Taking the Cake Out of Strawberry Shortcake

Lisa — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 11:04:48 -0700

In 2005, Cookie Monster shocked (or rocked, depending on your point of view) the nation with his revelation that "cookies are a sometimes food." The latest fictional character to jump on the nutritional bandwagon? None other than Strawberry Shortcake.

Yes, Strawberry Shortcake. As in, "Strawberry Shortcake with her jam and bread, you can make a strawberry pie with her head." (So sang my cousins, anyway.) The New York Times reveals that, among other 21st century changes, from now on Strawberry Shortcake will be "fruit-forward."

In fact, American Greetings has given the character a total makeover. No more freckles, red hair, and chubby cheeks. In fact, they've managed to completely excise any red from her wardrobe. Which is a little strange since, um, strawberries are RED. The new S.S. has lustrous pink hair, a barely visible smattering of freckles, a pink wardrobe, and a cell phone. What's become of her cat, Custard, is unclear.

The article also discusses the slimming of Angelina Ballerina for television, the potential gothify-ing of Tweety Bird, and—incredibly—skinny Care Bears.

I'm all in favor of promoting healthy eating among the young, but correct me if I'm wrong that parents have a WHOLE lot more influence on preschool children's eating habits than a bunch of cartoon characters (many of them animals). I mean, did any child honestly look at the old Strawberry Shortcake and think, "I want to look just like her?" I thought it was the Olsen twins we had to worry about.

On the other hand, maybe the reason no one wanted to look like the old Strawberry Shortcake was because she looked a saccharine-sweet dork. Don't get me wrong, I liked her well enough when I was in preschool. But that hat? Those bloomers?! Oh, honey...

(Via the Monkey Speaks.)

Posts on political correctness run amok

Taking the Cake Out of Strawberry Shortcake