Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

Brilliant and touching

Am I Missing Something?

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

There's something off-putting about this show. It's as though the intent behind the writing was to depict a typical perspective of a pessimistic teenager coming to grips with the sometimes-hypocritical world. This isn't a new concept, as some shows pull this off well. However, this show didn't. It doesn't quite fit in the comedy genre, either. What does this show offer? Not much.Even considering the fact that Daria is in the teen phase of her life, she seems very, very miserable for someone who lives in a first world country with well-off parents. Daria doesn't appreciate all the comforts in her life, is incapable of feeling a normal range of emotions, and thinks she's above everyone else. Is Daria supposed to have a personality disorder?Instead of a glorified brat, it would have been more fitting for someone of a different (hardened?) background to have that dark personality. Lots of inconsistency as well - she's supposed to be unsociable, yet she's able to make a close friend. When you get down to it, Daria's arrogance makes her not that different compared to the popular people. It's annoying how Daria substitutes sarcasm and humor with uppity snark (mixed in with some irony to prove some sort of moral high ground). Maybe this show only appeals to those who share Daria's traits. An unsociable and/or unpopular character doesn't have to be a downer constantly. Key word: constantly. Although some ironic situations were depicted clearly, and the show doesn't have to be happy all the time, the writing could have used some humor - it doesn't have to be either/or when it comes to positivity/negativity.Even when interesting things happened in the show, it was dulled by Daria's monotone voice and overall bitterness. Usually in other shows, the other characters add something to the episodes. With Daria, that doesn't happen. The other characters could be replaced and not missed. They exist to make Daria look good, which should not be considered an option in any show. The flat, uninspired, overly-simplified animation look rips off another show, and seems lazy for a show with "deep" commentary. Would not re-watch.

The series stars Daria as an anti-social teenager that is stuck sarcastic mongering in a see of idiotic classmates and teenage peers. Most of the time she is there to watch from the sidelines and make snide comments about the stupidity of others; that is when not interacting directly - which she often is stuck doing regardless. This is a teenager that would rather be left alone to her own devices. You see, she is actually 'a brain' (as the series puts it) and would rather focus on more introverted activities, as opposed to say going to parties unless it means being able to mock things like creepy guys that want to get a date, the idiocentric quirks of the school QB, or the quirky mannerisms of the reoccurring cheerleader, (etc). Daria is often accompanied by her friend Jane in these escapades; Jane is a bit more to the point and a bit more down to Earth; she is almost normal save for the fact she prefers to be alone and focus on her art; she has the same introverted nature as Daria and the two often mock the teenagers and their stupidity around them. Where as these two characters might normally watch from the sidelines, they are in fact the main stars of the show.The show does actually have a large supporting cast, many of whom get cameos in each episode; but at points they do get entire episodes they participate in or get devoted to just themselves with Daria and Jane taking second stage, but with their mannerisms in full swing. What this series also covers is the homelife of Daria - her father is anxiety driven and swears (only mildly) in frustration, but frequently. Her sister is not exactly a ditz, but she is an air head that not only cares about fashion, but also is the most popular girl in school and a member of the fashion club. Lastly, her mother is the crushing force in the show - she is very bossy, intimidating, and regularly pushes her viewpoint to others - she is also a lawyer, which makes for a saving grace when too much trouble arises and she must step in. The show does go into episodes about the teachers, but rarely does it cover their personal lives - only when they are caught up with an out and about plot that the other characters are already involved in. For that matter, the show never moves in the direction of Daria's neighbors; they never actually make an appearance.There is only one point where the series hits a snag. During the latter seasons, rather than focusing on a serialized format, the series actually has some character and plot development. Jane gets a boyfriend, teenage drama ensues between Jane and Daria, and at one point Daria actually swears as the two fight for a few episodes. This quickly dies down, with the aftermath leaving some new plot developments in the works. The series still keeps the mannerisms of the characters as thing develop and other characters take the limelight; but I can't help but feel it takes away from the show's namesake as her character is eventually needlessly ripped on or thrown into situations that not only leave her NOT viewing from the sidelines as per series tradition, but often caught up in the works at a disadvantage while making mistakes, and never fully recovering from it. In a word, she may not be acting like an idiot, but she is getting caught up in the very same kind of situations of those teenagers she and Jane mocked in the early episodes. Granted, these situations aren't the same; but due to her anti-social nature, Daria progresses much slower than other characters and does not take as many risks - thereby not leaving her open to those same kinds of situations; instead it takes awhile for them to find her and we see the end result. Is it a good twist of things? It caught me off guard when I first saw it; and while I didn't particularly enjoy it - it does help keep the series fresh - I found I watched every episode through, despite not actively liking some of them. It is not a boring series by any means, although a few episodes can be slow.The only turnoff from the series might be the fact that later, as opposed to earlier; plots are a bit superficial and redundant. I blame this on the fact earlier episodes are something I'm sure most teenagers and indeed adults can identify with; where as later episodes seem to be a bit specialized towards Daria's character and family life. In a word, the series takes on a life of its own, with really detracts from what it started out as initially. It is the initial statement the series makes, that is its selling point. Watching the series from season three onward, might actually create some friction that only those into drama might enjoy. I probably only stuck around due to the fact the series had a setup and a hitch before - it played right through this 'snag' and plays through many episodes which are a bit generic compared to the others.If you want to see the more serious side of teenage culture as portrayed in the media, you simply cannot go wrong with Daria. As an added note, this was also at a time when MTV was in its prime and played a role in shaping teenage culture without the advent and interference of the Internet.Originally posted to Orion Age (http://www.orionphysics.com/? p=11029).

