A few weeks ago, PBS Kids show Arthur made kids show history by featuring a secondary character, titular character Arthur Read's beloved teacher Mr. Nigel Ratburn, getting married to a person of the same sex -- a local chocolatier named Patrick. It made news the world over before it even aired, and of course opinions on it divided the country in 2019. One opinion making news today isn't from a person. It's a member station of the Public Broadcasting Service, Alabama Public Television, who decided to ban the episode of the aforementioned gay wedding , "Mr. Ratburn and the Special Someone", from airing.
Mike McKenzie, director of programming at APT, told NBC News in this article that PBS sent a message to stations in mid-April alerting them "to possible viewer concerns about the content of the program." After he and others at APT viewed the episode, they decided not to broadcast it.
McKenzie said the station has no plans to air it.
"Parents have trusted Alabama Public Television for more than 50 years to provide children's programs that entertain, educate and inspire," McKenzie said in a statement. "More importantly — although we strongly encourage parents to watch television with their children and talk about what they have learned afterwards — parents trust that their children can watch APT without their supervision. We also know that children who are younger than the 'target' audience for 'Arthur' also watch the program."
BULL. SHIIIIIIT.
If this station has been on the air for half a century, then they have shown some of the most shocking, unbelievable and jawdropping events in history or in a scripted TV show as much as PBS would allow. And as a public television network meant to EDUCATE their viewers, they let in so much that may shock or creep them out. And yet, gay marriage on a kids show was the line that can't be crossed. Apparently APT chooses not to air The NewsHour and BBC World News either, or else a viewer watching would get triggered if the word 'gay' was even implied.
This is a dumb decision to me. Everyone and their grandmother (hopefully not mine, she'd go to orbit) has heard of the episode and the reveal. If fact all we got from this is that Nigel and Patrick fully became... Pigal...or Nitrick...or Pigatrical... ? ...any literally nothing else. And it's not really a sacrilegious topic anymore! It hasn't been for decades! And kids who aren't thought about it at an early age from a trusty source will learn about it from anywhere. It'll be like learning about sex from The Maury Show or Glenn Quagmire! (Although, if you pay deep enough attention, these two things would be perfect lessons on how and why NOT to have sex.
Back to the episode, the wedding itself was only at the last few minutes of the episode, and the bug reveal was nothing felt more than a subtle implication, barely a blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment. And Ratburn's main students were surprised but cool with it (sure, they were supposed to, as it's a TV show). And if they're cool with it, then no damn doubt, the kids watching would be cool with it.
So why ban it, APT? Kids are going to watch the episode no matter where they watch Arthur -- on the website, on YouTube, on a random borderline unsafe third-party cartoon website or even a torrent site. They'll hear about it from their friends, and they wonder why Mr. Ratburn got married to a guy and ask their parents about it--oh I get it now.
Kids shouldn't know about gay marriage, because God didn't create it, and whatever he didn't create in his image it doesn't exist in Alabama's book. Kinda like racial equality, history books, bathing, not breaking the law, maiming, consent or attraction to non-related people.
But hey, it's Alabama, a super red state, where it's better to treat black people like garbage, where abortion is an evil baby-killing procedure, you can love and marry your cousin, and you can screw your pets too! But if two men and two women get married, GOD FORBID, IT'S UNACCEPTABLE, AND SHOULD BE BANNED FOREVER! UH-HYUCK-UH.
I am so glad I don't live in Alabama because if this is the thought process on many once-taboo-now real-life things like homosexuality and gay marriage at a fucking PBS station (which I thought had the balls to once air episodes of Zoom, Mister Rogers Neighborhood and Sesame Street which tackled the brutal (to say it lightly) topics of the 9/11 Attacks, the possible aftermath of nuclear warfare and fucking death), then I don't want to know what regular citizens probably like the people at the station think about this. I already hear shit like this on TV and online already every other day, so I'll pass on it here.
"It's a whole new world".
Apparently, not whole or new enough...
Not just yet.
Wednesday, May 29, 2019
Sunday, May 19, 2019
"Arthur" Character Mr. Ratburn Gets Married... To Another Guy (Awesome)
We all knew of his love of cake.
And now he has an excuse.
He can share that love...
with another man.
Hey everyone, It's Andrew again.
And I'll be honest with you: I haven't watched Arthur in years.
