I couldn't help but notice there was no Hey Arnold! thread. What's everyone think of this classic Nicktoon? Did you watch it as a kid? Does it still hold up today? Share and discuss.
I, myself, having rewatched almost every episode recently on Netflix would say the the series was actually pretty good. Not "best Nicktoon ever" material but it, at times, could be pretty amusing, charming, and well-written. I have to say that Helga is easily the best character in the show by far. She can be pretty hilarious at times.
Arnold is easily the most dull, boring, and uninteresting character. Which is funny considering he's supposed to be the main character of the series. Arnold in the earlier seasons was more likable when he actually, you know, acted like a kid. He got into trouble, he made mistakes, he was the type of character a young boy his age should be. Eventually though they decided to turn him into a freaking saint who could do no wrong and constantly act as the voice of reason or another characters conscience if they were doing something bad. It made the character dreadfully boring which resulted in every single character around him, from Gerald and Helga to Rhonda and Phoebe, coming off as far more interesting.
I was just thinking right when I saw this thread how I was talking to Avaitor years ago about how Arnold (and Doug) is a boring goody two shoes and that the rest of the cast is what makes the show great. I completely forgot that Arnold wa't always like that though. Makes me want to watch the early episodes.
Arnold's supposed to be the straight man, and, like a LOT of other shows, animated or not, the writers seem to forget that straight men can be fun. Although I don't think Gerald is a whole lot better as a character myself.
But the rest of the cast is strong. The other students, the boarders, the neighbors. It really does seem like every little supporting character has their time to shine on the show.
I've been rewatching episodes. It's surpassed the test of time.
I'd say Helga is the strongest character overall. Arnold got less fun as the series went on.
Helga's family life was actually pretty dark when you think about it. A sister who overshadows everything she does, a neglectful father who cares more about work than his kid, and a mother who is clearly meant to be an alcoholic. I'm pretty sure I remember hearing they wanted to do a spin-off starring Helga but it was turned down for being too depressing.
(https://animationrevelation.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fmacromeme.com%2Fcat%2Fhey-arnold-plot-twist.jpg&hash=850d508dbe7bf0e3b81ce10687da8372c67d7c53)
Quote from: Eddy on August 15, 2012, 05:56:26 PM
Helga's family life was actually pretty dark when you think about it. A sister who overshadows everything she does, a neglectful father who cares more about work than his kid, and a mother who is clearly meant to be an alcoholic. I'm pretty sure I remember hearing they wanted to do a spin-off starring Helga but it was turned down for being too depressing.
Every time she's around her sister it's just so awkward.
Quote from: talonmalon333 on August 15, 2012, 06:01:05 PM
(https://animationrevelation.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fmacromeme.com%2Fcat%2Fhey-arnold-plot-twist.jpg&hash=850d508dbe7bf0e3b81ce10687da8372c67d7c53)
Duh fewcha!
If there's one thing that anyone who watched this show remember it's that STOOP KID'S AFRAID TO LEAVE HIS STOOP.
Yeah, this was a good show, but I also agree it was sometimes boring to watch since Arnold was such a bore.
Pigeon Man and Helga on the Couch are probably the best episodes.
Those and likely the Christmas episode.
Besides Helga, I think Harold was my favorite supporting character. I like how he wasn't a stock bully, but just a sad-sack kid with conflicting who wanted to fit in with the guys, and did for the most part despite some really stupid ideals. He also had some of the best episodes.
I was going to mention how much I liked where they went with Helga's family dynamic. I loved this show as a kid. I completely agree though that Arnold was the weakest part of his own show and the strength of the supporting characters is what carried it. Own every season on dvd from when Amazon (or whover) was doing custom orders for it.
There are two moments I can never watch again, though. Arnold beating up that guy who just wanted to know about the bus, and Arnold being forced out in the bunny suit. I don't know what it is, I just can't stand watching scenes of someone's complete humiliation on any show.
I also hate watching people get embarrassed. I've turned the channel many time from different shoes because of that.
Watching some of the earlier episodes again, it seems like a nice tidbit in Arnold's character around this point was that he was really into music. He had bongos, played the sax, had an ear for jazz, and supposedly used his victory money from the spelling bee on a synth.
