For an edutainment product like Carmen Sandiego, I never hold out a lot of hope for something worth watching on its own. I didn't really grow up familiarizing myself with the great thief (just knowing of the games) so this is my first real experience with La Femme Rouge. While there is some cheese (like V.I.L.E. and A.C.M.E.'s acronyms), it manages to nail down the critical points of being a watachable cartoon. The story is heavily arc-based with constant references to previous events and Carmen's backstory is fleshed-out and plays an ever-present role in her character throughout the season. The informational segments that occur at the start of the episode are somewhat disjointed but mostly inoffensive to the pacing of the plot (and the fact they try to integrate what's mentioned at the outset with the main story is helpful). The story is slow to get off the ground but picks up in the tail end of the season, which makes a Growing the Beard phase possible in later seasons. There are areas for improvement (I'd like to see a more complex relationship between Carmen and V.I.L.E. down the line) but it's a good start and worth watching.
WesternAnimation A fresh take that doesn't talk down to the audience
For an edutainment product like Carmen Sandiego, I never hold out a lot of hope for something worth watching on its own. I didn't really grow up familiarizing myself with the great thief (just knowing of the games) so this is my first real experience with La Femme Rouge. While there is some cheese (like V.I.L.E. and A.C.M.E.'s acronyms), it manages to nail down the critical points of being a watachable cartoon. The story is heavily arc-based with constant references to previous events and Carmen's backstory is fleshed-out and plays an ever-present role in her character throughout the season. The informational segments that occur at the start of the episode are somewhat disjointed but mostly inoffensive to the pacing of the plot (and the fact they try to integrate what's mentioned at the outset with the main story is helpful). The story is slow to get off the ground but picks up in the tail end of the season, which makes a Growing the Beard phase possible in later seasons. There are areas for improvement (I'd like to see a more complex relationship between Carmen and V.I.L.E. down the line) but it's a good start and worth watching.