Hello, Stranger: How As Told By Ginger Handled Abandonment

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  • เผยแพร่เมื่อ 29 มิ.ย. 2023
  • I'm finally back with a new video, where we take a look at one of my favorite episodes of As Told By Ginger and I share a related story from my own life. I promise the next video will be much more upbeat, but I had to make this one first.
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    hi, i'm kiki. i use they/them pronouns. i make nostalgia and cartoon based video essays and play music. i try to nurture my inner child's interests while viewing these topics under the lens of modern adulthood. i hope my videos make you feel less alone and help you find joy in little everyday things.
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ความคิดเห็น • 357

  • @offbeatkiki
    @offbeatkiki  ปีที่แล้ว +275

    I never could have imagined the response to this video. I'm giving you all a big group hug right now. This comment section is the most beautiful and painful one I've ever seen. Thank you for being here.

  • @BoxOKittens
    @BoxOKittens ปีที่แล้ว +1072

    Lois sending Ginger flowers but pretending they're from the dad always gets me emotional. It's also both sweet and sad that Ginger immediately knew they were from her mom instead.

    • @ChrissaTodd
      @ChrissaTodd ปีที่แล้ว +93

      yeah it shows lois does want ginger to have a relationship with him though it shows maybe even if he was flakey with lois which is my guess given he is flakey in the episode, she still wants her kids to choose how they feel. lois is such a good mom in the series.

    • @missmarie_8790
      @missmarie_8790 ปีที่แล้ว +14

      Same, the fact that she knew he wasn’t going to be there, but she wanted her daughter to feel supported

    • @magicalmomo9987
      @magicalmomo9987 ปีที่แล้ว +8

      I appreciated that scene as a kid but I appreciate it even more now as an adult because my mom is my rock. She even gave me flowers after one of my school programs in middle school to congratulate me. Stuff I wish my dad had done for me too. To this day I adore Lois 💕

    • @missmarie_8790
      @missmarie_8790 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      @@magicalmomo9987 same, she reminds me a lot of my mom, which always made me love Lois a lot.

    • @julijakeit
      @julijakeit ปีที่แล้ว +1

      I don't know if I saw this episode, I may have... I may have cried through entirety of it.

  • @JustinW332
    @JustinW332 ปีที่แล้ว +851

    When I was a kid my favorite shows were this and Pepper Ann because I saw myself in the main characters even though I was a boy. Mostly because of the family dynamics depicted. That was my life. I didn't have both parents in the home and it was nice to see shows depicting healthy single parent families like mine.

    • @j.a.4315
      @j.a.4315 ปีที่แล้ว +35

      I agree. A lot of kids movies had something like a single parent and it's almost implied that the missing parent is dead. But I loved the depiction of split households, and of some of the harder feelings that come along with things like that because that was my childhood

    • @ZeranZeran
      @ZeranZeran 8 หลายเดือนก่อน

      Dude, same here. It was really comforting and made an impact on me.

  • @Akursedtime
    @Akursedtime ปีที่แล้ว +40

    The fact Carl despises his dad and wants nothing to do with him while Ginger yearns for a relationship is such a realisitic depiction of two different perspectives. I also enjoyed that Carl actually liked his stepdad more because it means he knows he won't abandon his mom.

    • @Yezel93
      @Yezel93 7 หลายเดือนก่อน +5

      Poor Carl use to wish to Santa Claus that his dad would come for the holidays.

  • @filetofish7688
    @filetofish7688 ปีที่แล้ว +372

    That poem and the scene where Gingers father doesn’t show up hit me hard knowing that my father will never fully support me throughout my lifetime. I used to yearn to reconnect like Ginger did with her father but there’s some boundaries that I need to put in place to protect myself from his influence. Thank you for this video.

  • @chickenismyhero
    @chickenismyhero ปีที่แล้ว +478

    An astoundingly large number of my childhood friends had absent, dead, or bad fathers so we came up with what we called The Sad Dads Club. I'm sorry you're also a part of our club. Thank you to all the Lois Foutleys of the world. My mom was a nurse just like her and I make sure I wish her a happy mothers AND fathers day since she fulfilled so many roles across the board for us kids

    • @oooh19
      @oooh19 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Well if they’re dead that’s not their fault really

    • @alize0623
      @alize0623 ปีที่แล้ว +19

      Reminds me of my brothers and sisters. Our dad died 12 years ago so we have what we dubbed “The Dead Dad Society” and we call our meetups that. It’s a joke amongst us but our dad would’ve found it hilarious.

    • @preachingsarcasm2213
      @preachingsarcasm2213 ปีที่แล้ว +18

      ​@@oooh19they aren't saying it's their fault. But it is still sad and leaves a void for the kid

    • @NotAMuse
      @NotAMuse ปีที่แล้ว +4

      I always felt like the odd kid out cause my dad was my rock. My mom was there but she was the workaholic, narcissistic perfectionistic parent who only acknowledged me when it was convenient to brag about me to other people. Mother’s Day was always hard because I couldn’t pick any of the cards because none of them were true. I always cried when people talked about their moms’s relationship because I didn’t know what that was like. Sister from another mister. ❤

    • @canaisyoung3601
      @canaisyoung3601 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      The Sad Dads Club feels like a YA novel for boys that should have been written a long time ago. Maybe it can still be done.

  • @Lboogie0711
    @Lboogie0711 ปีที่แล้ว +392

    Dealing with abandonment issues is a very important subject, lots of times most kids don’t even get any messages from their parent who abandons them. Carl and ginger both have different perspectives about their dad. I liked this episode

    • @Sandman2007
      @Sandman2007 9 หลายเดือนก่อน

      Carl has the more realistic approach. Take everything with a grain of salt.

