Kids WB had an very strange run in what it is in context of time. I've written about the block (twice!) and it seems there's a period where the block launches and lives on the idea of bringing in the Warner Bros. TV animated shows from FOX Kids, then in 1999, it decides Pokémon. Then it brings in some more anime, then it stops, then it dies. That also means that Kids WB has stuff they dropped in between the stuff they are known for like Phantom Investigators . Another case, would this show: Detention.
Funny enough, over on ABC, Disney had a series called Recess. That series came out in 1997 and was mostly a series that took place at a kids' favorite part of the school day :recess. I'm not saying that this show was trying to run on the success of that show or a copy of it. It's more a genre of show that existed that we really don't get now. Like Recess, Detention takes from something that happens at school and brings it to the forefront, that being detention. Unlike, recess -the time period- detention isn't seen as a very positive thing and isn't supposed to be. In media, it had different showings and usages. The famous depiction of the event is The Breakfast Club.
Detention , the series, takes a look at the idea of kids who somehow end up always being in detention and like The Breakfast Club has a mis-mash mixture of kids forced together in one spot. It premiered on Saturday, September 11, 1999 on the WB. The show was created by Bob Doucette.
The KIDS WB line up that day was kind of where Kids WB was set to be at that moment. Detention aired during a Pokémon Marathon, just kind of randomly put there. Of course, it's smart to have a leading top rated show be a lead-in for a new one , but it also feels kind of oddly out of place. Makes it feel out of place. The next week, it aired after Pokémon, but in a more normal line up. That might be a slight sign of things.
This is a show about 7 sixth grade kids who find themselves constantly in detention. There's also another kid who is always in there, but for a different reason, we'll get to that.
foreground left to right: Lemonjella, Emmitt, Gug, Orangejella
background left to right: Jim, Shelley, and Duncan
The leading character is a girl named Shareena Wickett, a goth girl (voiced by Tara Strong) who a bit tom-boyish and seems to be the character that's the most grounded and the only one who isn't quirky in someway. Next, there's Emmitt Roswell , a boy (voiced by Billy West) who dabbles in conspiracies usually of the alien kind. Look at his last name. Jim Kim, another boy (voiced by Roger Eschbacher) who likes comic books and tends to get detached from reality over them. Ramone "Gug" Gugleamo , a boy (voiced by Carlos Alarzaqui) who is short and short tempered because that's usually a thing in media, lights to start fights. [Sadly, not a conspiracy theorist who believes in Fairy GOD PARENTS] . Duncan Bubble, a boy, who doesn't talk and communicates through yo-yo. Lemonjella and Orangejella LaBelle , twin girls (voiced by Tia and Tamera Mowry, please watch Sister, Sister, also on the WB!) who are competitive and smart. Then there's Shelley Kelley (voiced by Pamelyn Ferdin) , a girl who isn't in detention for anything, but more there because she wants to be the assistant to the teacher Miss Eugenia P. Kisskillya, which means she isn't beloved by the detention kids, but wants to be friends with them and has a crush on Emmitt.
Shareena and Miss Kisskillya
I mentioned her , there's Miss Eugenia P. Kisskillya (vocied by Kathleen Freeman), she's a gym teacher and the detention monitor. This makes her the key antagonist for the detention kids.
Different from other shows in this genre, the episodes are 22 minute stories instead of the 11 minute halves or even the 7-11-3 stuff that existed, at times. That means a whole story has 22 minutes and a different pace than an 11 minute cartoon. The show also doesn't do things like other Warner Bros. animation shows did at that the time it's not heavily based on beat comedy and fast paced gags. The show is more grounded, though it does have some fantasy elements in the power of imagination.
The first episode is called "Shareena Takes the Cake". It starts with a fantasy sequence and a Bat Man reference with actual Bat Man costume which a) could only be done on a WB made show b) fits with the block it was airing on. It even has a score that sounds a little like "Bat Man: The Animated Series". It runs a length of time to make one wonder did they put the right show on? It was again, just Jim thinking he was Batman (aren't we all) and the teacher saying detention in a stylistic way. They are already in the detention.
