HOO-yah! Happy Birthday, Marines!

For those of you out there of the extreme civilian persuasion, listen up! On this glorious day in history back in 1775, the Second Continental Congress (who says that the bums in Washington can't do anything right?) passed a resolution that resulted in the founding of Heaven's personal guard detail - the United States Marine Corps. Today, every U.S. Marine celebrates (as phrased by one young Marine) 'two hundred and thirty-five years of Congressionally-mandated ass-kicking all around the world!'

In Daria fandom, the Marine Corps is represented by such notables as 'Mad Dog' Morgendorffer (usually seen in fan fic as serving in the Corps during the Korean War), Jaime White (who serves in uniform as a character in the Daylight shared-world setting, and the ever hard-core Colonel Kyle Armalin. There's even a Legion of Lawndale Heroes fic dedicated to the Corps' birthday -'A Special Day For The Colonel'

For all those men and women of the Corps - past, present and future - enjoy your special day of cake, ice cream and weapons effective out to 600 meters!

It's Anti-'Shipper Day! Hooray!

Martin J. Pollard, webmaster of the renown Outpost Daria, invented the term "anti-'shipper" in an essay for this fandom eleven years ago this very day. Thus, today is and forever will be Anti-'Shipper Day. He created the term in honor of Kara Wild's story, "'Shipped Out," which he credits as being the first anti-'shipper tale in Daria fandom. Ms. Wild's tale was written in June 1999.

How does one celebrate Anti-'Shipper Day, you ask, and well you should. The day may best be appreciated by pausing to reflect on the elements working against any romantic pairing displayed either on Daria itself or in Daria fanfiction. Daria/Trent? She's too young, Trent's a bum, and Daria is too obnoxious anyway. Daria/Tom? Tom's a bit too conceited, and Daria is too obnoxious anyway. Daria/Anyone? Daria is too etc., etc. What about Jane/Anyone? Daria will sabotage the relationship to have Jane for herself. You get the idea: always blame Daria, because she deserves it.

Today is also the anniversary of a famous alter-ego birthday, and it is International Friendship Day. For more information on the latter, here is a refreshingly cynical essay describing it. Winnie the Pooh is the holiday's mascot. He is shown at left in a candid moment.

More shortly. Not awake yet.

GnuZ!

• Less than two weeks to go until Midwest Dariacon 2010!
• Tiffany: does she suffer from narcissistic disorder? Does a wild bear use Charmin in the woods?
• NEW! A year ago here, I had a sort of mini-contest for artistic fans to find creative things to do with an old MTV screen background I discovered using the WayBack Machine. Anyone up for trying this again? Can you turn it into a neat-o wallpaper for Daria fandom computers?
  

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• Daria/Dorian 6: Christmas Chaos, by LadieT (Part 5): "I called your house. Your dad said that your aunts brought you and Janey here. He told me about her ankle. Is she okay?" "Yeah, she's doing okay. She is going to be glad to see you. She's really missed you." "I missed her, too. Do you know what store she's in? I really need to talk to her." "Is everything alright?" "No."
• NEWER! Jane Lane: Ace Attorney—Turnabout Teacher's Pet, by LSauchelli (Part 8): Jane carried on: “Did you see the way she talked to me? Like I was just one of the little idiots we used to make fun of in High School!” She spared a moment to look at Charles, “No offense. But how dares she do that?! What the hell is her problem! I mean, I expect that kind of treatment from Sandi, I’d be retarded not to, but Daria?! Daria?! This is the girl I survived high school with!” “You do realize you’re starting to sound a lot like that old witch at the gym?” said Charles.
• NEWER! MST version of TAG's "Daria 2007: The Girl from Hope" by Charles RB (Part 1 of 9,000 parts): [Won't spoil it for you!]
  
