Here's a bit of old news that passed me by: Back in March, Gadget writer Dale Mettam appeared on The Outhouse Pirate Podcast, where he was interviewed about all things Viper Comics... and among many other subjects, his work on the then-upcoming Inspector Gadget book. If you skip to about 00:37:45 on the audio player, you can hear Dale talk for a few minutes about how he approached the job of writing Inspector Gadget in the 21st century while still staying true to the original series. One of the most interesting parts is probably when Mettam is asked about what he thinks is the basic appeal of Inspector Gadget, for both new and old audiences:
Interviewer: What would you say (...) was the charm that (...) even today (...) could keep Inspector Gadget such a fun property?
Dale Mettam: Well, I kinda suspect that... I mean, realistically, remembering as a kid, it was very much kinda like (...)... you really want to get from Penny's point of view. And, it's kinda like, you know; you have this uncle who is, relatively speaking, a superman; he can do... pretty much anything and everything. And yet, you're still the one who saves the day. I think, you know, a lot of kids kinda feel like that. It's kinda like: "Yeah, yeah, mom and dad... whoever... you know, they're the ones who make all the rules (...) - but I know what I'm doing! That's not a problem!" Now, most kids don't, and, you know, they kinda learn that along the way... [but] it, it's a cool fantasy to kinda, like, live with and, you know, play up! So, you know, it's just fun.
I very much agree with what Mettam says here... it IS a cool fantasy! There's nothing overly original about the "Kids are smarter than adults" theme, but it can be most effective when done right. Speaking of which... Mr. Mettam, I really hope you give Penny more to do in the next comic book issue. She needs to get in on the action if we are to truly "live with the fantasy". Just a suggestion:)