Shareena wants to get tickets for a concert, that will serve our plot. Starting with Jim and going through the next few minutes, it does the job or introducing the characters what they're roles are, at least at basics, like their thoughts, likes, and hints at personalities. Miss Kisskillya (fun name) takes Duncan's yo-yo that he uses to talk with. I like that other kids also stand up for him to the teacher and only have to back down because she's an authority figure. Shelley reminds Shareena that they are bake-off buddies, yeah there's a back-off happening the next day. Emmitt, Ramone, and Jim have decided they are going to find away to get Duncan's yo-yo back. I like how the episode is setting up the B-plot , along with the A-plot that's coming Shareena , also apparently has a pet pig that she brings with her- maybe that's why she got detention. [mostly joking, I think]
Shareena goes to the ticket counter to wait for hours to get a ticket. Which means the law states that she'll show up at the counter just in time to find out they are sold out. Annnd she didn't get the ticket. ( This really is a bad law) The boys plan their mission to get the yo-yo back. There are strong DC (hmm I wonder why?) and also some XFiles references here. Shelly comes to Shareena's house. Shelley seems to be overly optimistic and happy to fault of I'm scared. They are working on a cake together. (mmm cake) Their cake seems to be the inspiration for current Food Network TV shows. Also, vinegar in a cake.
Shareena likes the idea of using the cake to erupt and I guess the Miss Kisskillya's day. In a twist, Shelley has two ticket to paradise oops sorry, I mean to the concert and wants to take Shareena with her , if they do well. Uh oh. She might want to change that plan she had there. Meanwhile, the boys have gottne the yo-yo back and of course, air ducts do have a purpose -besides crawling in- and they get blown around and lost.
Cakes were harmed in this episode. Miss Kisskillya's gimmick is that she likes to think of things in a military way. The cake does cause the classic explosion of however witchcraft science works in cartoons here does. She's not happy, but plot b literally falls on to her and she apparently liked that cake exploding. Ok then. They do get detention. Shareena still does get to go the concert.
Using the first episode here, there's some stuff to bite into. (not the cake, sadly) The length of time the episode has doesn't feel wasted it works with two plots very well. I liked the simplicity of both plots playing with grounded realism whilst still being a cartoon and using its medium well. The character designs are great. They each fit their characters well and made it really quick and easy to figure who is who.
Shareena as a character is goth inspired, but not heavily done as one archetype. We learn she is a bit tomboy-ish, likes alt-rock, has some sarcasm, but isn't gloomy or depressed , except being sad that she would miss her concert. She works with Shelly's character well, and not outright mean but does find the other's bubbliness annoying.
Shelley, from her character description, could have really been like Randal from "Recess" but what is interesting about her is that she is not. She seems to want to be friends with the dentition kids, here she was really happy to want to work with Shareena. She seems to be kind and understanding, and not really there for an enjoyment of having others be miserable. Also, since you are reading this place, Peanuts. Shelley is voiced by Pamelyn Ferdin, for Peanuts fans she was Lucy Van Pelt in A Boy Named Charlie Brown (the 1969 movie) and in two specials "It was Short Summer...." and "Play it Again..." and yeah I kind of hear the Lucy voice with Shelley, especially comparing it to "Play it Again, Charlie Brown". Where she was older playing the role.
Jim is fun while he does go over it with his references to comic books and superheroes, it's not too annoying to hear for the viewer but you can also see why the others get annoyed. I like that it also worked for him and his sense of justice here to help Duncan who was wronged.
Ramone/ "Gug" , again on paper he does sound like how many shows use a short character to be short tempered and angry, but I like how they used it for him. He was , rightfully, angered that Miss Kisskillya took the yo-yo -something important to Duncan- and wanted to fix the problem. Getting made Jim and Emmitt and the rights times. I think this works to see that he's not in detention for being a bully or something.
Emmitt again also wanting to the yo-yo back and having his thing fit the reason was good. I think the first episode, didn't have too much for him to do, but he did make the plan that did work. He shouldn't eaten the map, but hey, not bad.
Miss Kisskillya seems to be the focused on keeping rules and order, but there was something at least sense in her that does have a fairness and not just out for misery. The moment where she seemed to enjoy the explosion was interesting.
This is from the first episode, the twins didn't have much role in it, we did get to see they're highly smart and have their own competitiveness between each other.
The theme song is also really good, it's great. I like it.
