You might think your fondly remembered entertainment was just as innocent as you were, but just leave it to the internet to ruin that for you. With hidden links to way darker shows and overlooked details that can convince you that your favourite mascot was actually a serial killer.
Here are 21 of the most twisted fan theories that will totally ruin your childhood. Check out the sources at the bottom for even more!
Inspector Claw
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In Inspector Gadget, the Inspector we know is actually the second Inspector, built as a completely-robotic replacement after the first was lost in action.
Upon returning from whatever disaster caused his bosses to give up on him he discovers this replacement living his life. He disavows everything he once knew and loved, even going so far as to take a new name... DOCTOR CLAW!
zaphod_85
Finding Closure
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In the beginning of Finding Nemo, the father imagines one son survived when in reality his whole family was destroyed.
The movie is an allegory of the father's journey through the stages of grief. Almost everyone in the story tells the father he has to "let go" of his son. His travels takes him to the Land Down Under (aka Underworld). The movie ends with him saying goodbye as his son visually disappears into the void. And the kicker? "Nemo" means "nobody" in Latin.
[Deleted]
That's Smurfed Up, Man
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The Smurfs are a thinly veiled parable about white supremacy. All of the smurfs wear white hats that resembled KKK hoods, except for the Grand Wizard of the smurfs, Papa Smurf, who wears a red hood.
_DiscoNinja_
Scooby Dooby Dodge
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Scooby Doo seems fairly innocent, unless you see it as taking place in the real world of America in 1969 (the year it debuted). How did four mismatched kids wind up living in their van while on an endless cross-country road trip? After all, the show never really bothered to tell us where they were driving all that time.
The answer? It's 1969, the Vietnam War is at its height, and millions of directionless young people are desperate to avoid being drafted into military service. Hence, they're on the road to Canada to dodge the draft.
All of the mysteries that we see in the course of the show are just diversions that the kids encounter on the road to freedom in Canada.
themightyheptagon
The Real Prize
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Willy Wonka knew those children would die in his factory. After Augustus gets sucked up the shoot, they all hop on board the boat through the tunnel of doom. The boat doesn't have two extra vacant seats though. It was designed with prior knowledge that they would lose two participants before that point. Later they drive a cream spewing car with only four seats. Did they have another car waiting in the garage in case the others made it? Of course not. Willy Wonka uses children to make candy.
neverbinkles
The Cat's Out of the Bag
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Garfield is actually a feral cat dying of starvation. His obsession with food stems from this, and he imagines a life with the man he often sees walking his dog. Jon and Odie. There was a reference to this in a Halloween themed comic. Garfield woke up in a condemned and abandoned house. He calls out for Odie and Jon, but there is no answer. He then wills the illusion back on himself, and continues his delusions about his 'family'.
lusciouslou
What's in That Fairy Dust?
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Peter Pan was actually the villain of Neverland all along. The Lost Boys are his own private army that he keeps under control by murdering anyone who becomes old enough to question his leadership.
Captain Hook was the hero who survived Peter's cult and became an adult. The children he rescued with him became his crew and they're trying to liberate the rest.
roughbeard368
A Little Magic Goes A Long Way...
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After the events seen in the movies and books Matilda goes on living with Ms. Honey and going to Crunchem Hall. Slowly students begin to forget about Matilda's powers, as she hadn't used them in years. Matilda and many of her friends go their separate ways during middle school and she is left a quiet nerdy girl who loves to read. Kids begin to pick on her constantly, and without Ms. Honey running this new school, the bullying just escalates. Eventually Matilda gets fed up and kills one of the bullies. Enough people saw it happen that Ms. Honey thinks that it is best for Matilda to leave town and go under an assumed name. She sends Matilda to live with one of her cousins in Maine.
Thus kicking off the plot of Carrie.
daniel_hlfrd
Phoning Long Distance
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E.T. was a Jedi escaping Order 66. During the Senate vote for no-confidence scene in the Phantom Menace you'll see a cutaway to species that looks identical to the E.T. The Extraterrestrial species.
This explains E.T.'s extraordinary powers of levitation and healing, he's actually using the force. All he needs is a lightsaber and he's ready to cut.
marcelius
Happier Days.