• Pulp Fiction: A Cup of Tea, by Chris Tucker (COMPLETE!): It had been two months since the subway bombing, and James had been, as he put it, "busy". His contacts with Daria and Jane had been minimal, the odd phone call, a quick coffee 'date', and so on. So, it was with some surprise when Daria heard her name called across a noisy Downtown Crossing intersection in a very familiar voice. A quick embrace between friends. "So, what brings you 'round here?" "I got a Border's gift card from my sister for Christmas, and I've finally got some time to use it. I also wanted to get some bagels, too." "Care for an escort, dear lady?" "Why, thank you, kind sir!"
• Raft College: The First Year, by rglovejoy (Part 21): Daria's Thursday afternoon section with Professor Daniels went well enough. The professor asked her to read her story to the class; Daria did so as best as she could. The worst part was the passage where the protagonist, a disgraced Soviet railroad engineer and deserter, and the beautiful NKVD officer (who she named Zhanna Lanski) shared a steamy encounter in a bombed-out Stalingrad railway station. Daria's face turned crimson several times; she cursed herself for not recognizing that she was not the only one who would be reading the story.
• Regifted 2: I Put Away Joyless Things, by Ajar (Part 10): “Hey, David. No, don't turn around.” “But isn't eye contact generally—” “Keep it down, we're still in class. Don't worry about it, I just want to know if you've seen Daria today.” “Maybe.” “What do you mean, maybe?”
• Sleepwalker, by Jim North (continued): The first bus was easy to get into since the door had been left open. Once Daria stepped inside, she could see why. A small hatch just inside the door had been broken into, various tools sat just within. She felt certain that if she checked, she'd find that those tools did not include a tire iron. Once she was inside the vehicle, she quickly scanned the interior. She didn't see anyone, but as it was one of the rental buses and not a school bus, there were dividers under each seat, blocking her view. There could be anyone hiding behind one of the rows of seats, waiting for her to let down her guard.
• The Vision of the Burning Cities, by jtranser (continued): "So how did it go? New semester with the usual pack of eager smiling faces anxious to learn all about Dream Psychology and how to use it for personal discovery, psychological engineering and sexual exploitation?" "No, Jane, that was last night's class. Today it was all about Introductory Psychotronics." "Mind Control, eh? Did they ask you what The Frequency was?"
  

Nerds and Towels Go Together Like Fish and Bicycles

Today is Nerd Pride Day, hooray! And in a closely related development it is also Towel Day. Let your inner nerd and its towel out for a stroll. Be proud of who you are. Then knock it off, it's embarrassing to see you like that. Jeez, what's wrong with you? Daria, below right, shows us the proper use of a towel on Towel Day. Artie at left is the nerd poster child for today.

A list is being prepared of all the fanfics released in the last few days. Check back for details and be patient. (Finally done with PPMB and FF.net!)

More additions have recently been made to Things Students Still Are Not Allowed To Do At Lawndale High. A great thread.

If you want to join the Judith Strikes! shared world proposed by the great Erin Mills (one of two Daria fans who appeared on "Camp Fear" as cartoon characters), he provides more background info on two items all writers need to know: the Locket and the Cloak. Erin has also provided the opening scene for the shared world stories. Go to it!

Recent Iron Chefs

• Iron Chef by CR85747: Daria meets Daria. Have Daria Morgendorffer meet a fictional or real-world person who also has the same first name of Daria.
• Iron Chef by OverlordMikey: Genderbent wha!? "I was thinking, there have been a lot of gender bending with Daria characters, but I don't remember ever seeing one where Daria (or another) wakes up as the other gender, much to the shock of those around her/him and themselves. (Normally it seems to be either a dream or a retelling.) How will people cope!? How will they themselves cope!? Will they return to their original gender? Write it and tell me!"
• Iron Chef by Wouter: Daria's children, your view. How would Daria be as a mother, what would her kids be like?

FF.net (COMPLETE!)

• The InDark, by Mediancat (Parts 1 and 2): Here I am and am no I. Not quite, thought Daria Faith Morgendorffer, but Delany put it better than she could. 'Course, when he wrote it, he had more experience than Daria did—actual and age-wise. In her case, it's: here I am and am two I's.

PPMB (COMPLETE!)

