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Classics in the Old or the New Version? A Representative Study on Maya the Bee, Vicky the Viking and Pippi Longstocking

In a representative study of 1,210 children between the ages of 3 and 13 and their mothers, the IZI collected data on what they think of different versions of children’s television classics. In order to prompt the respondents to give their opinions of the respective versions, they were presented with picture cards. The children and mothers were given the 2D and 3D version of Maya the Bee and Vicky the Viking, as well as the live-action and animated versions of Pippi Longstocking. 

Results: The classics in question have a very high profile. Maya the Bee is, with 94 %, the most well-known character. She is followed by Pippi Longstocking (90 %) and then Vicky the Viking (87 %). When asked in which version they liked the character best, the new versions were clearly out in front in the case of Maya the Bee and Vicky the Viking. On the whole, the answers demonstrate clear age-related tendencies.
With Pippi Longstocking, for example, the youngest children prefer the animated variant. When the question was put to a representative sample of mothers, the majority preferred the old variant. Children grow up with the new versions of children’s classics. Because of the typically German fondness for traditional versions – available, for example, on DVD –, older children as well as some younger children have access to both versions, especially if the mothers prefer the older versions. The children, however, – particularly the pre-school children – mostly prefer the new variant. This is a tendency that should be at least acknowledged in the public discourse.