Dear Journal…

So, I’m sure most of you out there watched this show. Doug was on from 1991-1994 as a Nickelodeon series, then from 1996-1999 as a Disney series.

The story revolved around the eponymous main character, Doug Funnie, as he grew up in a new town. A typical fish-out-of-water story, Doug has to make new friends in Bluffington, and even finds himself bullied. He keeps a journal, and narrates all the episodes.

Doug himself was a little whiny, naive and generally annoying. But he was likeable.

I'm non-threateningly likeable!

So what made this show good? It was definitely the side characters. Skeeter, his idiot savant friend, who made more mouth noises than a Seinfeld bumper, was probably the best. He looked like a turquoise Fido Dido (look it up) and was full of good advice for Doug.

Ain't no thang, really.

Roger the bully was pretty good, and Patty Mayonnaise lived up to her name. Other than that the rest of Doug’s friends are forgettable.

Then in 1996, all that changed when Brand Spanking New! Doug got made. Disney got their mitts on this IP and ran with it for three years. All of Doug’s friends went through major changes. Skeeter was having growth spurts, turning his arms into noodles sometimes. His fat friend Connie lost a bunch of  weight and learned to play guitar. Roger, the former trailer trash is now living next to the richest family in town.

So even though it had forgettable characters and a bland lead, the show tackled a lot of issues I was growing up with. Namely fitting in at school, and because of that, I found the show very relateable. It might not rank in my top 20 or even top 50, but if it were on TV again, I might watch it. Depending on what else was on.

We don't Suck! let's go to Honker Burger!

Join me again, next time I’ll be talk about another Disney Cartoon. Later Days!

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