Virgin Mobile Festival Artists (Saturday)

This post is my quick music reviews of the shows I saw along with the songs I recall them playing on Saturday. Tomorrow will be Sunday's shows. My guesses will be very accurate, and if not, let me know.

KT Tunstall



"Little Favours"
"Miniature Disasters"
"Hold On"
"Other Side Of The World"
"Black Horse And The Cherry Tree"
"If Only"
"Saving My Face"
"I Don't Want You Now"
"Suddenly I See"

I didn't see her for very long, but she had a lot of energy and a great back-up band. I thought she would be just another pop princess, but she's impressive. She looks like a cool female rock star and can play guitar well. Great voice.

Cat Power





This girl is so cool; she has an amazing voice and has an awesome style. She knows how to work the stage. Very chill, cool energy coming from her set.

Gogol Bordello







"Ultimate"
"Not A Crime"
"I Would Never Wanna Be Young Again"
"Wonderlust King"
"Tribal Connections"
"60 Revolutions"
"American Wedding"
"Start Wearing Purple"
"Baro Foro"

This guy has a crazy band. I didn't think I was going to like them because they are foreign and emulate that very well. They dress very crazy, not matching and having crazy accessories and pins--I think the epitome was when two Asian women came on stage dressed in the same outfits (hard to describe, but they had on war paint makeup and gems on their faces) and they danced the same dances and sprinted all over the stage. They played massive drums and just ran on and off the stage at any given time. They also had a very old man playing a small violin, another guy playing bass wearing a white wig made of rope. It was a good show because you never knew what to expect.

Bloc Party







"Waiting For The 7.18"
"Like Eating Glass"
"Hunting For Witches"
"Two More Years"
"The Prayer"
"Helicopter"
"Mercury"
"This Modern Love"
"Song For Clay (Disappear Here)"

A very unique, electronic sound. They are a British band, and you can't even tell except when the lead singer speaks. He had an awesome Koopa Troopa shirt on. The other band members really played around with these gadgets that made the guitar riffs and vocals alter; I don't even know how to describe it, but it was really cool. Bloc Party teased the crowd with a quick riff of "Johnny Be Good" before Chuck Berry came on, which was a horrible tease!

The Offspring





"All I Want"
"The Kids Aren't Alright"
"Come Out And Play (Keep 'Em Separated)"
"Hammerhead"
"Gone Away"
"Spare Me The Details"
"Staring At The Sun"
"Bad Habit"
"You're Gonna Go Far, Kid"
"Gone Away"
"Want You Bad"
"Why Don't You Get A Job?"
"Americana"
"(Can't Get My) Head Around You"
"Pretty Fly (For A White Guy)"
"Self Esteem"

I did not expect them to put on such a good show. I was very impressed. They had a lot of energy. They are pretty old to be rocking, but they sounded spot on. The lead guitarist was creeping me out a little; he had this long hair and good energy, but at one point he yelled out, "I'm gonna get laid tonight! And so are all of you!" Now, if he is, I don't want to know about it. He's old, topless, with greasy long hair. Yuck. But, the other players were amazing. The lead singer's voice still sounds the same, really good. The drummer kicked the hell out of the show. He impressed me. They didn't just play crowd pleasers, which I liked, but they did play some cool singles that really got the crowd into the show.

Citizen Cope







"Bullet and a Target"
"Hurricane Waters"
"Son's Gonna Rise"
"Sideways"
"Nite Becomes Day"
"Back Together"
"107"
"Brother Lee"
"Let the Drummer Kick"

I loved his performance. He has an amazing voice and knows how to work the crowd. I think his best song was "Son's Gonna Rise," even though it's his single. He stopped at one point, and we thought it was over, and then he sang the song really slow and then erupted back into the chorus. It was incredible. The crowd was so energetic at that point. But then, he followed up that song was "Sideways," which is slower. I didn't think that was a good choice. He picked more slower songs than I think he should have, but his more upbeat songs really got the crowd into them. He's very talented and it comes across when he plays. One of my favorite performances!

