MovieChat Forums > Clarissa Explains It All (1991) Discussion > Does the show mean more to anyone than j...

Does the show mean more to anyone than just nostalgia?

posted 15 years ago by ZeldaFan2929
9 replies | jump to latest

Just curious. Thing is, a lot of why I love Clarissa is because it's been embedded in my psyche, everything from her room to the theme song, even the family, and of course the guitar strum whenever Sam comes through Clarissa's window -- these things are what many of us look at fondly whenever we think of Clarissa.

Thing is, most people don't go much farther than to say "Oh! I loved watching that as a kid!". The nostalgia aside, I still feel this a damn good show. I have been forced to sit through a lot of current kids/teen programing, and a lot of it is mind-numbing and insulting. I won't get into it, but looking at a lot of this crap has made me appriciate Clarissa Explains it All so much more for the simple reason that it didn't treat it's audiance like it was retarded; it was a smart and extremely witty show (with little hints of sarcasm), because of which it could enjoyed by both kids and their parents. Just like Pete & Pete, just like most all of the early 90's Nicktoons. I mean yeah, being a written for a predominantly younger audiance it has it's share of lame moments (particularly the first season), but the show was nothing less short of fun.

I don't know if the DVD's were cancelled because of sales, but if they were it's because the only people who bought the first season were those who caught the announcement on the internet and cared enough to revisit the show (I mean, they weren't marketed and were hardly in stores, nor were they rerun to familiarize a new audiance). No one else. The show unboubtedly improved after the first season too.

Thing is, I bring this up for a reason; TV isn't getting any better and I don't see it improving any time soon. I want shows like Clarissa and Pete & Pete for my kids in the future to watch. Granted Pete & Pete has a more timeless feel and Clarissa is pretty 90's unfortionately (and fortunately), but I want these shows among others to show my kids in the future; theres a line between fun cartoons and brain rotting sewage, and I'll be damned if any offspring of mine is treated to probobly worse than whats being offered now. I am aware that Clarissa is a nearly two-decade old Nick series, but it deserves more than to just fade away, for actually being an intelligant show, and for being so much more than whats being offered today.

I bit overly dramatic I know but hey.

[–] ShawnaC123 15 years ago

I bought the first season and rewatched it and still loved it. I'd watch that now if it came on, despite the fact that I'm 27.

------------------------------------
Here's my signature.

[–] IveGOTBouncyBALLS 15 years ago

schweet schweet nostilgia

I love apples

[–] adgchikk94-1 14 years ago

I agree with you completely. I was born in 1994, so I only caught this show in reruns. The only memory I had of this show prior to a few weeks ago was that Sam always entered through Clarissa's window. Now that I have seen more episodes of this show, I love it. The shows I grew up on were 100% better than what kids are being brought up on now. If I were a little older, and remembered more of this show from when I was little, I would probably have liked it more for nostalgia's sake.

[–] Pythe 14 years ago

I didn't watch this show as a kid (I was only 7 when it went off the air and wasn't much interested in a show about high school students) so ironically enough my first real experience with it is at the age of 24 as Teennick is airing it as part of the "The '90s Were All That" programming block. My first impression is that it was a solid, well-written, fairly wholesome show with pretty standard morals and values, decent if not earth-shattering writing, and a great cast. Melissa Joan Hart in particular is very impressive as the title character. It takes a lot to carry a show and at the age of 15 Hart was talented and charismatic enough to pull it off.

One thing that stands out about these older family-oriented shows is how simplified a version of the family dynamic they present. Nowadays it's de rigueur to portray all parent-teen relationships as highly contentious (commonly bordering on outright hateful) and extremely turbulent, with every conversation ending in a screaming match. There's something to be said for the "warts-and-all" approach but still, it's refreshing--even a little, dare I say it, heartwarming--to watch Clarissa bring chicken soup to her parents when they are bedridden with the flu, or to contemplate sacrificing backstage passes to Pearl Jam because the date coincides with her grandparents' anniversary party. I know that real life isn't usually that neat and tidy, but there's a sweetness to the show that is either missing from modern television or that often feels manufactured or overly saccharine in the Full House vein.

Anyway, that's my two cents.

---------------------------------
"It was night. I could tell because it was getting dark."

[–] landinginthestars 14 years ago

^^^This.
I never watched the show when it was first on because I was too young. I just watched for the first time a few nights ago. I think it's a great show, for all the reasons that you mentioned.

What you /f/e/e/l/ is what you are; and what you are is {b.e.a.u.t.i.f.u.l.}<3

[–] smegmausa 13 years ago

I watched this at the time, and now at 27 I still love it!
I miss Nickelodeon :( Alex Mack and Are You Afraid of The Dark also come to mind!

[–] theGreatJayGatsby 12 years ago

Yeah, I honestly believe this is one of the all-time best live-action kids shows ever produced, and almost certainly the best Nickelodeon ever made (although Kenan and Kel is close).

I feel like the Clarissa character is a great role model for boys AND girls. That is SO crucial because before and after this, I don't think there has ever been a female-centric show that did that so effectively. Boys and girls thought Clarissa was cool (because, quite frankly, she was) and enjoyed the program. Since then, it seems like the line has grown sharper between "boys shows" and "girls shows" unfortunately.

I like how Clarissa wore her own unique clothes, rather than the brand-name designer crap so essential nowadays. She didn't wear make-up or go out with a bunch of boys just for the sake of it, she was best friends with a boy though, which was cute and original.

Basically, if it's between Clarissa or Carly...I'd rather my (hypothetical) kids grow up like Clarissa. I don't want them to think they have to be "famous" or any silly crap like that.

[–] jackiefoxybrown 9 years ago

Zelda, I know this thread is old but I fully agree. Especially on how today's kid's shows are absolutely torturous. Okay, you didn't say it in those exact words but I get your point.
I'm 30 years old and have young nieces and a nephew.
Every time they come over to my house, I am forced to sit through shows such as Girl meets World, Austin & Ally, Victorious and Sam & Cat. The list goes on and gets increasingly worst! I think what makes today's children shows particularly bad is that everything is a big marketing plan to turn the leads into pop sensations. These pre teens are all singers and they sing cheesy songs.
Re watching Clarissa definitely brings back a sense of nostalgia for me. A time before the internet, social media and reality TV. And for me, now an adult....a time in which I was a child and had no bills and my mom was much more younger and vibrant.
Yup, the good ol days. So, watching this makes me feel great.

[–] blaque108 9 years ago

Hi Jackie its great to see you on here I see you on Empire page. Anyways, I'm 33 years old and I'm so happy I get to see this show on TeenNick "SPLAT" I've been DVR each episode when they come on so I don't miss it. Its great to see the show again and it bring back great memories and make me think of the 90s all the way. I don't have any young kids with me, but I know about those Disney shows I check to see what is going on in their line up sometimes. I watch Girl Meets World here and there only because some of the Boy Meets World characters is on the show, but it still doesn't equal to Boy Meets World it drive me crazy with the kids bringing cell phones to school and all this texting they doing.

Yes I agree about what you said about before the internet, social media craze, and etc. I miss those times too when I had no bills, my mom was a housewife watching me and my younger brother and sister and my dad was in the Air Force.