Jodie da Lawndale

Jodie's being pulled in even more directions than usual today because it's the anniversary of Leonardo da Vinci's birth in 1452. In addition to drawing the Vitruvian Man, which Jodie is being depicted as, da Vinci was a painter, an architect, a sculptor, an engineer, and so much more. If Jodie's parents catch wind of all his extracurricular activities, Jodie will never have a moment's peace.

Fanfic Update!

• Ah, Hell, by metameric1 (parts 26 - 28): "Daria looked around the lovely space that she had called her office sadly. All her books and mementos that were to make the move were packed away safely, a few boxes dropped off at a charity, and a few items had made the trip back to Lawndale with her parents." (Part 27) (Part 28)


• The College Diaries, by CaffeineAddict94 (part 1): "Pepperhill University was ranked at number ten on the list of the best schools in West Virginia, the campus itself both beautiful and historic. While academics were still a main focus, most of the students attended for the wide variety of social opportunities. Included in that number was Quinn Morgendorffer."


• Consequences, by ST91 (part 9): "'You want what?' asked Ms. Li. 'You heard right, Ms. Li. I want my brother off the team.'"


• Doctor Who: Season 8.5 (Chapter 1), by cfardell_Brenorenz29 (part 1): "'Thing is, since I found out that Gallifrey wasn't destroyed, I haven't done anything about it,' the Doctor said."


• Fifteen Years Later, by Meagana (part 2): "Helen was weak, it had been a day since the heart attack, she was lying there, but still on her blackberry, or trying too, she couldn't do much in her current state."


• Unnamed story (Scenes No Daria Fan-Fic Should Have: The Madness Sets In), by Silver (COMPLETE!): "'Quinn Morgendorffer, as author of the essay 'Academic Imprisonment', the High Council of Fashion finds you guilty of unfashionable intellectualism and treason against the ways of Fashion. As such, we strip you of the right to be fashionable. You are now and forever branded heretic, cast out as neither brain nor fashionista. You are, now and for the remaining days of your life, a hipster! Doomed to be too fashionable for intellectualism, but too intelligent for fashion!'"


• Y Esto Es Mystik Spiral II, by taitolin (COMPLETE!): "-pensar que cuando miraba los programas de la tele donde mostraban la vida de los famosos yo pensaba porque no... algun dia... y asi paso mi vida pensando en que algun dia haria algo..."

Jodie Dearest!

Happy birthday to the late Joan Crawford, born on this day in 1908. Jodie's alter ego portrays Crawford's depiction in Mommie Dearest, but I would think she'd be too concerned about getting to her student council meeting on time to worry about wire hangers.

Today is also the anniversary of the first airing of "Monster" in 1998, in which we finally get an answer to the burning question of which is Quinn's best side. As we know, they're both good.

Fanfic Update!

• After the Disaster 2 :: The Invitation, by Fhujeth_x (part 2): "Watching Sandi think this through, Tiffany quickly reflected the situation in her mind. This Quinn girl seemed like a nice person, for the most part. She didn't seem like the rude, snotty type [like Sandi] but she did seem to take center stage without effort, and undeserved power was so weird. Then again, she and Stacy seemed to get along a little bit... 'Hmm..' She said aloud, trying to figure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. 'Quinn...'"


• Armored Cynic Daria, Episode 1: Esteem Rising, by RX-87 (parts 5 and 6): "LI: Patience, Colonel. We're just putting the finishing touches on the Wildhorse and its Eight-Tracker system now. The only problem is finding 'Eighths' with enough power to use it to its full potential. Not to worry, though. We've got some new students coming in today. We're especially optimistic about two of them. Does the name Morgendorffer ring any bells?" (Part 6)


• At the Crossroads...(Chapter 8), by oni (part 2): "The elevator came to a stop once they arrived on the fourth floor. It’s metal doors opened and as soon as the three women got off, they saw Linda storm out of room 403, which is not far from where they were at the elevator. Linda doesn’t say anything to them as she passed them and got into the still open elevator. With the elevator doors closing, the three women look at each other and wonder what just happened. 'And there goes mother of the year,' Jane mumbled to herself as she followed Quinn and Judy into room 403."


• Be Careful What You Wish For, by Doggieboy (part 7): "The redhead had started to say something, but simply closed her mouth and stared at her boyfriend for several seconds. Then she said, 'You’re weird, you know that?' 'I do my best,' he said, and made a half-bow in thanks. 'Think we ought to just "call him up" and stop putting it off?'"