The last time I watched willingly, I was graduating from middle school. Apparently, my tastes in TV cartoons have changed a bit since then, and I lost that taste in Arthur. And at times, I even forgot about it's existence. (And that's even despite watching the PBS Kids channel near religiously since its start-up. ...Yes, this happens.) That's until last week when news hit that the show broke ground yet again. Yep, after the episodes with Buster having asthma;
characters revealed to have Alzheimer's and Asperger's; something like 9/11;
Arthur hitting D.W.; and Mrs. Grady fighting cancer,
the show has it's biggest moment yet -- when a character is revealed to be gay.
That character was revealed to be our favorite aardvark's favorite teacher Mr. Ratburn in the premiere of the show's 22nd(!!) season,
"Mr. Ratburn and The Special Someone".
Of course I've done this before. I've written posts about kids shows breaking ground on featuring gay characters before:
one on Clarence, and two on The Loud House (one about Clyde McBride's male parents, and the other on Loud sister Luna crushing on another girl).
But notice what's going on here -- those are shows for older kids. Arthur is at its core a show for preschoolers and those under 8. That's why I'm writing this here; it's more than probably the biggest leap any kids show has ever done on the topic of homosexuality. Because it's a little kids show, Arthur has to tip-toe around even the tamest of topics outside the usual baby-esque stuff -- but since the series has a brilliant writing staff, they get away with a lot of non-kids stuff easily (and thankfully--cause it's hilarious and/or heartwarming). And only occasionally do they dive into some really heavy stuff to teach its young audience about the harsh realities of real life (several of which I mentioned earlier) and they do this exceptionally -- and this episode is NO exclusion.
TL;DRing the plot, which everyone knows by now,
I'll then skip to my thoughts in the whole matter.
In the episode, Mr. Ratburn reveals to his class that he's getting married. After the usual hi-jinks and goof-ups abound, it was revealed towards the end of the episode that the person Mr. Ratburn is tying the knot with is another man named Patrick, a local proprietor selling chocolate-based confections.
What made it all brilliant here is that whom Mr. Ratburn is marrying isn't revealed until near the end. And it isn't shoehorned in either, it feels natural. Yeah, I knew about it the same way literally almost everyone knew about it, but watching the episode with fresh eyes and forgoing the huge barrage of news hits made it all feel much different ... and more better.
I was honestly shocked that Ratburn came out, but stopped the reaction shortly after because... I love him, not only as a teacher but as a character. He may be stern, but he's also fair and caring, and that's what great teachers are supposed to be. He's also shown to be caring and jovial toward his students which helps them get to know and appreciate him much better as the series progresses, and that made him a much better and likable character down the road. (Plus, despite the weird color clashes, I loved his suit -- even as a kid.) And that's why I'm so happy for him -- not only because he's marrying another guy, but also because he's getting married. He deserves it (and so does Patrick).
And speaking on the other man, Patrick himself is sweet (like the food he sells), charming, a little goofy (at least from his voice, which I kind adore) and the kind of person you'd wish was your friend almost immediately.
I honestly wish someone like him exists in real life.
The wedding scene itself (while brief) was absolutely wonderful. Seeing these two happy men together down the aisle was inspiring and tear-inducing enough, but for Mr. Ratburn to invite his students and their families to the reception was also sweet. Plus, seeing Patrick give Arthur and Francine a wink indicating "Yep, it's me" (they met earlier at his Chocolate Shop, creating a smooth foreshadowing to the person Nigel would spend his life with) To have them (and by extension the viewers) watch first hand that love comes in all forms -- and that not a word was uttered throughout) is a brilliant idea on the part of writer Peter K. Hirsch. All we can do is picture the wedding ourselves from here, and to it's intimately beautiful. Plus, in my mind, they actually kiss (which I don't blame the show for keeping off the episode, seeing as many people already actually angry about the union would find a "legit" reason to fight this cartoon for preschoolers about [seriously, find a new hobby]).
Random Thoughts:
--Yes, this episode features a special appearance from Sue Sylvester herself, Jane Lynch. And her character here is (almost) just as ruthless and cunning. Any man would be lucky to have her. /s
--Lynch's character being Nigel's elder sister was something I picked up on immediately.
--Seeing the kids pondering Mr. Ratburn marrying is funny enough, but seeing what could happen after the ceremony is hilarious; RatHulk? lost my s#it. Flower Child Ratburn? acid, rain down.
