As Told By Brianna… Here are All The Reasons You Need to Rewatch As Told By Ginger
As Told By Ginger is the jack of all trades. This show was a masterpiece and is completely underappreciated even 12 years after the finale. The producers managed to explain what it is like to grow up through the lives of several pre-teens turned teenagers and still managed to incorporate some serious life lessons.
I have been spending a lot of my free time looking up appropriate shows for my angsty preteen niece to watch to help her understand the A-Z’s of growing up. Luckily for me after a horrible 7 season torture chamber filled with the peppy 70’s baddies of Totally Spies I came across As Told by Ginger. Now, I faintly remembered the show having horrible graphics and being about some redhead girl and a really mean girl. To my surprise, this show was absolute gold! ATBG (As Told By Ginger) is a fun show for the whole family and Nickelodeon really outdid itself with this one. While watching it I found Ginger Foutley’s experiences something not only my niece could relate to but things for me as well. Carl Foutley, Ginger’s younger brother, appealed to the much younger audience who were just watching along but wouldn’t be miserable watching a show about a teenage girl. Even Ginger’s mom would bring a sense of nostalgia to the parents. I personally think they should have won that Emmy and here’s some reasons why
The show discussed some pretty deep real-world issues:
ATBG is probably the first show to handle issues such as addiction and depression in a manner that doesn’t include tippy-toeing around the subject. In “Stuff Will Kill You” we experience Ginger’s new found love and slight addiction: caffeine. She uses it as a way to stay on top of her work because of the fear that she’ll fall behind, such a familiar feeling for us adults. While the episode is directly about her addiction to caffeine and how it starts to ruin her a number of other substances can replace the coffee and it wouldn’t feel too strange to an adult. How many college students you know take Adderall to get all their work done in fear of drowning in work?
In an earlier episode, Ginger writes a poem about a girl who wanted to disappear and immediately she is ushered to the school psychologist and everyone starts to wonder about her mental wellbeing. Although Ginger wasn’t depressed and had no intentions of committing suicide she understood the feeling of wanting to disappear. The poem stuck with everyone because even if they didn’t want to or even couldn’t admit it that feeling wasn’t as unfamiliar as one would think.
The physical and emotional growing pains associated with growing up
Remember that episode when the entire 8th has to watch a movie about puberty and Macie basically has a panic attack at the thought of it. There’s such a familiar feel to it like when your parents first gave you the “Birds and Bees” talk or that first conversation about sex education in class. ATBG brings you back to that feeling or in the case of preteens helps them to understand that this is weird and scary but you’re not alone. They also bring up Ginger’s crazy leg hair that she’s embarrassed about or how Courtney stuffed her bra to look older. Now I won’t say bra stuffing is a rite of passage but everyone’s done it at some point. Let’s not even talk about the moment you start to grow body hair it’s super embarrassing being the first of your peers to have all this hair on what used to be a smooth body part and the show helps you to understand or remember that feeling.
As the girls get older the pain starts to become less physical and more emotional as they all start to develop feelings for their teenage counterpart. Ginger and Darren’s relationship is one that really stood out because it discussed the messiness associated with falling for and dating your best friend. It’s amazing, heartwarming, and most of all annoying (to everyone outside of the relationship). When it’s over it hurts like a bursting appendix, or was that just in Ginger’s case? It sucks when the only person you want to talk to is MIA. They even go as far as discussing commitment issues and that is why I understand how this show was Emmy nominated. A CHILDREN’S SHOW DISCUSSED COMMITMENT ISSUES! Ginger’s commitment issues hit me an adult who could understand on a much deeper level how it feels to be afraid to trust someone with your heart again. Yet it also gave children the space to understand that it’s not weird and it is okay to be confused but never to give up on love. This show was such a staple for little girls growing up everywhere and even though it was centered around Ginger and her friends the producers still find a way to make it interesting for younger kids with…
The Boys…
Carl Foutley and Hoodsey Bishop are the annoying little brothers you thank God you didn’t have. They’re annoying. rambunctious, disgusting, and entertaining; these boys are your typical 4th graders. They appeal to the children watching the show who don’t really care for Ginger, Courtney, or Darren. These boys are lively and imaginative scamming their way into so many people’s lives and using their imaginations to get into and out of so much trouble. They’re the comic relief when things get too serious, you can always count on Carl and Hoodsey to be up to something.
Overall, As Told By Ginger is the jack of all trades. This show was a masterpiece and is completely underappreciated even 12 years after the finale. The producers managed to explain what it is like to grow up through the lives of several pre-teens turned teenagers and still managed to incorporate some serious life lessons. Needless to say, my niece will definitely be watching this show.
