ARRRRR!!! Another Internet Treasure Horde!

While it's doubtful that many Daria fans get into the collecting of computerized images and such for the fandom, those who do have a treat coming now. It was mentioned here a few days ago that I had found the remnants of an old Daria supersite in French, CyberDaria.com, using the WayBack Machine. The WayBack Machine breaks down almost everything ever published on the Intervet by each item's old web address and by various updates when new material was collected from websites.

I discovered a different way to reword my request for archived information and wound up with lists of stuff from CyberDaria totaling 3,000+ webpages, images, and more. The amount of material that CyberDaria's talented webmistress Karine had stashed away on that site is breathtaking. It is a tragedy that the site was discontinued in 2005. New arrivals to the fandom have no idea of the scope of some of these vanished supersites, and CyberDaria was one of the greatest. Karine had a lot of photos of friends on the site, most of which have been archived, too.

So, let's take a few minutes to see what can be recovered. I was barely able to scratch the surface. Huge numbers of screen captures are available, plus episode scripts, essays on characters, fan art, fanfiction, and a few big surprises. Remember, this is all in French, but don't let that stop you. It's pirate plunder, maties! (Sorry.)

• Splendora, the all-woman rock band that did the Daria theme
• Recipes for food eaten on Daria
• Transcrit chat Daria du 27 août 2000
• Quinn Morgendorffer's room
• NEW! Helen and Jake's Bedroom!
  
• NEW! Dress up Helen and Jake in different outfits from their episodes! This is great!
  
• A fascinating page that describes the unusual changes that Jane Lane's bedroom went through in the series. Some of the images are missing, but the text, if translated, would be extremely curious. Did Jane Lane's room change from season to season as much as the Morgendorffers' home did? Did Jane live in a tesseract, too? Or did she rebuild her room once a year?
• Jane Lane's art gallery. Click on a pic. Smaller version here.
• A webpage on Brittany, interactive style.
• Two cute flash animations of Daria, one having a tropical drink and one freezing her buns off in the snow. What's that? The images are too small? Try this one and this one, then. (Move your cursor over the latter and see what happens.)
• And here's an EXE file I think creates Daria characters for Sims. Not sure yet, I don't play the game. Experiment with this with caution, as the file might be corrupted.
• Pardon me, do you have the time? Here it is. Smaller version here. I must add this feature to the blog!
• The last item created a sensation years ago when it came out. It's a movie about Daria, but no one ever pulled this one off like Karine and CyberDaria did. Click and watch. This reduced some viewers to awe and tears.

Delve into this treasure trove yourself and see what you find. I was stunned. You will be, too.

Oh, and clicking on the images here gives you the BIG version of them. Enjoy.

Let's give a big hand to . . .

Yes, there's Splendora in all their splendor. And their website is still largely intact. Most of the links even work. The WayBack Machine snapshot is from December 6, 1998, but the info therein dates back to early 1997.

How did Splendora get the Daria gig? Check it out.

What's the background of the band and band members? Check it out.

If any Splendora members happen to find this page: Thank You!

An Album Review: Splendora's In the Grass

Some time ago I mentioned that I wanted to buy Splendora's only album and see what the all-girl grunge band's music was like, since I loved the three songs they did for the Daria show and movies. I am happy to report that the album is pretty good, though with a caveat or two.

First, they aren't as polished as, say, the Bangles, but they've got the grunge part down solid. Some of their music reminds me more than a little of Nirvana or Hole (both of which I am a fan), but it is lively and upbeat, and the lyrics tend to stick in your mind ("B-b-b-bee stung lips!"). Oddly, the album sounds a lot better when you play it in your car than it does when you play it on your home stereo system; I have no idea why, but it just goes better with movement.

The "Lawndale Mall" section in the left column has several options for buying a copy of this CD. Mine was only $5.00 and worth it. It has temporarily replaced Tool in my car's CD player. You can almost imagine Daria bobbing her head to this as she does her homework. Give it a shot.

Splendora's only album, beloved of Daria fen

Until a few minutes ago, I was unaware that the all-girl rock group that did the theme music for the Daria show and both movies also released a CD in 1995: In the Grass. Judging from comments left on CDNow.com, that album is very popular with Daria fans who like the catchy music and lyrics.

You learn something new every day. I think I will get a copy of it.

Note: See also their site on Last.fm. I think they took their album's name from the 1961 movie, Splendor in the Grass.

Meet Heather

Buckskin-clad Heather No-Last-Name from "College Bored" is interesting for a number of reasons. She is one of the few characters shown smoking in the series. Her level of cynicism not only matches Daria's but threatens to outdo it. In a way she comes across as a possible future Daria, complaining about the realities of college life and even watching Sick, Sad World on TV. Heather gets other people to write her college papers, but Daria is perfectly willing to "fix" the papers, so neither has the moral upper hand.

The similarities have limits, of course: Daria, a sophomore in high school, is vastly more intelligent and competent than Heather, and she displays a real mercenary streak in rewriting and evaluating papers. The college students who flock to her come across as morons. Still, Heather gives Daria forewarning of the problems inherent in college life, information Daria doubtless files away for future reference.

Heather will certainly remember Daria in a favorable way should they meet each other later in life. The circumstances under which they meet are anyone's guess, more fodder for fanfic writers. Heather might need another favor from that smart girl, or Daria might need a favor from her. In any event, Heather has rarely been seen in fanfic to this point, though she does appear in TLAS.

As a side note, the trip to Middleton was the first time the issue of college was addressed in the series. It returns in "Prize Fighters" and (of course) Is It College Yet? but also shows up in subtler ways. The lyrics to "College Try," Splendora's theme music for IICY?, are written from Daria's viewpoint and reveal a Daria very similar to the one in high school, and in a similar state of self-isolation and stress ("Guess I'm majoring in angst," the lyrics go). And there's the "interview" conducted with Daria on the CBS Early Show in 2002, in which she was asked, "Once you're in college, do you think that you'll find the happiness that has eluded you for, really, all your life?" Daria frowned and replied, "Why do people assume I'm unhappy just because I mope around all the time, saying snide things in a deadpan voice? I find that very judgmental. But in answer to your question: God, I hope so." It is telling that in IICY?, even Quinn has a more optimistic view of college than does Daria, and she tries to cheer up her sister about her college future, saying "You're gonna have friends and everything. I know it sounds hard to believe."

If only there had been another show with Daria at Raft . . . alas.