Do you remember the late '90s? Before the Batang '90s generation was bitten by the Y2K bug, this time in our childhood meant the last days of VHS, the pager, and network cartoons. It was also the era of MTV, Nokia phones, and soon, Friendster -- a really exciting time for digital natives to witness a wave of technological baby steps that Gen Z and Alpha refer to as "vintage" today. (Better than *cringe*, at least.)
Nowadays, this retro trend isn't just making a comeback in fashion (Elephant pants and baby tees are back, folks!), but also on TV. The United Kingdom hit show from 1997, Teletubbies, is coming to Netflix Philippines on November 14, and the iconic American rapper Snoop Dogg -- who is now in his fifties and a grandpa himself -- just launched a YouTube Kids series called Doggyland. This time, the themes of these '90s content creators such as diversity, inclusion, and self-acceptance are no longer as controversial as they once were.
The Teletubbies Gay Controversy
In 1999, the Teletubbies were called out by televangelist Jerry Falwell in the UK for promoting homosexuality. One of the characters, Twinky Winky, he said, was voiced by a male but portrayed to carry a red purse, among other alleged signs of being gay.
Teletubbies is owned by WildBrain and created by Anne Wood and Andrew Davenport for BBC. At the time of the controversy, the head of show production, Kenn Viselman, is reported to have responded, "[Twinky Winky is] not gay. He's not straight. He's just a character in a children's series. I think that we should just let the Teletubbies go and play in Teletubbyland and not try to define them."
In June 2021, amidst the massive movement of Pride throughout the modern world over the last two decades, WildBrain's brand head Michael Riley announced the Teletubbies Pride Collection, which embraced the "love who you are' spirit" that The Teletubbies were known for. "The Teletubbies have always embraced their own offbeat quirkiness and sense of style," he said, and shared a clothing collection that was "ready-to-rave fashion that makes Tinky Winky, Dipsy, Laa-Laa, and Po very proud."
Take your kids to Teletubbyland through Netflix on November 14. The new 26-episode Teletubbies series will be narrated by Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt's Titus Burgess and feature the well-loved "Tummy Tales" songs that '90s parents grew up with!
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Grandpa Snoop Wants Everyone 'To Share Their Light'
Snoop Dogg, while best known as a chart-topping rapper from the 1990s, went on to become a cross-cultural icon in Hollywood. Besides his success in music, he also happens to be known as a friend (and once reality TV co-host) to Martha Stewart.
His latest venture is Doggyland, an animated musical series for kids on YouTube. Co-created by Claude Brookes (of the Emmy-nominated kid series, Hip Hop Harry) and R&B artist October London, it highlights Bow Wizzle (voiced by Snoop) as a big brother and mentor to neighborhood kids aboard his bus. The once-gangster admits that Bow Wizzle is "a great version of Snoop."
While the nursery rhymes are targeted towards toddlers up to 8-year-olds, Snoop says the show is for "kids of all ages, because it's so influential, it's so educational, it's so fundamentally smart." The characters are depicted as dogs with different colors and sizes to highlight diversity and inclusion. Doggyland, said Snoop, is a place where "you can be yourself and just be accepted."
The series features songs that Snoop has sung and arranged for his own grandchildren. "Hate is what's taught," Snoop adds, "Love is what's in their [kids'] hearts." The 50-year-old grandpa is a husband to his childhood sweetheart, father to two sons and one daughter, and kid's football league owner that his grandchildren are a part of. Talk about evolution.
Watch Doggyland - Kids Song and Nursery Rhymes by Snoop Dogg on YouTube.
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