The New Perspective: Big Hero 6

I have to say, I wasn’t too big into this movie when it was first released in November 2014. Being the first animated movie released with Marvel heroes, Big Hero 6 takes a refreshing take on superheroes that can rival The Incredibles. While it was a highly successful film upon release, it didn’t gel with me like other Disney films; I’m sure it was because it was different than the Disney films I was used to seeing. I had no desire to watch the movie more than once- that is until I saw the TV show Big Hero 6 on Disney Channel XD a month ago, and it prompted another look. I can honestly say I have never been more glad to have given a movie a second chance, as the second viewing and on brought new waves of emotion to me that I lacked watching it four years ago.

*Spoiler warning*

Big Hero 6 follows Hiro Hamada, a troubled 14 year old genius who desires to join his brother Tadashi in San Fransokyo Institute of Technology to further his talents. After losing his brother in an accident, Hiro bonds with Baymax the personal healthcare companion created by Tadashi. Upon finding his science project stolen after the same fire that killed his brother, Hiro learns to lean on his new friends and discover his true potential while saving the day from a villain threatening the town.

Despite Big Hero 6 being a comedy, there are some seriously heavy themes that deal with stages of grief after a tragic death, self discovery and revenge. Both Hiro and the villain have lost someone close to them, all of the stages of grief are gone over in this film and done beautifully. We see how the anger and sadness over losing a loved one twists Callaghan to the point of destroying a town and murder, as we find out he stole the microbots and saved himself leaving Tadashi to die. In this one instance we see Hiro angered to the point where he orders Baymax to kill him, but is subdued by his friends. With anger being one of the staple grief stages, it often blinds rationality. The difference between Callaghan and Hiro was their support system during their time of grief. Hiro had Aunt Cass, Wasabi, Honey Lemon, Go Go, Fred and Baymax to cope while (at least not seeing anyone in the movie) Callaghan had none. Had Hiro not had any friends to fall back to, he may have very well killed him.

So what does BH6 teach us?

I thought about this movie and how it addresses the five stages of grief: denial and isolation, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. I dealt with it myself after recently losing my uncle to liver disease, which was what originally drew me to this movie after avoiding it for four years. What this movie does brilliantly is show its viewers how each person handles grief and loss differently; not everyone follows the stages to the tee or even in the order it’s listed. Some may not even go through every stage- it is a personal experience that varies. For Hiro, we see the struggles of depression, isolation, anger and acceptance- and he goes through some of these multiple times in the movie as he loses Baymax after the final fight. Disney has delicately sewn this theme into a superhero movie made for kids, and has done so well with it that can actually benefit kids in learning about death without going too far.

Long story short, this movie had started off as a one and done watch for me as I originally wasn’t too interested in its premise. Growing up -even as an adult- your tastes change over time. I have grown to love this movie and what it brings to the table in life lessons. We all experience death at some point in life and as much as we try to prepare for it, you really can’t. You don’t know how you handle it, or how it feels until you go through it. But like Hiro, if you have a good group of friends and family to help and understand you as well as try to push forward and live your life in your loved ones memory for the better, then it is worth all the love they had given you. I recommend this movie to anyone and am so happy I took time to rewatch it.

Movie Score

Lessons: 8.5/10

Story Telling: 8/10

Acting: 9/10

Animation: 8.5/10

Overall Score: A-

The Best of my Youth: The Proud Family

In the years I spent as a child watching cartoons on Disney, no show had ever broken barriers on race or stood out as a regular family animated sitcom better than The Proud Family. The Proud Family is an animated cartoon show that debuted in 2001 on the Disney channel. It was created by Bruce W. Smith and was nominated (and won) for multiple awards over the years, mostly for ‘Outstanding Performance in a Children’s Series’. To this day, this show is revered for it’s take on topics most TV shows would be nervous to air in today’s day and age.