• Clique Swap, by psychotol (part 22): "Scene:Visitor's locker room. Some players are watching their hand move back and forth, one seems to be following an imaginary butterfly, one seems to be reaching off in random directions, one is stood on top of the lockers trying to breathe as close to the ceiling as possible." (Part 23)


• Disconnect the Dots, by InvisibleDan (parts 3 - 5): "As I stood there, taking a swig and listening to the silence of my empty little house, I wondered how the second half of my class would go. I wondered if I would still remember the names of all those kids. I drained the glass and put it down on the counter next to the sink, next to a few other dirty glasses that I really had to wash. Then, with a sigh, I went out the front door and headed back to campus." (Part 4) (Part 5)


• Dylan, by J-D (part 2d): "The security guard took off her cap. 'I'm afraid that name's ticked off. Brittany Booth-Dawe's already gone in to the party.' 'But don't you see! That's her boyfriend! He's brought some other girl in here and used her name! Whoever he took in, her name wasn't Brittany Booth-Dawe!' The security guard drummed her fingers on her clipboard. 'Okay', she said, 'I'm going up to this party with you and we're going to sort this out, see what's really going on.'"


• The Island of Canceled Cartoons (REPOSTED), by Erin M. (part 1): "As the two girls watched, whole sections of Lawndale began to disappear. First the buildings on the edges of town vanished, moving inward and closer to the new beach. Within thirty seconds, the last of the buildings had disappeared. Ten seconds later, Daria and Jane comprehended what they had just witnessed. Lawndale was gone. "


• Memory Lane, by echopapa (part 4): "'This...world. I mean, you've got holographic whozits and talking computers and I'm sure that you've got death rays and flying cars-' 'We do.' 'That's what I mean. What kind of a world is this?'"


• One More Round, by OverlordMikey (COMPLETE!): "I looked over to the guy next to me. He wasn't really big or cute; and yet as his glasses fogged up in the cold winter air I found myself blushing. I'd never really blushed like that before. I never had to do this with any girl I dated. Did I just think of dating?"


• Runaway Daria: Fallout Lawndale Edition (IC Runaway Daria), by Vukodlak (part 3): "Quinn, Jane and Tom all looked at one another sheepishly. 'Well actually,' Tom muttered rubbing the back of his head. 'Joey kinda grabbed Daria's chest.' Jane added shifting her feet and gesturing to the girl in question. 'Then she kicked their Asses.' Quinn cheered shadow boxing the air"


• Sandi :: Well... This Sucks :: Chapter 12, by Fhujeth_x (COMPLETE!): "'What happened?' She wanted to know if her teacher would be giving a ride home, or would she really have to walk home dressed like... this. 'Remember?' He laughed, 'Goalpost in Tommy Sherman's honour. That's what.' Grinning he thought she was talking about him, 'Took his life but didn't take his--' 'I mean with Ms. Barch!!' She shouted, standing up, 'Like I care about some washed up jock who died my Freshman year.'" (Part 4)


• Sandi :: Well... This Sucks :: Chapter 13, by Fhujeth_x (part 1): "After finally making it home, Sandi Griffin opened the door and immediately started to head for the bathroom. She had to wash up - she didn't even want her mom to see her. Hell, she didn't even want her brothers or father to see her, and her brothers rolled around in dirt at least once a week. Exasperated, she looked up the stairs, it seemed quiet enough in the house - no one would catch her entering and then when she was clean she'd go and--"


• Smijey and Sandi do Text Messages, by Fhujeth_x (part 1): "Smijey: In West Bloomfield, born and raised being fashionable is how I spent most of my days."


• To Annoy a Mockingbird. Chapter 05, by BF110C4 (part 3): "'Very good, Daria. The mall is a very beautiful illustration of all these economic principles. In fact, it would make for an excellent field trip.' 'All right! Field trip!' Kevin is someone simple, so simple things like doing something new provoke enthusiasm on him, at least until he finds himself bored again. He leans over to Daria to ask her something that may or may not be important. 'Where are we going, man?' 'The field.' Daria was already starting her now standard procedure of transcribing the delusions of the teachers whenever they are about to abuse her words, like right now."


• Unnamed story (Definitive List of Cliched Dialogue), by NightGoblyn (COMPLETE!): "Daria slammed her locker closed, turned, and almost ran into someone who was hovering annoyingly close; brown hair, denim jacket, yellow t-shirt, tight jeans, and a smoothly handsome face lifted right out of a teen drama. Her eyes narrowed as she recognized him - one of the boys that was always hanging around her sister. She took a half-step back and then started to walk around him."


• Unnamed story (Iron Chef: Getting Ready for the End of the World), by LongSnakeMoan (COMPLETE!): "Something inside of him that had been building between them finally snapped. It was now or never. 'Cut the crap, JANET. You and I have known each other LONG enough to carry or with this CHARADE anymore.'"


• Unnamed story (Iron Chef: I Met Myself on the Way to the Town Square ...), by NightGoblyn (COMPLETE!): "Stacy blinked, her mouth working against the hand as she tried to plead for her life. Some girl, who looked exactly like her, was holding her down and glaring hatefully at her. This was a Stacy that didn't look nervous at all . . . probably didn't even know what nervous felt like. Stacy stopped trying to talk, now only emitting a high pitched whine. omgomgomg pod people are real omgomgomg"


• Weapons Check (Iron Chef: Getting Ready for the End of the World), by Brother Grimace (COMPLETE!): "'Hey.' 'Hey.' 'Got them?' 'Oh, yeah. The guy didn't even blink when I put the boxes on the counter - figured that with the trip to State, we'd be 'celebrating' or 'consoling someone'.'"