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"That 70's Show," is a vague sequel to "Happy Days". At the end of Happy days, Richie and Ralph go off to the Korean war (or at least they are training for it). Fonzie stays behind. At this point you must remember that the Fonz was always the person who kept Richie 'cool'.
Flash Forward 20 years, Richie, (now 'Red') Has become bitter after the war, and without the catalyst that was Arthur Fonzerelli, his friendship with fool neighbor, Bob (Ralph) has fallen apart.
Happy Days was made in the 70s and set in the 50s. That 70's Show was in the 90s and set in the 70s.
gulsado
Fallout: Bikini Bottom
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The existence of Spongebob and his strange friends is the result of radiation from nuclear arms testing that was performed on the Bikini Atoll in the late 40's and early 50's. Since they live under the atoll, the town is known as 'Bikini Bottom'.
Capmaster
Fresh Prince of the Pearly Gates
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Will was murdered in that fight on the basketball court in West Philly. The taxi driver who picked him up is actually God (that's why we felt that the cab was different or "rare")
The Fresh Prince of Bel Air is his own version of heaven. Where he lives in a mansion with his wealthy aunt and uncle and slowly works out the issues and hardships that he never got to resolve in life.
attyx6427
There's Always a Cynic...
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In Care Bears Grumpy Bear was originally 'Genius Bear'. He's been turned extremely cynical because at some point he realized that none of the other bears gave a crap about being reasonable, rational, logical or sensible and only cared about feeling good.
MostlyIrrelephant
All Blowed Up
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In the Rugrats episode where they think the world will end, they make a shelter and plan to survive. Except there's only enough room for 4, not 5. So, they have to pick between Tommy, Chuckie, Angelica, Phil and Lil.
They actually make a logical choice for repopulating the earth. You would take both girls. Chuckie has different family from either girl, so he's accepted. The choice would be between Tommy and Phil. Phil has redundant DNA with Lil, Tommy, while a cousin of Angelica, still brings more diversity. Leaving Phil out was the logical choice, if they truly had to. It's not broken down this way in the show, but they still reach the same result.
shatonamime
Great Scott!
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The Doc is ready to kill himself along with Marty in that parking lot during the first time travel scene in Back to the Future. Not only has he never tested the time machine, but he claims that many of his inventions have been failures.
So during the moment when he's about to find out if his life's work was a huge success, or a complete waste, he not only drives the Delorian towards himself, but grabs onto Marty when he tries to run away.
If that first time travel test was a failure, they both would have been killed. Which is exactly what Doc wanted had the experiment been a failure.
mcjesse
Mystery Solved!
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The original Scooby Doo series is set after a horrible economic depression. Everything is abandoned and falling apart, and all of the villains are people who would normally be really respected (professors, museum curators, celebrities) who have fallen into hard times just like everyone else.
Think about it this way. How many times have the gang helped someone NOT go out of business?
[deleted]
Gotta Catch 'Em All!
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Pokemon are actually bred for combat, and the world is just recovering from a major World War. Most of the men were killed, which is why most of the protagonists in Pokemon only have a mother and why most of the people you fight on the road are kids. Lt. Surge also slightly verifies this when he talks about how Pokemon saved him in the war.
Pasalacqua87
Yabba Dabba Dystopia
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The Jetsons and the Flintstones are two portions of the same society. The people living in Bedrock are actually a lower caste of humans that live on the surface and are forced to mine minerals for the upper-class.
This explains the talking animals: They're just synthetic creations. As well as the fact that everyone in The Jetsons lives in sky towers: The surface has been polluted and is reserved for the lower class.
Steeze_McQueen
SpoOOoOOooky.
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In the Haunted Mansion at Disney World/Disneyland, "you" commit suicide during the course of the ride and become a ghost.
At the beginning of the ride the ghost host (the narrator) says the only way to escape the mansion is to die, and he shows that he hanged himself. Near the end of the ride there's a moment where the ride vehicle turns around backwards and you go off a balcony, which according to this theory represents you jumping to your death.
Before this part of the ride the ghosts are all trying to scare you, but afterwards they sing excitedly and invite you to party with them. (The Grim Grinnin' Ghosts song.) The only human character in the ride, a groundskeeper, appears after the balcony drop. He faces toward the riders and seems terrified of you.
