Celebrating nearly 30 years of the hit PBS series and its meme status
By Austin Gonzales
Elwood City – After 26 years on the air, the hit animated PBS series “Arthur” aired its final episode in February 2022. For those who never watched the show, it follows the titular aardvark and his friends dealing with problems children often have in day-to-day life. Along with Arthur are his 3rd grade elementary friends – Buster, Muffy, The Brain, Binky and Francine to name a few. For almost three decades we watched Arthur on our TV screens, but how did our first pal manage to last throughout the generations? That’s right, it’s the memes.
Beyond the educational messages were these charming characters brought to life by expressive artists and actors. As “Arthur” may as well be many toddlers’ first television show, it also might be some of their first cognitive memories. Why are so many frames and lines of dialogue from the series so memorable? Well, it’s one of the things we first experienced as children and as we grow up; we may face life struggles that have us looking back to Arthur Read and pals.
The show’s influence is evident in the way today’s generations have recontextualized scenes for satirical observation.
“‘I can’t read’ for a child is quite literal, but for adults it’s an inability to infer that which is metaphorical,” SVSU graduate Grace Mosher tells the Collegiate. “‘Go on the internet and lie’ follows a similar train, with the wild-ass holistic health trends running around.”
You see the memes all over social media shared by adults, teens and (hopefully supervised) children. In response, today’s toddlers addicted to tablets with short-form videos get exposed to “Arthur” via memes. Thanks to said exposure, the quotable lines may get repeated and an interest peaks in one of television’s greatest animated shows.
“Arthur” stayed relevant in our minds for more than just its memes. Our favorite aardvark became a nearly three-decades-long TV mainstay thanks to its spectacular writing, challenging young viewers about daily struggles without talking down to them. The show has covered hard topics like national tragedies, bullying, homework blues, weight gain, friends moving away, seeing teachers outside of school, snow days and cancer.
No matter the problem, Arthur and friends always ended things on a positive note, educating audiences on friendship, values and empathy. All from the show where that big glasses-wearing dork punches his sister in the arm.