  • @SoulSlugArts
    @SoulSlugArts ปีที่แล้ว +77

    I wrote a poem
    Hello stranger
    I'm hurting a lot
    Your illness of mind and words cut deep to my heart
    Hello stranger
    You didn't mean it but
    It still hurts, I'm recovering slowly
    Learning to accept the hurt
    Hello stranger
    Through we aren't far apart
    I'm tired of carrying your broken heart
    I have been struck in this home
    Full of yelling and quiet
    I wish you would talk but I can't force it
    I'm just your child and I don't want to more
    I'm not a therapist I'm just a kid
    In need of help and relevance
    It's going be hard but I'm going okay
    I hope you become okay too someday

    • @canutellwhosthis
      @canutellwhosthis 10 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

      Funny I wrote a letter to my mother and threw it in a river. I did this because she left me with my father when I was ten and then moved from Michigan (where I live) to Arizona. I posted in another comment that I relate to billy from stranger things. I get too attached to women who say they are "proud of me" now lol

  • @nickjames8377
    @nickjames8377 ปีที่แล้ว +269

    Damn I've had to live with an absentee dad all my life and your poem really touched my soul. You've truly inspired

  • @SamRabbitx
    @SamRabbitx ปีที่แล้ว +60

    This hits different for me. My dad wasnt around when I was growing up but thats because, i found out as an adult, my mom purposely made it hard for him to be in our life and repeatedly lied about their divorce and many aspects of him as a person. He and I really connected, ironically, because of my own divorce. He and I have a lot in common. The "stranger" was my mom and the fake persona she created for my dad to make herself look like a victim. I got to see him for a month every summer until i started high school and he went to Iraq. Growing up and having parents can be a real bitch sometimes.

    • @CaulkMongler
      @CaulkMongler ปีที่แล้ว +6

      That’s gotta be hard. I’m glad your dad was able to find a reason to continue on, but it must’ve hurt knowing his child/ren must’ve thought he was the scum of the earth and there was nothing he could do but wait and see if they’d reach out. Hopefully y’all are making up for lost time.

  • @LisaNaniOfficial
    @LisaNaniOfficial ปีที่แล้ว +33

    Lois is 10000% the best cartoon mom. I've yet to see another who matches her level of class, wisdom and kindness

    • @Yezel93
      @Yezel93 7 หลายเดือนก่อน

      Linda from Bob’s burgers

  • @icedragonaftermath
    @icedragonaftermath ปีที่แล้ว +178

    Always loved this show growing up, it really shared a place with Hey Arnold in my heart, both as a Nicktoon but also a fairly grounded and relatable cartoon show that handled nuanced topics well. Really helped you think and feel about stuff. Top tier.

    • @grimsonforce7504
      @grimsonforce7504 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      I agree so many deep shows that didn't shy away from tough subjects. Glad I grew up when I did.

    • @jalapeno1119
      @jalapeno1119 ปีที่แล้ว +6

      As Told By Ginger is like the suburban equivalent to the urban Hey Arnold

  • @spookypineapple
    @spookypineapple ปีที่แล้ว +13

    Jesus Christ I'm a father to a little girl now and I couldn't imagine not being in her life. That poem absolutely broke me. What a great show.

  • @Vasileva85
    @Vasileva85 ปีที่แล้ว +76

    My father beat me when I was four (1989) and I never seen him again, parents divorced and he never so much as paid a dime of child support or sent a letter.
    As an adult he tried to reconnect through a sob story that I knew was a lie. It was difficult keeping my anger down as I told him that he was a stranger and I wanted nothing to do with him. He had no interest in apologizing for everything I had to endure due to his absence.
    He passed away in 2013 and I didn’t feel guilt, we don’t owe our parents anything.

    • @tictac9229
      @tictac9229 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      I owe mine a lot

    • @LvUhcX
      @LvUhcX ปีที่แล้ว +3

      ❤ 👏

    • @iateyursandwiches
      @iateyursandwiches ปีที่แล้ว +2

      I mean..that's true you don't owe him anything and you don't have to be put up with him just cause he's your dad. But I do think its important to forgive others because ultimately it frees you and makes you feel better.
      Idk, I'm just skeptical of people being able to live their best life of acceptance and love if they harbor spite/grudges, especially when it's your own family.

    • @crishnaholmes7730
      @crishnaholmes7730 10 หลายเดือนก่อน

      @@iateyursandwicheswhy is that

    • @user-dl8rt4rt6u
      @user-dl8rt4rt6u 9 หลายเดือนก่อน +7

      @@iateyursandwiches I know you mean well, friend. But it's really tacky to tell other people to forgive. That's their own process and feelings.

  • @ToonrificTariq
    @ToonrificTariq ปีที่แล้ว +134

    Top five Keeks videos ever.
    The way you were able to articulate the intensity of this cartoon while also being incredibly vulnerable, raw and emotion, it’s to be studied. You did a great job on this one and I can’t believe I get to call you my best friend lol.
    I am because you are.
    Love ya. 💜

  • @claref86
    @claref86 ปีที่แล้ว +10

    This really hits home. As a child of an absentee father, It just makes me remember how much my dad missed my life or even if he really cares now.

    • @offbeatkiki
      @offbeatkiki  ปีที่แล้ว +4

      It's ultimately his loss. I know it feels the reverse most of the time but it doesn't reflect poorly on us and we will move on and grow to become exactly who we're meant to be. He just won't see it. Big hugs.

