{"id":1161,"date":"2018-08-12T14:29:40","date_gmt":"2018-08-12T21:29:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/popcholent.com\/?p=1161"},"modified":"2018-08-12T15:16:34","modified_gmt":"2018-08-12T22:16:34","slug":"6-reasons-why-rugrats-is-the-most-jewish-cartoon-on-tv","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/popcholent.com\/6-reasons-why-rugrats-is-the-most-jewish-cartoon-on-tv\/","title":{"rendered":"6 ways “Rugrats” celebrated Jewish identity for an entire generation"},"content":{"rendered":"

27 years ago, Nickelodeon premiered an original cartoon with a unique concept: a group of talking babies who went on adventures together and got lost in their imagination.\u00a0Rugrats<\/em> would go on to become one of the most popular shows on Nickelodeon, airing 172 episodes over the course of 13 years, in addition to 3 movies, a comic strip, toys, and even a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.<\/p>\n

The show is special to fans for a variety of reasons, but one thing in particular is its portrayal of Judaism. Co-creator Arlene Klasky\u00a0deemed it essential to include Jewish themes<\/a> in the show, and thus the main character Tommy Pickles became the child of a Jewish mother and a Christian father. While Tommy’s Judaism was never the focus of the show, we saw bits and pieces of Jewish culture seeping throughout its 13-year-run.<\/p>\n

With the news of an upcoming Rugrats revival and live-action movie<\/a>, we want to explore what makes\u00a0Rugrats<\/em> the most Jewish cartoon on television.<\/p>\n

1) The first holiday special\u00a0answers the age-old question: “Why can’t we have cookies on Passover?”<\/h2>\n

“A Rugrats Passover” was Nickelodeon’s first program about the holiday. The episode does an excellent job teaching about Passover, including showing the different steps of the Seder and retelling the story of the Exodus. It’s not perfectly accurate; for example only half the plagues are mentioned, and apparently matzah was invented because Chuckie forgot to add yeast. Nonetheless, “Passover” is a great way to introduce non-Jewish children to the holiday while simultaneously giving young Jewish children an experience they can identify with.ye<\/p>\n

Although a Hebrew school lesson or reading the Haggadah offers more insight into Passover tradition, this episode blends educational material with that familiar Rugrats charm. For instance, Angelica asks her mom why she can’t eat cookies during the holiday. Her mom tells her because they aren’t allowed to have bread, to which Angelica responds, “But there’s no bread in cookies!” in her typical bratty manner. Another example occurs later, as Tommy (playing the role of Moses) explains to Phil and Lil how Passover received its name.\u00a0As the characters in the show learn, so does the audience.<\/p>\n