• Delivery Day Deferred, by NightGoblyn (COMPLETE!): "The gas station burst into flames!" Quinn said, waving her arms emphatically. "Gas stations are not supposed to burst into flames!" (Ringbearer/Daylight/Judith Dariaverse crossover)
• The Dream of the White Darkness, by jtranser (continued): In her office, seated at her desk, Daria read her lecture notes again. It was a moonless night, the wind was out of the North and the Chancellor's dog, tied up in the Quad, was rasping out its weird bark signifying the presence of strangers.
  
• Eye of the Beholder, by Yogi, Glittershrooms, OverlordMikey, et al. (Part 3): Angela Li sat over a model of Lawndale. No one knew of her evil plans. "I already have everything complete except for those few in my way. Well, there is one more—" She looked at a model of the Sloane’s. "I need to get control of the Sloane family if my plans are to come together." Of course, that shall be easy.
• Falling into College: The Clip Show, by Richard Lobinske (COMPLETE!): Holding a copy of Val between finger and thumb as if it were a dead rat, Daria tossed it in the garbage and said, "I guess we couldn't get away without a final set of annoyances. You know, I still wonder if we didn't get some unexpected help. As much as I appreciate it, the idea is still..."
• Finn Morgendorffer 47: Hell is Homecoming, by HolyGrail2007 (Parts 1 to 4): "If I’m Homecoming King, someone’s going to have to take the quarterback’s spot on the float. And I sure as hell am not going to let it be Kevin.”
• John Lane 46: Substitute Plans, by RLobinske (Part 2): Mack said, "What are we going to do about teaching? How do we handle the students?" "In your case," John said, "I'd recommend a cattle prod. Watching Boys P.E. is more a matter of making sure that they don't wreck the building than it is of actually trying to teach them anything."
  
• Old Kid, New Man, by JPAGC (COMPLETE!): I meet Ted in a nice and quiet vegetarian cafe/restaurant located in San Jose, California, his current living place. He smiles and stands when I approach and I am momentarily taken aback by his changed appearance from the teenager who had appeared in the Daria show to the man before me: Ted is taller and rougher, has grown a disheveled beard and his hair is longer and seems slightly unkempt. He is also wearing a formal business suit. But his handshake is strong and frank, and his smile open and carefree, just like the teenager one can see in the episodes. We sit, me for a coffee and him to have lunch, the only time is has available for this interview.
• Siblings, by LOTR_Dan (COMPLETE!): "It's my fault they're dead, you know. It's my fault they went out into that storm." [What happened after things went wrong in "Antisocial Climbers."]
  
• Tales of the Ringbearers: Bad Apple—The Second Raid, by Doggieboy (Part 1): Electro-Shock looked away, his expression pensive. "If this is a Ringbearer's house," he muttered, "then God help you all when he comes back." He moved towards the front door. "God help me when he comes back." (preview here)
  
• Unnamed story (Falling into College: The Clip Show), by Brother Grimace (COMPLETE!): Reading the PPMB thread off his laptop computer in the office of the Psych Detective Agency, Gus Burton looked across the room at the sound of Shawn Spencer and the attractive Latina's argument getting louder and louder. "It blew up the Floating Continent in one shot the very first time they used it!" the woman almost shouted, the blueberry cake donut in her tightening fist falling to pieces. "The Argo was built from the remains of a World War II battleship, while that THING is the size of a small moon!"

Daria returns to MTV... 2

It was just noted on PPMB that MTV2 will soon air Daria again. Check around for more information and post it in Comments if you find it.

Also, it appears that an interview with Daria's voice, Tracy Grandstaff, is now up at Daria World on Facebook. Check it out.

And... OverlordMikey is thinking about a Daria RPG, or something similar. Hmmm. Have a look.

The Original "Die Hard" Man

George Washington was born this day many years ago, and pretty much everyone (I hope) knows he was the first President of the United States. Daria does a fair imitation of him at right, though strangely I don't ever recall seeing this alter ego at the end of any episode. It appeared only as part of a screen saver. Weird.

Anyway, of all the many excellent quotes we have from President Washington, one of the most unusual is something he said shortly before he passed away. "I die hard but am not afraid to go," he spoke on his deathbed. This phrase is of English origin and eventually led to the Die Hard movie series. And that brand of car batteries. Clever, that.