[deleted]
That Football Keeps Moving Farther...
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An explanation for why Charlie Brown in Peanuts is bald is that he's dying of cancer. The whole school seems to revolve around him because they're trying to be inclusive before he kicks the bucket.
This is why he's so constantly depressed about his life and feels like a failure.
Ducknish
I'm Not Even Surprised
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My Neighbour Totoro was set in a place in Japan where there was a case of murdering of two sisters which happened in the 60s. This event took place on May 1st, while the sister's names are Satsuki (May in Japanese) and Mei (May in English). In the real life case, the younger sister was missing first and the older sister was seen to be looking for her frantically. Next day, the younger sister's body was found in the forest. The older sister was in such a state of shock and kept rambling ambiguous words about seeing a "cat monster", "great big racoon monster" etc to the police.
amazzingamanda
When we're intoxicated, or even the slightest bit tipsy from having a little too much to drink, our immediate perspective on things is hazy.
But there's nothing like a bit of alarming news or a jarring incident to snap us out of the fog and focus on the moment.
Sometimes alcohol isn't always to blame for our impairment.
It can be a state of mind, like a perpetual numbness from being complacent in life, and all it takes is one shocking moment to rattle us back to our senses.
Curious to hear from strangers online about this type of scenario, Redditor Known_Challenge_7150 asked:
"What’s one thing that sobered you up real quick?"
These individuals were witness to shocking events that sobered them up right quick.
Bleeding Out
"Got out of a taxi and found a naked man profusely bleeding from his head crawling up the driveway in my condo. Called him an ambulance completely forgot I was absolutely wasted until 45 minutes later when I'd helped him translate and in to an amublance and stepped in my front door."
"Later a few days later learned he'd slipped in the tub and literally crawled out for help. Poor dude. He was fine but I genuinely thought he was going to die there."
– DongLaiCha
Tragic News
"At a bachelor party and we got a phone call that the groom’s father had suddenly passed."
– accountnameredacted
Bottom Of The Barrel
"I went to visit my parents back in July. I was homeless and deep into fentanyl addiction so I lost a lot of weight. My folks could see it. They knew something was up. Anyway, I spent the night and I was getting ready to leave in the morning and I looked at myself in the mirror for a good long time. I finally had enough and told them everything. They took me to detox, from there I went to rehab. Graduated in August and been living with them ever since then. I have 160 days clean and sober."
– Crotch-Monster
A reality check can be enough for some people to snap out of it.
Like Father, Like Son
"Was driving a drunk friend home, he had been on a bender again and was smart enough to call me for a lift rather than try and drive. As I helped in to his house his mother came down the stairs and said 'your as drunk as your father' and went back upstairs. I haven't seen him drunk since then, he still drinks but the thought of turning into his dad scared him out of hard drinking."
– psycospaz
Busted
"Flashing blue lights."
– FiddleOfGold
"This sobered me up just thinking about it."
– redmaple_syrup
Losing Sight
"Woke up to no sight in one eye. I had cataract surgery so just thought one of the lenses had slipped and it was an easy fix. Eye doc says nope, you had a stroke. I loved soy sauce, teriyaki sauce and salty food, which caused high blood pressure, which caused retina damage. Over six months was able to get most of my eyesight back with medication, and all back within a year. Trying to navigate life with one eye was very sobering. Started taking HBP much more seriously."
– MissHibernia
Quitting The Bottle
"Looked up someone I went to highschool with who was an awesome guy. Found out he had been dead for 3 years from alcoholism, at age 33. I made an overnight change. I hadn't started drinking that night yet, 10 months ago. Haven't touched it again since."
– omgtater
These disturbing moments were enough for Redditors to immediately come to their senses.
Unplanned House Guests
"Me and a buddy Woke up in someone’s living room, realized neither one of us knew the people, they were just nice and let 2 drunk guys sleep on their living room floor. We didn’t even say goodbye."
– Oneinsevenbillion75
Serious Health Warning
"Elevated liver enzymes."
"And the knowledge that this sh** was gonna kill me and I just couldn't orphan my family over it."
"So I opted for recovery, instead."
"Clean and sober since June 5, 2009."