  • @vale.v0id
    @vale.v0id ปีที่แล้ว +43

    I don't really remember this episode, but I do remember future episodes when the dad comes back, Carl rejects him and Ginger tries to reconnect. I remember feeling a lot of empathy toward Ginger because her relationship with her dad was very similar to the one me and my brother have with our dad. The way this series dealt with abandonement, breakups, body changes, peer pressure, etc. was incredible. I love this show I'd love to watch it again.

  • @mkaay2
    @mkaay2 ปีที่แล้ว +15

    Father issues are the biggest traumas of all, and I, too, suffered during that time in adolescence with daddy abandonment.

    • @canutellwhosthis
      @canutellwhosthis 10 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

      What about mother issues? Some mothers move to Arizona.

  • @MJ-98
    @MJ-98 ปีที่แล้ว +207

    As a fellow victim, so to speak, of shitty dad syndrome, this video made me cry. Your poem was beautiful. Thank you for sharing it and your views on this show.

    • @eddi5344
      @eddi5344 10 หลายเดือนก่อน

      the poem was wrote by ginger in the show

    • @Sandman2007
      @Sandman2007 9 หลายเดือนก่อน

      @@eddi5344a victim 😅

  • @DarkEclipse23
    @DarkEclipse23 ปีที่แล้ว +12

    This, Rocket Power, and Rugrats surprisingly did a bang up job about single parent kids. When it’s either having to deal with remarrying or just not having one. I mean the worst of it is just hearing Chuckie question “why don’t I gots a mommy?” Which is why the 2nd movie is both heartbreaking and heartwarming because that’s essentially the focus of the plot. Both reeling in of not having one, but also happy because he feels lucky (for once in his life) because he says “Now I gots two mommy’s”.

  • @kameyoedwards88
    @kameyoedwards88 ปีที่แล้ว +11

    People really don't understand how seeing yourself in a cartoon can ease so much unknown trauma. I always saw myself as hey Arnold because my parents had both died and I had lived with my grandparents. They were so many days where I was just like Arnold wondering what my parents could be doing now with me if they weren't gone. Just knowing that another character felt like that ease that shame and guilt that I had inside myself. Don't stop doing what you're doing because you're changing lives.

  • @itstheverve
    @itstheverve ปีที่แล้ว +6

    there was something so satisfying about watching her pen move across her diary page. in love w her vibe 💕

  • @MissJasmine305
    @MissJasmine305 ปีที่แล้ว +41

    ATBG was so important to me as a kid and it's episodes like this that made it so important. I was a lot like Ginger as a kid and had a very similar family situation. My dad was a lot like Jonas Foutley, making promises he couldn't keep and reaching out only occasionally (and a lot of times only due to feeling guilty for being gone). In fact me & my little brother had almost the exact same reactions to our dad as Ginger & Carl did towards theirs. Being able to see a family of characters so similar to me and my family made me feel better. Like I wasn't alone.
    Also def agree about Lois being one of the best cartoon moms in animation history. 👍

  • @bleaf_
    @bleaf_ ปีที่แล้ว +10

    I think this show spoke to me without me even knowing it was just because Ginger was a sensitive passionate soul like I was. And despite having both parents married, I would have given anything just to have one parent as supportive as hers. I felt like I was being abandoned every single day I got inside the car after school and got met with what I can only describe as pure disdain, for my decisions, my hobbies, my performance as a student, my personality, my everything. No, I wasn't left without food or shelter, but I did not receive support or understanding of any kind. Meanwhile Ginger gets to navigate the ordeal of growing up with support and understanding, and Carl gets to be Carl without judgement. Sure, his mom may not get him, but she lets him be himself. Ginger didn't have a perfect life but she got to be herself, and I think that spoke to me without me even realizing. Also I just found the show very charming. Thanks for this video, I loved it.

  • @skyliner114
    @skyliner114 ปีที่แล้ว +18

    word! beautiful sentiment. i always thought my dad was a Jonas but it was my mother barring him from my life. i fell on hard times and moved in with him & his family as a 28 year old and i'm getting to know him finally. it's weird. unfortunately this came at the cost of my relationship with my mother, who turned out to be severely unhinged.

  • @ToxicSoupMan
    @ToxicSoupMan ปีที่แล้ว +26

    Hearing about all your guy's experience makes my parent's divorce hurt a little less now. Neither parent was an absentee, but for a few years we, my siblings and i, were used as leverage against each parent, held over each others heads constantly with court battles and custody hearings. It took me so long to realize i never really recovered from that trauma or that it was traumatic to begin with up until recently. I now live with my father helping him get by because despite everything that happened with us as children, despite how they used us, their kids, as weapons against each other, they both just wanted us because they loved us and refused a life without us present. My dads done somw stupid things, yes, but i feel like now that im older, i can finally understand why, even if i cant agree with it personally, he believed he was doing the right thing, my mom, too.

  • @lesteryaytrippy7282
    @lesteryaytrippy7282 ปีที่แล้ว +8

    Let me just say this series holds up to this day, especially its art style and animation! It's so weird and kooky but full of shape language on each character!
    A lot of adult genre animation's art are also weird but just so ugly.
    As Told By Ginger is so beautiful!!

  • @midsummerdream2957
    @midsummerdream2957 ปีที่แล้ว +9

    It's so rare that I see ATBG talked about, and it was pivotal to my middle school and early high school years. I related so much to Ginger, and it was the first show I felt actually related to my life and experiences.

  • @sonnysumo8172
    @sonnysumo8172 ปีที่แล้ว +29

    Beautifully written script and poem Kiki. It just goes to show that you can’t push aside the real hardships kids face in cartoons made for them. Showing them and how to confront and process them in a smart way can really help your audience transition into adulthood in a more healthy way.

  • @liannadunten7326
    @liannadunten7326 ปีที่แล้ว +7

    I am 100% on board with a series of As Told by Ginger analyses. This is one of the most brilliant shows ever made for children and it kills me that it's faded to obscurity.