Chuck Berry and The Silver Beats



"Roll Over Beethoven"
"School Days"
"Sweet Little Sixteen"
"Carol"
"Little Queenie"
"Memphis, Tennessee"
"You Never Can Tell"
"Reelin' & Rockin'"
"House Lights"
"Johnny B. Goode"

First The Silver Beats played for a while. They are a Beatles cover band from Japan who don't speak much English. They played some awesome Beatles' songs which was completely unexpected. Chuck Berry only played about five or six songs. He was really charged for such an older man, but he put on a heck of a performance. He had a strong, solid voice for his age, and he was really into his songs. He really worked the crowd, talking with them, encouraging them to participate. He had on a crazy sparkly sequin red shirt. Very cool to see him live, especially to end with "Johnny B. Good," noted by Rolling Stone as the greatest guitar song of all time.

Wilco







"War On War"
"A Shot In The Arm"
"I Am Trying To Break Your Heart"
"You Are My Face"
"Impossible Germany"
"Handshake Drugs"
"Spiders (Kidsmoke)"
"Walken"
"Hate It Here"
"I'm The Man Who Loves You"
"Monday"
"Outtasite (Outta Mind)"
"Hoodoo Voodoo"

I didn't really get a chance to see most of their show, just a couple of songs. I would have liked to see more of them since I'm really into them right now, but the scheduling didn't work out. I did see Jeff Tweedy play with the crowd a little. He really wanted the crowd to clap along with their song and then teased them because they weren't really good. He then said that the majority of Americans (he gave a percentage) can actually hold a 2/4 clap beat while other countries can't. He waited until the crowd was clapping a lot, even verbalizing them to clap louder and for more to clap. It was humorous. I am just happy I got to see Jeff Tweedy.

Foo Fighters

















"The Pretender"
"Times Like These"
"No Way Back"
"Learn To Fly"
"Cheer Up Boys (Your Make Up Is Running)"
"Young Man Blues" (The Who cover)
"Long Road To Ruin"
"Breakout"
"Stacked Actors"
"Skin And Bones"
"Marigold"
"My Hero"
"Cold Day In The Sun"
"Everlong"
"Monkey Wrench"
"All My Life"
"Best Of You"

This show was one of the most energetic, violent, charged shows I've ever been to. My pony tail was knocked completely off by the end of the show. There were so many crowd surfers, mosh pits, and screaming, jumping fans that you constantly had to be on the watch for your own body as you watched. The crowd was so into it, and Dave Grohl ensured this. He continuously told us to "dance" or to sing, make some noise, etc. He prodded us the whole time, telling us they were going to play 15 more songs, "are you done yet?", "do you want some more?", "do you have to work tomorrow?", "who wants to hear another song?", and then shouting how hard they were going to rock. He was amazing.

They played a beginning and end of crazy fast, loud, and pumped up hard rock songs, and in the middle they slowed it down a bit with some slower songs. The extended band was there the whole time, the violinist, extra guitarist and bassist, and triangle player. Dave played the beginning of "Everlong" slowly on stage by himself, and then the band joined him to increase the energy halfway through the song. Taylor sang "Cold Day in the Sun," which was amazing. He is so talented. He had this very long drum solo that astounded the audience. Every time you would applaud and think he was done, he would start up again. I don't know where he gets his energy.

Dave was hilarious during the night, commenting on small things like a crowd surfer's keys that ended up on stage. He analyzed each piece on the key ring and said that now he gets this dumbass' cheap car. He introduced each member and they did a little solo. He uncovered Taylor's real name, Oliver, which was referred to the whole time. The triangle player even came out and did a solo. It was incredible. Dave jammed with the violinist/cello player who has an incredible voice. During one of the first songs, Dave and the lead guitarist jammed back and forth. That was crazy.

I was just so impressed with how well they put on a show. It felt like they played for forever, but that is because Dave was leading us that way with his talks. He was all over the stage, running from end to end and playing with each player. He IS a rock star, one of the best rock stars of our generation. He has such pretty hair too...

