The Yin-Yang Couple
Follow-Up: Aisha in Fate: The Winx Saga

As I said in the first post, I refuse to watch Fate: The Winx Saga. I haven’t even seen the trailers. Everything I’m about to say I learned secondhand from readers of this blog, YouTube comments, forums, and reviews.

Apparently, Aisha did almost nothing except bend water and worry about Bloom. She had no character arc (and no character goal once again), and the audience learned zilch about her origin, her parents, or her childhood. Her only personal plot was a brief struggle to control her powers, but she got over it abruptly without explanation.

I knew this would happen. Fate: The Winx Saga season 1 only had six episodes, each about a hour long. That’s the equivalent of about 12-14 episodes (roughly half) of a typical season of Winx Club. You can’t develop five Winx, four Specialists, a bunch of new characters, and the world itself in so little time. And whatever development they do get will likely feel rushed. (A lot of fans said Bloom and Sky’s relationship and other characters’ friendships happened too quickly.)

Netflix had to leave someone behind, and it sounds like it was Aisha. If they didn’t have any plans for her character this season (except being Bloom’s sidekick), why didn’t they introduce her in season two like in Winx Club? Of course, I don’t want another season of this mess, anyway.

As for Aisha’s character, everything I said in the first post — and worse — came true. Instead of being a rebellious princess, she’s a “goody-two-shoes” and a “teacher’s pet” who snitches on other characters to stay in good standing at school. She also seems to have a problem with peer pressure. Do the smart thing, or follow your friends? One fan on YouTube called her “a walking doormat”.

Who does this sound more like? Tecna! At least one fan said that’s who she reminded them of. Geez, Netflix! I was joking when I said Aisha absorbed her!

Just To Be Different

I keep seeing this argument from Winx fans who like Fate: The Winx Saga: “It’s an adaptation! Don’t you know what that means? It doesn’t have to be exactly like Winx Club! Winx is for kids! This is for adults! Duhhhhh!”

Gimme a break. We’re not stupid. No one thought this would be a shot-for-shot recreation of the cartoon.

But here’s a question: Do the changes in Fate: The Winx Saga enhance the characters, world, and story of Winx Club, or do they just make everything different?

Did making Riven a stereotypical bully and a druggie make his character better — or just different? Did making Bloom angsty and giving her a rocky relationship with Mike and Vanessa make her character better — or just different? Did the Burned Ones plot make the story better — or just different? Did making Alfea a co-ed school make it better — or just different?

Did making Aisha a commoner, axing her free-spirited nature, and merging her with Tecna (who they cut from the story) make her character better — or just different?

My problem with Fate: The Winx Saga is that it feels like a different show with Winx characters shoehorned into it. Even the fans who like it realize this. Most of them say, “It’s good, even though it’s not Winx.”

But it’s supposed to be Winx. The word is in the title, for crying out loud! If you have to accept that it’s not Winx in order to enjoy it, you know the essence of Winx Club isn’t there. That essence is more than the characters, the plot, and the place names. It’s also the feelings the show and even the word “Winx” evoke in us.

Winx Club isn’t just a show — it’s a brand, and brands have personalities like people do. How would you describe Winx? I’d say it’s cheerful, stylish, friendly, optimistic, fun, whimsical, and at times, cheesy or campy.

But Fate: The Winx Saga has a different personality. That’s why it doesn’t feel like Winx, even to the fans who like it. Why did Netflix bother calling it “Winx” if it doesn’t feel anything like the original? They could have made a different show instead!

Final Thoughts

I stand by my prediction: Fate: The Winx Saga will only last two seasons. World of Winx only got two, even though it felt more like Winx Club, and fans younger than 18 could watch it. Fate: The Winx Saga is aimed at a sub-segment of the fandom, so it has even less of a chance of becoming a long-running hit.

Also, don’t forget merchandise sales. That’s another reason World of Winx got cancelled so quickly: kids weren’t buying the dolls. Will there even be Fate: The Winx Saga dolls? I bet they’d be boring.

Guess Rainbow will have to sell coke instead. “Get high just like Riven!”

…Sorry.

Anyway, back to Aisha. Let’s call the Fate: The Winx Saga version of her “Jade” from now on. This is Aisha:

Often imitated, never duplicated.

The Yin-Yang Couple
Follow-Up: Aisha in Fate: The Winx Saga