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.

A Party Day If There Ever Was One

Today is Juneteenth, a holiday celebrated across much of the United States that has also spread beyond our borders to the rest of the world.

It began in 1865 in Galveston, Texas, when a Union Army general announced the end of slavery to the city's population. (Texans at the time did not want to end slavery and had held on to the practice until after the end of the Civil War.) Joyful celebrations were the order of the day thereafter, and the year after that, and so on. Daria and Quinn were likely familiar with the holiday from their time in Highland, Texas.

Today also marks the birthdays of two famous animated characters: the Tasmanian Devil (who turns 56) and Garfield the Cat (who is 32). Congratulations to both, but I still like Jane Lane better. Much better.

NuZ!

• J-D asks, "What is the origin of the use of the expression 'Partners In Crime' for Daria and Jane?" Offer your answer, if you know one.

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• Daria/Dorian, by LadieT (continued): Jane sat in the booth next to Tom. She hadn't planned on seeing him that day. As she slowly ate her slice, Tom looked over at her with concern. He placed his arm around her. "What's wrong? Are you still upset about Daria leaving? You said you've spoken to her, so you know she's all right. Christmas break will be here before you know it." He gave her a little squeeze. Jane heard nothing of what Tom had said. She was lost in her thoughts of Dorian holding her Sunday night. It was a lot different than the rough embrace Tom currently had her in. She lifted his arm up from around her. She thanked him for the slice and left. Tom sat in the booth wondering what he had done wrong.
• Finn Morgendorffer 50: Matters of State, by HolyGrail2007 (Part 3): The entire week passed slowly for Daria, not that she was complaining. Thanks to this State championship game, Finn wasn’t home for very much, and when he was, he usually took a shower and went straight to bed. He didn’t even need to be spoken too. Her mother had already informed her of their trip to Baltimore this weekend to watch the game, and that Daria was welcome to attend. Helen would pick her up from work and they would go to Baltimore together, and then, they would return home on Sunday morning. Daria had declined to attend, and she knew her mother would not force her. Still, Helen glared at her with a scowl every time the two locked eyes. Daria wasn’t going to be convinced to attend, however. She had no compelling need to go.
• Grove Hell on Earth, by Charles RB (Part 2): Mr Chen, the overly enthusiastic History teacher, nodded his head off. “Very good, Ms Morgendorffer! Perfect answer.” Daria punched the air. “Daaa, daaaa, dan-dah-dah, danananana daaa-nah dah.” She hadn’t meant to do that. “I... well, the praise is well deserved, Ms. Morgendorffer!” Chen hadn’t recovered well. He knew she hadn’t deliberately decided to celebrate a right answer with the chord from Black Sabbath's "Iron Man." He knew she knew he knew, right? Wrong? People had to be noticing. “Thanks, sir.” (FF.net)
  
• NEW! Judith Strikes!/Tales of the Ringbearers: The Gift of the Ringwraiths, by Brother Grimace (COMPLETE!): “You are one sick woman,” Ian Lloyd chuckled, as Anastasia Rowe used her telekinesis to pull a clump of earth from the lawn, transforming it into ambrosia—the psychoactive substance that could be turned into any imaginable form of food—and then, transforming the ambrosia into a thick, rich barbecue sauce that poured slowly over the smoldering corpse, covering it thoroughly.
  
• The Soft Glow of Spring, by Brian Taylor (COMPLETE!): "Hey, Daria?" Monitoring technician Daria Jakobivna Mitrofonov swore under her breath. "Tell me, Konstantin," she said, not bothering to look up from the radiation read-outs she was copying down onto a clipboard. "What's it like knowing that the Gardener of Human Happiness would have plucked your family's line like a weed if he were still among us?" Konstantin stared at her blankly. "I don't know what that means," he finally said. "Of course you don't." She sighed and finished scratching down the radiation output of Unit 3 before looking up to greet the oaf. "What do you need, Konstantin?"
• NEW! Unnamed story (Scenes no Daria fanfic should have: Ouch Time), by Derek (COMPLETE!): In the frozen land of Nador, they were forced to eat Lady Quinn's suitors... (Daria/Monty Python and the Holy Grail)
  

Happy Birthday, Quinn! (Now you know where your tax dollars just went.)

Richard Lobinske's Falling Into College series places today as Quinn's 27th or so birthday today, a secret revealed in "A Daze at the Races."

This is also National Tax Day in the United States and its territories. Either way, Quinn or the government, someone's going to get all your money.

