Back in 2015, someone in Hollywood decided to do a live-action version of beloved ’80s cartoon Jem. Sadly, they left out almost everything that made the cartoon memorable, and what we ended up with was Jem in name only. Well, sometimes, you’ve just got to leave it to the fans to do it right. The new fan film Truly Outrageous: A Jem Fan Film!, created by the YouTube users Chickbait, is the Jem and the Holograms movie that we have always wanted.
Truly Outrageous has all the elements from the classic cartoon that were missing from the movie reboot, affectionately parodied. You’ve got the holographic AI called Synergy, as well as Jerrica Benton struggling with keeping her dual identity as pop star Jem from her purple-haired boyfriend Rio. And what was maybe the most important element missing from the Hollywood version is here in full force: the Holograms’ rival band, the Misfits. The orphan Starlight Girls are here too, and there are even references to the Stingers, that other rival rock band that came in the later seasons of Jem. There’s also a cameo from another ’80s ‘toon, but you’ll have to watch the film to see who that one is, as we don’t want to spoil all the fun.
Back in 2015, the folks at Chickbait made a video where the “real” Jem and the Holograms had to sit through the trailer to the Hollywood version, only to come out the other side with a “WTF did we just watch??” look on all their faces. This led to the far superior 29-minute fan film, which will bring a smile to the faces of any fan who grew up with the original series. Maybe the 2015 movie was worth it then if we got this delightful and loving tribute out of it?
What do you make of this fabulous fan film? Be sure to let us know your thoughts down below in the comments.
Images: Chickbait / Hasbro