  • @kaitlyn__L
    @kaitlyn__L ปีที่แล้ว +31

    I can relate a lot to the second half of this video, and I’m not ashamed to say it made me cry.
    I especially relate to the bittersweet way that kids’ media can remind one of previously-buried memories, or of childhood rites of passage one was denied. Reparenting oneself is a heck of an ordeal.
    The poem was wonderful by the way, it sucks that I can say similar things. About boundaries ignored, a desire to leave them behind completely, the strange feeling when it’s been a decade-plus since you last had to talk with them.
    I’ve never seen this show, always wanted to but I don’t think it was shown on free-to-air TV in the UK. I remember catching snippets at my friends who had satellite places. I really need to watch this show. I’ve been going through some kids’ shows from my past and also some more recent ones over the past few years, some for the first time and some I haven’t seen since they were new. This has definitely been added to the list, it sounds like it handles sensitive topics and character growth basically like King of the Hill.

  • @MicWellz
    @MicWellz ปีที่แล้ว +6

    As told by ginger was one of my favorite shows as a kid. I don’t know many other ppl that love it like I do. But it will always have a special place in my heart

  • @ImYourCherryBomb
    @ImYourCherryBomb ปีที่แล้ว +3

    My birth mother abandoned me at a park when I was 6-7 because her new boyfriend didn’t want a kid around.
    My birth dad, when given the choice between raising me with his moms help or going with my birth mom, chose my birth mom.
    My birth dad never bothered with me again, which I recently found out my birth mom has been stalking me, both online and in real life for years.
    I get the pain, even if sometimes I forget it’s there.

    • @onionbubs386
      @onionbubs386 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      That's horrible, I'm so sorry your parents failed you. You did nothing wrong. I hope your heart can find peace.

    • @ImYourCherryBomb
      @ImYourCherryBomb ปีที่แล้ว +3

      @@onionbubs386 thank you

    • @AGolfHitter
      @AGolfHitter ปีที่แล้ว +2

      You need to move away asap.

    • @ImYourCherryBomb
      @ImYourCherryBomb ปีที่แล้ว +4

      @@AGolfHitter luckily it seems she lost me after I changed apartments, now her current address is on the other side of the country, thank flipping god.
      I do plan on legally changing my name this year though, which will hopefully make it harder for her. I’d like to get a restraining order but since she hasn’t tried to make contact in like 7 years ad has just followed me like a creep, I doubt the courts will help.

  • @squidward645
    @squidward645 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I only met my father 1 time when I was 13, I'm going to be 33 soon. This show resonated with me a lot when I was a kid.

  • @Miles-ud6rh
    @Miles-ud6rh ปีที่แล้ว +5

    I cried at this episode. It hits way to close to home. Louis was the best mom on television for this.

  • @theamazingdoubleA
    @theamazingdoubleA ปีที่แล้ว +11

    Dang crying on a Sunday. This video was really close to home. This episode used to make my mom and I sooooo sad but it also turned it into a show we could watch together to help understand what we were BOTH going through. Cant image it's easy to be the parent that stays either. So I just really resonated with this video. Thanks for this.

  • @emilysmith2965
    @emilysmith2965 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    “He’s not a bad person, but he may not change.”
    Exactly how it feels to have absent or emotionally unavailable parents. You don’t get what you need, they might say that they’re trying, but they just never had it to give in the first place.

  • @laurisawitch0707
    @laurisawitch0707 ปีที่แล้ว +6

    My dad wasn't around and he would come around sporadically. I remember some amount of emptiness and heartbreak feeling like he would come around becuase sometimes he did and sometimes he didnt. My dad has untreated mental illness and a heroin addiction. I don't necessarily see him as a father, hes more of an older brother. A child who had a child, and had no clue how to be a parent, but at least had the grace to excuse himself instead of being a toxic force in most of my life. I hope he changes for himself, but he also without family support from my grandparents or aunts or uncles he has little to no reason to even try.

  • @mck1632
    @mck1632 ปีที่แล้ว +8

    Your poem made me cry. My dad shot himself when I was 8. And he caused a lot of trouble before that. Thank you for your work, and for tackling this subject especially.

    • @user-dl8rt4rt6u
      @user-dl8rt4rt6u 9 หลายเดือนก่อน +2

      I'm so sorry.

    • @mck1632
      @mck1632 9 หลายเดือนก่อน

      Thank you. It's okay. It's been a long time.@@user-dl8rt4rt6u

  • @SwiftNipples
    @SwiftNipples ปีที่แล้ว +10

    I haven't rewatched As Told by Ginger in a long time, but if is a show that I always remember loving because of how different it felt from its contemporaries. It had an emotional weight to it, in part because it took on more difficult subjects with a serious tone. Hey Arnold is the only other animated kids show I can think of that took that appraoch. ATBG deserved a better run than it got.
    This was a beautiful essay. If I were to rewatch ATBG now, I would relate far more with Ginger's and Carl's experiences with their father than I did when it first aired. I went back-and-forth between the desire for and rejection of reconciliation for years. This episode in particular feels painfully familar. I remember performing at middle and high school band concerts hoping that my dad would show up. I really appreciate your willingness to be vulnerable and share your experiences with us in these video essays.

  • @furonguy42
    @furonguy42 ปีที่แล้ว +43

    I'm always so grateful when you share your more personal connections with the media you talk about. There's no obligation to do that, and I know that if I were making video essays, I couldn't bring myself to share many of my similar experiences. It takes a lot of confidence, bravery and trust to be so open with your audience. I watch a lot of video essayists, but you're the only one that helps me feel 'seen' in terms of my real life struggles. Thank you.