They could've done some cool stuff with this part of his character if they didn't drop it as soon as the second season came by. Oh well.
Quote from: Avaitor on August 14, 2012, 10:56:17 AM
Arnold's supposed to be the straight man, and, like a LOT of other shows, animated or not, the writers seem to forget that straight men can be fun. Although I don't think Gerald is a whole lot better as a character myself.
Something I just thought of, one of the only exceptions to this I can think of Hank Hill in King of the Hill. Hank was the straight man, the most sane character, and the most reasonable (most of the time) but he was probably the funniest and best character in the show.
Television needs more Hank Hills.
Hank's a good one. I always go back to Kermit when it comes to leading men though.
Lana Kane is another great one too.
Kermit is another one, yeah. He's an hilarious character.
Arnold? Not so much. And it's a shame because he was pretty likable in the first season. Not sure why Helga liked him. He was such a bore.
Hank Hill had faults of his own (mostly due to his temper and stubbornness), and most of his advice came from places where he had learned those lessons prior.
Characters like Arnold frequently have no faults and just seem to somehow know the right answer to any problem. (And no, IMO 'too nice' is not a proper fault; it's a lazy one.)
I still like the show, but as I get older I notice how flawed it is. Yes Arnold is a boring character, I would even go as far as saying he becomes not just a saint but a plot device in later seasons. Not only the kids, but the entire neighborhood seeks Arnold to help them with their problems, whether it be mere advice or helping the fucking butcher become councilman of the city. One could say that Arnold is supposed to be a role model, however when that character is meant the be an average kid and does things an average kid literally can't do they're just as bad a role model as the delinquent character. Aside from Arnold, there's a lot of continuity plotholes that make King of the Hill's forgivable. One is Harold being a held back student. In the first season he was shown among the kids laughing at Torvald, another held back student,'s incorrect answer to Miss Slovak's math question. Later seasons when it's revealed that Harold himself is 13 years old, the same age as Torvald, you would think that he would have sympathy for the guy. Then again maybe it was just Harold being a dick as usual. Also whatever happened to Coach Jack Wittenberg's son Tucker? The Coach and his wife became recurring characters in later episodes with each episode starring them focusing on their rivalry and no where is their son ever mentioned or seen, not even at their second wedding.
My ramblings aside though, what makes the show is the kooky side characters. The episodes starring Harold and Oskar are the funniest in my opinion, though the best ones are the episodes starring Helga, showing just far she would go to hide her secret crush on Arnold and just how obsessed she is with him, as well as her neglectful family.
What do you guys think about this list? (http://www.avclub.com/articles/10-episodes-that-show-the-appeal-hey-arnold-held-f,90625/)
I'm starting it now myself.
Hey Arnold is a pretty good little show, the more I think about it. It's not perfect, but it does certainly hold its own with other Nicktoons of the day. At the very least, it holds up way better than Doug.
Admittedly though, I haven't seen a good chunk of that list in years (aside from the Season 1 entries). One of these days I need to get around to giving some of the later stuff another look.
Well, the The 90's Are All That are having an HA! marathon for the whole week, but I'm not sure if they'll show any episodes outside season 1.
This week I do recall them showing Downtown as Fruits, Stoop Kid, and Helga's Makeover already. Still good episodes as always. I think they'll probably stay Season 1 unless Season 1 ends soon.
R.I.P. Oskar (http://variety.com/2014/tv/news/steve-viksten-dead-1201253988)
Fin-a-fucking-ly (http://instagram.com/p/qzP5naItPF).
Wow, that looks cool. Might look into it.
Yeah, I mentioned before how I stopped collecting after season 1, since Shout! cut the second season in half, then went to online-only releases. I still enjoy the show pretty well, more than a lot of the Nicktoons from the same era, so if WalMart has it for less than $25, I'm down.
So, I went to my Wal Mart to grab Courage season 2, which they didn't have, unfortunately, but I was able to grab the complete series set of Hey Arnold! for $18. Which, for 100 episodes, is a pretty darn great deal. Having rewatched some of the show on Teen Nick this summer, it holds up a lot better than I thought it would (most of it, at least), so I'm glad to finally have the show on dvd. Hopefully I can give this and some of the other Nicktoons sets I have a complete watch over my winter break (which is a ways off, obviously, but I won't have time until then).
