As part of my recent binge to refamiliarize myself with the series, I was taking a look at the infamous LBT Youtube channel which has all of the TV show's episodes uploaded onto it in full. I had heard that some kids were getting into LBT from the channel's uploaded clips but I did not expect the insane view counts some of the episodes got.
The record belongs to "The Hidden Canyon," which has a whopping 25 million views. Other episodes with massive view counts are "The Brave Longneck Scheme," with 12.1 million views, and "The Meadow of Jumping Waters," with 7.1 million views. Of course, most episodes have significantly lower view counts than this, with many numbering below 1 million views.
I'm still baffled that a supposedly dead franchise is getting so many views on Youtube. Is it just the Youtube Kids algorithm feeding it to bored kids who want to watch hatchlings running around? Or is it coming from older people who remember the franchise? If it's the former, then it actually is encouraging because it suggests that a new generation of children are getting introduce to LBT through these Youtube clips, years after the series' heyday on DVD. Perhaps that would lay the groundwork for new entries to be produced?
We may enjoy hating on the channel, but it may have accidentally done something good after all.