--Whatever that dip was the kids are eating at the Sugar Bowl must be made of kale. How else would Buster come up to his weird conclusion about teachers' private lives--or know what kale is?
--Can Flower Child Ratburn audio-booking "Dancing Uni-Penguin!" by my new spirit animal now??
--Nigal Ratburn. (ROTFL on the whole poem scene!)
--The kids may find it awkward and awful, but I find the happy newlyweds' dancing pretty awesome.
--And finally, I'm frankly shocked no one (especially Ratburn himself) brought up his love of cake.
I mean, this occasion had it built in, and... I wouldn't be surprised if he wanted a wedding because of it. I would've blew up in laughter for that nice little call-back. (oh well, at least he'll more cake to chew later on...) (i'm so sorry...)
But speaking of shocked, the real shock is that this show is still on the air. While Arthur is showing its age in spots as of later into its run -- it's nearly as old as I am (22 seasons to my 25 years as of posting this), it's still a kids show I hold in high regard, especially when I was a lad. It's episodes are not only educational with some great Aesops for the kids to learn, it also featured some incredible showings involving real-life topics. And this episode will now be in the history books (and back catalogs of many news companies' websites the world over [really they hyped his sexuality more than the episode barely implied it]) as one of them all.
I'm very happy for Nigel -- not only for getting married in general, and marrying his true soul mate, but for also revealing it to all his students and their families -- no secrets, no shock, just pure and overwhelming gratitude and happiness. And these days, that's the way it should be.
Thank you for checking in,
and I'll see you around.
I'm Andrew. Abyssinia!
And now he has an excuse.
He can share that love...
with another man.
Hey everyone, It's Andrew again.
And I'll be honest with you: I haven't watched Arthur in years.
The last time I watched willingly, I was graduating from middle school. Apparently, my tastes in TV cartoons have changed a bit since then, and I lost that taste in Arthur. And at times, I even forgot about it's existence. (And that's even despite watching the PBS Kids channel near religiously since its start-up. ...Yes, this happens.) That's until last week when news hit that the show broke ground yet again. Yep, after the episodes with Buster having asthma;
characters revealed to have Alzheimer's and Asperger's; something like 9/11;
Arthur hitting D.W.; and Mrs. Grady fighting cancer,
the show has it's biggest moment yet -- when a character is revealed to be gay.
That character was revealed to be our favorite aardvark's favorite teacher Mr. Ratburn in the premiere of the show's 22nd(!!) season,
"Mr. Ratburn and The Special Someone".
Of course I've done this before. I've written posts about kids shows breaking ground on featuring gay characters before:
one on Clarence, and two on The Loud House (one about Clyde McBride's male parents, and the other on Loud sister Luna crushing on another girl).
But notice what's going on here -- those are shows for older kids. Arthur is at its core a show for preschoolers and those under 8. That's why I'm writing this here; it's more than probably the biggest leap any kids show has ever done on the topic of homosexuality. Because it's a little kids show, Arthur has to tip-toe around even the tamest of topics outside the usual baby-esque stuff -- but since the series has a brilliant writing staff, they get away with a lot of non-kids stuff easily (and thankfully--cause it's hilarious and/or heartwarming). And only occasionally do they dive into some really heavy stuff to teach its young audience about the harsh realities of real life (several of which I mentioned earlier) and they do this exceptionally -- and this episode is NO exclusion.
TL;DRing the plot, which everyone knows by now,
I'll then skip to my thoughts in the whole matter.
In the episode, Mr. Ratburn reveals to his class that he's getting married. After the usual hi-jinks and goof-ups abound, it was revealed towards the end of the episode that the person Mr. Ratburn is tying the knot with is another man named Patrick, a local proprietor selling chocolate-based confections.
What made it all brilliant here is that whom Mr. Ratburn is marrying isn't revealed until near the end. And it isn't shoehorned in either, it feels natural. Yeah, I knew about it the same way literally almost everyone knew about it, but watching the episode with fresh eyes and forgoing the huge barrage of news hits made it all feel much different ... and more better.