Wow, that's less than what I got my Rocko set for! I actually can't find a WalMart where I'm currently living, but for a price like that, I'd definitely consider the set.
They stocked it at yours?! When I went, they told me it was only available through Walmart's website. :(
Loved this as a kid, was a favorite of mine back then. I remember my favorite episodes were The Haunted Train and Wheezin' Ed.
Did this show have an "downhill era", in the way that many other Nicktoons (and cartoons in general) do? For some reason I remember Hey Arnold being fairly consistent from start to finish.
I think that some people felt that the last season or two were becoming tiresome. I couldn't tell you, since I haven't seen much of those later episodes in a while I probably haven't seen a good deal of them at all, now that I think about it, since those aired around the time that I became a Cartoon Network kid 100%
From what I saw up to around season 3 in recent years, it's still enjoyable up to that point, though.
Last two seasons were fine. I can say that because I have recently watched most of the final seasons. The only thing off is Arnold doing the psychologist bit, but at least they made fun of it with "Deconstructing Arnold". Of course, I don't mind Arnold because Helga pretty much became the main character at that point.
Something that I like about this show, and the whole thing with Arnold and Helga, is that there are little hints that, not only does Arnold possibly know how she feels (even if he doesn't realize he knows it), but maybe Helga will get her happy ending someday. Things such as...
In the summer vacation episode, when Helga keeps interrupting Arnold's time with that girl on the beach, he gets mad at her for bothering him "for no apparent reason", as he puts it along the lines of.
In the episode where Arnold has a dream about visiting his cousin Arnie, he meets a parallel version of Helga. And in this dream, she is fantasying about Arnie and speaking poetry, just as Helga does. On top of that, Arnold himself actually falls in love with this parallel universe Helga.
In the Valentine's Day episode, when Arnold has to keep jumping back and forth between a date with Ruth, and a date with Helga (disguised as his French penpal), he gets miserable with Ruth and learns what she's really like. Meanwhile, he's really happy with Helga and talks about how much he enjoyed the night.
Any time when Helga shows an act of kindness (such as in It Girl), Arnold gets really overjoyed with her.
From these facts, I feel like we can take that, one day, things might work out for the two of them.
Man, I wrote this big paragraph because I completely misread your post. I thought you had phrased that as a question. :lol: But I completely agree with you. Always makes me wish that Helga show they were planning had come to pass.
I should really get around to finishing that little marathon I was doing last December/January when I had my re-ignited obsession with the show. I got right to the point where the third voice actor took over for Arnold before I burned myself out.
Also, that Arnold/Ruth thing is so much more relatable after growing up. How many times have we finally gotten to spend time with that cute girl we've been eyeing just to realize that beyond her looks and how we built them up in our head, there was... nothing... there, and it was soul-crushing?
Didn't that Helga spin-off say that Arnold and Helga broke up, though? I'm not sure how much I like that. :P
But yeah, the Ruth arc's ending was great. I do think it's odd how she thought nothing of Arnold and just saw him as some random waiter, when in previous episodes, she had run into him quite a few times and even smiled at him before. But I guess, back then, he was just a guy passing by that she decided to be polite to before immediately forgetting about.
Helga would have been such an abusive girlfriend to Arnold though. You don't stay with someone who makes shrines of you with their own gum.
Quote from: Dr. Insomniac on November 09, 2014, 06:40:40 PM
Helga would have been such an abusive girlfriend to Arnold though. You don't stay with someone who makes shrines of you with their own gum.
I have a feeling a good bit of her stress would be alleviated if she confessed.
There might be more Arnold after all. (http://joons.tumblr.com/post/108092315005/hey-arnold-news)
Huh, the 90's really are eclipsing the 80's. Although yeah, nothing's official yet.
Would this be related to Nick currently being devoid of good content?
Quote from: talonmalon333 on January 14, 2015, 04:51:57 PM
Would this be related to Nick currently being devoid of good content?