  • @racquelrobinson3030
    @racquelrobinson3030 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I was scrolling on my FYP and I saw this video. I genuinely enjoyed the show. I couldn't grow up with it, but I watched it when I was in my late teens. I also have abandonment issues. So I clicked on your video. I wanted good background noise as I did something. Then I just started to cry. I recently started therapy and can never really talk about my dad because my defense mechanism of laughing gets triggered. For the first time in a long time I truly decided to feel the hurt and it was so sudden but good. I remembered the situations I got myself into as a result of my dad not being around and what I did for love and such bad lapse in judgement.Second guessing if I'm good enough and if I'm always the problem in any sort of relationship. Thank you more than you could know for this video. I'm going to rewatch ATBG. Ut was in fact a great show.

    • @offbeatkiki
      @offbeatkiki  ปีที่แล้ว +1

      I'm so glad this video could be as cathartic for you as it was for me. Big hugs.

  • @NeriSiren
    @NeriSiren ปีที่แล้ว +8

    That was a fantastic poem! Much more edge than Ginger’s, since your relationship with your dad is different than Ginger’s turned out to be with hers. It’s almost like if her story had gone differently, your version of “Hello, Stranger” could’ve been how *she* rewrote hers in a later season. Also, the picture of you with the box of BloPens is SUCH NeriSiren (me!) In The 90s vibes and I love it.

  • @MadMadamGrimm
    @MadMadamGrimm ปีที่แล้ว +2

    I felt this episode so hard. I had one card from my dad that was sent to me on my first birthday. It wasn’t even signed Dad either. I finally met him and I wasn’t impressed. Mom was more of a dad than him. Eventually I got a Step Dad who’s awesome!

  • @style.exe.
    @style.exe. ปีที่แล้ว +13

    clicked immediately lmao, definitely an underrated gem

  • @Texas113
    @Texas113 8 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

    That poem that you wrote at the end was beautiful, and I’m very glad that you took the time to talk about this episode of as told by ginger and the impact that the whole show had on you ❤❤

  • @RainbowJemHxC
    @RainbowJemHxC ปีที่แล้ว +35

    I want to say please create more. And truth be told your puss in boots video really helped me. I love watching new videos and you opening up or even taking a selfie gave me a push. Thanks to you I feel less alone and more confident with myself.
    I want to say thank you and I appreciate everything you have done in my life. I hope to create art like you. One that moves people and makes people feel. Please keep being you and never stop creating. Your art is just amazing.

  • @MustacheDuctTape
    @MustacheDuctTape ปีที่แล้ว +5

    Ginger really hit something in my soul back in the day, and I think looking back on it now, understanding all my own trauma and abuse, it makes...sense why I felt kinship with her in the show. Thank you for reminding me of this episode, and for your poem. I'm also in the same boat, and in my case my dad is thankfully passed. Your poem and conviction in the video as a whole really held my emotions and tugged at my tear ducts. Thank you, exponentially thank you.

  • @yowaikemen
    @yowaikemen ปีที่แล้ว +3

    I loved this series as a child.

  • @ThePurringNinja
    @ThePurringNinja ปีที่แล้ว +2

    As Told By Ginger was one favorite shows growing up. I would be glued to the TV every time it came on, it such an interesting show. Ginger and Carl's mom is an incredible mother, she's so patient, understanding and kind towards children and always shows how much she loves them with all her heart and cares about their needs and wants. She can be a little clueless sometimes, but she always knows how make her kids feel better even when she doesn't fully understand what they're going through. Ginger's poem is heart wrenching and I just feel so bad for her. Her father really didn't care to be a father at all with Ginger or Carl. I haven't watched the show since I was a kid, but I still remember this show fondly.

  • @Y2Kikii
    @Y2Kikii ปีที่แล้ว +3

    I only kinda half watched As Told By Ginger as a kid but now looking back I really did have a lot in common with ginger. I too had a very estranged relationship with my dad. And my mom too would sign things as my dad, like presents.
    It's really nice to be able to see the reality of family dynamics like this in cartoons.

  • @GranTorieno
    @GranTorieno ปีที่แล้ว +12

    Starting a much needed break from work with this on a Friday night. Yessssss omg welcome back, bless you for your gift of creativity and sharing it with the world!

  • @onionbubs386
    @onionbubs386 ปีที่แล้ว +5

    Far too many dads out there are like this, and yet many people blame single mothers for "driving them away" when in reality, so many of these single mothers are practically begging their children's father to have some form of involvement in their children's lives, and get nothing in return. I'm fortunate enough to have a great father, but my husband wasn't so lucky. In the eight years we've known each other, I have never met his dad. And we intend to keep it that way. He wasn't invited to or even informed of our wedding, and when we have kids, he'll have no involvement in their lives. You can't walk out on your kids for several years and then try to come back and act like nothing ever happened without even bothering to apologize. Every now and then he'll call to ask for money, but he always gets hung up on. If our kids ever ask about him, we're telling them his name is pendejo, because it might as well be.

  • @flutistmom
    @flutistmom ปีที่แล้ว +1

    The episode that sticks out the most is when Ginger wants to shave her legs really badly to fit in because another one of her classmates started shaving. She ends up only shaving a little bit of her leg and feels comfortable doing that instead of doing her entire legs. It was relatable to me at the time as I was just about to start shaving.
    I vaguely remember the episode because of the hospital and the art fair. This show was one of my favs as a kid

  • @NoParkingBerry
    @NoParkingBerry ปีที่แล้ว +6

    Five years ago, I discovered you through your great retrospective of this underrated Nicktoon. Five years later, you made a wise decision to revisit "As Told by Ginger", specifically with a review of my personal favorite episode on top of that! Not only is it enlightening to hear you praise this beautiful, relatable episode, but it was just as sweet hearing how much "Ginger" made such a huge impact on you, both as a person and content creator. Also, your new spin on the titular poem of "Hello Stranger" was awesome!