I was honestly shocked that Ratburn came out, but stopped the reaction shortly after because... I love him, not only as a teacher but as a character. He may be stern, but he's also fair and caring, and that's what great teachers are supposed to be. He's also shown to be caring and jovial toward his students which helps them get to know and appreciate him much better as the series progresses, and that made him a much better and likable character down the road. (Plus, despite the weird color clashes, I loved his suit -- even as a kid.) And that's why I'm so happy for him -- not only because he's marrying another guy, but also because he's getting married. He deserves it (and so does Patrick).
And speaking on the other man, Patrick himself is sweet (like the food he sells), charming, a little goofy (at least from his voice, which I kind adore) and the kind of person you'd wish was your friend almost immediately.
I honestly wish someone like him exists in real life.
The wedding scene itself (while brief) was absolutely wonderful. Seeing these two happy men together down the aisle was inspiring and tear-inducing enough, but for Mr. Ratburn to invite his students and their families to the reception was also sweet. Plus, seeing Patrick give Arthur and Francine a wink indicating "Yep, it's me" (they met earlier at his Chocolate Shop, creating a smooth foreshadowing to the person Nigel would spend his life with) To have them (and by extension the viewers) watch first hand that love comes in all forms -- and that not a word was uttered throughout) is a brilliant idea on the part of writer Peter K. Hirsch. All we can do is picture the wedding ourselves from here, and to it's intimately beautiful. Plus, in my mind, they actually kiss (which I don't blame the show for keeping off the episode, seeing as many people already actually angry about the union would find a "legit" reason to fight this cartoon for preschoolers about [seriously, find a new hobby]).
Random Thoughts:
--Yes, this episode features a special appearance from Sue Sylvester herself, Jane Lynch. And her character here is (almost) just as ruthless and cunning. Any man would be lucky to have her. /s
--Lynch's character being Nigel's elder sister was something I picked up on immediately.
--Seeing the kids pondering Mr. Ratburn marrying is funny enough, but seeing what could happen after the ceremony is hilarious; RatHulk? lost my s#it. Flower Child Ratburn? acid, rain down.
--Whatever that dip was the kids are eating at the Sugar Bowl must be made of kale. How else would Buster come up to his weird conclusion about teachers' private lives--or know what kale is?
--Can Flower Child Ratburn audio-booking "Dancing Uni-Penguin!" by my new spirit animal now??
--Nigal Ratburn. (ROTFL on the whole poem scene!)
--The kids may find it awkward and awful, but I find the happy newlyweds' dancing pretty awesome.
--And finally, I'm frankly shocked no one (especially Ratburn himself) brought up his love of cake.
But speaking of shocked, the real shock is that this show is still on the air. While Arthur is showing its age in spots as of later into its run -- it's nearly as old as I am (22 seasons to my 25 years as of posting this), it's still a kids show I hold in high regard, especially when I was a lad. It's episodes are not only educational with some great Aesops for the kids to learn, it also featured some incredible showings involving real-life topics. And this episode will now be in the history books (and back catalogs of many news companies' websites the world over [really they hyped his sexuality more than the episode barely implied it]) as one of them all.
I'm very happy for Nigel -- not only for getting married in general, and marrying his true soul mate, but for also revealing it to all his students and their families -- no secrets, no shock, just pure and overwhelming gratitude and happiness. And these days, that's the way it should be.
Thank you for checking in,
and I'll see you around.
I'm Andrew. Abyssinia!
Wednesday, May 08, 2019
1 Season Wonder: Baby, I'm Back
That's right! I'm baaaack.
And it's baaaack.
Welcome to 1 Season Wonder.
Today, it's this forgotten (yet still feels forgettable) gem from 1978, starring everybody's favorite "big dummy" and the girl who would later go on to be both Tootie amd Regine.
It's Baby... I'm Back.
Meet Raymond Ellis. a Washington D.C. man with a wonderful family (his stone-cold foxy wife Olivia, and their two dyno-mite kids Jordan and Angie) and a wonderful life in the nation's capital. He's also a compulsive gambler, and because of his habits he suddenly abandons his family one day and left for California. But years later, after picking up a groovy good job, Raymond gets his life together and returns to DC and his family. But after the wife just declared him legally dead, the family had moved on, with Olivia now engaged to a new man--an Army Colonel named Wallace Dickey, and the kids getting a new dad. With Raymond now back in their lives, Olivia, Jordan and Angie must deal with the man whom left them years ago, and Raymond must deal with the family that moved on and see him as the roadblock to their new happy lives, the new man that now has his now-ex-wife's heart and the mother-in-law (Luzelle) that will do anything to keep the man away from her daughter's new family, new life and new happiness.