Famed poet Edna St. Vincent Millay (hooray!) was also born today, but not so long ago as George Washington. Quotes from her works have appeared in Daria fanfiction (here and here).

Finally, today is also World Thinking Day for the Girl Scouts and Girl Guides, of which Jane Lane was briefly a reluctant member (per "Antisocial Climbers").

NUUZ

• GLITTER BERRIES IS BACK!
• The official Daria Facebook site has a small message board going. I see Kara Wild and Brother Grimace there. Who else among the long-time PPMB/SFMB/etc. crowd is there? Anyone?
  

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• Daria: Hunter—Strictly Business, by Jim North (continued): "Hey, Morgendorffer," Jane said conversationally as they ran, "I know that I can keep this up all day, but you can't be enjoying this. Have we got a plan?" "Don't... get shot," Daria snarled.
• Finn Morgendorffer 33: Independence, by HolyGrail2007 (Part 6): “When Finn came around, there was a girl named Allison who was kinda cool, but then things got weird.” “How did things get weird?” “Let’s just say she likes all thirty-one flavors at Baskin-Robbins.” [If you know what I mean.]
• The Hallowed Halls of Fielding, Roentgen (Part 6): Daria was not called upon in the ensuing class discussion. It became clear to Daria that there were at least three girls who seemed to be Ms. Merritt's favorites. Mousy Girl—known as "Ms. Davidson"—and two others. It became even clearer that none of these young women were favorites because of their looks, or lack of looks, or style, or lack of style. Each of these girls, Daria's potential rivals, knew the material and could expound upon it. They weren't dummies.
• A Ticket to Ride, by Doggieboy (continued): “We are going to relax,” Ted said, “and enjoy the scenery.” Then he glanced at Linda's breasts. “I’ll especially enjoy the twin peaks.”

Daria Gets the Last Laugh

Can't believe this happened 15 years ago. God, am I old or what. Daria and her classmates have a good laugh at the expense of Beavis and Butt-head in "Wet Behind the Rears," after the Dud-namic Duo are forced to flee school in their underwear during a fire drill. How many times do you recall seeing Daria laugh? Not often. Recognize anyone else?

Oprah Winfrey, who was the President of Texas in this Daria fanfic, turns 56 today, bless her heart. And Tom Selleck, imitated by Daria in "Murder, She Snored" (also see images at this link) is 65.

Fanfic update coming this weekend.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

A New Year's Greeting, as only Daria can give!

And she does it again!

The Other Daria

Yesterday was the 15th anniversary of the premier of the Beavis and Butt-head episode "Tainted Meat," in which extremely gross things were witnessed by Daria Morgendorffer. All of these gross things had to go with Beavis, of course.

Today is the 62nd birthday of actress Daria Halprin, for whom many fans thought Daria the cartoon character was named. (She wasn't. Wish we had more information about the namesake.) Daria Halprin is best known for her starring role in Zabriskie Point, a 1970 counterculture movie (with its own fandom) that has something to do with this Daria fanfic. (Details here.) Daria Halprin in real life eventually became an expressive arts therapist.

If you want to explore the Daria Morgendorffer/Daria Halprin connection further, you should check out Inaria's long-ago remark that Daria M. might have been named for the actress because her parents liked the movie Zabriskie Point. (Maybe Helen and Jake made out at the real Zabriskie Point in college.) This thought was followed by Scissors MacGillicutty's ficlet in which two Highland movie critics discuss Zabriskie Point, and finally UU's announcement of the passing of Michelangelo Antonioni, who directed the movie and thus had something in common with Glenn Eichler.

Exploring the origins of Daria M.'s name led to the discovery of the real reason why Daria hung out with B&B, and the origins of the "Diarrhea, Cha Cha Cha" song of which B&B were so fond. (Indeed, the "origins song" has its own blog! It's even in the Urban Dictionary! Is the Internet wonderful or what?) And we've come back around to the duo who gave us "Tainted Meat": the perfect circular blog post. Enjoy your day!

