Dance Monsters New Web Series 2022 Season 1 Review

Series Season 1 Review 

Dance Monsters is both overly familiar and refreshingly original. Along with some cute monster designs, there's a real unique selling point here, with the clever use of motion capture (and heavy, heavy editing). However, this comes at the expense of creating the Frankenstein monster of other reality series we've seen a million times before. It's a little X-Factor, a little Alter Ego, Masked Singer and America's Got Talent all rolled into one show. The aftermath is something that's perfectly fine to throw in the background, but unlikely to be a real moneymaker.

  The pitch is simple and brings together 15 contestants who are transformed into CGI beings by the magic of mo-cap to perform in front of an audience. Of course, given how fast-paced filming is in real life, much of what's involved here falls on the editing team to match the dancers with their digital avatars displayed on stage with the audience backstage.

  The result is smart for those at home because it feels like these monsters are actually out in force. In fact, it's probably an empty phase that these guys are reacting to. When that illusion is broken, the audience's reactions—complete with the usual cheers, gasps, and standing ovations—seem a little...fake?

  I don't like to use that word when it comes to a series like this, because to be fair, some of the dances are really impressive, and the idea of ​​giving confidence to those who otherwise wouldn't have the guts to take to the stage is worthy. praise everything by itself. But even so, it would be nice to see some real reactions to these dance moves.

  As the competition heats up, so does the pressure, and each of the dancers brings their A-game to the track. The judges at the center of it all are no strangers to dancing, with singer Ne-Yo, Diversity's Ashley Banjo and Lele Pons, the most-watched Viner on the now-defunct platform Vine, giving their take. 

 A show like this cries out for the Simon Cowell-esque "villain" to be the scathing voice of great criticism, which we've seen him enjoy in so many different series. There's a reason why Strictly Come Dancing and America's Got Talent are so popular, and it's for a few reasons. With that in mind, it's a little strange that Dance Monsters doesn't have it, although to be fair I can appreciate it, it's probably intentional to keep it a more uplifting and positive tone.

  The idea itself is quite good and the mix of different influences can appeal to those who love reality series. All the bells and whistles - from the set design, camera work, and overall judging setup (with the woman(s) in the middle and the men on the outside) are almost painfully similar to what we've seen since the 90s.

  Releasing this on a weekend and drip-feeding it for 3 weeks is a stroke of genius from Netflix and you can tell they're capitalizing on the shock of a good worldwide audience.

  While Dance Monsters doesn't march to the beat of its own drum, the dancing itself is consistent enough with what's come before to make it a familiar fun series. It's not perfect, and it's a bit rough around the edges, but there's enough in this mix of influences to enjoy just the same.