Intellectually Gifted and Morally Bankrupt

Twelve years have passed since "Gifted" premiered on MTV. Daria and Jodie elected not to go to a high-pressure school where they would have to work hard to prepare for college. They would be surrounded by idiots, but they were already surrounded by idiots at Lawndale High, and lazy idiots at that. Lazy was the way to go.

Really great school fanfics like "Regifted" and "The Hallowed Halls of Fielding" make you wonder if Daria and Jodie made the wrong decision. (True, "Grove Hell on Earth" makes you think maybe Daria did the right thing, but still...) I mean, so the two of them would have to be around idiots. They get such a rich exposure to knowledge, how could they think they were making a mistake? They gave up some pressure, but it could have made them shine. Instead, they chose to rust on the heap with the other idiots.

It's a hard call. If they were going to be miserable in school, at least they could have made it worth something. Daria would lose Jane, true, and Jodie would lose Mack. And the series wouldn't be the same. But still...

Enough of that. Back to reality. Happy 12th birthday to "Gifted," which did indeed make us think.

Oddly enough, this is also the 12th anniversary of the last time that one of the oldest Daria fan sites was updated. We pay our respects to alt.lawndale.com and wish it the best.

My favorite quotes from "Gifted":

• "The Telltale Heart? I love romance novels!" (Brittany)
• "It's just a visit, Daria." "That's what they told J.F.K." (Helen and Daria)
• "Sandi has to beat them off with a stick." (Linda. I love that line.)
• "Should I fluff your shoelaces?" (Sam, to Quinn)
• "All right, I'm afraid! There's mass serial puppy killers and stuff. Come on. Please?" (Quinn, to Jane—shame that slash thing never got off the ground)
• "Oh, yeah. Daria's sister. Hey." "Excuse me, I have a name." "Right. Daria's sister." (Trent and Quinn)
• "Take... her... now." (Jane)

Moar on the way.

Intellectually Gifted & Morally Bankrupt

Ten years ago today, "Gifted" first aired on MTV. The episode is reviewed and discussed in a number of places: SSW1, SSW2, OD, and DW. "Gifted" gave us a closer look at Jodie Landon and her family, Grove Hills, Grove Hills' snotty students, Sandi Griffin's mother ("that witch") and siblings, mass serial puppy kickers, and a failed Jane/Quinn ("Take... her... now").

What I thought was nicest about this episode is the AU potential. What if Daria had gone to Grove Hills? What if both Daria and Jodie had gone? The latter option seems more likely if Jane had not been in Lawndale when Daria arrived, but Daria still disliked Grove Hills' students. Why didn't Daria mention that she would not be able to see Jane if she went to Grove Hills? Why didn't Jane mention it? Maybe Daria and Jane already knew Daria wouldn't attend and so weren't worried. Or neither was brave enough to mention it.

Today is also the day when, ten years ago, the fan website alt.lawndale.com was last updated. It was abandoned thereafter. Win some, lose some.

Almost 30,000 hits on this site! Thank you! Come again soon!

Now 860 fans at the Daria Fan Club, plus new quiz questions, and I finally get one wrong. Damn! Some of these are hard!

Three new Iron Chefs on PPMB, having to do with racial issues (from Szcz), religion (from Hazazel), and dating breakups (from Richard Lobinske). Thank you! Much food for creative thought here.

PPMB

• Falling Into College 63: Broken Star, by Richard Lobinske (Part 5): Karen learns the full extent of Derek's injuries, which incidentally sparks a long debate in the thread about the spleen. I like the foreshadowing with Amy and Reese at the start, nice touch. This is a great chapter.

More updates as the day goes by. Stay tuned!