The Nickelodeon animated series created in 1994 by Craig Bartlett featured some gut-wrenching moments.
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!
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.
And the award for “Mother of the year” goes to..... ANYONE but Miriam Pataki. pic.twitter.com/l4NP4pfUgQ
— Helga G. Pataki 🎀 (@xHelgaPataki) December 17, 2017
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.
Bob and Miriam Pataki are officially the worst parents in cartoon history.#HeyArnoldJungleMovie pic.twitter.com/2hMhr3hTeC
— Waswolf (@bootscootbooker) November 25, 2017
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!
add Helga & Arnold to the list. She's an obsessive stalker who keeps a shrine of him & verbally abusive. pic.twitter.com/GvOHMIEisc
— Mimi (@MimiHers) September 11, 2016
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.
Sometimes I think about that episode of Hey Arnold where all the girls pick on Lila because she’s really nice and they think she’s stuck up and then they realize she’s actually poor and suffering cause her dad is jobless and they all feel like trash. pic.twitter.com/4rexHEYHQi
— Damian Alexander ✨ (@DamiAnimated) February 27, 2019
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!
Smh I know chocolate boy from hey Arnold grew up to be a dope fiend pic.twitter.com/tlW6IzyY0F
— Origami Drew (@SharklySnipes) October 1, 2019
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.
This entire story of Mr. Hyunh's daughter. I bawled like a baby. pic.twitter.com/mMwYlaafBF
— Raye Barry (@greenebean87) May 30, 2019
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.
I resonate with the pigeon man from hey arnold, don’t talk to me unless you’re a pigeon pic.twitter.com/fITQ9nZKY2
— julian (@forgottenmadman) March 30, 2021
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.
Hey Arnold Arnold's Parents pic.twitter.com/r8rdnTlwgr
— corey campbell (@coreyca22732913) November 9, 2021
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.
Sometimes I feel like Olga Pataki in this state pic.twitter.com/goSbFwDHGS
— stephanie ✨ (@slbehrends) September 14, 2016
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.
Harold of Hey Arnold!
— RoundToons (@RoundToons) January 22, 2019
"Weighing Harold", 1999 pic.twitter.com/aRdzt8PKtw