Hilarity Ensues!
According to Wikipedia, this really is the plot of this series. And it surprised me, because years ago when I first heard of it when messing around on YouTube watching old network TV spots (just to see what television looked like back in the day), I thought of it as a random generic sitcom. From what I got out of it, I thought it was about the main character being a rising music star coming back to his hometown and catching up with his former flame. Well, I was sorta right. He did come back home, and wanted to hook up again with his flame (who is his wife), but the rising music star part was way off -- as I learned he's actually a deadbeat employee at a Cali racetrack.
Created by Lila Garrett and Mort Lachman, this series stars Demond Wilson (Lamont on Sanford and Son) as Raymond, Denise Nicholas (later for In the Heat of the Night) as Olivia, Helen Martin (known for That's My Mama and Good Times and especially as Pearl Shay on 227) as Olivia's mother -- and Raymond's thorn-in-his-side mother-in-law -- Luzelle, Tony Holmes as Ray and Liv's son Jordan and a young Kim Fields as their daughter Angie. Airing on CBS from January 30 to April 24, 1978, it had modest ratings but not enough to continue as you can see here.
Went I went into it, I expected very little... But I got a lot I didn't think could be seen on a sitcom. I've never seen many TV shows where deadbeat fathers whom left the family years ago actually came back and tried his best to get back on their good graces; usually these are plot points or storylines, not the start of a whole series. And most usually, the loser dads stay gone, and we never seen them again. I'm usually not a fan of these characters (yeah, I'm supposed to but still).
Watching the title sequence, Raymond's voice-over narration didn't help his case already. Leaving his family was terrible and enraging enough, but doing it to satisfy his gambling is strike two, and going after other women despite being married means "YOU'RE OUT!!" in terms of likability. The fact that I have to hear this in the title sequence for every episode drive this in and pushes it into infinity (and that's even if and when Raymond has grown as a character in my eyes). The series does well in displaying the Ellis family's feelings toward Ray since his sudden return. Olivia has anger, heartbreak and resentment to him; Jordan doesn't see him as his father anymore and resorts to referring to him by his name (and I don't blame him as most kids don't have the same love for their dads when they abandon them, hating them for thinking of them as nothing; I've been there myself, though my dad did come back after a while), Angie is okay with the news as she was a baby when Ray left and during scenes with them we see a sweet humbling relationship between them, and...to say it short, Luzelle cheered his legal death in the first episode (that's all you need to know).
As for the writing, it's really decent for a black sitcom of the decade. It's not exactly Good Times, The Jeffersons or Sanford and Son-level compositions but it's up there with the jive speak, jokes, the occasional bittersweet moment and the like, along with references to the movies and other TV shows of the decade. I wasn't gaffawing at most of the jokes as I do with these shows, but I damn sure was laughing. When a moment comes when it's either genuinely sad or bittersweet, it feels just like it. The reunion scene in the pilot "Living Proof" was a wild but perfect mix of emotions from the characters upon Raymond's random return.
The cast gave fantastic performances.
Wilson was a great second banana as Lamont Sanford, but he does carry this series real well too. While he still held the laughs good, he did nice during the dramatic scenes as well. And had he not, he sure had a talented group to work with. Nicholas was a beautiful force to be reckoned with as Olivia; she held down both comedic and dramatic scenes with ease, and almost had me in tears during her character's reuniting scene with Ray in the pilot. Holmes some great talent as Jordan; while he showed a bit (a lot) of brash and sass in some scenes, he was very good in early scenes showing well-done pathos in Jordan's anger and sadness after reuniting with Ray.
Sure, Luzelle filled the trope of the spiteful Mother-in-Law, but Helen Martin's performance had me rolling every other time she talked. The sass is delicious (and it's not the last time, as I'll remind you in a moment).
While this series didn't last, it was pretty good to watch while I was able to all these years later.
Why It's A Wonder: I assumed the ratings were pretty decent, since all 13 episodes aired no problem, and would've had another season or two had CBS had enough clout to do so. but since it was a midseason replacement (and other stronger shows got in the way), it really didn't stand a chance--and it's a shame, because a show like this was and still is needed on TV (at least story-wise) and would've been both empowering and entertaining to see that in real life there are men out there who love their families enough to come back after being deadbeats (granted they shouldn't be deadbeats in the first place, but hey, I'm not God, so I didn't make the Ten Commandments...)