Today being the 558th birthday of the Renaissance genius Leonardo da Vinci, we again post the famous alter ego of Jodie Landon as da Vinci's "The Vitruvian Man." Clicking on the last link here shows the original drawing from which this picture is taken, and explains what the drawing really means. It's more complicated than I'd thought.

More tomorrow, tired now. Zzzzz....

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• Finn Morgendorffer 42: The Suburban Symphony, by HolyGrail2007 (Part 5): “What happened? You seemed burned out at work.” “It... it was nothing. Nazi Michael found my screwdriver and now I got fired. Fun.” “Lindy, you were drinking on the job?” “You should know, you’re the one who told him I was.” (NEW! Part 6 here!)
  
• I Just Don’t Get You, by Disco316 (COMPLETE!): Quinn hesitated, and then blurted, “I don’t get you.” Jane, thrown by this statement, could only manage a confused, “Oh?” “Are you mad?” asked Quinn. “NO!” said Jane, perhaps too quickly, before adding, “I mean, no, of course not.” “Good,” replied Quinn, “because I want to like you, but I just don’t get where you’re coming from.” (Daria/MST3K)
• Into the Fray, by Minx (Part 9): Quinn leaned forward and peered through the tiny crack in the door. She could see the two men standing on the front porch facing each other; she could just make out their conversation. “There’s no one here, just bags by the look of it. I think—” Walker’s voice was cut off by the sounds of shouted male voices and a volley of gunfire. “They’re down the road. They must have jumped the fences!”
  
• NEW! Into the Fray, by Minx (Part 8): The usual variety of knickknacks were strewn across the drawers; a jewelery box, old photos, a large ornate lamp. They could have been in any house in America. Jane opened the jewelery box and picked up a golden earring, as she did so a chill ran up her spine and she quickly dropped it and shut the lid. Jane was thankful when she heard the water stop, as the door opened she quickly ran in and shut the door.
• NEW! Some unnamed concept that I will name later, by SigDiff (Part 1): Jane shrugged. “I've never been in the city before. Got sick of seeing nothing but the green world, so I came here.” “And a strong sense of curiosity, even at this age. Usually the world beats it out of them by now.” Jane was clearly being judged, much to her displeasure. “Quinn,” the figure continued, “I think we could really use her.” Although she'd never heard it before, Jane didn't like the idea of being used. “I thought you'd say that,” Quinn commented. “I'm okay with it.”
  
• Springtime for Scarlett the Fairy, by Aloysius (COMPLETE!): You do not ever want to hear a fairy after she has pricked her finger on a needle. Talk about coloring the air blue. That brings up a question I’ve always had, and you should be curious about it, as well. What color is a choking Smurf?
• Unnamed story (Scenes That Should Be: Breakfast of Zombie Champions), by Roentgen (COMPLETE!): "I thought this was a horrible nightmare. But it was wrong. It's a horrible nightmare that I can't wake up from. You and your god-damned Jell-O shots." "Shut up. You were right in there with me."

Never to Be

"Partner's Complaint" first aired ten years ago today, kicking off the fourth season of Daria. In retrospect this episode was a sad one. It became clear that things between Daria and Jane would never be the same, but that was unavoidable, too. They had to grow up and find other people sometime. It was sad for me, too, that Daria and Jodie were clearly never going to connect as real friends. Jodie was a hard-core go-getter, the distillation of type-A Helen Morgendorffer, and Daria was a depressed slacker with brains but no drive, and no desire to get any drive. Daria did not come off looking well at all. I'm not sure anyone came out looking good. Life is like that, I guess.

Funny, I was thinking that seeing Daria and Jodie try to work together reminded me a lot of Daria interacting with her mother. A lot of the same dynamics, the Irresistable Force and the Immovable Object.

Your opinions? What are your thoughts about "Partner's Complaint"? Ignoring Tom, that is.

The Wind Cries Jimi

Jimi Hendrix, the greatest electric guitar player who ever lived in real history or any dimension or alternate universe, was born this day 67 years ago. The MTV staff must have been fans of his, because they created not one but two alter egos for him, one with Jodie (a post-episode a.e.) and one with Jake (from the computer game Daria's Inferno). Long live THE MAN!

Minor Note: Jimi Hendrix was left-handed. Jake's image should be flopped to be correct.

Trent Lane is a fan of The Man, and the date is even celebrated in the CD-ROM accessory, Daria's Sick, Sad Life Planner (below). Thanks to Pinhead for the alter ego at left!

Is it true that Hendrix once set his guitar on fire? You be the judge. Could he really play guitar with his teeth? Again, you decide. Was he the greatest guitar player ever? No question. Sit back and dig it.

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• Reaped Out 2: Sickle Sad World, by Pinkminx (Part 11): “Of course I’m dead, I’m not an idiot and I’m not blind. You think I didn’t notice all the chaos?” Sandi waved an arm at the crowd that had gathered around her body. “Then why are you yelling and shouting?” Daria asked. “Like duh, I’m trying to find my guardian angel.”
  

