Forgotten 80’s Character Getting Major Revival

Why now, of all times, for Rainbow Brite to make her triumphant comeback? Premiering back in 1984, the brand is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, and the companies behind this colorful character are ready to bring her back in style. Details are relatively slim right now, but Crayola and Hallmark Studios will be bringing us a Rainbow Brite TV show as well as a movie connected to one of the most popular characters ever made.

The Rainbow Brite television show is arguably the more exciting upcoming project right now because of the high pedigree of those involved. Writers Neal H. Moritz and Toby Ascher (of Original Film) may not be household names, but they previously did the impossible by translating the hit Sonic the Hedgehog games into a successful film franchise. In addition to the popular video game adaptations, Moritz has written for some of the biggest brands in Hollywood, including The Fast and the Furious and The Boys.

We don’t yet know what the Rainbow Brite movie will be like, but it sounds like the television show will be (for better or for worse) a very faithful adaptation of the original lore. It follows the titular character as she is whisked into a “magical world” in which “the power of color and optimism” is used “to overcome darkness and negativity.” It won’t be easy, but as a character “who brings all the colors of the rainbow to the universe,” she must navigate “a dark and gloomy place with a mission to bring color, light, and happiness to the world.”

It will be interesting to see if the executives behind Rainbow Brite’s return might take a page out of He-Man’s book and hedge their bets on fan appeal. Over on Netflix, fellow Mattel character He-Man got two shows, one of which was aimed at the middle-aged fans of the earlier cartoons (Master of the Universe: Revelation) and one of which aimed at much younger fans (He-Man and the Masters of the Universe). In this case, Rainbow Brite getting a movie and a television show means that one could target older audiences, and one could target younger audiences.

That strategy could backfire, though. In the case of Revelation, many older fans felt betrayed by He-Man’s seeming death early in the show. He came back, of course, but that infamous fan backlash proves how dangerous it can be to take creative risks when fans just want more of the same.

Thanks to the success of nostalgic sugar bombs like Stranger Things and earnest schmaltz like Ghostbusters: Afterlife, the ‘80s are more popular than ever before. That means the time may be ripe for the return of Rainbow Brite, a colorful toy that once shared a shield with other retail icons of the decade like G.I. Joe. Of course, this rainbow warrior had a very different message for kids than those props of plastic propaganda: “glowing is half the battle.”