Adora could bring would be massive.

Of course, this is unknown to Adora, who is under the impression she and her Horde friends are restoring order to Etheria. The promotion to Force Captain is something she’s been working towards her entire life. She’s elated once it finally does happen. In a sort of celebration, and as a way to cheer up Catra, Adora takes a ship and the two head into the woods. A place outside The Fright Zone that they aren’t supposed to go. Adora gets knocked from the ship and ends up falling several feet to the ground. And in the space where she lands, a magnificent sword sits; waiting. Intrigued, Adora attempts to grab the sword and is sent into a blinding vision where a voice tells her that balance must be found and Etheria is in need of a hero. Throw in an echo of a baby crying and a quick side profile of a hero with familiar long flowing hair, Adora is shaken back by Catra before she can make any sense of what she’s just seen. Worried that they’re going to get caught if they don’t get back soon, Catra isn’t interested in hearing about the sword Adora saw. Especially since it seems to have disappeared. But Adora can’t get it out of her mind and ends up sneaking back out of the Fright Zone later that night to try and find it.

On the other side of this story, we meet Glimmer, a princess in training who is at constant odds with her mother Queen Angella. Glimmer wants to prove herself as a warrior but her mother’s overprotectiveness rarely lets her see any kind of battle. When her best friend Bow, an archer and part of the Rebellion as well, brings to her attention that his scanner has picked up something power; Glimmer decides she’s had enough of her overbearing mother and they set off to find whatever it is. Which crosses their paths right with Adora. And the adventure truly begins.

I really like the new She-Ra. From the colors that burst onto the screen with every scene to the incredibly diverse characters, we’ve come across so far. It may be a show geared towards children but already the seeds planted in the pilot show signs of growing into intense story plots and full circle character development. I’m really excited to let this show take me on a wonderful ride.

-Danyi

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