I would imagine. Their ratings are getting hammered, too.
I wonder if this has something also to do with Hillenburg returning to Spongebob. Nick needs Spongebob now more than ever, so if its quality and ratings plummet, they'll be in serious trouble.
Maybe we'll get a show about Big Pete raising his kids, possibly with Ellen as their mom.
They should just go off the wall and make that Helga spinoff that was canceled. :P
Nah, we need the jungle movie, first and foremost.
Quote from: Avaitor on January 14, 2015, 06:21:55 PM
Nah, we need the jungle movie, first and foremost.
Is that the one where Arnold finds his parents and kisses Helga?
New Arnold? Hmm, it'd be interesting to see if it happens. Especially if it's the jungle movie.
Quote from: talonmalon333 on January 14, 2015, 06:27:11 PM
Quote from: Avaitor on January 14, 2015, 06:21:55 PM
Nah, we need the jungle movie, first and foremost.
Is that the one where Arnold finds his parents and kisses Helga?
Well, they did kiss in the first movie...
I can't even remember if I saw the Arnold movie. :P
there's an arnold movie?
Yes: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hey_Arnold!:_The_Movie (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hey_Arnold!:_The_Movie)
It says a lot when you find out that the Wild Thornberrys movie did better.
And while I wasn't even a fan of that show, it was the better movie. Which says even more.
What went wrong with the Arnold movie? I mean, I figured they still had all of the same writers as the show. It's not like Rugrats where a good chunk of the original writers left before the creation of the movie.
It wasn't meant to be a theatrical movie, but just a quick, smaller budget TV movie, which was changed after the massive success of the Rugrats flicks gave Nick the incentive to try it out for theaters. I think the story could have worked for a two-part or even just a half hour episode, but it's pretty thin.
sucks that none of my favorite created-in-the-90s animated series had a sucessful theatrical movie (except spongebob)
Quote from: Avaitor on January 14, 2015, 09:12:52 PM
It wasn't meant to be a theatrical movie, but just a quick, smaller budget TV movie, which was changed after the massive success of the Rugrats flicks gave Nick the incentive to try it out for theaters. I think the story could have worked for a two-part or even just a half hour episode, but it's pretty thin.
Funny thing about this was I remember reading something about this in the Nick Magazine issue many moons ago. They described a plot for a Hey Arnold episode playing out like the movie did with Arnold saving the town or something. I think it was probably smaller scale thing he was saving, but bigger than the other episodes where Arnold and the gang tried saving something (That theater, that backlot where they play sports.) I'm guessing somewhere down the line they decided to upgrade it to movie status.
If they do bring it back, I can't wait to see Big Bob move his business model from beepers to Cellphones/Smartphones. I always imagined that's what he would try to run an empire with since beeper became an artifact.
I'm not sure how well the jungle movie would do if it came out now. It's been an awful long time so much that I don't know if it would have much of an audience aside from dedicated fans. I think a reboot may be the way to go.
Well in today's market, a theatrical film wouldn't make sense. A DTV or Amazon rental would make more sense, and I think there would be enough interest from hardcore fans and the other people who grew up watching the show as a kid for it to succeed in that kind of venue.
I wouldn't be opposed to a new series, but the movie is still my biggest hope if there will be more Arnold.
Straight to DVD/stream movies like the MLP or DC movies seem to do well enough. It would be nice if more companies got in on it.
Shout! recently had a sale on their Nicktoons complete series collections, and I took the chance to finally get Arnold's set.
$20 for 100 episodes. Not bad at all.
A
Hey Arnold! tv movie is in the works. (http://variety.com/2015/tv/news/hey-arnold-tv-movie-nickelodeon-reviving-shows-1201646666/)
QuoteThe TV movie will feature a storyline that picks up where the original series ended and resolves unanswered plotlines–including the whereabouts of Arnold's parents, long missing from the program.
I'm interested.
So they really are reviving Hey Arnold!? Ah sweet. That's one half of the series I'd like to see revived on Nick.