Faster Food Day!

Today is National Fast Food Day, though you could say that every day is National Fast Food Day. Daria's close personal friend, Butt-head, offers advice regarding this event from his job at Burger World in Highland, Texas.

Today is also the UN's International Day for Tolerance, when we put aside our differences with the bigoted morons of the world and try not to hit them with crowbars. I wouldn't want to be this teen at Holiday Island High. Jodie Landon has an important thought for the cynical among us at this special time.

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• Unforgettable, by Raskolnikov (COMPLETE!): Once upon a time… there was a kid who didn’t believe in love. Well, not exactly. He didn’t believe in true love. He saw around him, and all he saw was men and women getting tired of their couples after two, five, ten years of living together, and he thought, what’s the point of bonding?
  

Joma, and other things retrieved from the bottomless depths of Archive.org

Once again I've been playing with the Wayback Machine at Archive.org, looking up the bits and pieces (and sometimes whole webpages) of MTV Daria websites long past. Tonight I've been fooling with items from the year 2000, and the picture at left is one of many images labeled "joma." Joma is short for Jodie-Mack, sort of like Bennifer or Brangela. (Remember them?) Now you know a new word, courtesy of the Daria show. Are you pro-Joma (in favor of Jodie/Mack 'shippers) or anti-Joma?

The Wayback Machine digs up the wildest things, let me tell you. At upper right we have Space Jane, "Coming June." (Probably her own webpage was supposed to be ready in June 2000.) We also have a photo of a voice actor, not sure which one, doing his part of the show's dialogue.

And at left is a group of buttons leading from Jane's webpage to pictures, sound clips, etc. Doesn't work now.

Moar l8r as I keep digging. I am NEVER going to run out of images for this blog, let me tell you. And you can use them, too. They're MTV's, not mine. Enjoy.

The Duo That Was Not to Be

What if Daria had been about Daria Morgendorffer and her best friend, Jodie Landon, and they had been transferred from a regular high school to a private prep school called Grove Hills? Interesting take on the old formula. "Gifted" aired for the first time 11 years ago today.

ADDED NOTE: Ajar is writing a story very similar to the above, called "Regifted." My fault for not mentioning it earlier. It is excellent and entirely worth your time to read. Enjoy.

Today is the 89 anniversary of Ray Harryhausen's birthday. If you don't know who he is, that is sad. There's an MTV alter ego of Helen Morgendorffer as one of his creations, the snake-haired Medusa from Clash of the Titans. I got to see the master of stop-motion animation a few years ago at a fan convention, and it was awesome.

Oh, today is also the 53rd birthday of the Interstate system! Hooray! And this is post #1,200 of the blog.

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• [fill in this space before posting]
• [better yet, just wait until Tuesday and do it so there's a lot of fanfiction to list, again]
• [yeah, that's the ticket]
  

Juneteenth & Other Things That Happened Today

Today is Juneteenth, a holiday that resulted from a delayed communication about the results of the end of the American Civil War. Never trust bureaucracy to deliver a critical message on time. To note this event, we have Jodie Landon and Michael Mackenzie from a very early MTV Daria webpage, dated October 15, 1997. The quotes at right were from the same page. Celebrate the goodness in your own way.

This is also the 193rd anniversary of a very strange battle that took place in what is now Canada. I don't usually like to go into military stuff here, but this 1816 tidbit is an exception. The Battle of Seven Oaks is the only known major conflict to have been fought, not between rival nations or political groups, but between rival business corporations. Both of them were British, too. (If you can find another such conflict, let me know.) The link explains all. And we thought businesses today played hardball. This is such an intriguing historical footnote, you wonder how it could be used in an alternate history story. That would be cool.

Question: Would any character from Daria celebrate Juneteenth or acknowledge it in some way? If Jodie did, I think it would be through some organization and she would treat it as just another thing her dad was making her do to look like Supergirl. Mack would do it if his family had a tradition of celebrating the day, especially if his ancestors had been slaves before the Civil War. Mack would enjoy the day. Jodie would not.

Random Thought: Mack's last name, Mackenzie, is Scottish in origin. Many Scots migrated to the North American colonies before the American Revolution, but many of those later migrated to what became Canada because they were Loyalists. How did Mack's paternal line get that name? There was a white U.S. Army officer named Mackenzie who commanded an African-American unit after the Civil War; he figures in Texas history, curiously, opening a Juneteenth connection of sorts. There was also a British general named Mackenzie who became governor of Barbados and ended slavery there. Fun speculation.

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• Action Stories 3: Two Knights Defense, by NightGoblyn (Part 6): AP parked the van, looked up at the building he’d parked near, looked down at the tracker, then back up at the building, and then frowned deeply. “Maverick, that’s the Gotham City Federal Building,” Lynn said. “Then Ronnie is visiting the Feds. Don’t we work for the Feds? Are you and I not, in fact, Federales?”
  