Episode 2 is called “The Man with the Golden Brain”. This one starts with Emmitt having a fantasy sequence where he sees the teachers are yes, alien cyborgs. (no they aren't that's silly, all hail our overloads!) We get a true "X Files" style intro. I can see the show is going for these type of things where they parody stuff at the start. Anyway, there's a spelling bee that's mandatory. A prize is there's a "get out of detention free card"
Emmitt does classic cartoon or sitcom rule number #19 [ see, I made it up] of eavesdropping to hear just to enough to get the wrong idea on something and goes with that for the plot, This time, the principal is talking about a brain and this makes Emmitt think he is a brain stealing cyborg.
Here we see the group walking home. Lemonjella and Orangejella are hoping they'll win the bee, Gug doesn't think he'll win anyway, and Shareena didn't thinks the twins will win it, and finds it dumb that it's mandatory. Emmitt shows up to tell the others that Principal McQueen (Steve McQueen?) is brain stealing cyborg. Not sure why cyborgs would steal a brain but alright. And cartoon/sitcom rule #32 [source: I made up a number of rule, or that it's a rule] that his track record means they don't believe him or his far-fetched story.
Emmitt has another fantasy of cyborgs coming to suck his brain out with a straw. He wants to prove that Mr. McQueen is a cyborg that steals brains. (who doesn't?, I mean... umm) I like how the characters are studying words that fit their personalities. Spelling basketball really never did catch on. Jim goes around helping Emmitt collect evidence about the principal. I did forget to mention the school's name, but episode 2 does say it out loud. In the universe of this show, Benedict Arnold got a school named after him. Good for him. Emmitt's press conference doesn't go well.
Funny that Shareena can't spell the word "perky". Shelley not able to spell decay too. Lemonjella and Orangejella get disqualified -over the world rivalry. That means that Gug was wrong, he won. I like how he won, from that moment when he was sitting between the twins and heard them spell that word. Emmitt and Jim tackle the principal and this is where they find out that the brain was golden and an award for the bee.
Episode 2 does have some surprises even with some of the typical things like character thinks someone else an (insert here) and and finds out they aren't. Gug winning the spelling bee was a nice surprise. It works two ways for a younger audience that doesn't know alot of these plots they get the tension of wondering if all the group is right or is Emmitt right? While others, can see how badly he fails at this. The twins did get a little more role here and their sister moment at the end was sweet. I like how the show shifted character perspectives from Shareena to Emmitt in this case, where she wasn't in the core main character role.
Episode 3 is "What Did You Séance?". Shareena gets a starting fantasy, and she's a witch. Here I can also here Strong's more Ben Tennyson and Timmy Turner voices slipping in there. This fantasy is almost very "Angelia Anaconda" like in where she's thinking about doing a bad revenge thing to her teacher. Anyway, I see there's a gag where when detention is over Miss Kisskillya decides to change out of her normal stuff and do something. Here being a wrestler. And Shelley still being there to get a salute to leave. I think Miss Kisskillya is a fun character. There's a strangeness to her that gets under her more strictness. I like that, and she's again not really feeling like a sadistically mean character either. I like how she bonds with Shelley there's a dynamic that works and they fit each other.
There's also 70's disco dance, Shareena has plans for a Seance and it happens to be Friday the 13th. The twins, again they act as one character here, ask her a question of what color is the sky in her world is , she says black. Which is funny, because if she'd blue, she'd also be wrong, the sky is orange here. Shelley shows up and wants to know what the others are doing for the dance. I kind of like how they hint that Shelley has a crush on Emmitt without it being stereotypical or her being super nervous or over the top annoying crush-y. Emmitt has plans to find aliens. Shelley decides she's willing to help Emmitt.
I didn't mention it in the first episode, but we do see Shareena's mom and we see her again in episode 3. So far, it's the only parent seen. There is a contrast between the two, where the mom is more perky, which is why she and Shelley got along in the first episode, and wanting her daughter to wear pink stuff, but she's not forceful in making her daughter do such things.
Shareena decides to bring the seance to the school dance. [We get a "Babe" reference] (that'll do episode, that'll do) Pig, the pig, finds a picture of a girl that looks kind of like Shareena. This episode introduces Shareena's dad too. They are the parents from the intro, heh alright. Anyway, their designs seem to be going for that 50's sitcom parent vibe. Dad is wearing a sweater with a tie and has glasses, Mom wants do typical "girly" things. Giving them that older generation difference vibe. The picture is her aunt Hannah.
