Banging On A Trash Can

"Dear Journal, It's me. Doug." With this, the beginning of classic 90's nicktoons began. Premiering in 1991, Doug quickly became a fan favorite. Following Doug were nicktoons such as Rugrats, The Ren and Stimpy Show, Rocko's Modern Life and Hey Arnold. Doug remained the best of the bunch though.

What was appealing about Doug was that even though the main characters were kids, they were treated and acted like adults. It focused on real-life situations (for the most part) and was genuine. The series begins with Doug Funnie and his family moving to the town of Bluffington and deals with the life of Doug and his relationships with dog Porkchop, best friend Skeeter, crush Patti, snob Beebe, next door neighbor Mr. Dink, antagonist Roger and many others.

Doug was amusing, smart, and (sometimes) had morals. No matter what else was on, if Doug was on I would have to watch it. With a big bag of Doritos in my lap I could watch it for hours. Even if I had just seen the episode that was on. It didn't matter. It was always entertaining.

The humor could be appreciated by adults as well. As seen by Doug's alter egos:

Quailman - Superman
Durango Doug - Clint Eastwood / John Wayne
Smash Adams - James Bond
Race Canyon - Indiana Jones
The Waffle Stomper - Steven Segal
Jack Bandit - Zorro

These spoofs would not be understood by kids as much as they would be by adults.

For the most part, all nicktoons in the early 90's were great. Doug just happened to be the first and best. Every story was exceptional. If Doug's journal could speak, it would say: "Hey Doug, thanks for filling me with such wonderful tales of mischief, excitement, comedy, and amazement."