It's Cold Outside, and That's Snow Joke!

Pinhead and UU have once again come through for us with
the perfect alter ego for this time of year.

But how is Daria doing right now?



Winter Daria created by Karine Samson for CyberDaria (archived).

"Diane, the Red-Nosed Reindeer..."

At left, another of those curious alter egos that leave you scratching your head. Wonder if the outfit is used for the same role-playing purpose as that racehorse costume Helen has for those special bonding moments with Jake. Mrs. Bennett's husband would pretend to be a reindeer-friendly Santa Claus, and... oh, let's not take that any further. Sorry.

Enjoy these additional holiday-spirited words from Daria herself as you view classic artwork from Wouter, on PPMB: Naughty Daria. Not very naughty, but she means well.

TEN unnamed Christmas fanfics for you: one by Demi_Cat, one by SigDiff, one by A.J., one by Reese Kaine, one by Nemo Blank, one by TheEleventy, and four by Decelaraptor (others are here, and here, and here). Party on!

FAN ART!

Christmas Daria/Trentness! by Minkychanz

Christmas Stacy/Andreaness!! by Minkychanz

Early Christmas Pic by Angelinhel

Merry Christmas!

A little surprise from Daria's Sick, Sad Life Planner: Daria's Holiday Wishes

Got a Christmas fanfic you want to write? Try the all-new Iron Chef: The Christmas Episode, started by Kael Seoras. (A great Iron Chef from the past was NightGoblyn's Iron Chef: Merry Christmas!) (And remember that great memory lane thread about your favorite Christmas fanfics? Thanks, Richard!)

And here's a special message from X, who sez: "Yo, my homies, this be the X talking at ya! Time to get down with it and open presents! It's after midnight, so it's legal! Party on, and remember: be excellent to each other all year long, don't hog the nog, peace out on Earth, and Good Will Hunting!"




This has been a Very Special Message from X, the Holiday Formerly Known as Christmas, speaking from the Holiday Island High School Christmas Party at the Holiday Island High School Gym. This greeting is not void even if prohibited by law. Don't Hog the Nog is a trademark of X. All Rights Reserved. Would someone please expand the DariaWiki page on this guy?

Beavis and Butt-head Were Not Really Dead

Twelve years ago today, Daria made her final, seriously, no kidding, Beavis and Butt-head Do America-doesn't-count, VERY last appearance with Beavis and Butt-head, in the episode Beavis and Butt-head Are Dead. Beavis answers a phone call from Highland High, asking why they haven't been to school for three weeks, and he tells the shocked office worker that Beavis and Butt-head are dead. Thus freed from the noise of the phone ringing, the two go back to watching weekday morning sitcoms and game shows.

Mr. Van Driessen grieves, but the principal is overjoyed. In the image at right, we see Daria and her classmates as they hear the joyful announcement from the principal. None of the students care if the two are dead, not even Daria. ("Well, I guess it's kinda sad that they're dead and all, but it's not like they had bright futures ahead of them.")

This is also supposed to be National French Toast Day, and wouldn't you know it, we have artwork to go with this event: The French Toast Club. Thank you, S.C.!

Can You Tell Me How to Get, How to Get to...

This day is the 40th anniversary of the premiere of Sesame Street, and the 234th anniversary of the birth of the U.S. Marine Corps. Pinhead the Great produced the giant-sized images (click on them) used for this day. I think Daria is wearing part of Grover's outfit. Not difficult to guess her opinion of it. And Upchuck... not sure if he's supposed to be Rambo or some other action hero. What does he think of it? Ah, well.

And a brief note from the Sick, Sad Life Planner:

You Woke Up the Dead, So Put 'Em to Bed

Gettin' late, party's over, zombies have to be reburied. My thanks to Pinhead (at right) for the most excellent alter egos, to UU for more magnificent images, to Richard Lobinske for chipping in some excellent art with his posts, and to you for reading this.

The more alert among you might notice that this website has now joined the last existing Daria Webring, which apparently started out as the Other Daria Webring. It kinda fun to explore the ring and see where it leads; not very big at the moment but there's room to grow. Webrings were big about a decade ago. They're still around, good to see 'em. Maybe more webmasters will join in for the fun of it.