Emmitt and Shelley go on the mission to capture an alien at the school. The other kids get ready for the dance. It's fun to see them get ready in their own characteristic style. (Thanks to the parents they would have helped spelling her name, if we didn't have it a different way already) Shareena asks the others if they want to help her summon her aunt. (Would be funny if the aunt isn't dead, that's a guess) Emmitt plugs in an invention he made to capture and alien and it makes power go out. (oops) Pig is hungry for the aunt's photo and this causes and old fashion pig chase. (oink!)
I think the Emmitt and Shelly plot descended into "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" playing the Sally role with Shelley. (missed it by that much) Then it ends with Disco detention.
This one explores Shareena a little more and how she feels about being considered weird. This one works well as things go pretty well for her at the end and it doesn't seem to be too oft. Seeing Shelley here was also pretty fun, as I think it's her really trying to befriend the characters and also showing the hints of her crush on Emmitt. Shareena's parents aren't too stand out , but they aren't boring, at least. They have a little bit of a mixture of the stuffy conformity, and their own sense of being slightly goofy.
Episode 4 is "The Contest" I thought another character would get to start the fantasy sequence, but it's a Shareen double header. Miss Kisskillya is being delightful meaning that she tells the kids they'll be back there the next day because this is their destiny. (Harsh) The kids are , naturally, bothered by this. I like how the episode made me find out that "Free Willy" was a Warner Bros. film. Good work episode. Talking about her statement, the kids decide to have a contest (roll credits) to work to stay out of detention (roll credits) Shelley wants to join the contest, but she can't since she chooses to go herself. Instead, her challenge is to get thrown into detention. (the twist we need)
This all could be the episode pointing out that their destiny is to get to detention because that's how the TV show works. That wouldn't surprise me, this is still a 1990's Warner Bros. TV animated cartoon show, just not created by Tom Rugger. The losers will have to do whatever the winner(s) want.
Let's see how it goes. In home ec. class, Gug has to wear to wear a dress because he's the smallest student the and the only one that will fit it. Of course, the rules of physics apply for Shelley where pretty much anything she does won't allow her to get in trouble. We get to see how Lemonjella and Orangejella get into detention in the first place, they really like messing with the computers to change things like everyone's grades and the school menu. Another pattern that I noticed from this episode is that Jim is able to be influenced by some of Emmitt's conspiracy stuff, making him do weird things. Yeah, he lost.
Miss Kisskillya is a little confused that Shareena isn't acting like normal self. That laugh is perfect. Everything has gone unwell for most of the kids. I like how Lemonjella and Orangella's teacher gets them to confess they changed the screensavers. When Shelley says why Shareena doesn't expect to be in detention that day, Kisskillya decides to find away to undermine that. The woman is defeated and it's kind funny how that kind of ruined her whole day. Shareena ends up getting in there after all, and it's pretty interesting the reason why she chose to.
Episode 5 is "Too Good to Be Truant". I think it's funny that really the 90's was the decade where shows had episodes where the kid characters skip school. Sometimes the episode would make sure the characters have a miserable time, only to find out they if they went to school they'd have a fun surprise day or something good would have happened. Cartoons don't do this plot anymore, the fake sick plot kind of exists still, but maybe it's harder for a show to do a skip school plot. Even though most show still have kids able to wander towns and cities even though they probably wouldn't be able to do so in real life.
Shelly gets the fantasy sequence. Learning more about her and her wanting to do what is considered right but also wants to be liked, especially by the detention gang. Especially, Shareena. She imagines that she got the perfect attendance award. Also, there's a class election because sure.
Shareena is going to ditch school to go to the mall because 90's. (We need to go back!) Shelley hears the idea being brought up and decides she'll join with Shareena. She uses the idea she'll tell Kisskillya if she doesn't let her come with her, to prove a point that she could cut school.