  • @SpoonDono
    @SpoonDono ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Thank you Kiki. As Told by Ginger always resonated with me for all of the different facets they contributed to life.
    My parents never divorced, but there are times where I don't feel like I have a father. It feels like I have a jealous sibling clawing at my ankles some of the time, and like I have a very depressed grandfather the other times. I care for him a lot and always hope he moves past this. He's almost 70. So's my mom. She's not perfect either, but I've seen her far more often as a mother. There are times where she leans on me very hard for emotional support regarding issues with my dad...since I was a preteen. And other times where she had to understand my emotions instead of just being here for me, instead of just being visibly confused. I have more hope for her happiness as I think she'd be willing to see a therapist and not lie about her life.
    We get to a point where we realize our parents are not perfect. They're flawed just like us. And we want to go through life not making those same mistakes. And we want to go through life not 'messing up' our own kids as much, if we want children. We don't want to 'mess up' any one else's children either.
    The children's television that showcase real issues, even if the universe is complete fantasy, can help so many children. Teenagers. Adults. They can have a similar model for their own lives or someone else's life. It encourages working through really tough stuff. I'm glad to still see some programming like this exists and is being made today.

  • @snbsixteen6stars201
    @snbsixteen6stars201 ปีที่แล้ว +5

    you did an amazing job at residing the poem of ginger, this series is still my number one favorite series

  • @TheLyricalWrdsmth
    @TheLyricalWrdsmth ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I remember seeing this episode when I was a kid and I think that was when I really started to process my own parents' divorce. The show made me so thankful to have a father who refused to give up on the relationship he had with me despite losing the he had with my mother. I remember wanting to be like Darren, to care for my friends, especially when they're hurting. I'll always be thankful this show was on TV when I was a kid.

  • @MrGamer07100
    @MrGamer07100 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    Glad I grew up in that era. I was a viewer.

  • @redhood4105
    @redhood4105 ปีที่แล้ว +5

    ToonirificTariq did a video on as told by ginger that was awesome had me going back and revisiting the whole thing! Might do the same after this…

  • @user-dl8rt4rt6u
    @user-dl8rt4rt6u 10 หลายเดือนก่อน

    I grew up with this show. When you played that promo Nickelodeon clip from 2000 I was able to quote it word for word despite not having watched it for 23 years. This show was playing on the hospital TV when I spent the night there after attempting suicide when I was 18. I'm grateful for this show and how it kept me company.

  • @wanderinggstars
    @wanderinggstars 9 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

    wow I really gotta rewatch as told by Ginger it's been a while! I am reminded of home movies, and how they handle the divorced dad plot. I really love the scene where Brendan is anxious to answer the phone

  • @hurricanejaney
    @hurricanejaney ปีที่แล้ว +1

    i never really liked As Told by Ginger growing up. i was always far more entertained by sci-fi/fantasy cartoons than slice of life.
    but watching it as a 25-year-old with a fully developed brain, damn, it hits. this episode and the one where Ginger’s teacher signs her up for counseling after misinterpreting a poem of hers are my absolute favorites. they don’t sugarcoat anything. i love that the writers of ATBG didn’t dumb things down for their audience. kids aren’t stupid, and many of them are living through situations just like these. it’s so much better to represent and contextualize them than gloss over/ignore them.

  • @hammerr3
    @hammerr3 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    This and the Little Seal Girl, also the one where Carl’s elderly friend dies. Almost no kid shows today have such good writing

  • @harveysengers1379
    @harveysengers1379 9 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

    O wauw, i remember this one from back in the day. They also overdubbed the poem so striking in my native Dutch language. I grew up with "shitty mom syndrome", and that scene strangly helped with me not feeling alone in having so many moments of beeing convinced that if i'd really try to make beautiful moments out of encounters, my mom would turn around... only to find out that it doesnt work like that.
    These cartoons truely where the first steps into getting tools towards the path of self worth, and, eventually, beeing a graduating member of the class of "we made it".

  • @mathieuleader8601
    @mathieuleader8601 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    I always liked when the dripping venom formed the time on the clock when the nightmare ended

  • @simariocrossing
    @simariocrossing ปีที่แล้ว +12

    Welcome back!
    I never watched the show but I’m interested to hear your analysis :)

    • @simariocrossing
      @simariocrossing ปีที่แล้ว +3

      That poem is/was powerful
      I love getting to see you open and real like this

  • @AllTheArtsy
    @AllTheArtsy ปีที่แล้ว +3

    I loved this growing up and yeah it is a little bit underrated, I feel, compared to like... Hey Arnold or the Rugrats. Now I want to rewatch the series again!