The show follows Penny Proud, a young African American middle schooler, her family and friends during day to day life. Penny is a perfect mix of respectful and kind with the bratty ups and downs most middle schoolers experience. While she is the main character we follow in each episode, there are enough unique and spunky characters she bounces off of that it makes each one a joy to watch. The best thing about it is each character is relatable in some way, shape or form that makes you think, yeah I’ve experienced this to.

This show dared to touch upon subjects that most show nowadays would never show in fear of backlash. In episodes like Culture Shock, Seven Days of Kwanzaa and I Had A Dream, Penny deals with learning about and accepting her heritage as well as learning about others- including Black History Month. I episodes like The Altos, we learn about bullying and what a child deals with while their parents divorce through Sticky’s eyes. Nowadays tv shows are too scared of backlash to air things like these, heck Disney hardly shows anything remotely similar to it- but these are proof that children can handle and learn from shows the right way. It’s all about respect taught at a young age and being open to watch them.

TV shows of today need to bring a little more substance to them similar to how The Proud Family ran. It not only opens up the demographics of who watches them, but it also teaches youth without throwing it into their face blatantly. I know the show is also not perfect, as it does play to stereotypes mostly for comedy. Would shows like this help turn around today’s world? I can’t answer that, but at least our children would learn about morals and have a bit of a laugh doing so!

The Best of my Youth: Recess

So many of us look back on our days at school and remember how much joy it brought us. Ignoring the tantalizing homework that now as an adult doesn’t seem so bad, we tend to remember all of the things we particularly enjoyed. Friends, our creative minds and most importantly: recess. In the case of the t.v. show Recess created by Joe Ansolabehere and Paul Germain, we can relive the freedom and creativity that being a kid meant.

Recess premiered on ABC in 1997 before moving onto the Disney channel in the early 2000’s. The show was a success to both the young and older audiences, bringing a fresh take on what it means to be a kid in elementary school. It has trends that follow the normal school cliches while making it unique enough to remain a staple in most 90’s kids memories as one of the best kid shows aired on Disney.

Recess follows six kids in the day to day life of school and their daily struggles in growing up alongside their peers. T.J. Detweiler, the leader of the group has excellent leadership and rallying skills when it comes to standing up for what’s right. Next in line is Vincent LeSalle who is the athlete of the group and presumably the best one in the school (I am always amazed to this day how he can play just about any sport SUPERB, heck he even cooks). Ashley Spinelli (aka Spinelli) is the tomboy and tough guy who isn’t afraid to stand up for others with force. Mikey Blumberg is a gentle and large 10 year old who, instead of fighting prefers poetry and dance even when viewed as uncool. Gretchen Grundler is the smart one in the group (like extremely smart), and Gus Griswold who is the shy and unpopular (often bullied) new kid in the school. Each of them together better the others and counters their flaws- making a perfect cast.

Though the cartoon is made for kids, it represents freedom in all of its forms. When watching the show, themes of social orders, monarchy, justice system and finding oneself rings true in each episode. Not only that but each kid had their own problems to learn to deal with that they either learn on their own or with help from their friends. Take Spinelli for example: she is the toughest kid in the show but has to deal with feelings of love, embarrassment and stereotypes of young ladies of the social norm. Another prime example is T.J. himself going so far for freedom that he may be irrational, as seen perfectly in the episode Economics of Recess. Each learns to mature through their friends, and the dynamic they all have together still shines through to this day.

This show was a staple to my childhood. I’d come home from school with a snack, or lay in bed sick watching this show. There were funny jokes, cool pranks and I could see a little of myself in each of the main crew. I remember learning about how being a child watching this, my recesses were filled with hopes and imagination spent with my friends.

I love Recess as a kids show. While it’s animation in today’s world seems lackluster and there are a few poor episodes, it still holds high the value of being a kid in school just looking to be a kid. Every character was memorable and if I can remember a show 18 years after watching it and go to rewatch it, then it sounds like a pretty good show to me. We all have to be an adult someday (trust me it happens quickly), so why not enjoy the time you have as a youth?