• Totally Spies 

    reboot project is in the works.

  • The announcement of a new season of the cartoon, Proust's madeleine of a whole generation, has been talked about on social networks.

  • 20 Minutes

     interviewed Thomas Astruc, who worked on the storyboard for the first seasons, and nostalgic fans, torn between their love for this series and the concerns of a version that would spoil their memories.

How do you recognize a monument of popular culture? High school students could work on the question for four hours during a baccalaureate philosophy test, but we can also answer quite simply: by observing the enthusiasm aroused when we dare to touch it. This week we learned that a new season of the cartoon

Totally Spies

is in the works.

“I don't know if it's already all over the internet or not, but I just heard… that there's a new season of

Totally Spies

in the works!

tweeted Thomas Astruc, the series' former lead storyboarder.

Contacted by

20 Minutes

, the production company for the first five seasons, Zodiak Kids, declined to comment.

Behind the scenes, she is looking for animators and an artistic director to bring the project to life.

Three girls you can relate to

Sam, Clover and Alex are the three heroines of this animated series, a cult event for a generation thanks to multiple broadcasts in the youth section of TF1. High school students, they are also secret agents recruited by the WOOHP, the world organization for the protection of humans, managed by Jerry. In each of the episodes, the three best friends are summoned to be given their mission order.

A bit like Destiny's Child or the Powerpuff Girls, the trio is a source of inspiration for many former viewers.

“These are three different personalities and each member of a group can identify with each other,” says Maé, 25.

On the Messenger application, this

20 Minutes

reader even renamed her discussion group with her sisters in homage to

Totally Spies

.

For Thibaut, 28, it's a Proust madeleine that reminds him of the after-school snack, a hot chocolate and a cake in his hands.

"I have always appreciated the secret agent side of the cartoon and the different characters of the three characters", despite a small preference for "the madness and clumsiness" of Clover.

“It was a project led by enthusiasts”

Being part of the production team during the first two seasons, Thomas Astruc salutes the work of Vincent Chalvon-Demersay, the producer, who "succeeded in imposing an action series starring girls, which was unthinkable at the time. He understood that there was an injustice and a huge expectation on this. Moreover, we must not forget that

Totally Spies

is a French series which has been a hit all over the world. "Vincent Chalvon-Demersay also imposed the fact that the series be broadcast simultaneously in all countries, a feat which made it possible to unite a very large audience from the outset", continues Thomas Astruc. In total, the adventures of Sam, Clover and Alex have been followed in more than 130 countries.

“Stéphane Berry, the director, managed to impose a manga-influenced style, a feat here too, as the chains were refractory,” adds Thomas Astruc.

For this, he surrounded himself with young talents "who found no place to express themselves" like Patricia Lyfoung, author of

The Scarlet Rose

, or Eddie Mehong, now in Japan to work in the studios of '

anime

.

“It was a project led by enthusiasts.

And passion is always communicated,” he concludes.

A capillary dubious reboot

A first visual of the reboot of the series, found on a job offer from the animation studio, was widely commented on social networks Friday.

We see Sam, Clover and Alex with their spy suits and some hair changes, sources of discord with the fans of the first hour.

"Clover's hair is horrible," says Célia, another fan, for example.

This character is obsessed with his beauty so for those who know the series, it's terrible!

»

#PHOTO Visual of the next season of #TotallySpies pic.twitter.com/YGGp7syhJZ

— Series Info (@lnfosSeriesFR) January 13, 2022

It is obvious that if this new version of

Totally Spies

makes so much talk, it is because it touches on nostalgia.

"It takes me back to childhood," says Célia.

Even if in the meantime mores have evolved and certain clichés like their obsession with boys make me cringe more.

Considered feminist because it was one of the first animated series to feature three teenage girls capable of defeating an army of villains,

Totally Spies

nevertheless offered skin-tight bodysuits to its heroines who, when not on a mission, spent their time shopping or trying to find love.

"It's not a series that scores for its diversity"

True selling points, fans still remember the gadgets attributed to spies, from the boots propelled to the telescopic belt, without forgetting the "compoudrier", capable of making phone calls and analyzing fingerprints at the same time.

Célia also remembers the fight scenes which "changed princesses" and the friendship of the three heroines "which weathered all storms despite their differences".

Aside from Clover's hair issue (which can still be fixed), fans seem happy with this return.

"I'm happy that they didn't erase Alex's crossbreeding because it's not a series that stands out for its diversity", attests Célia.

From there to say that the copy could be better than the original, there is only one step.

Movie theater

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  • Television

  • Culture

  • Spying

  • Feminism

  • TF1

  • Cartoon

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