And there it is, Baby, I'm Back, the twelth series added to the 1 Season Wonders Hall of...(for the moment I'll call it) Acclame (my own spelling of Acclaim). Yeah, that'll work.
Thank you for being here. And see you soon another edition of 1 Season Wonder.
I'm Andrew. Abyssinia.
And it's baaaack.
Welcome to 1 Season Wonder.
Today, it's this forgotten (yet still feels forgettable) gem from 1978, starring everybody's favorite "big dummy" and the girl who would later go on to be both Tootie amd Regine.
It's Baby... I'm Back.
Meet Raymond Ellis. a Washington D.C. man with a wonderful family (his stone-cold foxy wife Olivia, and their two dyno-mite kids Jordan and Angie) and a wonderful life in the nation's capital. He's also a compulsive gambler, and because of his habits he suddenly abandons his family one day and left for California. But years later, after picking up a groovy good job, Raymond gets his life together and returns to DC and his family. But after the wife just declared him legally dead, the family had moved on, with Olivia now engaged to a new man--an Army Colonel named Wallace Dickey, and the kids getting a new dad. With Raymond now back in their lives, Olivia, Jordan and Angie must deal with the man whom left them years ago, and Raymond must deal with the family that moved on and see him as the roadblock to their new happy lives, the new man that now has his now-ex-wife's heart and the mother-in-law (Luzelle) that will do anything to keep the man away from her daughter's new family, new life and new happiness.
Hilarity Ensues!
According to Wikipedia, this really is the plot of this series. And it surprised me, because years ago when I first heard of it when messing around on YouTube watching old network TV spots (just to see what television looked like back in the day), I thought of it as a random generic sitcom. From what I got out of it, I thought it was about the main character being a rising music star coming back to his hometown and catching up with his former flame. Well, I was sorta right. He did come back home, and wanted to hook up again with his flame (who is his wife), but the rising music star part was way off -- as I learned he's actually a deadbeat employee at a Cali racetrack.
Created by Lila Garrett and Mort Lachman, this series stars Demond Wilson (Lamont on Sanford and Son) as Raymond, Denise Nicholas (later for In the Heat of the Night) as Olivia, Helen Martin (known for That's My Mama and Good Times and especially as Pearl Shay on 227) as Olivia's mother -- and Raymond's thorn-in-his-side mother-in-law -- Luzelle, Tony Holmes as Ray and Liv's son Jordan and a young Kim Fields as their daughter Angie. Airing on CBS from January 30 to April 24, 1978, it had modest ratings but not enough to continue as you can see here.
Went I went into it, I expected very little... But I got a lot I didn't think could be seen on a sitcom. I've never seen many TV shows where deadbeat fathers whom left the family years ago actually came back and tried his best to get back on their good graces; usually these are plot points or storylines, not the start of a whole series. And most usually, the loser dads stay gone, and we never seen them again. I'm usually not a fan of these characters (yeah, I'm supposed to but still).
Watching the title sequence, Raymond's voice-over narration didn't help his case already. Leaving his family was terrible and enraging enough, but doing it to satisfy his gambling is strike two, and going after other women despite being married means "YOU'RE OUT!!" in terms of likability. The fact that I have to hear this in the title sequence for every episode drive this in and pushes it into infinity (and that's even if and when Raymond has grown as a character in my eyes). The series does well in displaying the Ellis family's feelings toward Ray since his sudden return. Olivia has anger, heartbreak and resentment to him; Jordan doesn't see him as his father anymore and resorts to referring to him by his name (and I don't blame him as most kids don't have the same love for their dads when they abandon them, hating them for thinking of them as nothing; I've been there myself, though my dad did come back after a while), Angie is okay with the news as she was a baby when Ray left and during scenes with them we see a sweet humbling relationship between them, and...to say it short, Luzelle cheered his legal death in the first episode (that's all you need to know).