My only criticism is that they played too many crowd pleaser hits and not many unknown songs. They did vary old songs and new songs, but they played well-known songs that they always play. I want them to mix it up so I am surprised when they play songs--not just the singles. They did create an amazing 10 minute+ song of "Stacked Actors" which was phenomenal. They all just jammed on solos for a while and then returned to the song. That was creative and not as known, but they need to play more less familiar songs! Come on Dave, you kick ass. Try it!

What did you think of these bands, either if you were at Virgin Mobile Festival or if you have just seen them live?

Virgin Mobile Festival Experience

Wow, what an amazing two days worth of music, entertainment, crazy people, and good times. I was very impressed with the festival and how it was run, organized, etc. I loved the Eco-friendly booths that encouraged recycling and going green. There was this really cool contest to collect recycled waste that people littered to receive prizes. I received a nice t-shirt, a bag, and some stickers. Perhaps I looked a little crazy to be collecting garbage, but I am wearing the shirt now and it's pretty sweet.

The weather was gorgeous, the food was a bit over-priced (unlike Bonnaroo which was reasonable), the sound was incredible, the bands were amazing (except for Lil Wayne who ruined the festival), the fans dressed in crazy outfits, etc. To expand on Lil Wayne, he came on at least a half hour after he was scheduled, and he was playing in the middle of a bunch of acts. But, instead of just playing to his allotted time, he played way over his time, a very selfish act. People were booing him, commenting against him. He wasn't even very talented. I'm not a rap conesseuir, but he's not very good, and he was very cliche when interacting with the audience. His music was repetitive and dull. I am embarassed that he has the highest grossing music sales this year. I think it says something terrible about this country.

Anyway, other acts kicked ass. They rocked hard and put on some excellent shows. So many great songs were played that I am blessed to have heard performed in my life time. I will get into bands and songs on other posts this week.

Here are the bands I got to see perform:

KT Tunstall
Cat Power
Gogol Bordello
Lupe Fiasco
Bloc Party
The Offspring
Citizen Cope
Chuck Berry
The Silver Beats (Beatles cover band from Japan)
Wilco
Foo Fighters

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
Andrew Bird
She and Him
Lil Wayne
The Black Keys
Stone Temple Pilots
Bob Dylan
Nine Inch Nails

Top shows/performances: Foo Fighters, Stone Temple Pilots, The Black Keys, Citizen Cope

Impressive performances: The Offspring, She and Him, Gogol Bordello, Nine Inch Nails, Bob Dylan

Below are some pictures of the festival--not of the bands. The performances will come in my next post tomorrow. Check out some of the scenes from V-Fest which was live from the Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland:



































Crazy. So, did anyone go? What did you think? Or what do you think of the bands' live performances if you've seen them before or this summer?

To Virgin Mobile Fest

Off to Virgin Mobile Festival in Baltimore! Stay tuned on concert updates and reviews. Check out my previous blog to check out the line-up or just google the site.

Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends

Coldplay's new CD, Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends, is definitely a different sound for Coldplay--but different isn't necessarily a bad thing. This album is much harder, a rock/electronic song as opposed to the lighter acoustic songs they normally produce. The change sounds pretty cool.

I was intrigued to listen to the CD after reading the feature article in Rolling Stone on Chris Martin. Do you think it's strange to just focus on Martin as opposed to the band? When XY came out, they featured the band, but this time it was Martin in a very cool costume. He looks creepy but the image was amazing. The interview was very informative as well.

In the article, Martin conveys that Coldplay wanted to do something different. They wanted to improve their sound, so they hired a new producer who was brutally honest with them. The producer ended up saying something about them being whiny and how they always used the same tricks in their songs. I think one of the best ways to improve is to get criticism like that. If someone just saying, "you're amazing, you're amazing," you won't improve as much. So, I can definitely see a new set of eyes, a new influence on this record.



