Why was this beloved ‘Rugrats’ character missing from the adaptation?

Although the Disney+ streaming service has held with much of our nostalgia these past few years, fans of the 1990s and early 2000s were overjoyed to learn that Paramount+ would be releasing many of our favorite Nickelodeon shows, including Hey, Arnold!, Rocket Power, and, of course, Rugrats. Even cooler? Paramount+ dropped the surprising news that they would be reviving Rugrats for the streaming service. 

Labeling the show as both a reboot & revival of the original 1991 cartoon, Rugrats debuted on Paramount+ on May 27th, 2021, bringing back much of the original cast to lend their voices for Tommy, Chuckie, Phil & Lil, Susie, and of course Angelica. However, many of the adults were recast, garnering many fans & critics of the original series to despise the latest revival, thanks to the lifeless voices of the adult characters.   

The new series tells new stories of the adventurous babies, while also featuring shorts from classic moments of the original 1991 series. While this reboot has had mixed reviews from fans, many are curious where some of their favorite characters are from the OG show? I mean, you’ve worked so hard throughout the years to build up the story of the babies for what? To tear it all back down to the beginning? Let’s see what’s up. 

Missing favorites

It was announced before the show’s debut that Betty DiVille, the eccentric mama of Phil & Lil would officially become a gay character, a decision that quite frankly was expected given the character’s portrayal from the original 1990s show. However, while fans were overjoyed that Nickelodeon dived straight into the pool of equality, many were sad to see the disappearance of Howard, the stay-at-home superdad of the beloved twins. 

As well, many Rugrats fans were disappointed to learn that Kimi would be omitted from the Rugrats revival on Paramount+ too. For fans of 2000’s Rugrats in Paris, many will recall Kimi as the Asian stepsister of Chuckie, whose mother goes through one of cartoon’s most precious love stories with Chuckie’s father, Chas, who has also been a single dad for much of Chuckie’s early life. 

That being said, we will not fault Nickelodeon for taking away these characters, as we’re happy enough with the decision to keep the core babies intact, as most of the show’s best episodes took place prior to the introductions of Kimi and baby Dill, the little brother of Tommy Pickles who was first introduced in The Rugrats Movie back in 1998.  

Rugrats Legacy

Rugrats was perhaps the creme-de-la-creme when it came to Nickelodeon classic cartoons, just edging out favorites like Hey Arnold!, Rocko’s Modern Life, and Rocket Power in terms of popularity, given that slew of VHS specials and even feature films, including The Rugrats Movie, Rugrats in Paris, and Rugrats Go Wild featuring another popular Nickelodeon property, The Wild Thornberrys.

The original Rugrats series ran from 1991 to 2006, which even included a unique spin-off series titled All Grown Up, which saw our favorite babies in junior high and high school. It was a good mental preparation for those of us who were lucky enough to grow up around the same ages as the babies, as we could live vicariously through them within the high school experience and prepare ourselves for our own adventures. 

The latest revival on Paramount+ has been anything but a sure-fire home run thus far. That said, it has opened doors for other Nickelodeon properties coming back via this new streaming service, such as the much-anticipated iCarly revival starring Miranda Cosgrove. Who knows? Perhaps they will bring back some of our favorite 1990s cartoons with new stories to tell. We’d be down! 

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Who is your favorite Rugrats character? Are you sad that the characters of Kimi and Howard are no longer on the show? What classic Nickelodeon cartoon do you think Paramount+ should bring back? Comment below and let us know your thoughts.