Tbh I’ve always had a soft spot for this precious yellow fatherly tin can growing up. However at the time I was too young to really comprehend it. But thanks to Athena P there was a short period of time where I just FULLY embraced it!! And even now I still appreciate his existence :D
AAANND on top of that! I decided to use this piece of Plex appreciation to experiment with a unique coloring/shading style! While I didn’t implement it into my commission sheet I think I’m fine with it just being for this thing. It looks nice :3
So many people post about how weird it is that the everlasting-emo band My Chemical Romance appeared and performed on the children’s television show “Yo Gabba Gabba”.
So let me tell you why they did that, and why the aftermath is so damn cool.
Once upon a time, in the year 1997, a superhero-themed ska band known as The Aquabats made a goofy, low-budget music video for their song “Super Rad”, which featured a Godzilla-style costume monster...
Recognize him? You should!
This Aquabats villain is the earliest form of “Muno”, who was acted and voiced on Yo Gabba Gabba by Adam Deibert (aka Prince Adam of the Aquabats). The lead singer of the Aquabats and their founder, Christian Jacobs (M.C. Bat Commander) also happens to be the creative director and executive producer of Yo Gabba Gabba.
So when Gerard Way said that he’d love to do a cameo on YGG during an interview at SDCC in 2011 (while promoting his Danger Days comic series), Jacobs got in touch. As fans of each others’ music, it was a natural fit, and after MCR made their YGG cameo, Way and Jacobs kept in contact.
A couple years later in 2013, Jacobs invited Way to write and direct an episode of The Aquabats! Super Show! This collaborative episode features The Aquabats fighting their evil counterparts, The Antibats (and their fake band, Asthma), led by Mikey Way.
Other guest starring bands on YGG include Jimmy Eat World, The Killers, Devo, Taking Back Sunday, Weezer, MGMT, the Ting Tings, and The Flaming Lips. Regular segments on the show included Biz Markie’s Beat of the Day and Mark’s Magic Pictures, featuring Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo.
Suffice to say, Christian Jacobs’ early ska career in the 90′s set him up to create two very different but incredibly fun children’s shows; both of which have introduced young kids to revolutionary bands and their generally positive messages.
And if you liked seeing MCR show up for seemingly no reason on Yo Gabba Gabba, you’ll fucking LOVE The Aquabats! Super Show!
In fact, you should go check it out on their YouTube channel right now, where a good amount of the episodes are free. Fuck, even Rhys Darby of Our Flag Means Death fame showed up on the Shark Fighter! episode of TA!SS!
I’ve seen The Aquabats live and would love to do so again. Their concerts are super fun, engaging, and aimed primarily at children (Pizza Friday dance party anyone?). They just want people to be kinder, enjoy music, and have fun together.
So yeah... Emo kids should 110% be supporting the ska scene and vice versa. Listen to some Aquabats and MCR, support both bands whenever possible, and remember that we’re all friends here. Every snowflake is special!