Netflix has aired their Invader Zim movie “Enter the Florpus.” Is it any good? Is it, like a whole raft of other nostalgia-based revivals, any good? Or is it just a series of memberberries and woke nonsense?
In short, I was surprised at just how good it was. They brought back the same writers, the same voice actors, the same guy to do the music. And it all freakin’ worked. If you were a fan of Zim back in the day, you’ll almost certainly be a fan of Zim today. If you have never been introduced to Zim… well, Enter the Florpus won’t exactly be the best possible introduction, but it should do the job. (Where would someone go to watch Invader Zim these days except by buying the DVDs?)
The writing is good, the animation is well done, the characters are the same. Zim still chews up the scenery; GIR is still an adorable freakin’ homicidal psychopath, Dib is still a dollar store Mulder and Gaz still lives to torment him. The only change of note is a revision of the design of Professor Membrane, for reasons that are mostly unexplored. He’s now stouter for some reason, more hair and with longer gloves (though *that* is explained). But he’s still a spectacular supergenius, even if he is a bit slow on the uptake when it comes to accepting the reality of aliens. He is now a bigger, more important character than he typically was back in the day, and when he decides to do somethin’ about somethin’, it’s worth seeing:
“Enter the Florpus” is just plain old-school Invader Zim fun, well worth watching. I don’t know if there are talks afoot to revive the series, but if Florpus is an indication, a series revival would be well appreciated.
Importantly, Zim retains the zenith position in the field of maniacal cackling, a skill everyone should practice.
My man. Invader Zim, patron saint of emotional restraint in the face of awesomeness. The above image would make an accurate image of me, standing on a bluff near Jackass Flats watching the first US Space Force Orion battleship taking to the heavens.