Ten years ago today, Cartoon Network aired a very special episode of
The Powerpuff Girls. Though nominally a harmless kids series about three adorable kindergarten superheroes,
creator Craig McCracken attracted an unexpectedly diverse audience (50% male, 25% adult) by sneaking in a surprising amount of
violence and
adult in-jokes -- and on that last point, this particular episode was king. Broadcast on the 37th anniversary of their debut on the
Ed Sullivan Show,
"Meet the Beat-Alls" was an extended and sophisticated metaphor for the rise and fall of The Beatles, cramming
more than forty song references and dozens of visual jokes into only ten minutes of animated allegory. Catch the original episode
here or read
the transcript, but for the
full effect,
watch this remarkable YouTube mash-up that splices the referenced song clips directly into the audio track and plasters the screen with helpful annotations. Want more PPG goodness? You can start with the special
"Powerpuff Girls Rule!!!" (
part 2), a sly, hyperkinetic celebration of the show's tenth anniversary directed by McCracken himself that features every character (and totally subverts an important one). But as far as weirdness goes, it's hard to top
Powerpuff Girls Doujinshi, a long-running fan-made webcomic which stars the trio alongside Dexter, Samurai Jack, Invader Zim, and
tons of other network icons in an unusually dark manga adventure. Oh, and don't forget
your plate of beans.
posted by Rhaomi
on Feb 9, 2011 -
82 comments
Everybody knows
TVTropes is the best and most
time-
killing-est way to learn about the clichés and archetypes that permeate modern media. But dear reader, there is
so much more. Enter
Useful Notes. Originally created as a place for tropers to pool factual information as a writing aid, the subsite has quietly grown into a small wiki of its own -- a compendium of crowdsourced wisdom on a staggering array of topics, all written in the site's signature brand of lighthearted snark. Though it reads like an irreverent and informal Wikipedia, its articles act as genuinely useful primers to complex and obscure topics alike, all in service of the project's five goals: "To debunk common media stereotypes; to help you understand some media better; to educate, inform and sometimes entertain; to promote peace and understanding (maybe); and... to facilitate world domination." Sounds about right. Click inside for bountiful highlights... if you dare.
[more inside]
posted by Rhaomi
on Dec 26, 2010 -
43 comments
