Legacy prequels like Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai (which premieres May 23) seem expressly designed to catch the eyes of parents who loved their predecessors, and who’ll encourage their children to watch them rather than the alternative entertainment options at their disposal—thereby hooking a new generation on a classic franchise. As such, they appear to be guided as much by corporate strategy as artistic inspiration, although if Max’s effort to extend the Gremlins brand doesn’t feel vital, it’s also not without its charms—thanks, in no small part, to the enduring cuteness of its furry protagonist.
The big-eared, giant-eyed, gibberish-cooing Gizmo was central to the appeal of Joe Dante’s beloved 1984 film, as well as its underrated 1990 sequel Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Showrunner Tze Chun’s Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai (which claims Dante as a consulting producer and Steven Spielberg as an executive producer) doubles down on the adorability of its pint-sized center of attention.
There are countless opportunities throughout its 10 episodes to go “aww” at the sight of the furry mystical Chinese creature—known as a Mogwai—scurrying about, speaking in chirpy noises and performing like a boisterous entertainer. If nothing else, Max’s latest should successfully endear kids to the ’80s sci-fi/horror icon, not to mention help rejuvenate his status as a merchandising star.
Gremlins’ success, of course, didn’t solely have to do with Gizmo; it was the byproduct of melding that character’s loveable innocence with his alter-egos’ villainy. As legend has it, Gizmo’s caretakers have to follow three rules—don’t get him wet, expose him to sunlight, or feed him after midnight—lest he spawn progeny (or are they his siblings?) that are devilish imps with an uncontrollable mischievous streak.
Dante’s gift was balancing Gizmo’s cuddly sweetness and the gremlins’ hyper-active monstrousness, all while pitching everything in a manic comedic register. Gizmo and his adversaries represented two sides of the same adolescent coin, and their battle was thus a primal one that spoke to kids’ inherent warring impulses between right and wrong.
That conflict rages on in Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai, whose origin story begins in 1920 in the Valley of Jade, the purple-y home of the Mogwai that’s located in a burrow in a snowy mountain range. Due to a skirmish with a hungry bird, Gizmo (A.J. Locascio) finds himself adrift and alone in the great wide world, and soon comes upon a troupe of circus performers who turn him into their latest attraction: the singing and dancing Cat-Dog.
A downbeat Gizmo has resigned himself to this fate until his path crosses with Sam Wing (Izaac Wang), who’s visiting the Shanghai carnival with his grandfather (James Hong). Sam is the talented understudy of his mom (Ming-Na Wen) and dad (BD Wong), who run a local medicine shop, but his tall tale-telling grandpa would prefer Sam embark on the sorts of adventures that he himself experienced in his youth. Learning to be brave, it’s clear, is Sam’s destiny.
Grandpa Wing recognizes the Mogwai from his prior exploits, and warns that if they don’t immediately return him to his home, civilization is doomed, since the Mogwais’ last encounter with mankind almost resulted in China’s annihilation. Complicating that mission, however, is the fact that Gizmo is simultaneously coveted by Elle (Gabrielle Nevaeh Green), a street-urchin thief intent on nabbing the little guy for her boss Riley Green (Matthew Rhys).
Worse, Riley is a sorcerer capable of transforming people into big glowing pearls, cracking his jaw inhumanely wide open, and swallowing them whole, thereby absorbing their thoughts, feelings and abilities. And he especially covets Gizmo, because—surprise fourth rule alert!—Mogwais are apparently the source of an even greater power.
Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai thrusts Sam and unlikely ally Elle on a trek across China to return Gizmo to his homeland. That journey involves fights on trains, stops at an inn with an untrustworthy proprietor, and a visit to a ghost city, not to mention lots of prickly banter between Sam and Elle, the former determined to do right by his new friend (and, in the process, prove himself to be as brave as his grandfather believes), and the latter interested in procuring the treasure that supposedly resides in the Valley of Jade. Hot on their heels is Riley as well as his cadre of gremlins—led by the maniacal Claw (Grey DeLisle)—who playfully spread chaos and carnage wherever they go.
Boosted by attractive cell-shaded computer animation, Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai is a bouncy fable about fortitude, togetherness and family, sprinkled with wiseacre humor, enlivened by zippy action set pieces, and enhanced by touches of ancient Chinese folklore. Featuring Sandra Oh, George Takei, and Bowen Yang, its vocal cast is strong, and is led by the excellent Rhys, who turns Riley into an amusingly silky-voiced schemer with designs for global conquest and a rapacious appetite for souls.
He’s both a malignant narcissist and a needy fraud, and his rapport with his gremlin acolytes is often the highlight of these proceedings. So too is the series’ fondness for the type of violence that’s rarely seen in kids’ cartoons. It may stop short of R-rated gore, but—channeling the original movies’ just-scary-enough spirit—Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai does have a surprising amount of death, dismemberment, and instances in which gremlins go splat, be it courtesy of magical beams or ceiling fans.
A gremlin flasher is a sly nod to Dante’s 1984 film, yet by and large, Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai avoids overt nostalgic gestures. Rather, its prime focus is on Sam, Elle, and Gizmo’s burgeoning friendship, and the lessons about sacrifice, valor and loyalty that they learn along their journey.
Those ideas are handled with enough pre-teen wit and flair to help the series stand on its own two feet, free from the shadow of its illustrious ancestors. Whether or not kids who don’t know anything about Gremlins will give it a chance in the first place is, of course, the main question surrounding this Max animated affair. To that end, it’ll likely be up to parents to make it a reboot with a life of its own.
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