Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling

While it's just as raunchy and edgy as viewers remember, this brief return to O-Town is also a surprisingly warm commentary on nostalgia culture and accepting change in a fast-moving world. While the first half of the special is a wild ride of rediscovery for Rocko's crew, Ralph Bighead's transition to Rachel dominates the second. When Rachel's gender is revealed, Heffer pauses and then says "Wow, cool"; just another 21st-century change that's as easy to accept as a pizza taco. It's more difficult for Mr. Bighead, who admits to suffering from a case of TMC, "Too much change." For a special that's still stuck in the '90s in some ways (fat jokes? really?), Static Cling handles Rachel's transition and her family's challenges sensitively.

As all of the characters learn to embrace change and figure out what's important, the sweetness shines through with a triumphant ending that's filled with meta moments. A character tells Rocko "An old cartoon isn't going to solve the kinds of problems you have," but it helps him work through them nonetheless. The new generation of viewers might not get jokes about "the root of capitalist redundancy," but the old ones sure will, and kids can digest the positive messages hiding beneath the booger jar.