Hope your Halloween was a good one. Tomorrow is a new day and a new month (and this blog will run over 124,000 hits). Cheers.

Awash in Snerkiness

Saw an online article that said Daria's Inferno shipped exactly nine years ago today. Also read Wraith's Ramblings for exactly the same date about "See Jane Run." Good times, good essay. More importantly, I saw a question that was asked of Yahoo! Answers, and perhaps it will be of interest to you. [snerk] Guess Daria didn't think that was funny. But I did. And now it's time for the N0oO0Z

• Sarah "Stacy Rowe" Drew is a busy busy busy bee on TV.
• Glenn Eichler has written a very graphic novel.
• Another real-life Daria on the radio? NPR, no less! (I've been a Sarah Vowell fan for years.)
• OMG! Who did the lesbian-oriented Curve Magazine hook up with Daria Morgendorffer? NOOOOOO!!!!!! (I guess Daria has lots of reasons for frowning.)
• And what is Ashley "Janet Barch/Tiffany Blum-Deckler" Albert doing these days? Rock on, mama!
• NEW! Pinhead has an impressively sad picture of Daria called "AAA" (title explained at link).
• NEWER! The Facebook Daria page is the active center of an argument over which character on Daria is their favorite. Is anyone here on Facebook who can check into the group and let them know about PPMB and Outpost Daria and all that? More fans!

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• NEW! Align Your Books Precisely on the Shelf, Go Out in the Streets, by Wraith (COMPLETE!): “My alarm didn't go off. Didn't even have time to eat." "Not a very original excuse." "But it has the virtue of being more believable than being abducted by aliens, even if that really was what happened." [a Daria/Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei crossover]
• NEW! Grandma's Memories, by GlitterShrooms (COMPLETE!): [Eye bleach warning! Brain bleach warning! Aaaaugh!!!]
• NEWEST OF ALL! The Melancholy of Daria Morgendorffer, by Wraith (Part 1): "Class, today we have a new student joining us. Why don't you introduce yourself?" "My name is Daria Morgendorffer. I'm not interested in normal humans. If you're an alien, an esper, a time traveler, or a slider, come to my side."
• NEW! Rainbow Disconnection, by Disco316 (Part 5): "I just wish guys were as easy to understand as girls.” “Jane,” said Daria, “I’m sure every guy in the world would disagree with you.” [Most Excellent SSW Spot: “These men went to Indiana University to get an education, but they spent too much time on extracurricular activities! The Hoosier daddies: next on Sick, Sad World!”]
• Unnamed story (Scenes No Daria Fanfic Should Have: Hump Day), by Disco316 (COMPLETE!): "Hey, Kevin?" "Hey, Daria. What's up? "I want to give you a hump." "Well, Daria, I mean that's cool with me, but don't you have that Tom guy for that?"
• EVEN NEWER THAN NEWEST! Unnamed story (Three-peat! New Ideas Thread Wins Again!), by Lorenzo Sauchelli (COMPLETE!): The old man raised an eyebrow. "Really? Don't remember? Hurricane obliterating your town doesn't ring a bell?"

Thirteen

In Richard Lobinske's Falling into College series, Daria Morgendorffer met Jane Lane on October 14th, 1996. Happy 13th anniversary!

This is World Standards Day, whose website is not up to standard, at least using Firefox. (Can you spot the errors in the heading?)

And one of the actors who played James Bond turns 82 today. You go, dude.

Haven't figured out what else to add. Got any ideas? Put them in Comments. thx

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• Anti-Trope, by Pinkminx (Part 2): “I’m here to see the principal,” he said. The woman raised a questioning eyebrow and waited for him to continue. “I’m a new student.” He added, having a feeling he’d be using this line more than once during the course of the day.
• Fat Man's Grave, by TAG and Brother Grimace (Part 3): To stand in the entrance to Daria’s Inner Sanctum and gaze upon its eccentric splendor took my breath away. It was a teenage girl’s bedroom, but you wouldn’t have known it. It was a place where the color pink shriveled up and died.
  