As for the writing, it's really decent for a black sitcom of the decade. It's not exactly Good Times, The Jeffersons or Sanford and Son-level compositions but it's up there with the jive speak, jokes, the occasional bittersweet moment and the like, along with references to the movies and other TV shows of the decade. I wasn't gaffawing at most of the jokes as I do with these shows, but I damn sure was laughing. When a moment comes when it's either genuinely sad or bittersweet, it feels just like it. The reunion scene in the pilot "Living Proof" was a wild but perfect mix of emotions from the characters upon Raymond's random return.
The cast gave fantastic performances.
Wilson was a great second banana as Lamont Sanford, but he does carry this series real well too. While he still held the laughs good, he did nice during the dramatic scenes as well. And had he not, he sure had a talented group to work with. Nicholas was a beautiful force to be reckoned with as Olivia; she held down both comedic and dramatic scenes with ease, and almost had me in tears during her character's reuniting scene with Ray in the pilot. Holmes some great talent as Jordan; while he showed a bit (a lot) of brash and sass in some scenes, he was very good in early scenes showing well-done pathos in Jordan's anger and sadness after reuniting with Ray.
Sure, Luzelle filled the trope of the spiteful Mother-in-Law, but Helen Martin's performance had me rolling every other time she talked. The sass is delicious (and it's not the last time, as I'll remind you in a moment).
While this series didn't last, it was pretty good to watch while I was able to all these years later.
Why It's A Wonder: I assumed the ratings were pretty decent, since all 13 episodes aired no problem, and would've had another season or two had CBS had enough clout to do so. but since it was a midseason replacement (and other stronger shows got in the way), it really didn't stand a chance--and it's a shame, because a show like this was and still is needed on TV (at least story-wise) and would've been both empowering and entertaining to see that in real life there are men out there who love their families enough to come back after being deadbeats (granted they shouldn't be deadbeats in the first place, but hey, I'm not God, so I didn't make the Ten Commandments...)
And there it is, Baby, I'm Back, the twelth series added to the 1 Season Wonders Hall of...(for the moment I'll call it) Acclame (my own spelling of Acclaim). Yeah, that'll work.
Thank you for being here. And see you soon another edition of 1 Season Wonder.
I'm Andrew. Abyssinia.
Tuesday, May 07, 2019
Toony and Tuesday: Victor and Valentino
Hey, folks. Welcome to Toony Tuesday.
Imagine Drake & Josh...
but younger...
and Mexican...
and mash it with Gravity Falls.
It's Victor and Valentino.
Created by Diego Molano, this Cartoon Network Original follows two newly-minted stepbrothers in the small Mexican town of Monte Macabre.
Victor is brash, mischievous, overly-confident, spontaneous and not very bright;
Valentino is kind, smart, humble, sensitive and a bit of a milksop.
Together, they're a bit of a mismatch. But when they find the door to some really strange goings on in the village, they team up to investigate and come closer to the solving what the taco is going on in Monte Macabre.
 |
| The Duo and The Other Main Characters |
Other characters include:
*Grandma Chata -- the boys' blind and stern yet sweet grandmother, whom they stay with in Monte Macabe. She's also either an undead spirit taking the form of a human (as revealed in the pilot) or someone who is more than implied to have some supernatural powers (as shown in the series proper).
*Charlene -- a young girl who likes the dark and macabre a little too much ... and it shows.
*Pineapple -- Charlene's big and scary-looking but kind and sweet-talking brother, and her minion.
*Maria Theresa -- Their spiteful grandmother, proprietor of a popular local taco joint and Chata's bitter rival.
*Julio "Don" Jalapeno -- Local seller of jalapenos and very much attracted to Grandma Chata (he shows this by sweating like a pig in her presence).
*Xochi Jalapeno -- "Don" Julio's cool yet intimidating daughter, known for tending to supernatural plants and Salsa dancing.
I have a bit of frustration with this one.
When I watched the series' pilot, it was increíble (incredible). Shocking plot twists, twisted humor and beautiful Mexican folklore all wrapped in a delicious spicy, cheesy, meaty package (yes, like a burrito). I laughed, I almost cried, and I rejoiced at it all. And the twist at the end was breathtaking. I though from this, this show is gonna be one of my favorites this year.
Sure, it's easy to compare it to Drake & Josh and Gravity Falls like I just did earlier in the review. But on its own merits, it could work well enough to be a series to watch, love and remember.
Then came the series itself and... Ay Dios Mio, what happened?
