Characters of the 90's: The Powerpuff Girls

After I wrote Clarissa’s post, I immediately thought of a bunch of other 90’s characters -real and fictional- that were very deserving of their own post. Our next set of characters was an obvious choice, the illustrious Powerpuff Girls. 

The Powerpuff Girls debuted on Cartoon Network in 1998, and the show ran until 2004. To me, this frame of time represents the heyday of Cartoon Network. After we were just about to grow out of watching Rugrats and other childrens’ programs on Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network came along with a slew of shows that were directed at kids aged 7-10, but could still be appreciated by preadolescents and teenagers as well. The Powerpuff Girls was one such show.

Sugar….Spice….and everything nice…

[source]

You know how those opening credits went. How could you possibly ever forget it? It was drilled into your head at the beginning of every episode, so that as soon as you heard the first syllable, your mouth automatically followed suit. The 90’s were a time of sing-songy opening theme songs (ex. the Pokemon theme, the Fresh Prince of Bel Air theme, the Friends theme..), which really attached the viewer to the program. 

Let’s focus on the girls now, shall we? 

 

[source]

This show really got me at a time when I was really really into things being magical and cute, so I was immediately hooked. Kindergartners with superpowers? Aww.

One thing immediately noticable about the girls is that they are stereotypes of how little girls act. We have the uppity, intellectual leader who thinks she’s daddy’s favorite (Blossom), the overly sensitive one that cries every episode (Bubbles), and the aggressive one who wants to beat everyone up (Buttercup). 

….oh my god…that reminds me of an eerily similar connection to 2000’s pop culture.. 

[source]

I just scared myself. Moving on.

The fact that the girls are stereotypes isn’t necessarily a bad thing. They all had checks and balances on each other. That’s why it was essential that they always stayed in a team. Whenever Buttercup would go off to fight on her own (as she was prone to doing) she would never win because she was missing her two counterparts. And when Blossom thought she was too good for everyone, she would try to do her own thing, that failed for the same reason. And Bubbles….well actually Bubbles would never go off on her own.

That’s why it was hard to choose a favorite Powerpuff Girl. They were awesome as a group, but individually? Blossom was a leader, but she was also a snob, Bubbles was cute and sensitive but she was a wimp, and Buttercup was strong but she was mean. Again, checks and balances.

[source]

I always thought the names on the show were pretty clever. You had Sara Bellum, the Mayor’s sexified secretary who made more educated decisions than he did, you had Mojo Jojo, a maniacal little monkey, The Gangrene Gane who were gross and sickly, Sedusa, who was a seductress that used her hair to attack people. And then there was Him.

……..

[source]

The humor of the show was actually pretty deep for the age group that it was aimed at. As a kid watching the show, I didn’t think it was laugh-out-loud funny (most of the humorous references went over my head), but seeing it when I’m older, I find there’s a lot more absurdist humor. As an “adult” viewing the show, it’s not so much centered around the girls anymore. The girls don’t have a lot of depth to them. Rather, it’s about the ridiculousness of the society that the girls live in.

The Powerpuff Girls show executes wit and satire surprisingly well, and it is all presented nicely in the form of a cutesy kid’s show. Thank you, Craig McCracken.

(PS: Did you ever watch the episode that spoofed the Beatles? You don’t remember?! Well then, ENJOY!)