– Far_Meal8674
The Joyride
"Grew up in a rural area. The little town hosted dances at the hockey arena, everyone (adults and kids) went and they overserved everyone, regardless of age. I was maybe 16 or 17 and was absolutely sh*tfaced, and jumped in the back of someone's truck with about 8 other people to go back to someone's cottage for after dance drinking. The driver (still don't know who it was) started racing one of his buddies and we whipped around small dirt roads, flying around blind corners on the wrong side of the road, going god knows how fast. It was basically a disaster waiting to happen. It was crazy scary and I was sober and thankful to be alive when we finally arrived."
– foxfood9116
The human psyche is a fascinating thing, isn't it?
How we can automatically focus on something urgent at a crucial time, even after getting buzzed from drinking too much alcohol.
But as we're in the thick of the holidays, it's a good reminder to drink responsibly and stay off the roads if you drive to your celebratory destination.
Cheers. Stay safe. And happy holidays.
We've all complained or vented about something in our lives which, in the grand scheme of things, wasn't exactly a problem, or is very easily solved.
Then there are those who complain about things that others almost hope will happen to them at some point in their lives.
These are known as "first world problems", as they are problems that pretty much only the world's one percent faces.
From having to fly business class instead of first class, or being served Roederer instead of Dom Pérignon, these complaints are often met with amusement, bewilderment, or even anger.
Redditor jennimackenzie was curious to hear the most absurd "first world problems" anyone ever complained about, leading them to ask:
"What’s the most ridiculous 'first world problem' you’ve seen people get worked up over?"
"Tale As Old As Time..."
"I once knew a mom who was legitimately devastated, to the point of tears/grief, because a doctor predicted her 8 year old daughter's final height to be around 5'2","
"Which wasn't tall enough to get cast as Belle at Disney World."
"That was the child's (and her mother's) only dream in life, apparently."
"Didn't appreciate my suggestion that she could be Minnie or Mickey."
"Lol!"
"Only a face character would do!"- TravelLovingMom
"Must Be Funny, In A Rich Man's World..."
"My boss from about a decade ago was this insanely rich dude who always went to the bank to get fresh and crisp currency."
"He'd call the bank in advance to make sure they had some on hand."
"I think he was a germaphobe."
"He had a trash can that he'd throw $1 and $5 bills in that he thought was 'dirty' and regularly just donated it vs spending it."
"I asked him why he did this and he said it was too much trouble and asked if I wanted it."
"I said f*ck yeah dumped it into my bag and when I got home it was close to $400 in singles and fives.
"Another time, he wanted to upgrade all the computers in his studio, so we went to a store and bought 10 PCs."
"They all had $150 mail in rebates and he wasn't bothered to go through the trouble of mailing them in."
"3 weeks later I received $1500 after spending a whole afternoon filling out all those goddamn forms."- azninvasion2000
Money Burn GIF by nog
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Who Wore It Better?
"When I was about 19 years old, I was at my boyfriends family BBQ."
"I was wearing this pretty floral sundress."
"His cousins girlfriend showed up in the same dress and she was SO mad that she went and changed."
"I will never understand being upset when someone is wearing the same thing as you.'
"Did you really think that your shirt you bought off the rack is going to be unique to you?"
"No."- mertsey627
Seeing Red! Or Blue In This Case...
"The blue of the balloons wasn't quite the same as the bridesmaid's sashes."
"Years ago my wife and I attended a wedding."
"It was very low key."
"The dinner was in the dining hall at the university where the couple met, cinder block walls and all."
"It was a Baptist wedding - no booze and very serious."
"The dark blue balloons attempting to liven up the hall were a slightly darker shade of blue than the sashes on the bridesmaid's dresses."
"The bride lost here sh*t and absolutely raved for nearly an hour."
"I can't remember how they finally managed to talk her down."- mechant_papa
south park wedding GIF
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See You In Court!
"Rich neighbors who end up in expensive court battles because they disagree about where a tree can be planted or whether the color of a fence fits in with the street’s 'amenity'."
'These disputes get really heated and rack up huge lawyers’ bills."
"The most pathetic part is after the judgement when they are arguing about who should pay the other party’s costs."
"Lots of affidavits filed citing the 'emotional distress' they had to endure, or painting themselves as brave warriors who were forced to take a stand to fight for 'justice'."
