Cartoons – Page 13 – My Geek Wisdom

“I don’t like to smile unless I have a reason.”

From: Daria

Genre: Cartoons, Television

Who said it?: Daria Morgendorffer

The story behind the quote: Daria was one of my favorite cartoon on MTV, back when the channel would actually show some pretty cool and creative programming. Instead of having a perky teenager headline the show, Daria was a pessimistic, intelligent and sarcastic girl who saw the world for what it was. The show was a huge hit for MTV and garnered a loyal following during its run on the network.

The quote comes from the episode entitled Misery Chick. Daria’s parents got their hands on her yearbook photos and comment on why she doesn’t even try to smile in any one of them. Daria replies to them in the only way she can: intelligently and objectively.

Geek wisdom: People have the tendency to tell you how you should react to a certain topic. They’ll tell you that you shouldn’t be upset when something goes wrong. Or they’ll tell you that they just don’t understand why you feel a certain way since they wouldn’t feel that way if the same thing happened to them.No one should tell you how to feel on a certain topic. They have no idea of how it actually feels. How you choose to feel on a certain topic is entirely your own.

When this happens to others, try to understand why they feel that way. Don’t deny them the freedom to act a certain way.

“This one’s for you, Morph!”

From: X-Men (cartoon)

Genre: Cartoons, Television

Who said it?: Wolverine

The story behind the quote: This week’s quote comes from the excellent animated X-Men animated series which ran from 1992 to 1997. The show is based on Marvel comics popular team of mutants. The show did a great job of translating some of the story lines from the comics it was based on, even if it did introduce some new elements…

One such element was the introduction of a character named Morph, who has the mutant ability to shapeshift. It was implied that he was a close friend of Wolverine. Unfortunately, Morph is killed in Episode 2. Wolverine does manage to get some manner of revenge by wrecking a couple of Sentinels. In fact, the quote comes from Wolverine while destroying one of the mutant hunting machines.

Geek wisdom: Just because someone dies, it doesn’t mean that they are gone from our lives. We still have the memories of our times with them. In fact, we can actually gain strength by the severe loss of a loved one. We can honor their memory by going through life and recalling happy memories with our dear departed ones once in a while.

“Worst. Episode. Ever.”

From: The Simpsons

Genre: Cartoons, Television

Who said it?: Comic Book Guy

The story behind the quote: The quote comes from The Simpsons’ very own Jay Albertson. You may not know him by his birth name but you probably know him better as Comic Book Guy, the overweight proprietor of the Android’s Dungeon comic book store.

The quote originally came from the episode “The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show.” As the Itchy & Scratchy showed the episode introducing a new character, Poochie, Comic Book Guy was the first to immediately bash the new character on message boards.

Unfortunately, I can’t find the exact clip on YouTube. However, since the phrase has become Comic Book Guy’s catchphrase, I was able to get this clip…

And, just in case the clip gets yanked off YouTube, here’s a pic of the quote:

Geek wisdom: People have opinions. Some of these opinions will be in direct contrast from your own. You may like a particular television show or episode while the entire world may see things differently and hate it with a passion. These variations can be due to a huge number of reasons.

But it’s not really important to know the reason for these differences. What is important is to know that there are going to be different points of view on the same topic and you’re opinion is as valid as the rest of the world.

“I Knew I Should’ve Taken That Left Turn At Albuquerque!”

From: Looney Tunes

Genre: Cartoons, Television

Who said it?: Bugs Bunny

The story behind the quote: The quote comes from Bugs Bunny, probably one of the most popular animated characters in the world. His popularity and the longevity of the character has made him the default mascot for Warner Bros animated project.

He may be clever enough to outwit red-haired cowboys, bald hunters with a speech impediment and even alien conquerors from the planet Mars. But Bugs Bunny sure has a bad sense of direction! Whenever he travels to far away locations, he burrows through the earth in a attempt to get to his destination. Unfortunately, he keeps on making the same wrong turn in New Mexico…

Geek wisdom: Have you ever gotten lost or gotten so turned around that you have no idea where you are? Or have you ever gone on a trip and then lost your way? The best thing to do in these situations is to just ask for directions. A lot of times, though, we don’t. We try to figure where we are by backtracking. While this may help out sometimes, we do waste a lot of time doing this.

