"Clarissa Explains It All" doesn't really have a "plot" in the traditional sense of a straight-forward narrative structure, but instead it's largely about the random things going on in the life of a teenage girl named Clarissa Darling (Melissa Joan Hart), and her explanations of everything that's unfolding around her. (And I'm not ashamed to say that as a 25-year-old male, Melissa Joan Hart was probably my first TV crush when this show was in its prime.)
"Clarissa Explains It All" was one of old-school Nickelodeon's best and highest-rated live-action shows during its heyday. Part of what made the show so appealing was the enduring sweetness and charm of its lead actress: Melissa Joan Hart. She was funny, spunky, and not afraid to speak her mind about what was going on around her. Her constant talking directly into the camera was a gimmick that never became tiresome or annoying as it was often a showcasing of her truly unique style on the show. And somewhere in there, also, she found the time to grow up a little bit, as was charted across the show's successful three-year run.
Melissa Joan Hart grew up after this show's cancellation, and she was next seen on the equally popular "Sabrina, the Teenage Witch." Unlike most child stars, I don't think she ever succumbed to the pressures associated with most child actors/actresses who grow up in the Hollywood spotlight (i.e., fall out on drugs, become an unwed teenage parent, wind up at the loony bin or on some low-brow reality show for faded former TV stars, which I guess is the same thing, etc.). For that, you really had to love this girl, her career choices (even though she never really made it "big," she never really faded into any kind of obscurity either), and just general upbeat demeanor and sweetness.
Too bad Nick is no longer producing mature live-action family comedies like this one anymore. Clarissa did a lot of talking on this show and like I said, it never became tiresome or annoying, just like this show never will.
10/10
"Clarissa Explains It All" was one of old-school Nickelodeon's best and highest-rated live-action shows during its heyday. Part of what made the show so appealing was the enduring sweetness and charm of its lead actress: Melissa Joan Hart. She was funny, spunky, and not afraid to speak her mind about what was going on around her. Her constant talking directly into the camera was a gimmick that never became tiresome or annoying as it was often a showcasing of her truly unique style on the show. And somewhere in there, also, she found the time to grow up a little bit, as was charted across the show's successful three-year run.
Melissa Joan Hart grew up after this show's cancellation, and she was next seen on the equally popular "Sabrina, the Teenage Witch." Unlike most child stars, I don't think she ever succumbed to the pressures associated with most child actors/actresses who grow up in the Hollywood spotlight (i.e., fall out on drugs, become an unwed teenage parent, wind up at the loony bin or on some low-brow reality show for faded former TV stars, which I guess is the same thing, etc.). For that, you really had to love this girl, her career choices (even though she never really made it "big," she never really faded into any kind of obscurity either), and just general upbeat demeanor and sweetness.
Too bad Nick is no longer producing mature live-action family comedies like this one anymore. Clarissa did a lot of talking on this show and like I said, it never became tiresome or annoying, just like this show never will.
10/10