As for good tracks to check out, I'm a big fan of "Strawberry Swing." It has this really cool electric guitar melody that is very mesmerizing. It's very different for them, but it's great. Certain songs like that or "Life in Technicolor" or "Cemetaries of London" break free of the Coldplay mode, but others like "42" or "Lost!" return back to the slower beats they like to make. The singles for this album are "Violet Hill" and "Viva la Vida." Check them out and see what you think.

The cover of the album is pretty interesting too. Here is the explanation from Wikipedia: "Viva la Vida takes its name from a painting by 20th century Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, and translates as "Long Live Life" in Spanish. The album's artwork features the painting Liberty Leading the People (La Liberté guidant le peuple) by French painter Eugène Delacroix, commemorating the July Revolution of 1830." Interesting, huh?

I think the title is an interesting juxtaposition--life and death. If you listen to just the sounds on the album, it can convey these contrasts. I think it's very intelligent, as I think Coldplay is an intelligent band. Their sound is smart, their ideas and lyrics can be smart. It is apparent. I know a lot of people are hesitant to like Coldplay, but they're coming out with some really great stuff. It's worth checking out.

Lastly, I love to see bands change to different sounds and go through different phases. Sometimes bands take weird or bad directions, but I encourage and applaud the band/artist who goes out on a limb to change and be different. They are risking sales, fans, their reputation, etc. for the sake of their art. I commend that. That's bold, that's brave, and that's what creating is all about. So, go Coldplay.

What do you think of Viva la Vida and Death and All His Friends? Or the Chris Martin interview in Rolling Stone? Any of the singles or tracks?

Grief

As I was going through the May edition of The New Yorker, I came across an excellent, amazing poem worth noting. The poem is called "Grief" by Matthew Dickman. Here it is below; let's see what you think:

Grief

When grief comes to you like a purple gorilla
you must count yourself lucky.
You must offer her what's left
of your dinner, the book you were trying to finish
you must put aside,
and make her a place to sit at the foot of your bed,
her eyes moving from the clock
to the television and back again.
I am not afraid. She has been here before
and now I can recognize her gait
as she approaches the house.
Some nights, when I know she's coming,
I unlock the door, lie down on my back,
and count her steps
from the street to the porch.
Tonight she brings a pencil and a ream of paper,
tells me to write down
everyone I have ever known,
and we separate them between the living and the dead
so she can pick each name at random.
I play her favorite Willie Nelson album
because she misses Texas
but I don't ask why.
She hums a little,
the way my brother does when he gardens.

We sit for an hour
while she tells me how unreasonable I've been,
crying in the checkout line,
refusing to eat, refusing to shower,
all the smoking and all the drinking.
Eventually she puts one of her heavy
purple arms around me, leans
her head against mine,
and all of a sudden things are feeling romantic.
So I tell her,
things are feeling romantic.
She pulls another name, this time
from the dead,
and turns to me in the way that parents do
so you feel embarassed or ashamed of something.
Romantic? she says,
reading the name out loud, slowly,
so I am aware of each syllable, each vowel
wrapping around the bones like new muscle,
the sound of that person's body
and how reckless it is,
how careless that name is in one pile and not the other.

Wow. That's some powerful reading. What do you think of it? Ideas?

MTV's Change

A friend of mine and I were having a great conversation about how much MTV has changed since I was in middle school (the end of the 90s). It's kind of depressing to see the route it has taken since then.

I followed MTV pretty heavily in the 90s, given that I was a yound adolescent who craved to be updated on pop culture. I watched MTV specials on VJs and watched every episode of the I Wanna Be a VJ run when Jesse Camp defeated Dave Holmes. I watched TRL when Carson Daly was the big-time host. I watched many of the original Real World casts (New Orleans, Hawaii) before it catapulted to what the show is today. I was a Celebrity Deathmatch fan. I loved watching Undressed (even though nothing really happened), and I loved watching music videos.

But today, where are those music videos? I don't mean little clips of the videos, I mean the entire videos themselves? Isn't it called Music Television for a reason? Now, it's more like trashy reality television. Yuck. It caught on to the rest of the disgusting trend of recent television.

