Childhood Classics: TV Shows

If you really were pressed to give an answer, would you truly expect a modern day teenager - many of whom are associated with attending rowdy parties (or so the war zone-isque pictures posted on Facebook suggest) and pretend to behave in a similar aura to an adult - to remain on good terms with their inner child? Even I struggle to believe it when I trot like a giddy racehorse down the local high street from time to time on a Saturday afternoon and catch a glimpse of girls my own age chatting and dressing in a manner which would normally be reserved for, well, older people, or university-aged students, at least.

In a manic blur of hectic hormones, first time romances and the typical ups and downs of growing up, teenagers usually distance themselves away from the eager and spot-free children which they once were a mere few years before. Why hold onto a long gone era - one where a trip to the paradise-like park with your mum and dad was the key to unlocking happiness, instead of receiving a friend request from your floppy-haired crush on Twitter - during your life which barely represents the person whom you are now or have yet to become? Besides, everyone always have a couple of memories which they only wish to hide beneath the sofa in the fear of their cooler-than-a-Cornetto friends laughing at their reputation-crushing expense; from chucking my toys out of my parents' bedroom window to nearly flushing my beloved Cheer Bear down the toilet (a highly embarrassing topic of which I wrote in my English essay the other day, strangely enough), I've gained the badge to declare that I've been a victim of embarrassment over the years, especially during a time when red-lipped Bratz dolls were all but playing on my mind and I hadn't gained valuable knowledge regarding the perils of weekend football. 

Yet, between the lines of Smarties-related shame - in my youth (come on, the inch-thick layer of eyeliner ages me by around three decades!), I was considered as a chocolate-devouring badass by helping myself to a few pink Smarties before breakfast was served - and feel-good nostalgia, I can somehow put away my unmentionable moments to one side and be moved by my childish antics, making a dramatic return to a time which I'll forever cherish. Sure, my tastes and interests have undoubtedly morphed into something which once upon a time would have been beyond my wildest and most vivid dreams, but it is as easy as slipping into a well-worn pair of denim jeans when the need to let go of my teenage dilemmas pulls me towards the easiness experienced during childhood - from time to time, falling back to my child-like ways (whilst still applying my eyeliner correctly!) is my secret anecdote to freeing myself of stress and going on a mini holiday within the realms of home. Or television as you'll soon discover... 

Would you go into wide-eyed shock if I told you that television is probably one of my most beloved memories of childhood, deeming it as wasteful space of time instead of getting some fresh air like generations before us? Yeah, there have been moments during myself when a slight tinge of regret has found its way into my conscience and I could've done so much more - such drawing a picture of chestnut-coloured ponies, a long-defunct hobby of mine - instead of flopping myself onto the sofa to watch the latest animated episode of Bratz after skimming through my ever-so-dull maths book, yet the programmes which I used to watch as a youngster are a fantastic representation of my then-interests and who I was as a pink-clothed youngster at the time. 

Even now I still experience a heart-stopping pang of sadness that hardly any of these shows - which I'll discuss in a moment - are no longer broadcast on TV or available to purchase on DVD (without making an expensive visit to the German Amazon website, as I discovered on one occasion), but memories will live forever, especially as they were such happy ones. Let's hope that my newfound fetish for the juicier-than-a-Granny-Smith-apple (surely my IQ ought to take my extensive knowledge of varieties of apples into consideration?) The Vampire Diaries won't diminish the few flashbacks I have left of my cherished childhood programmes...

Kim Possible, Disney, 2002-2007

When I was little, Kim Possible was one of my earliest heroines - strong, feisty and definitely an expert in packing one heck of a powerful punch, she was not only a fantastic character who still found time to go shopping and juggle the daily hassles of teenage life, but a role model upon whom I based myself to a certain extent. 

The show was about a high school student called Kim who can do anything - as her surname suggests - who is best friends with a boy called Ron Stoppable (really, the creators were pushing it a little with the name), and they literally go out of their way to save the world from the shows' main two villains, spikey-haired Dracken and green-tinged Shego. Describing it, Kim Possible sounds pretty farfetched in comparison to countless other shows which share certain similarities, but it was - and probably would still be, if the Disney Channel bothered to stop airing Camp Rock or whatever in place of this every night - a wonderful spectacle in my eyes. 

OK, I was roughly around the age of starting school when Kim Possible appeared on our TV screens and therefore had a decade-long wait until I even came close to morphing into a teenager overnight, but I strongly remember being enthralled with each episode I viewed. A wild mixture of entertainment and a dash of sarcastic humour (redhead Kim was renowned for her temper, in a rather similar manner to my own), it is no wonder that I count it as one of my favourite childhood programmes - at long last, it has been proven that girls like me truly can stand up against the enemies who threaten to destroy our lives, whether they are the most popular clique at school or a manic scientist hell-bent on harming the worlds' unassuming citizens. And never have a single hair out of place!

Recess, Disney, 1997-2003

Back in the late 90s to early noughties, Disney was practically the sole source of good entertainment for young kids such as myself - and Recess, which amusingly showed the lives of six fourth graders (the equivalent to eight and nine year olds), was no exception, an animation of which my younger brother and I continue to discuss and joke about to this day. 

Part of the reason for which I had a special fondness for Recess is that it offered me a glimpse into a school environment, which was a breath of fresh air because I began being educated at home at the age of eight, but it exaggerated the tales of what kids of my age would be getting up to - and, as almost all of the episodes displayed, it was never any good! 

My favourite of the pack of fourth graders - whom, in their way, were the equivalent to the Brat Pack attending elementary school - was a tomboy called Spinelli, whose sarcasm was an early inspiration for me, whilst the leader, nicknamed T.J., reminded me heavily of my brother because of his endless stream of ideas and loveable nature. And who could forget the angry Miss Fincher and her evil accomplice, the school snitch Randall? 

With this show, I've laughed and felt proud for the youngsters who fight for the one thing which everybody is entitled to have - freedom. The school system and jungle kings (well, somebody has to control the large playground might seem a little over the top, but young children - and my imaginative self - don't mind because it puts their dreams into some sort of an animated reality. Need I offer any more reasons? 

Bratz, 2005-2007
Before I even begin my description for this stylin' (no grammatical error there, if you recognize the informal language used by the characters) show, only two words truly define it: guilty pleasure. Unlike Kim Possible and Recess above, I feel slightly embarrassed to be talking about Bratz because it seems a million years ago since I last watched it without my cheeks flaring red, but it definitely counts as a memorable show from my childhood - and how else would I have ever been introduced to the bizarre styles showcased at London Fashion Week?
In case you never got your hands upon the dolls - which, at one point, were the main rivals against the plastic-faced Barbies, creating a legal war between the two manufacturers - the show featured the four original characters called Yasmin (the one with the Cindy Crawford-inspired beauty mark), imaginative blonde Cloe, fashion queen Jade and hip-hop bunny Sasha, who ran their self-titled magazine. However, I far preferred the 'villains' whose fondness of a horrid shade of pink was a running joke for the show's entire run, which featured the Editor-in-Chief of Your Thing magazine (which certainly wasn't mine!) and her two workers, the Tweevils, a.k.a. the two pink-clad twins with a peculiarly evil nature.
Far-fetched doesn't even describe Bratz to the full because every single episode pushed the boundaries to breaking point, but it was a pleasant accompaniment to my then-obsession of collecting the dolls and I was like a dog following a bone whenever my pocket money fund was drained enormously with each constant purchase of the episodes being released on DVD.
Some things are spectacular when the moment is precisely right, and I think that Bratz was suited to that category; in general, I'm just glad that my pocket money is now spent more wisely!