• Regifted, by Ajar (Part 5): Marina woke from a particularly bad trip that morning. The hallucinations that resulted from using a psychoactive drug, and the escapism that went with it, was an unwanted side effect of sensory enhancement, or so she told herself. Unfortunately, her emotions tended to project themselves onto her environment. It's going to take a lot to get back to my proper state of mind, Marina thought to herself. It in fact took a pot of coffee, two egg whites and a couple of uppers for her permanent smile to return.
• Tales of the Ringbearers: Camping, by Brother Grimace (COMPLETE!): "You know, I'm so glad that the Ringmasters added a couple of minor mods to the transfiguration ability," Jane Lane said, looking off in the distance at Mount Covenant as he stood on the plateau of the Devil's Tower. "Makes camping on top of a mountain easier."

Partner Acquisition

Jodie finds herself in Robo-Brittany's visual crosshairs when a school project is due and a new partner is needed, in "Partner's Complaint," the first fourth-season episode. It premiered nine years ago today. Daria sure is a touchy one in this story, isn't she? Not nice at all.

I seem to recall (perhaps wrongly) that the pseudo-RoboCop scene inspired a story in which Brittany is a robot, but I forgot everything else about it. Oh, well.

The episode had a curious effect on one Daria fan, Daniel Suni, who wrote the following story after watching "Partner's Complaint." It was his last fanfic, I believe. I've heard that fans came and went throughout the seasons, sometimes directly as a result of a particular episode. Anyone have a story about that, a personal experience or remembrance of an episode that ended a fan's fixation?

Latest DariaWiki page: Heartbeat in Iambic, by Dennis. (Great story, too.)


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• Acts of Cupidity, by Disco316 (Part 3): Quinn Morgendorffer walked down the stairs, dressed to the nines. She greeted each of the boys before her. “Hi Joey, Jeffy, Jermaine.” Jamie White frowned. “It’s Jamie!”

Minority Report

One of the little curios about Lawndale High was that it was long rumored in the fandom to have a low number of minority students. The principal is nonwhite, of course, as are some of the teachers, per the strike scenes in "Lucky Strike," but a headcount of faces in the episodes does indicate LHS is a mostly white institution. (We know more about racial issues at the school than religious ones, about which we know nothing at all.)

The official MTV Daria site once had a webpage devoted to Lawndale High's history, which was finally recovered by WayBack Machine and can be viewed here. Indeed, the page says: "LHS has a diverse student body of 1400, with an ethnic balance reflecting Lawndale's proud tradition of multiculturalism (we'd rather not give hard numbers)." Touchy on the issue, perhaps? It is worth noting that Ms. Li has a Buddha statue in her office, but I don't think anyone seriously believes she has any connection to Buddhism beyond dusting the figurine.

Other "official" information on the condition of minority students at LHS can be found in the episodes "Gifted," "I Loathe a Parade," "Prize Fighters," and Is It College Yet? Most of this comes either from Jodie Landon's grousing about having to live up to her father's impossible demands on her as a black student, or from her arguments with her father (Andrew) over school choice. Some relevant remarks follow. (All hail Outpost Daria as the source!)


"Gifted"

• Helen: "Well, there's not a lot of... diversity at Lawndale. A few people can be narrow-minded and not always accept—right away—people from different backgrounds."
• Jodie: "At home, I'm Jodie. I can say or do whatever feels right. But at school, I'm the Queen of the Negroes. The perfect African-American teen. The role model for all of the other African-American teens at Lawndale. Oops! Where'd they go? Believe me, I'd like to be more like you [Daria]."

"I Loathe a Parade"

• Jodie: "Isn't it great how they keep electing us Homecoming King and Queen every year?" Mack: "Yes, it's such a generous and enlightened gesture. It completely makes up for the town's utter lack of diversity, in my mind." Jodie: "And we're playing into it." Mack: "Damn college applications." Jodie: "This is so humiliating."
• [Later] Jodie: "Oh, what the hell. We may be tokens, but we're damn good-looking ones."

"Prize Fighters"

• Daria: "They [Wizard Foundation] haven't promoted a woman or a minority in three years." Andrew: "So? Who better to win the prize than a brilliant young woman? Especially, if it turns out to be a brilliant young black woman." Jodie: "That is a good point." Daria: "I thought you wouldn't want anything to do with Wizard, once you found out." Jodie: "Trying to reduce the competition by getting me to drop out, huh?" Daria: "No. I thought we'd both drop out." Andrew: "And who will win the scholarship then?" Daria: "Huh?" Andrew: "Wizard's policies have been prehistoric, yeah. But someone, somewhere in the organization, is trying to address that. Or, they wouldn't have created this prize. Now, do you walk away because the guy at the top is an idiot, or do you join the people trying to change the way he does business?" Daria: "How do I know they're not just trying to make him look good, without changing anything at all?" Andrew: "They won't change anything at all, if kids like you two don't push your way onto their radar and show them the error of their ways. If you don't go up to the gate and ring the big bell, they've kept you out without having to do a thing. Ring the big bell, Daria! Ring the big bell!"