I remember Justin Timberlake makin a comment similar to mine above, in which MTV responded that they air some high percentage of music videos between television shows, during shows like TRL (which are videos CLIPS, not the whole video), and late night/early morning (1-5AM). Even if that statistic is correct, those videos are not accessible. I don't want to watch a 20 second clip, I want the video! I know that these videos are available on YouTube now, but that takes away the value of watching it on TV, which is what we used to do when I was in high school. Now we rely solely on the computer instead of also relying on TV. It's so much better to watch it on TV with surround sound and a bigger picture than on my choppy YouTube player. Come on MTV! Do something here!

MTV has just taken a turn for the worse in general. My whole conversation with my friend stemmed because we were talking about VJs. Remember when VJs didn't necessarily have to look like Abercrombie and Fitch models? Remember John Norris? Kurt Loder? Matt Pinfield? They would never get jobs at MTV today! They are not anyone to fantasize over, so they wouldn't get the job. But, they are the most qualified and intelligent people. Just because they're not eye candy, they wouldn't be the first candidate. Sigh.

After Carson's generation, we have pretty little VJs like Lala, Damien, Lindsay Rodrigues, Hilarie, Vanessa, etc. Why does it have to resort to this?

The Real World has even become a pretty game, as opposed to earlier years when they sampled a good portion of the later adolescent population. Now, every person is given a title: the anorexic, the pretty-boy, the army boy, the jock, the homosexual, etc. Everyone needs a story, and they pair them together just for good ratings. These candidates no longer look like someone I would see on the street and could relate to, they look like they could star on a television show or soap opera. They would be considered "popular" in high school instead of just being a random sample from the high school. Why has it gone this way? Why does it have to be like this?

And, MTV is now bombarded with horrible reality TV shows that rich daddies bought for their daughters, i.e. The Hills and Laguna Beach. They air horrible dating shows that are painful to watch, i.e. Dismissed, Parental Control, Next, etc. Their shows are not stimulating. They are mind-dulling. Who cares about Pimp My Ride?

I do think some of their shows can actually help other teenagers who are struggling: MADE, True Life, other documentaries. But overall, not too much good production is happening at MTV. There needs to be a change! The 2000s are embarassing. Something must be done here.

So what do you think of current MTV and its change?

The Other Boleyn Girl

I can't believe how much I got into the movie The Other Boleyn Girl. I knew that it was based on a true story, true historical events, and I really like the main actors' work, so I gave it a shot. I am blown away by it!

I remember briefly learning about England's monarchs in my British Lit classes, all of a forty minute class to explain it all. I remember hearing "womanizers" and "mistresses" but I never really got deeper stories into this. So, this movie clued me in a little, but I keep thinking this question:

How accurate is this movie? Does anyone know where the movie is questionable and what is actually true?

I know that scripts add a lot of drama and dialogue that was obviously not true. It's just to add effect. But what about the bigger plot details? Love childs and deaths and mistresses and parental involvement? I want to know the truth so I can get it straight!

According to Wikipedia, these are the faults of the movie, where the historical fiction piece might be incorrect:

The birth order of the sisters.
The sexuality of George Boleyn.
The paternity of Mary Boleyn's children.
The role of the Boleyn parents.
Anne Boleyn's wardship of Henry Carey.
The sexual experience of Mary Boleyn.
Motivations and characterization of Anne Boleyn.
Incest between Anne and George Boleyn.

Apparently, Mary also had an affair with the French monarch? This was not apparent at all in the movie. She appeared to be the "good child" who was honest and sincere. Anne was mischevious and plotting.



What I do like about the film is that it is a great social commentary of the time. I really like when one of the smaller male characters in the movie states that "court can change people, and not for the good." Basically, coming out of the country to a more city-based life will change people to be worse characters. There is competition, greed, lying, cheating, stealing, etc. all to get ahead!

