"I think it’s why it went over the network’s heads," says Murray. "It was a definite character trait of Ed Bighead to start out being against something and then realizing that he actually likes it." Had an earnest character like Rocko struggled with his identity, the hidden meaning of the episode would be much clearer – and less funny. Bighead to go through this change may have helped with the greenlighting process. Murray also says that choosing a curmudgeonly character like Mr. I think that because that was all happening, we were maybe able to do things that somebody else might not have been able to do.” "But it still had to appeal to kids – it had to have a visual, cartoon-y feel and lots of wackiness.
“With Rocko, we really tried to take social issues on – it was part of the whole structure of the show," says Murray, citing episodes that dealt with everything from adoption to racism.
Of course, this was far from the first time that Rocko's Modern Life tackled some more mature themes. And then the sense of euphoria of getting that weight off your chest." fear of creating more lies and the problems that come from creating lies. "The fear of hiding something deep and personal from his wife. “Once we had that anchor, it really helped guide us through Mr. One of the writers had this idea that we make this about him wanting to be a clown."Īs the idea was brainstormed some more, members of the staff (some of whom were openly gay) decided to make the episode a metaphor for being in the closet. We had a really good time writing for Ed Bighead, who had a lot of hidden neuroses that would come out at different times.
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I wanted to know: Was this really an allegory for hiding your sexuality, or was I just diving too deep into the Rocko fan forums? I spoke with Joe Murray, the series creator, and Rob Porter, a storyboard artist and writer on the episode, if the fan theory had any legs. Obviously, if this was actually meant to be about being queer, it was a pretty radical storyline to air. Bighead, who's relieved that he hasn't been cheating. Bighead is a clown and reacts warmly to his coming-out, including Mrs. Bighead slowly, albeit still secretly, starts to embrace his identity, entertaining kids at birthday parties while lying to his wife about his whereabouts.