Gug and Emmitt are running for the class election. Lemonjella & Orangella are Gug's campaign manager. Gug wants to go for a smear campaign. Meanwhile, Jim and Duncan are working with Emmitt. (Hmm better choices than most elections) Emmitt also wants to do a smear campaign. (Taking back some words)
Shareena and Shelley end up having to do dishes at diner because they didn't have money. Kisskillya has noticed that Shareena is gone and thinks that she took Shelley hostage. Thanks to the detail that Shareen couldn't pay because she dropped her wallet, and you'll notice that Shelley's hat is gone. The epsiode actually does go on the characters having bad luck on the cutting school. Technically, Kisskillya is also doing that.
The campaign is going someway. It seems to have caused them to get disqualified and get in trouble. Thanks to Shareena not being discrete she gets caught after talking too much.
I'm gonna stop here with the episodes in this post, because it would make this long post really long and kind of tedious. The other episodes have some similar feels to them as well , you kind of get the point. This series is pretty good , overall. This is 25 years detached from when it aired, but the show has a lot of fun to it. It follows the 90's pattern of shows in some other ways, like it does have kids are cool and adults are out of touch and weird thing, but it's not as harsh with it as it could have been. I find it interesting the show doesn't have a bully character or someone on the kids' side that would be antagonistic. Shelley easily could have filled that role, but it takes a nicer approach of letting her not be that kind of character. All the characters have charm to them, where they are quite interesting and stand out from each other , but mesh well.
This show only has 13 episodes. Kids WB was in state at the time of 1999, it might have really damaged FOX Kids, but it had found thing that was working for it and it wasn't this. The premiere date of this show (it also had a day before preview) the block was airing all Pokémon with this randomly stuck as 30 minutes in-between the near end of the block that went back to the marathon after this show. Even more so, the regular line up was seemingly less likely to want comedy shows and going for more of the drama cartoons with superheroes, and adding anime to the line up as the time was going on. It might have fit better on a cable network like Nickelodeon or the broadcast ABC kids block. I'm not going to say that there was no crossover audience between watching Pokémon and this show, but I'm not going to say it's a big enough. The ones not interested in Pokémon might not be willing to wait for this show to come on just to watch it and the ones interested in that would just tune away from this show when it's on. The show did have good ratings.
According to the creator,
This show was not what the network wanted even though it got the largest ratings of a new cartoon series on the network when it started. The WB were VERY difficult to work with, I was assigned my story editors from the animation department and the WB hated them from the start and I spent the whole time defending them and trying to keep them from getting fired but in the end the scripts suffered terribly because no one could agree on what the show should be about. Its too bad, I loved the characters and would love to give them another chance!
That finds kind of what I said above the network the show was on was probably not even the same thinking they had when the show was pitched in the first place. Cartoons take a while to get going so the KIDS WB that picked this show up was one that was airing the comedies of Pinky and Brain and Animaniacs. Those shows were gone when this show premiered.
It is an enjoyable show with fun characters and dynamics. It feels like it was playing with things we normally expect in a show like this. It's smart and a little fun. I'm thinking in 1999 think here, but the show is not a copy of Recess unless, being in school with kids is copying. The shows have their own different tones and storylines and both bring their own fun to the table.
The setting of the show works to have it be more than just the detention classroom, so it doesn't limit itself. It even finds plausible ways to have the characters be at school in the evening or something school related in the evening, and like episode 6: on Saturday. I think that makes the show fell bigger and not as confined as the premise and name allows. I'm glad even in the first few episodes they showed the world of the series as much as the detention room. The school, as a setting, feels a bit more grounded and normal for a school, but it does have some interesting little things to it. Miss Kisskillya's extreme security system and a cool tunnel underneath.
It's a pacey more slice of life comedy series, there's a slight formula to the episodes. There are things the group of kids do that somewhat has to have them get in trouble some way to be in the detention. The characters are interesting, we don't get a lot of their development, but that's more because this series only ran those 13 episodes with 26 segments. There's a large cast so it would take a little more time and episodes to get through them.
I thoroughly enjoyed the series, it was fun to watch. The animation is nice and pretty standard for the time, but the character the designs are neat and the show has a lot of nice things about it. It would have been to nice to have a little more episodes and time with these characters, but it was fun.
As of this writing, Warner Bros. has been kind of kind to it, it doesn't stream but they do have it on DVD and digital purchase. Good work.
That's it for now, tune in next time, when we get out of this room, help!
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