And here, the women use their sexuality to try to elevate their status. What I enjoy was also a shorter commentary on how to "get" a man and keep him. The original queen was loyal and obedient, but she was old and not sexually active with her husband. She cannot give him what he wants anymore (sex and children--the male heir). He did not desire her, thus he throws her out. Then Mary is easy and has sex with him immediately. He has had her, so he can throw her out. There is nothing else to look forward to. But, what I didn't get is that she gave him what his wife couldn't (the male heir) and he threw her away! Why??? It doesn't make sense! Then Anne came along and teased him, played hard to get. This was the one that he marries, but the lengths he has to go to in order to marry her brings out bad characteristics in himself. Then he ends up resenting her for ruining his character. He dislikes her and sexually hurts her (with rape and emotions). Then she cannot produce the male heir so she goes to extremes to get it for him (which ends up costing her life). Look at how deep these relationships say about male/female relationships. It's a lot, and it's complex.

I also liked the mother saying how far will we go for status? Everything ends up being lost in this fight: happiness, love choices, strong family relationships, offspring, and eventually their lives. It ends up asking the question: What is more important, happiness or fame? This is still true and relevant today.

I also can't believe how villainous Henry VIII was! I mean, I can because when men get power (absolute power), they can do anything they want. It's hard not to blame them (even though we do because they were just too cruel at times). He toyed with women and threw them away so quickly--it was so hard to watch. And he could control anything he wanted to! He had no sympathy for hurting women, even killing them! Mary begged for her sister's life and he disregarded it like it was nothing. Ridiculous. He only looks out for himself and his public image as king. I know he has to be careful of that because he is a leader, but he should have been much more careful then in his social/sexual life decisions so it didn't turn out like this! Too selfish--thinking too much with something other than his head.

But, excellent acting on the behalf of the actors. All of them--wonderful. I was blown away by certain scenes with Natalie Portman. Eric Bana was a great villain. The Boelyn mother acted as the perfect voice of reason. She was stunning.

So, what did you think of The Other Boleyn Girl? What is right/wrong in the movie? Inform me!

Ren and Stimpy

Since I'm on a Nickelodeon kick, I might as well put in my two cents on Ren and Stimpy. Now, I watched this show religiously as a kid (I don't know why, but I did). Looking back, that show is really creepy, curt, scarring, and freaky. Apparently the show was created from the creators experience during his college years. What the hell happened during those years to create this crazy, weird show?

It's interesting to see the relationship between two pets, a neurotic chihuaha named Ren and a fat, stupid cat named Stimpy. When I looked the characters up on Wikipedia, they mentioned that Ren has a medical condition called dyspepsia: characterized by indigestion with chronic or recurrent pain in the upper abdomen, upper abdominal fullness and feeling full earlier than expected with eating. It can be accompanied by bloating, belching, nausea or heartburn. Is this what caused him to be so psychotic?

I just think that the show was very inappropriate for children. There was a lot of violence, name-calling, and too much toilet humor. Stimpy even spoke to and collected his boogers (the nose goblins). Ren was a terrible example of how to control his temper and anger. His face would get all red and he would act uncontrollably, acting out with violence and nasty words. He had no tolerance for Stimpy who was less intelligent than him. Why are those good examples to expose to your children?

Now I am not one of those people who thinks that sheltering children is the best way to go; I just think this show goes too far. I can't believe that my father used to watch this with me! They would sing about pissing on electric fences, they would praise Powdered Toast Man who shot cinnamon out of his butt, they blew up things, chewed on soap, etc. Yuck, gross.

Their Christmas special was even terribly depressing! Has anyone ever seen it? It's the long episode where Stimpy gives birth to his son, a fart, named Stinky. Stinky eventually leaves home and almost freezes to death in the snow on Christmas as Stimpy becomes depressed that he left. Eventually they reunite, but it's really depressing. I have it on videotape; I received it as a Christmas present. We actually used to watch it around Christmastime--God knows why.

But, Ren and Stimpy did have some good memories. I loved singing the Log Song. I don't know the purpoes of it, but I can still sing it to this day. I did like Powdered Toast Man and his adventures.

