The Powerpuff Girls (2016 TV series)

The series was met with mixed to negative reviews from critics. Henry Solotaroff-Webber of The Badger Herald enjoyed the series, saying "Overall, this new rendition of a classic animated program is a triumph in my eyes. It recaptures much of what made the last show so important for kids to see while still thoroughly scratching a nostalgia itch for those looking to go back."[26] IGN gave the premiere episode "Man Up" an 8.0 out of 10, saying "While the new voice cast will take some getting used to, and the absence of Cathy Cavadini, Tara Strong and E.G. Daily is strongly felt, the show still manages to capture the essence of the Powerpuff Girls."[27] The Nerdist gave the first two episodes a 4.5 out of 5, saying "if you loved the original show, chances are you'll love these new episodes."[28] Screen Rant gave it a positive review, saying "Although the revival doesn't quite hit the mark on what made audiences fall in love with McCracken's original series, The Powerpuff Girls is an excellent addition to the franchise."[29] Collider gave it 4 stars, saying "it's worth viewing the new version of The Powerpuff Girls on its own merits because it's a solid cartoon that delivers on its promises."[30]

The Occidental Weekly lamented that the series "lacks the impeccable comedic timing and wit of the original" and called the voice acting "mediocre at best", while also criticizing the writing, which it deemed subpar.[31] Slate was critical of the show's "self-conscious feminist overtones", and compared the show unfavorably to the original, particularly the second-season episode "The Powerpuff Girls' Best Rainy Day Adventure Ever".[32] Polygon criticized that the show lost what they considered made the original so special: "fighting seems like an afterthought, as if Cartoon Network wants to keep the Girls a safe distance from the fray", and that the show was a "step backward, not forward".[33] Jessica Swartz of Inverse said that new viewers might not know who the villains are or what their motivations are, as no introduction was given to the characters. Swartz also went on to say that the show focuses too much on the main characters, and overall called it a "mediocre cartoon".[34] Shelby Watson of The All State praised the show's voice acting, but criticized the show's increased focus on the girls' domestic lives rather than fighting crime, and was especially critical of the animation, writing: "The animation is beyond lazy... the art direction itself is catastrophic. Animators routinely forget their own rules on how to animate their characters, leading to a disjointed style that just comes across like the animators don't care." Watson also noted other technical problems in the series, such as inconsistencies in character design or misuse of perspective, saying that they "shouldn't happen in a professional studio."[35]

Despite its mixed reception and low ratings in its native United States, the reboot has been received more positively and met with higher viewership in Europe since being broadcast on free-to-air networks in the United Kingdom, France and Poland.[36][37][38]

Before the series aired, Cavadini, Daily, and Strong were displeased to learn the main characters had been recast; Strong called it "a stab in the heart" on Twitter.[4] Strong had announced after the upfront in February that this was a "strictly creative" decision by the network,[39] though in June of the same year said that the network had never contacted any of the three actresses prior to the decision to recast.[4] In an interview with The Comic Book Cast in May 2015, Kenny claimed that McCracken "does give it his blessing",[6] but in May 2016 McCracken denied doing so on his Twitter posts, commenting that he had never given the new reboot his official blessing. McCracken said that he wished that Cartoon Network had stopped their plans for a reboot of the original Powerpuff Girls property but also acknowledged from a financial view why the new series was commissioned.[40][41] However, at the 2017 New York Comic Con, Strong stated that she had no ill will towards the new cast and had given the show her blessing.[42]

The season one episode "Horn, Sweet Horn" received scrutiny from the media after the episode's handling of transgender themes prompted criticism from LGBT viewers.[43] Sulagna Misra, writing for Fusion's official website, described the character Donny as an "interesting metaphor for transgender identity" but saw poor judgment in the choice to present the transformed character as a monster. She found the larger topic of identity reversed by making the plot so "convoluted" and preferred if the character's monstrous transformation had been a temporary gag instead.[44] Marie Solis of Mic also viewed the episode as a failed attempt to convey social issues, on par with the "Twisted Sister" episode from the 1998 Powerpuff Girls series, in which the main characters conjure up a mentally challenged and physically deformed sister.[45] Dorian Dawes of the magazine Bitch was extremely critical of the episode, calling its message questionable and dangerous in the wake of the House Bill 2 controversy. Dawes denounced the episode as irresponsible to the series' primary demographic and felt it was written solely to make the producers feel righteous about their inclusion of transgender themes.[46] It was eventually revealed that the episode's writer did not even intend for the episode to be about gender identity, and it was merely marketed as such.[47]

Female modifications were also made which included the character Ms. Bellum being written off the show. In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Nick Jennings explained "We felt like Ms. Bellum wasn't quite indicative of the kind of messaging we wanted to be giving out at this time, so we sort of had her move on... And that was a good choice I think on our part".[11] This change caused a negative response from critics and fans of the original show, who complained that the removal of Ms. Bellum's character (as well as villainess Sedusa being completely dropped from the show) negated the feminist message of the reboot.[48]

The Powerpuff Girls reboot has seen two Region 1 DVD releases, six Region 2 DVD releases, and two Region 4 DVD releases. All of these have been presented in 16:9 aspect ratio formats.

Before the series premiered, a toy line for the series was announced to be released in 2016 by Spin Master, with more toys released in 2017. The toys include the new 2-in-1 playsets and more.[57]

A McDonald's Happy Meal promotion for the series ran from June 14 to July 5, 2016, in the United States, including mini action figures, rings, and collectibles.[58]

On August 24, 2018, two Lego sets were released in the United States and United Kingdom.[59][60][61][62][63][64]

In April 2016, it was announced that a line of Powerpuff Girls reboot comic books would be released in July of that year, being published by IDW Publishing (who also published comic books for the original series).[65]

Cartoon Network has released five mobile games based on the series titled, "Flipped Out", "Glitch Fixers", “Mojo Madness”, “Ready, Set, Monsters", And “Monkey Mania”. The latter two are free but the former is $2.99. All games are available on both the Apple App Store and Google Play.[66][67]

A pair of Powerpuff Girls-themed packs for the toys-to-life video game Lego Dimensions were released on September 12, 2017. These include a Team Pack, containing playable Blossom and Bubbles figures and constructable Octi and PPG Smartphone items; and a Fun Pack, containing a playable Buttercup figure and a constructable Mega Blast Bot. The packs add a new Powerpuff Girls-themed open-world area and battle arenas to the game.[68] Also, there was a crossover exclusive Teen Titans Go! episode for Lego Dimensions that included the "Powerpuff Girls" fighting the Gremlins in Jump City.