Who remembers cartoons that were annoying, but still fun to watch? I do! It’s that time again for our “Versus” segment! And this time, we have two annoying little groups of toddlers. Who would be a better as a group child-like cartoon group? Would it be the Muppet Babbies, or would it be the Rugrats? We will let you decide! Here is a little bit about each Group…
Muppet Babies
Jim Henson’s Muppet Babies, commonly known by the shortened title Muppet Babies, is an American animated television series that aired from September 15, 1984 to November 2, 1991 on CBS. The show portrays childhood versions of the Muppets living together in a nursery under the care of a human woman called Nanny (who is never shown). Nanny appears in almost every episode, but her face is never shown, only the babies’ view of her pink skirt and purple sweater as well as her distinctive green and white striped socks. The idea of presenting the Muppets as children first appeared in a dream sequence in The Muppets Take Manhattan, released two months before Muppet Babies debuted, in which Miss Piggy imagined what it would be like if she and Kermit the Frog had grown up together.
Muppet Babies was produced by The Jim Henson Company and Marvel Productions. The rights are now held by Disney–ABC Domestic Television. Although the episodes were 30 minutes (including commercials), it was typically shown in 60 and even 90 minute blocks during the peak of its popularity. Outside of the United States, the show was distributed by Walt Disney Television.
The series stars Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, Scooter, Skeeter, Rowlf the Dog, and Gonzo as the main muppets. Dr. Bunsen Honeydew and Beaker made regular appearances as did Camilla in the form of Gonzo’s stuffed baby chick. In the final two seasons, Bean Bunny and Statler and Waldorf began making regular appearances.
Several Muppets made guest appearances including Janice, and Kermit’s nephew, Robin, a young tadpole.
The Muppet Baby character Skeeter, Scooter’s twin sister, only appeared in this series, and was never a live-action Muppet. This was done because the producers wanted another female character added to the cast. Despite this, Skeeter was always voiced by a male actor (first Howie Mandel, and later Frank Welker).
The “muppet babies” live in a large nursery watched over by Nanny, who is seen only from the shoulders down. The babies’ imaginary games transition from the nursery into scenes that become “real” to the babies, such as finding themselves aboard a pirate ship or in the land of Oz. Often these fantasies are filled with stock footage scenes or live-action clips from popular movies such as Star Wars, Ghostbusters, and Indiana Jones. Each episode contains a related musical number. When the pretend game becomes too perilous, or when an interruption occurs (often in the form of Nanny checking in or the imaginary game straying too far from its original premise), the scene dissolves and they find themselves in the nursery once more.
The central idea of each episode is the power of imagination. Sometimes the babies use their imagination to solve a problem (when Nanny’s newspaper is accidentally ruined, the babies write their own newspaper to replace it), but occasionally their imaginations run away with them (overhearing Nanny’s phone call to the garbage collector leads the babies to fear that Fozzie is going to be thrown away). Other frequent themes involve the babies coming up with new ways to play with old toys, imagining what life will be like when they are adults, or facing common childhood firsts such as a visit to the dentist or a new addition to the family. Nanny is the voice of reason, congratulating them on their creativity or soothing their fears.
Rugrats
Rugrats is an American animated television series created by Arlene Klasky, Gábor Csupó and Paul Germain for Nickelodeon. The show focuses on a group of toddlers, most prominently Tommy, Chuckie, Phil, Lil and Angelica, and their day-to-day lives, usually involving common life experiences that become adventures in the babies’ imaginations. Adults in the series are almost always unaware of what the children are up to.
The series premiered on August 11, 1991, as the second Nicktoon after Doug and preceding The Ren & Stimpy Show. Production initially halted in 1993 after 65 episodes, with the last one airing on May 22, 1994. From 1995 to 1996, the only new episodes broadcast were “A Rugrats Passover” and “A Rugrats Chanukah”, two Jewish-themed episodes that received critical acclaim. New Rugrats episodes began airing regularly again in 1997, and The Rugrats Movie, which introduced Tommy’s younger brother Dil, was released in November 1998. A sequel, Rugrats in Paris: The Movie, was released in 2000, and the character Kimi and her mother Kira were added to the series’ cast. Rugrats Go Wild, a crossover film with fellow Nicktoon The Wild Thornberrys, was released in 2003 to mixed reviews. The final episode aired on August 1, 2004, bringing the series to a total of 172 episodes and 9 seasons.
