HBO’s series ‘Velma’ is in hot water over a sickle cell joke

“Velma,” the HBO spinoff of “Scooby-Doo,” that has been repeatedly called out for issues such as sexualizing minors and pushing a woke agenda, is now in hot water over a crass joke at the expense of those who suffer sickle cell anemia. 

The HBO Max show has been picked up for a second season, despite ending up as the third worst-reviewed show in Internet Movie Database (IMDB) history. 

All of this comes as the show is now under fire for a joke that tied attractiveness to the blood disorder sickle cell anemia. As noted by the entertainment site Bounding Into Comics, longtime “Scooby Doo” character Fred tells Velma “I have a disease where I can’t recognize people who aren’t hot…. My doctor says it’s basically sickle cell for rich people.” 

The Sickle Cell Disease Association of America called out the joke:

The new “Scooby-Doo” spinoff includes nudity, gratuitous violence, and an “oozing corpse” in one episode. It became the third worst-rated show in history on the entertainment site IMDB in January.

During episode four, titled, “Velma Makes a List,” the new series made multiple jokes about children in a sexual manner. 

In episode four, the town’s mayor lusted after high school girls. Another episode featured Velma going to a strip club and pole dancing for her father. 

Yet, industry website Deadline explained that “Velma” is returning for a second season: “[CEO of Warner Television Group Channing] Dungey’s team is working on a second season of Scooby-Doo spin-off Velma, an adult animated comedy that comes from Mindy Kaling.”