Is It College Yet?

• Jodie: "You know, my grandmother was in the first Turner graduating class to admit women. I'd be carrying on a tradition. Plus, I'd finally get a break from having to be the perfect Jodie doll at a mostly white school." Mack: "I hear that."
• Andrew: "You want to go to college to relax? That doesn't sound like my Honor Society daughter." Jodie: "Relax socially. Stop being the black kid, and just being a kid. I'm tired of being in the extreme minority, and I don't want to go to a place where people might think I got in just because I'm African-American."

The impression is that minority students are worn out with the issue of being minorities and have become cynical about it. They just want to be able to forget about it and be who they are, be a part of the whole crowd. What is interesting is that the only kind of minority at LHS that has any voice is that of the black students. What about the other minorities? Nothing. Not many Native Americans, I guess.

There is another problem with this thinking, however. It is a reasonable assumption that Jodie, Mack, and other minority students have met bigoted persons in the school before and might meet them still on a daily basis, but no trace of such hatred can be found in the series. In fact, given the vast array of awards and achievements Jodie has gathered at LHS, one wonders if racial prejudice has had any impact on her life at all. Her father's pressure on her to succeed is the major source of her daily stress. Why did the writers shy away from this topic? Too difficult to find humor about it? That would be a first.

The most outrageous display of mass hatred expressed by Lawndale residents, in fact, is against penguins ("I Loathe a Parade"). However, I have already addressed the penguin snuff-porn issue and will move on with this topic.

Few Daria fanfics have dealt with diversity and prejudice. The better and more interesting ones I've read that have struggled with these issues include (with apologies to those I missed):

• "It's All About Repect," by Brother Grimace (note Kyle Armalin's musings in particular on racial issues)
• "Primarily Color," by Kara Wild (Driven Wild Universe, has some startling moments as racial and religious issues are brought to the surface at school)
• "Life's Meandering," by Yui Daoren (the Morgendorffers move to New Mexico, and Daria becomes a target of prejudice from a few Hispanic students)
  
• "Ngiynah Mihalev," by The Eighth Guardian (the Morgendorffers' Jewish heritage becomes known and antisemitism rears its head)
  
• "Anywhere but Here," by MMan (AU tale touching briefly on minority issues that came out differently in another world and time)

What is more often seen than conflicts with prejudice in Daria fanfiction is instead the kind of all-accepting attitude that the minority students in the canon series say they want. Jodie, Mack, and Kyle Armalin are little hampered by racism, if at all. The Morgendorffers, who are sometimes assumed to be Jewish despite the Christmas tree in their garage, do not have crosses burned on their lawn. (Same for Tiffany Blum-Deckler, also assumed to be Jewish because of her name.) The extreme seems to have been reached in The Sidhe's The Other Side of Time series, in which an AU Confederacy (in touch with Lawndale) achieves independence and emancipates its slaves, offering them full civil liberties. The major Southern figures in the Civil War who interact with Daria and Jane (and Kyle) display no iota of racial prejudice. I confess I balk at that, being from a border state that had mixed sympathies and being well aware of hidden biases, but weirder stuff has been written. Who am I to throw pebbles?

The fact is, none of us like prejudice. I would go so far as to say that there's an unspoken conspiracy among fanfic writers to keep some of the really ugly parts of human existence away from our beloved Lawndale. (Not all the time, mind you, but most of the time.) Nonetheless, stories that handle prejudice, whether they end happily or not, are keying into a topic that was integral to Daria from the beginning. People are different, and some people are kind of funny about that. It is an intriguing source of writing material. It would, however, be interesting to hear from someone other than Jodie, Andrew, and Mack on the topic. Maybe one or more of the Backgrounders or other original characters will one day tell their tales.

Hint, hint.


PPMB

• Legion of Lawndale Heroes Special: Tokusatsu Team Up! by Lorenzo Sauchelli (Part 1): Facing a fellow Planeswalker was indeed a difficult task. Especially considering they couldn’t be killed by the regular methods, such as decapitation or even disintegration. Even so, they had both been severely weakened by one another in their latest encounter. “Okay, Daria, you need to focus. Where is she going next?”
• Turnabout Confusion Part II: All The King's Horses, by Dennis (continued): Daria decided that she didn't like covert operations about the same time her boot started to chafe. She was normally a pretty good walker, but she didn't appreciate the need to walk almost all the way back to 1111, only to duck quickly down a side street and head back to the other side of town. She had no one to blame but herself, so she gritted her teeth and soldiered on.

Caption Contest!