• Our Time Now, by Charliefox2012 (Part 3): “Just trying to bring you out of your mood. You’re no fun once you’ve gotten irritated,” Jane said. “I’m fun?” Daria asked feigning surprise. “You know what I mean,” Jane deadpanned. “Meaning you won’t get any,” Daria said, raising an eyebrow.
• Unnamed story (Iron Chef: Stacy's Mom, Where Are You?), by Roentgen (COMPLETE!): Quinn showed up at Stacy's door and tapped her fashionable tennis shoes impatiently. C'mon, Stacy, if I miss a second of Boys 'r' Guys, I'm going to yank out your pigtails. [You are not going to believe this crossover. TAG]
  

Turning Over a New Leif?

Today is Leif Erikson Day, celebrating the first landing of Europeans on North American shores (meaning Newfoundland) just over 1,000 years ago. Leif was a Viking's Viking. Alternate histories sometimes toy with the question of what might have happened if the Vikings had managed to expand their colonies in the New World. It's anyone's guess there. Maybe we'd have the mighty Upchuck of the North or something.

The last known supernova in the Milky Way Galaxy appeared in the sky 405 years ago today. Closer to our own time, Entertainment Weekly named Daria Morgendorffer one of its "cartoon divas" 11 years ago. Daria gained her new status at the same time as did Tinkerbell, Veronica from the Archie comics, and... um... Foghorn Leghorn? WTF?

MTV Animation, which produced Daria and so many other wonders, closed its doors for good eight years ago today. The collage at upper right shows the major MTV cartoons 0f 1996, just before Daria appeared. Rest in peace, MTV Animation, and thank you.

GNUZ ALERT! Quiverwing has just posted the rules for the 2009 Daria Fanworks Awards on PPMB. Read over them now and start picking out your favorites!

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• NEW! The Curse of El Smoocho, by Roentgen (Part 4): Quinn stormed over to the door. "Daria, why do you want to ruin my life?" she yelled. "I'm sorry for lacing my boots in the unapproved 'under' method. With the help of God and family, I can change—"
  
• Detective Stories 4: Fledge, by NightGoblyn (COMPLETE!): Stacy leaned on her cane and, in an effort to distract herself from the constant itching of her right leg, peered over Daria’s shoulder at the computer screen. “What are you working on?”
• Finn Morgendorffer 6: Beautiful, by HolyGrail2007 (Part 3): “I’m fat,” Finn finally moaned. Unlike his normal complaining, Finn now sounded like he was two steps away from crying. “Fat?” Daria thought. She had many choice words to cut her brother down to size. Some curse words, some normal ones, and some Finn would have never heard of. But “fat” was not an insult she reserved for him.
• NEW! Meowlody Powers, by Richard Lobinske (COMPLETE!): The busy crowd and layout of store displays made Meowlody's job difficult as she patrolled the area. Zhreow would come in close, because, like Meowlody, she believed in the personal touch. That would be Meowlody's only chance to stop the assassination, even at the risk of being detected and forever losing her ability to be an agent. (FF.net)
  

"You guys are never going to get any."

Fourteen years ago today, Daria made a guest appearance on Beavis and Butt-head in the episode, "Spare Me." She walks up as the two lamebrains are trying unsuccessfully to fix a flat tire for two young women who have promised to "give them a ride" when they are done. Daria changes the tire herself, with no help from anyone (the jack dent in the car was created by Butt-head, using the jack improperly), then puts all the tools away. Beavis and Butt-head tell her to go away now (thinking they are about to score), but the two young women drive away laughing. Daria looks at the stunned B&B and utters the title quote.

Now, this means that Daria, at age 15 and in ninth grade, not only knows how to perform auto maintenance by herself, but also knows enough about sex and human relationships to make the title quote and know exactly what she's talking about. Hell of a kid, that Daria. This incident is repeated in a different way in a recent fanfic ("It Slipped Through My Hands, Like a Shadow, Like a Dream").