Anyway, what did you think of Ren and Stimpy? Frightening or amusing?

Rugrats

If you were a child of my generation, then maybe some of my thoughts have occurred to you, but occurred to year years after the fact. I was a Nick Toons watcher--I loved Nickelodeon. I watched SNICK religiously and had a very close connection with the original Nick Toons. Rugrats was one of these original cartoons.

Simple, lovable--Rugrats was an instant hit with young kids like me. We loved to watch the nonsense they got into and see how far the child's imagination could go. It also gave me great ideas of what to do when I turned off the TV and went to play. Think of Tommy turning that cardboard box into a spaceship--genius!

But, maybe because I am more analytical now, I started to analyze Rugrats, as many texts should be analyzed. Now, what I want to focus on here are the family structures within Rugrats. One thing I am trying to convey to everyone I teach is that texts are created with purpose (for the most part). Every word, characteristic, piece of dialogue, etc. was put there intentionally by the artist for one reason or another. Our job as the audience is to interpret this.

So, here is my analyzation:

The Pickles: DiDi, Stu, Tommy, and Spike. They seem to be the normal, happy couple that truly do love each other and care for one another. Random arguments do come up every once in a while, but things always work out for the parents. They always make up. The parents genuinely care for the child. Stu is portrayed as a klutz while DiDi is the frantic suburban mother with a lot of control. They seem to have equal power though in the household. Tommy is a natural born leader who sticks up for what he believes in despite any stronger power in his way.

The DeVilles: Betty, Howard, Phil, and Lil. The family emphasizes sameness, between the names and physical appearances of all characters. The parents always looked scary, very similar--macho football players almost. Betty is a strong jock, representing that new sportsy mom who totally wears the pants in the relationship. Howard is more soft-spoken and angry at the control his wife holds over him, demasculating him at times. Phil and Lil are the perfect example of how twins are treated in this country: matching outfits, sameness, etc.



The Finsters: Chas and Chuckie. This family deals with an actual trauma: the death of Chuckie's mother. They face the very true reality of single parenthood and absent parents. Chas always strives to replace his mother but never really does. Chuckie struggles with this a little bit in one episode. Chuckie is portrayed as a wimp, always scared of everything but extremely loyal to his best friend. He is often very feminine, perhaps from the missing piece of his mother in his young life. Chuckie has crazy fears like getting his hair cut because he fears it will hurt--he's kind of that loser child that will someday grow up to be the smartest one. Be friends with this kid.

The Other Pickles Family: Drew, Charlotte, Angelica, and Cynthia (the doll): Financially successful, these parents neglect their child which turns her into an attention-starved little devil whose mission is to make everyone else miserable around her. Since her parents do not pay attention to her, she befriends her doll Cynthia who is the world to her. An inanimate object is the only true source of affection she receives in her life. She even seeks pleasure in torturing her younger cousin and friends. Angelica is the epitome of the suburban child--overpriviliged. She is the stuck-up girl chatting on her cell phone and worried about superficial things and status. She learns this from the cycle of her parents. It just keeps going.

Susie Carmichael: Their attempt to diversify Rugrats? They could have included her more if they really wanted to work this angl. It should have been incorporated more.

Reptar: The children's toy phenomenon that produces a million side products: a movie, action figures, an ice skating show, t-shirts, etc. Cynthia acts as a version of the modern Barbie doll as well.

I do need to comment that I did not go beyond the movies and follow them into their adolesence. I was upset that they exploited the show that far. It was at its best when it was original on Nick. It lost its flavor when it went to the big screens. I don't even want to talk about Dill and other characters--they are beyond the show's potential.

Interesting family structures, huh? Do you think they are appropriate as to act as an accurate sample of many American families? What other type of family should be added then? And, did you like this show growing up?

Rugrats also had such a great idea to show how intelligent babies really are. I don't think we give them enough credit. They acquire language at an incredible rate, and they have amazing imaginations that we stifle once they get older. I like taking the baby's perspective--it's a very creative angle.