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Recess (TV Series)

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TV Series

The Resume

    (August 31, 1997-November 5, 2001)
    Aired on Disney Channel
    Andrew Lawrence as T.J. Detweiler (Seasons 2-6)
    Ross Malinger as T.J. Detweiler (Season 1)
    Pamela Adlon as Ashley Spinelli
    Rickey D'Shon Collins as Vince LaSalle
    Ashley Johnson as Gretchen Grundler
    Courtland Mead as Gus Griswald
    Jason Davis as Mikey Blumberg
    Dabney Coleman as Principal Prickley
    April Winchell as Miss Muriel P. Finster
    Set at Third Street Elementary School
    Movie is 'Recess: School's Out' (released 2001)
    Premise: Follows the daily misadventures of an eclectic group of fourth-graders on the playground at recess-time

Why Recess (TV Series) might be annoying:

    One word: Randall.
    Its early seasons saw creators flooded with letters from teachers angry over the show's casting faculty as villains.
    The characters were formula stereotypes (Vince the jock, Gretchen the computer geek, Spinelli the tomboy, etc.)
    Aside from the six leads, few of the other kids on the playground had actual names (there was Guru Kid, Hustler Kid, Upside-down Girl, Cornchip Girl, and - wait for it - Swinger Girl).
    Even diehard fans of the show concede that Gus was annoying/useless.
    It aired a disturbing episode where Finster puts T.J. in a solitary confinement box and nearly traumatizes him into submission ('This old man, he played twooo...')
    Principal Prickly's design was modeled after Gene Shalit (and probably Walter Matthau in Dennis the Menace).
    An internet rumor claims Mikey is named after New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg (who assumed office two months after the show ended...)
    There's an episode where the kids get the school to themselves amidst a food poisoning epidemic - and then get quarantined by the CDC trying to fake an illness (which might be the most 2020 thing ever on a kids show).

Why Recess (TV Series) might not be annoying:

    It popularized the sayings 'This whomps!' 'Tender...' and 'Me No Know!'
    Katey Sagal made several guest appearances as Spinelli's mom.
    It paid homage to movies like 2001: Space Odyssey (the SAL 4000) and The Heathers (The Ashleys).
    For a 90s kids cartoon, Miss Groetke was pretty damn woke.
    It comprised ABC/Disney's beloved two-hour One Saturday Morning block which included shows Pepper Ann and Doug.
    It didn't outstay its welcome/Jump the Shark and ended after a respectable six seasons.
    It's the rare cartoon with a theatrical release that advances the show's continuity while actually being a good movie.
    The show's unofficial finale saw the crew face off against a Legion-of-Doom style team of show 'villains' infringing on their turf (even their opening sequence gets hijacked!)
    It succeeded in blending sophisticated satire with kid-friendly humor, tackling topics like capitalism, religious cults, stalking, and just plain childhood curiosity about adults (See: Teachers Lounge and Weekend at Muriel's).

Credit: BoyWiththeGreenHair


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 23 Votes: 26.09% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 189 Votes: 53.97% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 78 Votes: 64.10% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 4 Votes: 0% Annoying