Though my feelings about the movies are at best mixed, I found this to be a charming animated show that actually works better.
There's nothing too ground breaking in this supernatural sitcom set-up but I find that rather refreshing. I feel this feels more like something made in the early 2000s and that is not meant to be an insult with its fast paced stories providing easy, casual viewing.
The artistic direction and design is just superb. I really felt immersed in this homage to classic horror but with a slick, contemporary twist with rich world building in which I could believe there was a secret culture where marginalized creatures live beyond the domain of humans. The red-and-black interior design of the hotel is at once enticing and oddly soothing.
The humor is mostly narrative driven unless it plays off the setting and it can be somewhat repellent or juvenile which I didn't love but it does restrain itself quite a bit more than the movies in that respect.
I'm unsure, however, whether I am really a fan of the show or weather I am just a fan of Mavis. In the movies the plots revolved more about other characters doing things regarding her but here she is unambiguously the protagonist and they fleshed her out nicely. She is a sweet but mischievous girl who doesn't mind bending the rules or the truth to get what she wants but is loyal to her friends and has a very positive relationship with her doting father.
Her character animation and facial expressions are just delight after delight, the way she does her little joy dance or looks nonplussed when a plot thickens. She is naughty but nice.
I watched this mostly in the French and Polish dubs which were fabulous, especially Margarite D'amour and Zuzanna Bernat respectively as Mavis. However, Bryn McAuley was also amazing, all three being far more appealing than Gomez.
Also, Mavis' design translates to two dimensions so well.
I won't say this show wasn't somewhat disposable but sometimes you need something like that. I really want more episodes on Netflix!