Quote from: Cartoon X on November 23, 2015, 01:48:16 PM
A Hey Arnold! tv movie is in the works. (http://variety.com/2015/tv/news/hey-arnold-tv-movie-nickelodeon-reviving-shows-1201646666/)
QuoteThe TV movie will feature a storyline that picks up where the original series ended and resolves unanswered plotlines–including the whereabouts of Arnold's parents, long missing from the program.
I'm interested.
Better late than never, but this is all fans really wanted in the first place.
Quote from: Spark Of Spirit on November 23, 2015, 04:07:32 PM
Quote from: Cartoon X on November 23, 2015, 01:48:16 PM
A Hey Arnold! tv movie is in the works. (http://variety.com/2015/tv/news/hey-arnold-tv-movie-nickelodeon-reviving-shows-1201646666/)
QuoteThe TV movie will feature a storyline that picks up where the original series ended and resolves unanswered plotlines–including the whereabouts of Arnold's parents, long missing from the program.
I'm interested.
Better late than never, but this is all fans really wanted in the first place.
Yup. If they do Helga's spinoff that would only be icing. The Jungle Movie is all I've really wanted. This is yet another reason Nick has sucked since the turn of the millennium, they overestimated Hey Arnold's chances at the box office just because of how the Rugrats movie did. That movie did well, because just before they added Dil Nick decided to hype the crap out of the Rugrats' diapers. Somehow, they thought lighting would strike twice with Arnold's movie which was supposed to be a TV movie. By TV standards, the movie was fine but it wasn't big enough in scale to justify a nation wide theater release. Now, thanks to that short-sidedness the Jungle Movie that was supposed to be in theaters (and likely would have done better) 15 years ago will now be aired on TV which is great though its still partly because of how screwed up Nick made themselves over the past decade that they're stuffing their old shows back on while not having enough newer creative output.
I'm pretty happy, since this is exactly what I, and many others wanted.
I can't really think of what other revivals will work, though. The jungle movie is all that really needs to happen.
Maybe they can get Melissa Joan Hart back to do an adaptation of Things I Can't Explain? Assuming that it's any good, though- it's on my wishlist, and I haven't heard anything from anyone.
I didn't know/forgot/probably forgot there was an Arnold movie.
The only other thing I want from Nick is Rocko but I don't know if it could be any good. Also, given today's climate, they probably just plain wouldn't allow it..or would neuter the hell out of it..poor Rocko.
If Rocko was on Nickelodeon right now? Probably not.
Cartoon Network right now? Maybe.
Nick in a few years, if they shape their game up? Possibly.
I don't think that Joe Murray is interested in repeating past successes, though. But I'd definitely give anything else he doe a shot.
I never said I expected it to ever happen. :sly: ;)
Info dump for the movie. (http://nickalive.blogspot.com/2016/06/nickelodeon-announces-title-and-voice.html)
Arnold and Gerald's original VAs will be coming back. However, they won't be voicing the same characters (because, you know, they're way older).
All the other VAs will be coming back for their original characters, though. ;)
That's cool that they'll also get to be part of the movie. Wonder who they'll end up playing?
I can't wait to see this when it airs!
Isn't the original Arnold also the voice of Wolfgang?
Yeah, he was Wolfgang. And in real life he has the most epic hipster beard ever.
I like the story of why Wolfgang was made- the original voice of Arnold went through puberty between seasons 1 and 2, and his voice became too noticeably different to still be Arnold. But they wanted to keep him around, which is why they wrote the fifth graders in.
And I'm halfway through season 3 now, and still loving it. Except for "Arnold Betrays Iggy", though. Fuck that shit.
And then the second voice of Arnold went on to voice the rival bully once he got to old. XD
I never finished my marathon from a few years back. I think I made it through a part of season four before I burned out. Should get back to that eventually.
"Arnold Betrays Iggy" was the only episode I skipped during that marathon. Steaming pile of shit, that one.
...I assumed Arnold's voice actor was like 20 something back then.
First look! (http://variety.com/2016/tv/news/hey-arnold-the-jungle-movie-images-first-look-1201819923/)
I initially wasn't that crazy about these when I first saw them, but it makes sense that they're a year older. It looks close to the original.
And it's funny, I'm actually watching "The Journal" right now. I'll post about my thoughts on finishing the show when I'm done with it.
