The popular Nickelodeon animated series Winx Club serves as the basis for this new Netflix Original. However, don’t expect a remake. Netflix has given a completely different twist to the characters and the overall atmosphere that were so characteristic of the animated series. The story told in Fate: The Winx Saga largely remains the same. But that’s about all there is to say.
In Fate: The Winx Saga, it’s once again fire fairy Bloom who is the main character. Bloom did not grow up in the world of magic and fairies, the Otherworld, but in the human world. After accidentally setting her parental home on fire, the headmistress of Alfea picks her up from home to learn to control her magical powers at the fairy school.
While the animated series told this story in many colors and cheerfulness, Netflix does something different. Along with the creators of The Vampire Diaries, Netflix has given the series a dark twist. The colorful fairies are replaced by dramatic teenagers who at first glance don’t resemble the familiar fairies at all. As a result, Netflix targets an older audience and ‘Fate‘ is best categorized as a Young Adult fantasy series.
Predictable and wrong, but entertaining
There are still five main roles reserved for fairies: Bloom (fire fairy), Aisha (water fairy), Stella (light fairy), Terra (earth fairy), and Musa (mind fairy). They are all slightly different characters than they were in the animated series. And instead of a ‘Winx Club‘, these five get to know each other as roommates in the Winx Suite. Opposite these girls are the ‘specialists’ who have no magic but are training as a military force to fight for the magical land.
Netflix’s concept around 16- and 17-year-olds (played by actors who, by the way, look much older) in a school can only lead to more teenage drama. Take for example Riverdale or The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and sprinkle a bit of fairy magic on top, and voila, Fate: The Winx Saga is born. This also results in the series being highly predictable. With multiple storylines that are eventually brought together by a thread around the main character Bloom, the series remains addictive to watch.
Although the series itself is a bit wrong, there are several scenes that are very strong. The fun radiates from the 5 main actresses when they all play together and combine their (magical) powers. Unfortunately, these scenes occur only sporadically, and Netflix thus emphasizes more on the individuality of Bloom’s fairy magic.
All the teenage drama, wrong choices, and predictability don’t give the series a top score. But Netflix has made it incredibly entertaining and addictive. For today’s twenty-somethings, it’s a small throwback to their youth. However, ‘Fate‘ must be seen as loosely based on Winx Club and certainly not as a live-action remake.
Fate: The Winx Saga (2021 – 2022) – Netflix
Determined to master their enchanting powers, a group of teens navigate rivalry, romance and supernatural studies at Alfea, a magical boarding school.
Cast: Abigail Cowen, Hannah van der Westhuysen, Precious Mustapha, Eliot Salt, Elisha Applebaum, e.a.
Showrunner: Brian Young
Studio: Netflix
