MTV's Daria: Did the Writers Send the Wrong Message?
Since I'm on this animation kick, I might as well get something off of my chest that I've been thinking about for a while: is it possible that the creators of MTV's Daria sent the wrong message in the end? Daria premiered on MTV in 1997 as the rare portrayal of a social outcast. Not someone who was an "outcast" while looking and acting like a fashion model, but a genuine introvert with no interest in wider social approval. The first season established a pattern where Daria Morgendorffer and her friend, Jane Lane, stood off to one side and criticized the activities that people their age were taught to embrace. At the same time, these episodes -- frequently referred to as "fish in a barrel" episodes -- started to feel a little stale. Were Daria and Jane really the only two smart ones in the city of Lawndale? Were other people really so stupid? And even if they were, would they just stand by, grinning vacantly, while getting insulted? The only