  • @cannibalisticrequiem
    @cannibalisticrequiem ปีที่แล้ว +3

    Whew! This video was something! I thought it was beautiful the way you captured Ginger's emotions when reading "Hello Stranger", but it fully hit me once you read your version. Thank you for choosing to share a bit of your private life with us. As someone who has had to deal with depression for a majority of their life (from age 11 to... well, I'm going to be 36 on July 26th), and as someone who also has/had an abusive parent, your poem nearly brought me to tears. As Told By Ginger holds a special place in my childhood as well, specifically the episode "And She Was Gone" because it was the first time I heard the thoughts in my head mentioned-- even validated, by an outside source that didn't immediately dismiss it as "attention seeking" or that "I had no reason to be feeling those feelings", and even though Ginger herself didn't struggle with depression, I felt seen in a way I hadn't before. As someone with diagnosed MDD (Major Depressive Disorder or clinical depression) I _have_ experienced those certain thoughts and ideations at different points of my life (and like the depression itself, it has vacillated in intensity over the years depending on circumstance and my own well-being), and that "And She Was Gone" poem has really resonated at different times during my life. But hearing all the things you've accomplished in your life gives me hope for my own, as cheesy and "cringe" as that sounds.
    Apologies for oversharing. Your video hit me in a way I wasn't expecting. You absolutely deserve more subscribers for the work you put into these videos. 💞

  • @iluvnumberstations
    @iluvnumberstations ปีที่แล้ว +3

    i usually never comment on videos, but this struck me. both ginger’s poem and yours made me so emotional for the first time in forever. it’s so hard to process pain- especially because having issues with your father is considered “embarrassing”. but something about being able to see yourself reflected safely within the confines of art- a cartoon or even a poem, is so comforting. it’s a release.

  • @jessiefyler3751
    @jessiefyler3751 ปีที่แล้ว +7

    I'm sorry that happened to you and as a kid no less. I hope you are getting better and I'm especially glad that you were able to block them from your life. You deserve way better than what you got. ❤️❤️❤️

  • @hiroramos2819
    @hiroramos2819 ปีที่แล้ว +5

    Honestly with all that you've been saying about working on this video, I didn't expect it to turn up so beautiful and personal to you. While I have never watched As Told by Ginger, I appreciate how much it means to you and other people 💜

  • @queerantine69
    @queerantine69 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I really didn't appreciate this show back then. I just saw it as relationships and girly stuff because my sister loved it. I just didn't relate to it like rocket power but now looking back I loved the intro and there's so much more to it. I wish I could see it all over again

  • @antithoughtpolice7497
    @antithoughtpolice7497 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    The worst part is it seems like he's burnt out from working a ton to stay out of debt , and that he got into by spiraling after the divorce happened. Like, my dad's dad went through something similar, and it's actually sweet when parents can get back on their feet and stop wasting more opportunities just because they missed some already. Although you have every right to not let them back in, those bad parents just spiralling is never good.

  • @thewitchykitty5789
    @thewitchykitty5789 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    This is probably one of your best videos yet. At least to me. It honestly surprised me how much I really related to it, especially the poem at the end. It's like you put into words the same things I wish I could articulate about my own father. Like the scattered chaotic mess of emotions about it in my head for a moment took shape and were clear, and it really touched me. Thanks for this and for those kind words at the end, it really means a lot.

  • @amihodges4899
    @amihodges4899 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    This was very vulnerable, thank you for sharing.

  • @_Cet_Cet
    @_Cet_Cet ปีที่แล้ว +2

    didnt expect this random video i clicked on to make me tear up, thank you i needed it❀

  • @167logan
    @167logan ปีที่แล้ว +1

    It's very subtle but throughout the series Jonah is an alcoholic. In this episode he is in active addiction. In the Christmas episode he is speaking with his friends. They tell each other to go in peace. I looked it up and it is a common phrase in AA.

  • @LadySaphira
    @LadySaphira ปีที่แล้ว +3

    As a felllow member of the shitty dad club, your poem hit me right in the soul. I've had people know me my entire life and not understand how having an absent father has influenced me like nthe way I feel understood by your poem.

  • @robmanj
    @robmanj 10 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

    I'm old. My dad is dead. I found his obituary three years after he died. That was two days ago. I never laid eyes on him. I needed this video to find me when it did. I don't know why.

  • @oooh19
    @oooh19 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    I loved and still love ATBG. Please do an analysis on the friendships of the show like how Courtney ended up being a way better and more loyal less selfish friend than Dodie

  • @filmpositive6601
    @filmpositive6601 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Thanks for reminding me of this show and how much it truly meant to me in my youth. I only ever saw a few episodes of it and, sadly, Hello Stranger was not one of them. I wish my 11 yr old self would have seen this at the time, because it would have better helped me process the complicated feelings I had toward my own absentee father. But I'm glad I was able to view it now as an adult so that I can appreciate the artistic efforts of the show and individuals like you who interpret them on an empathetic level. It takes time and experience to learn acceptance, and I'm beyond grateful that we have other people in this world that truly understand this and are willing to share their personal struggle for mutual healing.

  • @berniekatzroy
    @berniekatzroy 10 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

    As told by Ginger was way ahead of its time like quite a good amount of shows in the 90s and early 2000s. The EP where ginger is in the hospital and Carl goes into the mini prayer room did something few shows when it came to religion. Louis sees him and says she thought Carl was an aethist, found the clip a few months back and was like wow, I missed that. The show was extremely realistic although cooky

  • @tagussie
    @tagussie ปีที่แล้ว +2

    I just wanted to let you know, your poem made me cry

  • @heyitsnovaa
    @heyitsnovaa ปีที่แล้ว +4

    Amazing video as always. You’ve made an impact on me and many in the community. I wouldn’t be here without you. Thank you

  • @user-sx8xi9hk1j
    @user-sx8xi9hk1j 9 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

    i had both parents growing up to a degree I found out at one point the divorced, and got back together my mom was pregnant with me by him so i don't know the whole story it still a kind of messy , but growing up it was toxic fighting , and could barley feal the love even what was there. at one point the separated when was you i can remember . the the space he was gone, the awkward silence lingering in the house. which is the sad thing , i can remember the hard times a lot more with him there than the happy ones because he never seemed to understand his actions had. mow he has memory loss of that it like he got an out but i still get haunted by the ghost. A big hug to all those out there , just know there people hat care.