On August 11, 2001, Nickelodeon broadcast the made-for-TV special “All Growed Up” in celebration of the series’ 10th anniversary. The special acted as a pilot for the Rugrats spin-off series All Grown Up!, which chronicles the lives of the babies and their parents after aging 10 years. Another spin-off series, Rugrats Pre-School Daze, was considered, but only four episodes were produced. Two direct-to-video specials have also been produced under the title Rugrats Tales from the Crib. Tie-in media for the series include video games, comics, toys and various other merchandise.
Rugrats gained over 20 awards during its 13-year run, including 4 Daytime Emmy Awards, 6 Kids’ Choice Awards, and its own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The series garnered Nickelodeon high ratings and was the network’s top-rated show for five consecutive years. It was Nickelodeon’s longest-running Nicktoon until 2012, when SpongeBob SquarePants aired its 173rd episode.
The series focuses on the experiences of a courageous, adventurous one-year-old baby named Tommy Pickles and his group of playmates – several other infants and toddlers, some of whom debuted later in the series. Chuckie, Tommy’s bespectacled, redheaded, insecure cowardly best friend; the twins Phil and Lil, noted for their revolting eccentricities and love of digging for and eating insects and earthworms; Tommy’s baby brother Dil (who was born in The Rugrats Movie); Angelica, Tommy and Dil’s outrageously spoiled, selfish older cousin and the main antagonist of the program; Kimi, Chuckie’s adventurous, playful stepsister (introduced in Rugrats in Paris); and Susie, Angelica’s schoolmate and kindhearted, understanding rival who is better liked by the infants and far more reliable than Angelica.
The other characters depicted in Rugrats, include the babies’ parents, who are portrayed as often being easily distracted, leaving their young children free to emancipate themselves from restraints such as playpens or strollers and venture out for to explore. Such adult figures include Didi and Stu Pickles, Tommy and Dil’s mother and father. Didi is a sweet, educated, loving mother who decides to return to college in one episode. Stu is an often-feckless toy inventor whose designs have been known to either fail or break. Other parents include Chas Finster, Chuckie’s stereotypically-nerdy, mild-mannered father, a widower who later remarries; Kira, Chuckie’s sweet-natured, kind, and understanding stepmother who Chas marries in Rugrats in Paris; Drew Pickles, Angelica’s indulgent, doting father who pampers his daughter to a ridiculous degree; Charlotte Pickles, Angelica’s working mother who overindulges her daughter equally if often seen arguing on her cellular phone with an employee of hers named Jonathan; Betty DeVille, Phil and Lil’s kind but masculinely-natured mother; and Howard DeVille, the twins’ mild-mannered, soft-spoken father.
Susie’s parents and elder siblings also make appearances in some episodes, and another major adult character includes Lou Pickles, Drew and Stu’s father and Tommy, Angelica, and Dil’s grandfather; an elderly widower who later remarries with an active woman named Lulu. Didi’s parents, Jewish foreigners named Boris and Minka, also appear numerous times and serve as important characters and are often seen bickering. Other characters of include the Pickles family dog, Spike, who has played important roles in some episodes, and Angelica’s pet cat Fluffy.
The show functions under a translation convention for baby talk, which is presented as essentially a separate language which only other babies can understand. The babies’ dialogue is almost universally translated for viewers by comprehensible English dialogue, but adults in the series cannot understand them. One example of this dissonance is when Tommy says “Reptar!”, the name of a popular children’s icon but his mother then responds that she heard him say “riff raff”, and that she hopes he’s getting close to speaking full words, indicating that adult characters still hear the dialogue of baby characters as babbling. The translated dialogue of the babies is still presented as infantile English, reflecting their limited understanding of the world. Another major point of this plot convention is that toddlers who have learned to speak adult language can still understand baby talk, because they are at a transitional age between the two. Angelica and Susie can understand what the baby characters are saying but can also communicate with adults, though they never outright reveal to the adults that they can comprehend complex messages from the babies. Very young newborns, such as Tommy’s little brother, cannot yet communicate even with baby talk.
So with all that stuff said, who would you think would be a group child like cartoons groups? Would it be the Muppet Babbies, or would it be the Rugrats? We want to know what you think. Post below, and vote and tell us what you think. Your vote matters! And listen to podcast 85 to find out who we think would have won.
Beaker: Meep, meep meep meep.
-The Engineer!