"Also lots of pompous litigants insisting that the judge refer to them by their 'Dr' title."
"An absolutely insane dumpster fire of entitled rich people problems."- ElectrocRaisin
It's Always People With Money Who Don't Want To Pay!
"I work in a public library."
"People will get so so mad if they have to be put on a wait list for a book."
"A popular book that just came out."
"Ok our services are not only free but so are the books."
"You’re welcome, a**holes."- Switchbladekitten
A Warm Butt Is A Happy Butt!
"My own."
"We have a bidet toilet seat (Fabulous! Everyone should have one!) and not only does it wash your bum and blow dry it, but the seat's heated!"
"It's shocking how much a heated toilet seat makes the whole process more agreeable."
"Except: We had a power outage and I went to use the toilet and the seat was cold!"
"Unacceptable!"
"This shall not stand!"
"I was really upset because it didn't feel good."
"Then I stopped and thought: This is the most first-world problem anyone's ever had."
"I was really pissed because my heiny was tepid."
"I got over it."- DeathGrover
homer simpson episode 23 GIF
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Holy Matrimony!
"Weddings are a gold mine for this question."
"People get so hyped up over their 'most important day of their life'."
"They'll destroy friendships, go into debt, and have crazy expectations."
"It's not always the couple who go crazy, either."
"Sometimes, it's the parents or another family member who feels entitled to control the wedding."
"It's just a party."
"Be considerate of guests, have plenty of food and drinks, and enjoy it."- magicrowantree
When Fast Food Isn't Fast Enough...
"Having to pull off to the side to wait for a drive-thru order to be brought out to you because your food isn't ready and there's a line building up behind you."- demanbmore
In Case You Don't Think Customer Service Employees Are Undervalued...
"I was working the return desk at a Target next to a military base so I have so many stories."
"One of my favorites was a lady who had her baby shower before revealing the gender and was livid that she had received floral newborn diapers when she’s having a boy."
"It was a huge box of super expensive, all organic diapers, that we didn’t carry and therefore could not return."
"I cannot accurately express her fury and disgust."
"How dare either suggest her boy could wear feminine diapers."
"I suggested she donate them if she didn’t want to use them and she instead threw away the entire box."
"When she left we pulled it out and threw it in our donate bin."
"There have also been multiple times where mom’s order massive toys and when we bring them out to the car they get furious that they aren’t wrapped."
"We don’t offer wrapping services."
"Here’s the thing, if you don’t want your kids to see the toys you got them for Christmas or their bit to day DON'T BRING THE CHILD WHEN YOU PICK IT UP."
'I’ve had multiple women scream and curse me out that I had ruined their kids Christmas by bringing the toys they ordered out to the car like they requested."- clever-mermaid-mae
Customer Service Waiting GIF by Juno Calypso
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Happiest Place On Earth!
"I used to work for Disney."
"That in itself should tell you everything."
"However for fun I'll give you two specific stories one form our tech department and one from my wife who worked bookings."
"I specifically worked for their call center to help with technical issues with magic band and the website."
"Suddenly got worse huh?"
"A right of passage call everyone has at least one story of is the 'Dome call'."
"Basically there is a subset of Disney Guest (TM) that believes if it rains at Walt Disney world there is someone that will push a button to encapsulate the whole of Disney property in a dome to keep out the rain."
"I'm not kidding."
"If this button is not pushed they call our tech department to angrily ask why."
"My wife worked booking."
"Pretty much everything including Bibbidi Bobbidi boutique and Pirate's league."
"These two things did roughly the same thing difference being price and theme."
"BBB was expensive did more and was focused on princesses, pirates league did a bit less and focused on mermaids and pirates."
"Lady called up my wife, and got pissed about BBB being booked up (It goes FAAAAST)."
"Karen: 'Im going to give the phone to my daughter and I want you to tell her how you are ruining her vacation by not letting her do BBB'."
"Wife proceeds to explain how pirate's league is so much cooler and how she can be a mermaid or pirate and basically gets the kid to start demanding to their parents about how they want to be a mermaid instead of a princess."- trollsong
Disney World GIF
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The horror!
Being booked into a junior suite at Disney World instead of an executive suite!
It's almost as bad as having no money for groceries, or no food to feed you children...
Said absolutely no one.