Okay, for the lousy animation quality it loses a point. However, for being brilliantly insightful and very subversive in its look at teenage life, the show was fantastic. The problem is that during its run and even now, MTV (who produced the series) never really committed themselves. They often moved the show around on the schedule, dropped it for several months and eventually it just seemed to peter out and fizzle--despite having a nice final movie to end it all. Plus, years later, it was placed briefly on Noggin Network, but only SELECTED episodes. So, if you want to see it now, you are pretty much screwed. If you search Amazon, you'll find there are two Daria movies on DVD but no other DVDs of the regular episodes!!! This is a crime, as the series is a must-see for teens. Aside from a little edgy humor involving a few curse words here and there and one theme involving lesbianism in one of the films, there really isn't anything a parent would object to--especially considering the age the show was intended for--teens and young adults, not little kids.UPDATE: The show is now available on DVD!!! In addition, Logo is showing "Daria"--an odd choice for this network. Also, after buying the new "Daria" collection I started re-watching the shows. They hold up great after all these years but one thing that I noticed is that the Morgendorffer family is almost always eating lasagna at dinner. When they don't, they are eating some other type of pasta--linguine and penne, for example. And, the Lane family has a big family dinner and guess what they have---LASAGNA!! Someone on the show had a serious pasta obsession!!!

1) "I don't": Aunt Amy making grimaces at the wedding.2) "Lab brats": Jake: My childhood was full of humiliation. They didn't call it self-love then. They called it...self-abuse.3) "This years model": Jane making a caricature of the two model "hunters" by portraying them as vultures.4) "Jake of hearts": Daria enters the bedroom. Jake is lying in bed after a heart attack, blaming his dead father. Suddenly his mother starts blaming his father too but becomes weak and has to lie down on the bed too. Jake: "Mom?! Are you all right?! ( raises his arm towards the ceiling )How many more lives, old man? HOW MANY MORE LIVES?!!" Daria exits the room.5) "Marts of darkness": Sick sad world commentator; Jesus Christ appearing in a chocolate bar.These were all the episodes in "Daria" that made me laugh and you get the impression that the authors were inspired by a more intelligent way of humor, the one Billy Wilder used to write in his comedies. Daria Morgendorffer ( voiced by Tracy Granstaff, a woman that lately disappeared from the public life )herself is a unique creation, a sassy, fascinating female version of Woody Allen and Bill Murray, a typical supporting character that was turned into the main character. The theme of the funny/sad story is the loss of unused youth.------------------ It's hard for me to explain why I find that the famous sitcoms like "The Simpsons"( 6/10 ) and "South Park"( 7/10 )will always be only an empty display of jokes while "Daria" will always be a shining animated feature. I guess one of the reasons is that "Daria" has only 5 seasons ( while "The Simpsons" have 15 )and there for a better density of events. The other one is that "Daria" has a soul, emotions and a feeling like it was made out of love. Truly, Glen Eichler obviously decided to create a monument for all the people that were ignored by the masses. Yet, despite being a loser, Daria is actually a hero. And the closing credits are almost like an higher justice because there all the "bad guys" get punished: In one of them Tiffany is tied up like Hannibal Lecter, while Stacy is presented like a girl falling from the sky without a parachute, Britany as Kevins assassin...My favorite episode was "I loathe a parade": Dan Vebber constructed it as a Robert Altman film in which all the characters from previous seasons appear in a cameo.I would love to give "Daria" the highest grade, but I can't. Some episodes were truly very weak and the relationship between Daria and Tom was not romantic at all! I guess I expected that their love episode "My night at Daria's" would end like "My night at Maud's". Grade: 9/10