  • @samwinchester9362
    @samwinchester9362 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    God, the poem you made hit hard. My mom passed in 2006, and that's when i moved out of the state with my abusive grandparents. I cut contact with them about two years ago, but this year around the anniversary of my mom's passing was especially hard.
    I don't have a lot of hard evidence on what happened during those years, or the years before that lead me to living with them, cause I lost it all during my own move to be with my chosen family about three years ago now, just before Covid hit. All i have is the inbox, and a few old photos of a kid not allowed to be a person. And a letter from my mom before she got out of jail. It's hard to deal with feeling like someone you knew and someone you loved disappeared and was replaced by a monster. Before my mom died, my grandparents weren't perfect, but they weren't do what they did bad. It makes you feel out of place, no history to fall back on.
    But we have the people we choose. The support system we make and the people who choose to know and love us. As Told By Ginger was such a good show- I was young enough a lot of it went over my head at the time, but i might give it a rewatch sometime soon. Thank you for the video.

  • @gremlin5241
    @gremlin5241 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    I had my dad. I loved him. He was an awful person. Sometimes you are better without a parent, even if it hurts.

  • @KmanZAG
    @KmanZAG ปีที่แล้ว +2

    im not really someone who gets poems and i dont connect with them very well, but hearing your story and the pain in your voice definitely hit different. its hard to listen to people hurt like that and I'm sorry you have that pain, and even though you seem stronger because of it my heart still goes out to you and all the other people who can relate to this. This video was amazing and I cant wait to see your next one, stay strong.

  • @mmps18
    @mmps18 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Loved this show so much, thank you for covering this!

  • @lunaaloree6498
    @lunaaloree6498 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    I absolutely love you're narrtation style! The just everything was amazing thank you for this✨️ Glad your back 💕

  • @snbsixteen6stars201
    @snbsixteen6stars201 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    also, i love the retrospect on your part with how far you came after your first ginger vid, you rock kiki

  • @brittnirae890
    @brittnirae890 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    This was beautiful. Thank you ❤

  • @KamikazeDreamer
    @KamikazeDreamer ปีที่แล้ว +2

    A bit by chance I stumbled across your channel very recently. I had been meaning to revisit certain cartoons and one of them was As Told By Ginger. I was actually talking to my siblings about this show in particular recently and lo and behold, a video essay appears. I grew up a fan of other Klasky Csupo cartoons but this is the only one I remember very little about, but came to find many people years later talking about it and really connected with it. You're one of them and clearly there is a really personal nerve this show strikes that really makes me excited to revisit it and maybe find an appreciation I just didn't have as a kid. This was a show I have random vivid memories of with a few episodes and moments with Hello Stranger being one of them so now is the perfect time to really jump back in
    I've checked out a handful more of your vids and you touch on a fair amount of cartoons I love and of course some pretty incredible covers. Already a big fan of this channel and really wish I could've found it sooner. Looking forward to more!

  • @ZeASK
    @ZeASK ปีที่แล้ว +1

    This really touched me deeply, thank you for making it

  • @vedwalker3974
    @vedwalker3974 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    This was a beautiful video. Thank you for covering such an important milestone in a lot of people's lives through such a universal medium.

  • @pop_witch
    @pop_witch ปีที่แล้ว

    I just came across your channel tonight. I’ve been reminiscing over the past week with nostalgia shows. I was not expecting your poem at the end to hit me as hard as it does. I took my first step with therapy today and keep writing down the things I eventually want to talk about.
    It didn’t even cross my mind to include my biological father. He was literally never there. I’ve had him blocked for approximately 2 or more years. Prior to this he would basically parade me on social media as being a father who was there and was SO proud of me. I tried to talk to him calmly one day that I have been uncomfortable with him trying to force a place into my life that he did not deserve. To say he threw a fit and blamed the entire world for his shortcomings would be an understatement.
    In a way his absence was a blessing in disguise. It still doesn’t keep your inner child from feeling the brunt of that pain and abandonment. We’re going to work on this healing journey together. Take care ❤️‍🩹

  • @TheRociprincess
    @TheRociprincess ปีที่แล้ว

    when i was a kid, i never like-like the show, the drawing didn't click to me, but this is the only episode I stayed to watch and with someone with a deadbeat father and it was always me trying to reach out, it broke my heart and that episode made stop trying to reach out to him... I watched the show ever since and that's why I hated when they reintroduce her father, the guy was in a rough patch in his life and it was kind of understandable why he couldn't be in his kids life even when he wanted to, bc my father actively avoided me and my mom, meanwhile his wife was the only one good to me when i used to visit him, bless her forever.

  • @fernandoisaacreyesmorales5562
    @fernandoisaacreyesmorales5562 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    OMG this was the video I was hyping the most! I love all your content, you love the same underrated shows as I do; I never expected this to be such a personal video of yours, in the end your video hit me so deep as "As Told By Ginger" did back when I watched the show as a kid and as I rewatched it as an adult last year. This video was more than I expected ❤ I loved it so much and thank you so much for sharing it.

  • @brokenfoxproductions
    @brokenfoxproductions ปีที่แล้ว +2

    I never watch the show growing up but I literally just realized that the poem from this episode is the same one. My older sister recited at our father's funeral and she lied and said that she wrote it in 6th grade. People literally cried at the idea that my sister wrote this for our dad who she was kept away from by her mother from the ages of 5 to 18 and now I feel like I've been scammed by my sister and her weird-ass lies that she tells because of her personality disorder and I am very depressed.

    • @offbeatkiki
      @offbeatkiki  ปีที่แล้ว +3

      I can't imagine what it was like to relive that moment hearing the poem in this video and I am so sorry. People do crazy things because of grief and going through that at such a young age must have been very difficult.