Thank You, Mr. Bartlett

By Ellie Drabnis on August 27, 2016

Last month, July 2016, it was confirmed that the beloved 90s cartoon, “Hey Arnold!” would finally be getting “The Jungle Movie,” a two-part movie which will answer the question of what became of main character Arnold’s parents.

This is something that kids who are now adults and grew up with the series have been waiting for and had almost given up on ever seeing. But, the ease of that worry has come and the first of two parts of “The Jungle Movie” will debut Thanksgiving 2017 on Nickelodeon.

Arnold Phillip Shortman, the protagonist of the “Hey Arnold!” series (http://heyarnold.wikia.com)

But, before any of that, all of us 90s kids need to say, “Thank You, Mr. Bartlett.”

Why we need to give that thanks is as follows: What “Hey Arnold!” creator Craig Bartlett did was give us a revolutionary cartoon that will always have a special place in the hearts of us 90s babies and 2000s kids.

Bartlett showed us a happy mixed-race family on television with Phoebe Heyerdahl and her parents, Rita and Kyo Heyerdahl (who was voiced by George Takei). While Phoebe looked more Japanese and did not resemble her mother much, this really resonated with me. I am of mixed race and, I look more like my Russian-American father than my Guatemalan mother who has a lovely year-round suntan.

Save for on “Hey Arnold!,” I had never seen another mixed race family on a cartoon and, knowing that there was another mixed kid who only looked more like one of their parents than the other, (that mixed kid being Phoebe), I felt a little less odd and like I didn’t belong. Overall, Phoebe very much helped me to eventually learn to fully love myself.

I think I speak for all the other mixed kids who may have watched the show and simply seeing Phoebe made us all feel less alone and no longer as if we didn’t belong because of our appearances.

Phoebe and her parents, Rita and Kyo (http://heyarnold.wikia.com).

Also, it is worth mentioning Arnold and Gerald’s friendship. They are best friends and are of different races. Sure, there are some programs out there that act as if that is such a big deal and while there are still plenty of racists out there in the world, Arnold and Gerald’s friendship is never made out to be such a big deal. What I mean is, they are not treated as each other’s token friends.

They are indeed, truly best friends and sure, at the end of the day their skin tones might not match, but Arnold and Gerald are so much more than that. They are two best friends trying to make the best of life, no matter how impossible that can seem at times.

Arnold and Gerald doing their iconic handshake (http://heyarnold.wikia.com). 

Moreover, Bartlett did not shy away from more taboo issues. For example, he explained to BuzzFeed at San Diego Comic Con that Arnold’s teacher, Mr. Simmons was, indeed, “gay.”

Nowadays, LGBT characters are becoming more and more normal through adult cartoons, primetime TV shows and even on some children’s cartoons. But, back in the late 90s and early 2000s, that was not the norm. It is also worth mentioning that Mr. Simmons was not portrayed as a gay stereotype.

What was clear though was that regardless of Mr. Simmons’s sexuality, he very much supported his students and truly believed his catchphrase that each student was “very special.”

Arnold’s teacher, Mr. Simmons (http://heyarnold.wikia.com).

Then comes the fact that the adventures of Arnold and his friends were far from perfect. Sure, it’s great to see our heroes and protagonists become the winners in the end, but they simply cannot win all the time and that helped make the show more real and relatable.

For example, Helga, one of the main bullies of the series who also very much had a crush on Arnold, by no means had an easy home life. She felt like she was constantly living in her sister’s shadow and, while she often took to mean words and violent tendencies, such as punching Brainy in the face, she was acting out of defense.

In a way, this is Helga’s mechanism for protecting herself from being disappointed if she grows close to someone and they do not care about her; she does not have to face emotions which then conflicts with her feelings for Arnold.

But, adding to the revolutionary part of this show, an episode called “Helga On The Couch” involves Helga speaking with Dr. Bliss, a child psychologist. This episode very much put physiologists, therapy and mental health in general in a positive light rather than shaming it.

Helga and Dr. Bilss at the therapy session (Arnold’s teacher, Mr. Simmons (http://heyarnold.wikia.com).

The series is wonderful about packing so much meaning into their episodes all while still ‘keeping it real.’

That idea of ‘keeping it real’ is even more driven by the episode “Arnold Betrays Iggy.” Arnold takes the fall for an accident in the sense that he did not outright blab to his friends, Stinky and Sid, how he saw Iggy in footed bunny pajamas.

But, Stinky and Sid guessed this correctly and then began to tease Iggy for it. To make up for such a thing, Arnold agreed to walk out in front of everyone in a pair of the same footed pajamas.

This leads to Arnold being subjected to laughs and ridicule.

Arnold in the bunny pajamas being laughed at (Arnold’s teacher, Mr. Simmons (http://heyarnold.wikia.com).

Arnold allowed himself to be humiliated so a friend could forgive him. While the intention of getting forgiveness is there, it ends up having been done in vain at the end because of how Iggy wishes he had not made Arnold go through with it; the message here is that two wrongs do not make a right.

But even so, many situations involving forgiveness in real life turn out this way. That is even more supported by how Stinky and Sid do not face consequences for having been the ones who really made it a point to make fun of Iggy.

Bartlett has made it clear that this episode is his least favorite and among fans, it is considered one of if not the worst episode in the series; however, no matter how bad, the realness overall makes it important. Arnold did not always come out a winner and not everyone can always win but approaching every day knowing that a silver lining will be there at least at the end is what we should take away from Arnold’s adventures with his friends.

Once more: Thank you, Mr. Bartlett, for making a show that had such a positive impact on our childhoods and found a permanent and very special place in our hearts.

Follow Uloop

Apply to Write for Uloop News

Join the Uloop News Team

Discuss This Article

Back to Top

Log In

Contact Us

Upload An Image

Please select an image to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format
OR
Provide URL where image can be downloaded
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format

By clicking this button,
you agree to the terms of use

By clicking "Create Alert" I agree to the Uloop Terms of Use.

Image not available.

Add a Photo

Please select a photo to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format