Baymax, the adorable spongy medical robot that charmed cinema goers in Big Hero 6 back in 2015, appears to be equally irresistible on the small screen. Baymax! — the set of six shorts that popped up on Disney Plus on Wednesday — has impressed critics with a 100% fresh rating on the review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes (opens in new tab).
Granted, that is only currently based on six critic reviews, but they’re so positive that it’s hard to dispute that Disney likely has another hit on its hands. Even if it’s one that’s somewhat short-lived, given each of the six episodes is around seven minutes long.
“Baymax’s oversized body matches its super-sized ‘heart’ as it wobbles around town answering those in need who aren’t asking for help,” writes IGN’s (opens in new tab) Matt Fowler. “This six-episode run is quick, quirky, and guaranteed to charm.”
Decider (opens in new tab) is equally positive, pleasantly surprised that such a short family-friendly show can deliver “quite a number of laugh-out-loud moments.” The verdict is that this is definitely worth streaming. “Baymax! dedicates each episode to all healthcare heroes, and they should be happy that such an informative, funny series is made in their honor,” the review ends.
Equally glowing praise is offered by Fat Guys at the Movies (opens in new tab) (“a sweet reminder that Disney has a rich history of short family-friendly cartoons”), But Why Tho? (opens in new tab) (“a salve for increasingly darker times”) and Mama’s Geeky (opens in new tab) (“a special one that delivers on the moments of laughter, but also on the emotional ones”).
With that in mind, it’s somewhat surprising that the audience score is a considerably more divided 59% fresh. But having dipped into the handful of one-star reviews, it appears that Disney has provoked a bit of culture-war backlash, with one bemoaning the largely female cast and another upset at the nods towards LGBT representation (opens in new tab). Republican North Carolina Congressman Dan Bishop called the scene “woke nonsense” (opens in new tab) on Twitter, as reported by Newsweek (opens in new tab).
This is how PopSugar (opens in new tab) describes the scene: “While at the store, Baymax seeks advice from several shoppers, among them a transmasculine or genderqueer-presenting character (it’s not explicitly stated) who is also wearing a T-shirt bearing the colors of the trans pride flag.” The site praises the brief scene as an “important moment for trans representation.”
Suffice it to say that 11 out of the 17 written Rotten Tomatoes reviews are four stars or higher.
Ultimately, it’s probably worth deciding for yourself, as the whole six-episode run can be consumed in less than an hour. So you won’t have invested much time even if you ultimately decide that Baymax is better as a peripheral character, rather than the main focus.
Next: Check out the one Netflix show you need to binge watch this month (opens in new tab), which is coming back for season 4. Plus, here’s the 9 new movies and shows to watch this weekend (opens in new tab) on Netflix, Hulu and more.