Superfan UU was kind enough to send this image to me, showing Jodie signing Brittany's yearbook in Is It Fall Yet? Your mission: tell us in the Comments section what Jodie wrote!

'Cuse Me, While I Kiss the Sky

Master guitarist, singer, and songwriter Jimi Hendrix was born 66 years ago today. Jodie Landon at left does her impersonation of him when he set his guitar on fire during a concert in London on March 31, 1967, and became immortal. We can be thankful for the music he gave us. He was The Man.

The alter ego of Jodie first appeared at the end of the episode "Antisocial Climbers."

Stan, one of the prisoners in "Speedtrapped," claimed to have known Hendrix. Hendrix could play guitar with his teeth, and Stan said he once drove Jimi to the dentist. Trent himself said of Hendrix: click here. In fanfic, several very familiar characters nearly met Hendrix at Woodstock '69.

Peace, y'all. Oh, but before I go:

PPMB

• Dancing with the Devil by the Pale Moonlight, by Lorenzo Sauchelli (teaser): No man knows till he has suffered from the night how sweet and dear to his heart and eye the morning can be. —Jonathan Harker.
• Shadow of a Cynic, by Ranger Thorne (continued): Daria goes on a run in the night and meets a mysterious stranger. (Chapter 6 is completed, more to come!)
• Southern Thanksgiving, by Legendeld (COMPLETE!): “Hi Mom, Dad.” She waved at the camera. Helen Morgendorffer waved back. “Happy Thanksgiving Quinn, where’s Danielle?”
• Thanksgiving Lesson, by Legendeld (COMPLETE!): This would be so cool, zombies overrunning the whole planet. She thought then a second more practical thought loomed. Then I’ll starve. Without school, I’d be in real trouble.
• Welcome Back, Daria, by Napalm Kracken (Part 2): It's girls' basketball night, and the old gang is still around. (Helen is dating WHO?)
  

Juggling Things

Odds and ends...

The image of Jodie at right is one of a surprising number of circus-type alter egos at the MTV website. The artists must have played around with a theme there.

Dr. Mike wants some feedback about what should be done with a domain he has: daria.be (Belgium). Anyone have ideas? Post to his blog at the link.

On PPMB, Legendeld brought up a curious trial going on in Britain about a man being charged with writing obscenity, when he wrote a real-person fanfic (with some sex in it, I would guess). Interesting. Wouldn't hurt to follow that news.

A woman in Japan was also arrested for "killing" a fictional character, and you will have to read the whole story to understand what went on. I believe she was really arrested for illegal computer use (hacking), but there will be more on that story, I am sure. Can we be imprisoned for killing imaginary people? That trial in Britain makes me wonder. Oh, what the heck. Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!

Oh, and I saw that today is like the 50th anniversary of the creation of the Smurfs. I... don't think we need to celebrate that, although there have been Daria/Smurf crossovers. Pass.

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!

Happy Birthday, Library of Congress

Two hundred eight years ago today, the Library of Congress was established by President Adams. The original library was destroyed during the War of 1812, but it was restored when President Jefferson sold his enormous personal library to the government as a replacement. This is probably where Amy Barksdale does her research for the CIA, though she would have better spent her time researching the drawbacks of boob reduction. Too late now.

Today is also supposed to be the 3,193rd anniversary of the day the Trojan horse entered Troy (heh heh heh I said entered heh heh heh), and it is also Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day, which I am sure Daria and Quinn worked very hard every year to avoid unless the alternative (school) was too dreadful. Did any of the students in Daria want to be with their parents at work? Well, Kevin, maybe. ("I'll be out back practicing football throws!")

Actually, a fanfic about Helen and Jake taking the girls (one each) to their jobs for a day would be pretty damn funny. Anyone want to try this?

Jodie Landon in "The da Vinci Code"

Today being the 556th birthday of the Renaissance genius Leonardo da Vinci, we will repeat (with minor modification) one alter ego shown some weeks ago in his memory: Jodie Landon as a part of the sketch, "The Vitruvian Man." Clicking on the last link will show the original drawing from which this picture is taken, as well as explain what the drawing really means. It's more complicated than I'd thought.



LATE NOTE: My computer is being upgraded, so I'm having to borrow computers all over. Hope to do a fanfic update tomorrow or Thursday. Sorry for the delays.

March Madness Marches Madly

Jodie scores from the free-throw line as we look at new and interesting developments in fanfic writing and other non-sports.

PPMB

• Avalon, by legendeld (Part 2): As Quinn's power develops, she makes a few shocking discoveries.
• Falling Into College 61: Latitudes, by Richard Lobinske (Part 20): Quinn learns of Q's disturbing obsession, and Karen offers to get medieval on her waiter's butt.
• Stacy Rowe, Seeker (Part II), by jtranser (continued): Why Brittany has a perfectly reasonable and understandable urge to get medieval on Kevin's butt the moment she finds him. *

* Contains mature content. Brace yourself.