There’s no shame in asking for help when you get lost. If you’re unsure, stop and ask for directions.

“And I for one welcome our new insect overlords…”

From: The Simpsons

Genre: Cartoons, Television

Who said it?: Kent Brockman

The story behind the quote: It’s actually hard to write Geek Wisdom using the Simpsons. Not because there aren’t a lot of quotable lines from the show. Rather, it’s because 20th Century Fox will usually take down a lot of video clips from the show! This is a quote that has been in the making since I started writing this blog but I’ve never really been able to find a good clip or even a picture of the quote… until now!

The quote became popularized in the Simpsons episode “Deep Space Homer” wherein Homer Simpson becomes an astronaut because of NASA’s attempt to bring an “ordinary” man into space for publicity. Unfortunately, Homer accidentally breaks the ant terrarium, causing the ants to float all around the shuttle.

During an interview with news anchorman Kent Brockman, one of the ants float very close to the camera. Kent then concludes that the ants have taken of the shuttle and will be conquering the planet Earth next… so he delivers the quote.

Since I’m pretty sure the clip will be taken out soon (even with the edit), I’ve decided to post a picture of the quote below.

Geek wisdom: A person’s character can only be tested during hard times. And it may actually be surprising how fast your friends and even your family members can turn on you when things start to go south. Your mettle will also be tested during those trying times and you yourself may be shocked how quickly you can betray your family and friends.

A true test of a person’s character is what he’ll do when the odds aren’t in his favor. Like Kent Brockman, he caved when he thought the human race was about to be enslaved. How will you react against those odds?

“Autobots! Transform and roll out!”

From: The Transformers

Genre: Cartoons, Television

Who said it?: Optimus Prime (most of the time)

The story behind the quote: Most people nowadays have, at the least, a passing familiarity of the Transformers series. The cartoon has gone through various revisions and reiterations. But there are two things that have always remained fairly constant: The Autobots are led by the heroic Optimus Prime and Optimus Prime usually delivers the quote as a sort of battlecry before heading towards battle.

It doesn’t matter if the show has them transforming into vehicles, animals or other creatures/things, Optimus Prime will give this order when it’s time for the Autobots to charge into the battle to take on the evil Decepticons led by Megatron.

Geek wisdom: Change is always scary. Whether it’s trying something new or even getting feedback that you need to adjust something about yourself, the idea of change can be hard to swallow. However, sometimes, in order to move on, you have to be willing to transform yourself.

Change is not necessarily a bad thing; it’s just something you’re not used to. You never know if it’s good or bad until you at least try it out.

“Don’t blame me. I voted for Kodos.”

From: The Simpsons

Genre: Cartoons, Television

Who said it?: Homer Simpson

The story behind the quote: The quote comes from The Simpsons’ 7th Treehouse of Horror special. The Treehouse of Horror is the show’s annual Halloween television special where the show spoofs various films and television shows. As such, they don’t fall into the regular “continuity” of the show’s illustrious 25 years of being on the air. One of the mainstays of the Treehouse of Horror specials is the appearance of the aliens Kang and Kodos. While they do appear in the episodes, they mostly are relegated to the background.

However, the segment Citizen Kang, they’re actually the ones that push the story forward. The aliens replace Bill Clinton and Bob Dole and run for the presidency in their place. Even after Homer exposes the aliens’ plot, Kang gets elected as “it’s a two-party system.” While the human race is building a weapon for the aliens, Homer reveals who he voted for.

Geek wisdom: It’s easy to focus blame on someone else. It’s almost instinctive for a lot of people and it’s understandable. No one wants to be the cause or the one at fault for anything bad. But someone has “to take the blame” and most of us are fine as long as it’s not them!

However, this is the wrong way of thinking. We have to own up to our mistakes when we commit them. That’s the only way we’ll learn from them. If we steer blame away from ourselves, the only thing we learn is how to avoid taking responsibility.

“The power is yours!”

