Les vedettes du dessin animé à la rescousse

I remember seeing this when I was 9-years-old and it blowing my mind- the fact that Alf AND the Muppet Babies AND Slimer would all be hanging out together was a truly amazing event in my life- perhaps THE most important moment of my developmental years.

However, I just recently realized that the show had an anti-drug message! It's subtle, I know, but it's there. My theory now is that all the "Cartoon All Stars" involved were just fulfilling their community service. Remember that time Theodore from "Alvin & The Chipmunks" got loaded and drove that school bus into a sidewalk full of people? Or when Brainy Smurf was indicted for his part in the magic mushrooms ring? Or when Tigger was caught BUI (Bouncing Under the Influence)? This was the result of their collective animated illegalities.

Anyway, my main question is: "How come I liked this so much as a kid but became a marijuana addict in college?"

George C. Scott is one of my heroes. Let me get this out of the way.

I love Bugs and Daffy, as well as Muppet Babies, Garfield, Duck Tales, and ALF.

I respect George Bush, even if he wasn't my favorite president.

I don't actively dislike the Smurfs.

Let me get all of this all out of the way.

Now let me point out that this special is truly one of the most unintentionally hilarious slices of "Reefer Madness"-style anti-drug propaganda pieces ever put to film (or in this case, video). Nice touches include how marijuana turns you into one of the dancers from "Thriller" or how the nightmare sequence inexplicably features Huey, Dewey, and Louie as the primary tormentors of America's drug-addled youth. Also keep an eye out for the pointless voyage through the brain in which a puff on a blunt is interpreted visually as an outtake from Altered States.

It must have been a recurring joke in the animation studio about how the horrors of marijuana, even as depicted, could never compare to the exquisite terror of waking up to see three 4' ducks in beanies, sans pants, cursing your lifestyle choices.

I watched this a week or two ago in RAID(Reduce Abuse in Drugs) Our police officer left us this video to watch. We watch a video every week and this one was SO funny. I was sitting beside my friend, Wenster and we were both laughing together. We were told not to laugh but it was too funny. Of course it was not pointless because it was about drugs, but it was weird. It won't only change my life, but it will change yours as well! Nope. Jokes. But it was quite funny and anything but pointless. Watch this at school and you will be laughing nonstop but also getting the message at the same time. Its good, but stupid.

Check it out.

I am almost 17 years of age, which means, yes, I not only watched this way back when, but I still have it taped. Of course, back then, I didn't care about the anti-drug message, I just cared about seeing all my TV heroes: The Ninja Turtles, Garfield, Kermit, The Chipmunks, etc. Of course, now I actually sort of UNDERSTAND what's going on there. In retrospect, it seems kinda silly that they'd give a big anti-drug message aimed at 4-7 year olds, but they did, and I don't do drugs, so I guess they did something right.

TMNT FOREVER!!!

I was 9 when this aired, and in the habit of watching TV on saturday mornings, so I sure did see it.

And it scared the living crap out of me.

Drugs make your skin turn green and your eyes sink in, and your brain goes all haywire and you'll DIE!! The Muppet Babies said so!

So, to experience the full effect of this movie, be 9 years old. Preferably 9 years old in 1990, or you won't know any of the characters. Alternately, you can appreciate it by just having a really keen sense of pop culture irony.

Fun fact! A whole day of Congress was devoted to talking about this thing. It got gummint funding, so they talked about it, in the context of the drug war. The best statement made in the proceedings (as far as I remember, paraphrasing): "Gentlemen, we have a new weapon in the war on drugs. It is not a some tool or a some other tool or a caterpillar bred to eat cocaine . . . it is a cartoon." I wonder how many congresmen's eyes were rolling.

Anyway, this thing is an amazing artifact. For the then-hip clothing of the kids, for the lingo, for the fact that it's a bunch of cartoon characters telling you that drugs are bad.