The Jungle Movie was supposed to be Hey Arnold's series finale, so stunned yet glad that Arnold and Samurai Jack are both going to get the finishes they were both robbed of years ago.
The Jungle Movie is set to premiere this Thanksgiving. (http://nickalive.blogspot.com/2017/01/nickelodeon-usa-to-premiere-hey-arnold.html)
Who would ever have thought we'd see the series finale of Hey Arnold only delayed by fifteen years??? >_<
http://vocaroo.com/i/s0EVJgl7W6ZR
First look at the Jungle Movie. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5_Jq0DVjz8)
Looking good. Here's hoping it's a fine conclusion to the series.
Should have been greenlit fifteen years ago, but at least Hey Arnold finally gets the series finale it was supposed to get!
I'm really looking forward to this. It'll be great to see the lingering questions about Arnold's parents resolved, and this film looks like it'll be quite the adventure.
It should be good. I have a weird feeling one of Arnold's parents will already be dead when they find them, but I could be wrong. It will be interesting to see how they explain why they've had to stay in South America the entire time.
I honestly expect both of his parents to be dead.
Jungle Movie set to premiere on November 24 on Nick, Nicktoons & TeenNick. (http://www.nickandmore.com/2017/10/06/hey-arnold-the-jungle-movie-premieres-november-24/)
New trailer! (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PU02NWfHT2g)
The show may continue after the Jungle Movie. (http://www.toonzone.net/nycc-2017-hey-arnold-possible-jungle-movie)
If they only make one more season after the movie to give "closure" it could be interesting. But I don't think the show should continue past The Jungle Movie just for the sake of it.
I'm satisfied enough we're finally getting the series finale we should have had a decade ago. If Bartlett has enough of his crew together and Nick says yes, then I'm fine with at least two brand new seasons. I won't be too heartbroken if a new season isn't greenlit, though. I have a feeling the movie should have enough closure on it's own.
I am just happily content with the Jungle Movie, though them making a new season of Arnold would feel weird since they would probably air this on Nick proper and that would require people to watch a decades old show to know these characters. Jungle Movie felt like it was made for people my age that grew up on HA and wanted to see a resolution/closure to the series. I would watch it, but since this is Nickelodeon and how they seem to treat their animated shows that aren't named Spongebob and Loud House, I'm not sure how well treated the the series would be.
In case you haven't forgot, the Jungle Movie premieres tonight at 7PM.
It was a fantastic movie! If you love the show, you'll love the Jungle Movie. First act was like a basic Hey Arnold episode with a good amount of references, the rest was a good adventure with a genuinely decent mystery.
I'm ok with it if this the last new Arnold we get, but if they can still do a whole season I'm there!
I loved the movie. It was exciting, heartwarming, and funny and had great references. Seeing all these characters again was awesome and the story was very intruging. I will be watching this movie whenever it comes on TV. It's that good.
If this is the end of Hey Arnold!. Well, it had a fantastic run. 100 episodes and 2 Movies, Hey Arnold has the 4th most amount of episodes of any Nicktoon, right behind Rugrats, Fairly OddParents, and SpongeBob.
I finally got to see this, and it's pretty damn satisfying. The humor and heart remain on point for the show, without feeling like a sad throwback like a lot of revivals do. And while it got a little out there for the original series at times, it's a wonderful resolution to a conflict that the series has needed to resolve for ages.
Since it seems like Bartlett and co still have it, I'd gladly watch a sixth season, but this would be a perfect end if that's where it goes.
A spinoff was pitched for Nick-at-Nite in 2000, but was rejected for being "too close to Daria."
The pitch bible can be found here. (https://archive.org/details/HeyArnoldPatakisBible/The%20Patakis%20Mini-Bible/mode/2up)
Can I be honest? I always thought the Patakis pitch was an exaggeration, like it was something Bartlett considered but wasn't ever seriously pursued. So it's cool to see concept for it.
Giving it a read, and he was aiming for the Nick@Nite audience? Didn't they only ever air two original cartoons?
Though now that Paramount's handing revivals to long-dead Nick shows, maybe Bartlett's problem was he came up with this too early.