All following episodes so far felt... less exciting, more middle-of-the-road and very vanilla, and they don't have the brutal dark look and feel of the pilot (at least halfway through). And this would've been pretty fine had I not watched the pilot. There aren't many scenes with tense awe-taking scares, insane brooding animation, risks that felt genuinely low-key uncomfortable yet high-key funny or genuinely dramatic lines. Now here, while there are some scenes and lines that are genuinely funny, the moments of folklore aren't scary or dramatic -- and that's if there are any at all in a given episode. I kinda do expect to see some of what we saw in the pilot seep in more and more gradually as the series progresses, but for me, Victor and Valentino isn't a series I would see myself waiting with baited breath to watch every week. I'd rather sit on it until a few episodes before the first season finale (and hear other people's opinions of the season) to see where it all goes.
As for the hermanos principales (main brothas)...
Victor was a bit of a brat during the pilot. Hating Valentino, messing up Chata's taco stand, getting his new brother involved with finding a chihuahua-like supernatural being, then facing off against more supernatural beings, and almost getting Val killed by getting his soul deteriorating by said supernatural beings. Fortunately, he reformed enough to help save Val by giving the beings a taco to give Valentino his life back; so he does care about Val deep down. Seemingly that would be the start of some good character development for Victor. Nope. He became more of an asshole through his mocking and taking advantage of Valentino, his smart-ass mouth getting him and Val into trouble, and lazily avoiding work or other actions involving other characters. Sure he has his moments of being a softie, but the things Vic does or says can be really obnoxious and eye-rolling. While he was like this in the pilot, the fact that he became more obnoxious and haughty during the series so far is a big turn-off to me (his voice doesn't help, either).
It's like he's a human, Central American Rigby.
(I do really like his poncho though.)
Valentino on the other hand, is a much more likable character; he's sweet, smart, caring, and always willing to lend a helping hand. Sadly, he's not very popular and is alone in some regards, including literally. And he goes through some really bad crap thanks to Victor--including almost dying in the pilot, but always keeps it in there. There are many times where I wish he was my best friend -- and others, my step-brother.
This is where my comparison to Drake & Josh comes in, and not just on a superficial level. But at least they're kids, and they can and will go through development to become more well-rounded later on.
And the side characters... all of them are very likable.
* Grandma Chata is very sweet, aloof on the surface--but sharp inside; and her supernatural prowess was something out of left field. And watching her sudden shouts during regular episodes still scares me -- even when I expect them to happen. It's the voice ...
* Don Jalapeno is that guy you don't want as your grandfather but wants to be the cool old guy that sells you what you need (specifically the vegetable that's in his name) and doles out great advice on the supernatural stuff surrounding Monte Macabre -- too bad he's ignored by everyone on that regard (yeah, apparently I love typing it as much as I love thinking of it...) Also, when he's near Chata, he seems to act extremely nervous. Maybe that anxiousness is actually fear of her hidden form and he's really aware of it. Who knows?
* Charlene is creepy, morbid, scary and questionable. Charlene is also funny, charming, unforgettable and lovable. She's one of the best characters -- if not the best character -- in the series.
* Pineapple is something else. His methods for going about are undeniably weird (like his speaking in few-word sentences), but his huge and threatening, yet friendly and slightly goofy attitude is something to behold. Plus, his (nick)name of Pineapple is somewhat awesome.
The animation is very good with Lush bright colors, the episodes so make a perfect representation of Mexican culture. As for the characters, they're a great representation of Mexicans -- although I hope there certainly aren't a lot of people who like Victor.
* Maria Teresa is simply hilarious. Her snark and share give me life and her rivalry with Chata is close to legendary.
* Xochi is a badass. You don't want to mess with her or underestimate her; she can kick ass with the best of them. And when she's on your team, she's a team player to the letter.
These characters are well-liked and well-crafted, and they help make a fun series even more fun. I want this series to be successful. I really do. And I really hope the later episodes in season one and beyond do pick up the paces, the stakes and the folklore scares to bring it back to the pilot. I don't know if it was a CN executive thing or something intentional on the part of Molano and the producers-- but either way it did squander the potential of the series at the start, but I'm optimistic to hope things turn right back as the series progresses.
So short(er) consensus: I really like Victor and Valentino. Just not as much as I'd want to admit.
That's my review of Victor and Valentino.
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I'm Andrew... Abyssinia! And may the good toons be yours...!