From: Captain Planet and the Planeteers

Genre: Television and Cartoons

Who said it?: Captain Planet

The story behind the quote: The quote comes from the animated series, Captain Planet and the Planeteers. It was one of, if not, the first cartoon to feature an environmental superhero. Captain Planet himself is not a person in the traditional sense. He is actually the personification of the four natural elements, Earth, Wind, Fire, Water, as well as the power of caring, which is Heart.

These elements are carried by the Planeteers, four teenagers from different parts of the world. Kwame, from Africa, controls Earth. Linka, from the Soviet Union/Eastern Europe, controls the element of Wind. Wheeler, from the United States, is in charge of the Fire element. Gi, from Asia, manipulates Water. And Ma-Ti, from Brazil, controls Heart. In order to summon Earth’s greatest champion, Kwame, Linka, Wheeler, Gi and Ma-Ti have to combine all of the elements. These elements then form Captain Planet.

Captain Planet usually dispatches the villain for the week and, before splitting up into the elements, he usually tells the Planeteers the quote.

Geek wisdom: The power is indeed yours! We all have the power to make good and bad decisions. Claiming that we weren’t given any options is simply a cop out and shrugging off our our responsibilities of our actions. It is us who decides our fate and how much effort we put into a task and no one else.

“My cabbages!”

From: Avatar: The Last Airbender

Genre: Television and Cartoons

Who said it?: The Cabbage Merchant

The story behind the quote: Now, this is a quote that is fairly recent and wasn’t even given by any of the main characters of the show. In fact, the person who delivers this quote doesn’t even have an official name as far as I know. However, he does say it a lot and I realized there is some wisdom you can get from those two simple words of despair he exclaims often.

The quote comes from Nickelodeon’s animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender. The series tells the story of Aang, the latest Avatar of the world and destined to bring peace and order to it. However, since he is just a child, he runs away because of the pressure of the role and gets encased in ice for a hundred years. That is, until two children from the Water Tribes, siblings Katara and Sokka, release him from his icy tomb. The two help Aang try to fulfill his destiny of mastering bending of all four elements (water, earth, fire and air) while being pursued by the exiled prince of the Fire Nation, Prince Zuko.

Like I said, the quote comes not from any of those characters that I mentioned but from a man simply known as The Cabbage Merchant. He pops in a lot of episodes, trying to sell and trade his produce by something always happens to them, which is why he always delivers the quote out of anguish.

Geek wisdom: Life can be full of misfortune and disappointment. This is displayed very prominently by the cabbage guy from the show as it seems to be whenever he encounters Aang and company, his harvested cabbages get devastated. However, it’s how you persist after these hardships that prove yourself as a person.

While the first series never really showed what happened to the cabbage merchant, the sequel to the series, The Legend of Korra shows that the cabbage vendor created his own company and his son is now prosperous because of it. If he didn’t pick himself up after all of the hardship he went through, the cabbage vendor wouldn’t have been able to build a successful company.

“Life is like a hurricane”

From: Duck Tales

Genre: Television and Cartoons

Who said it?: Opening Song

The story behind the quote: The song comes from the one of the most popular cartoons from the late 80’s, Disney’s Duck Tales. While we were generally familiar with Donald Duck and his animated shorts, Disney decided to put out new 30 minute adventures instead, with more complex storylines as well as more action. During the first episode, it’s explained that Donald will be out sea for an extended period of time (he’s a sailor, remember?) so he will not be able to take care of his nephews Huey, Dewey and Louie. He leaves them in the care of Scrooge McDuck, his uncle and who also happens to be the richest duck in the world.

They all go on fantastic adventures around the world to find new treasures to increase Uncle Scrooge’s wealth. They come across new new friends like Launchpad McQuack, “ace” pilot and come in contact with new memorable foes such as Flintheart Glomgold, the second richest duck in the world who always schemes to eventually surpass Uncle Scrooge in wealth.

The quote, as you all probably know, comes from the extremely catchy theme song of the show, which you can hear below.

Geek wisdom: Life can be hard and unpredictable. It will throw various challenges and difficulties at you during the most unexpected times. The best thing to do is to take on these challenges as they come rather than just complain about them and do nothing about it.

Besides, when you do tackle them and succeed in overcoming your problems, like Uncle Scrooge and his friends, you’ll have your own fantastic tales to tell later!