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10 Times 'Hey Arnold!' Got Pretty Dark And Depressing

The Nickelodeon animated series created in 1994 by Craig Bartlett featured some gut-wrenching moments.

Source: IMDb

Nickelodeon's Hey Arnold! is one of the best shows we watched growing up. The animated series created in 1994 by Craig Bartlett had a whole bunch of interesting characters and plotlines. The show followed a group of high school kids living colorful lives in a city neighborhood and each character was so different from the other appearance-wise as well as personality-wise. The show was funny and smart and also pretty realistic for a children's cartoon. There were pretty dark themes in several episodes as well. Take a look!

1. Helga’s Mother Was An Alcoholic

Miriam Pataki was often seen tired, slurring words and making "smoothies". Many fans pointed out that Miriam Pataki had a drinking problem and she was a pretty terrible mom to Helga. 



 

2. The Patakis Are Terrible Parents

Both of Helga's parents were never there for her and adored her older sibling Olga and they weren't shy about showing affection to just one of their kids. Bob Pataki is an aggressive dad who never knew how to emotionally be there for his younger daughter.  



 

3. Helga Has A Dangerously Unhealthy Obsession With Arnold

Helga was rude and obnoxious with the show's protagonist but she secretly fantasized about being with him even making a shrine in her closet as a tribute to him. The shrine sometimes included items discarded by Arnold like his used chewing gum. Ew!



 

4. Lila And Her Father Lived In Poverty

This was a particularly heartbreaking episode where the kids who were jealous and mean to Lila ended up learning that she had a very tough life at home. 



 

5. Chocolate Boy Is Basically A Drug Addict

Chocolate boy is a young kid who attempts to curb his addiction to chocolate but fails. What makes him addicted? His dependency was primarily caused by his parents not being around when he was a child. That's just so sad!



 

6. Mr. Hyunh Gives Up His Infant Daughter During The Vietnam War

This one definitely made us bawl. During the Vietnam War, Mr. Hyung had given up his infant daughter to the U.S. military so that she could live a better life than being in the war-torn area.



 

7. Pigeon Man Teaches Arnold That Most Humans Are Inherently Evil

Pigeon Man lives life in solitude and befriends pigeons... not people.  When Arnold tries to introduce him back into society it backfires horribly. But the hermit is quite appreciative that there are still some good humans like Arnold out there.



 

8. Arnold's Parents Left Him Behind With His Grandparents When He was An Infant

Arnold's folks boarded a plane and flew into the Central American jungle never to be seen again and the little baby they left behind was raised by his (thankfully adorable) grandparents instead.



 

9. Olga Pataki Is Constantly On The Edge Of A Nervous Breakdown

Olga plays the role of a nearly perfect person and this takes a toll on her. She is academically talented, pretty, well-mannered, and popular but she's always on the verge of a breakdown.



 

10. Harold Is A Frequent Victim Of Fat Shaming

Although Harold is kind of a bully himself he is often made fun of for his weight not just by his peers but adults as well.