PROBLEM? Speaking of that, I seem to be unable to get into PPMB or my stories at www.theangstguy.com. If you are having the same problem, click here and make a report. Maybe we can get someone to help out. (HELP!) Problem has been resolved. Thank you!

Once the problem is fixed, check out "Daria's Parents: Good or Bad?", new thread sliced away from an older one by Kara Wild. The title explains everything you need to know about the controversy. Weigh in and make your thoughts known.

Today also happens to be the starting day of a very peculiar and amusing crackfic, Bacner's "Diary of a Lawndale Student," from 2002. It is well worth a look. I love it.

N00Z: The original Jane Lane, Anne D. Bernstein, has begun blogging with some of her art and photos again. This pretty well answers the question of what would Jane be doing right now.

Does anyone know of any other active blogs about Daria?

While reading through a post on PPMB, I came across this fan term: FanDumb. Do you think this blog is in any danger of this? I have nothing else to worry about and so thought I might worry about something new for a change. Thank you for your cooperation.

PPMB

• Another Normal Day in Lawndale, by JPAGC (Part 1): As she made her way to the bathroom, she could hear the usual sounds in the house. Her mother was downstairs, already busy with breakfast for the family. She could hear the water running, so her father should be in the shower in her parent's bathroom, preparing for another busy day. No sound emerged from her sister's room, which was just as well.
• Falling Into College 70: Is It The Future, Yet? by Richard Lobinske (Part 2): Hearing the voices, Michael came in from the library, "Hi, Amy. What brings you here?" "Prurient curiosity," she said. "But not about our trip," Daria said. "Come on, give. You're here alone."
• Pigskin Caduceus, by HolyGrail2007 (COMPLETE!): Sentinel University was a pretty fantastic place when I took my trip to see it. Although the skeletal trees didn’t make it look appealing, the fresh snow on the ground with the mountains in the background actually made it look like a nice winter paradise. (FF.net)
  
• Stacy Rowe, Seeker (Part III), by jtranser (continued): "Jane, I don't think I'll ever get used to all the variations of alternate universes. It's one thing to talk about them as abstract possibilities over breakfast and quite another to actually experience them.' 'You just have to hang on for the ride, Daria. As long as you have a firm grip on what's in your universe, you can glide through whatever comes your way." [Continued here with devious future plans afoot!]
  

Next, on MTV....

... nothing.

No one has reported Daria resurfacing on the tube.

Damn.

Got the image at left from an old MTV Daria page through the WayBack Machine. "Try not to get too excited." No problem, dude. Nothing to get excited about.

Okay, time for something less depressing. The fanfic has been pretty good.

Stay tuned.

Is It Back? Is It Back? OMG IT'S BACK!!!

Daria is back on MTV! In reruns, yeah, but still, it's back! (More on this development.) I can't find any other mention of Daria on the MTV schedule pages, but let's hope for the best!

Must fan myself. Mercy sakes alive, never thought we'd see the day.

More later on.

LATER ON: MDetector5 and teh sexay are on PPMB. See Helen as you've never seen her before! Unless you have some weird sex dreams. Also, Reese Kaine has made a very unusual computer movie: Soul Calibur 4: Daria vs Quinn! They fight it out with swords and kicks! And Quinn squeals! It's cool!

The Daria Fandom Drinking Game continues to get the entire fandom wasted.

Dervish has discovered a truly amazing video on YouTube relevant to all of us here. See it before it's gone!

Daria: The Collectable Card Game! More cards than ever before!

More on Sandi Griffin's marriage/dating life.


PPMB

• Don't Bet on It: The Prequel, by Lawndale Lurker (COMPLETE!): Daria's first time with Kevin. Srsly.
  
• Something Is Rotten in the State of Lawndale, by Kristen Bealer (Part 6): Daria briefly considered which would be less enjoyable: spending time with Tweedle-Double-Dee and Tweedle-Double-Dumb or attending the workshop in Oakwood. She mentally declared a tie and decided her sanity depended on her doing neither.
• Tales of the Ringbearers: Temporary Duty, by Richard Lobinske (Part 5): "Sorry, having to probe that deep that many times is hard on a person." [Woo-hoo!]