At Clusterfest in San Francisco, I finally caught up with the Arrested Development Bluth Company Staircar & Original Frozen Banana Stand. Luckily, we didn't take down any banners. Unluckily, they were out of bananas.
I just submitted an entry into an Arrested Development fan contest, and unfortunately after writing this statement of fandom, I found it wanted 500 characters, not words. Read 500 words below.
Now, the story of a
very serious Arrested Development fan that had no choice but to write a blurb
to convince an electronics company to invite her to stay on a yacht.
Arrested Development is quite simply the most important
piece of art in my life. When it was first airing on Fox, my parents and I
would watch it on Sunday nights, after the Simpsons and Malcolm in the
Middle. I continued to watch on my
big box TV in my dorm room and then for years on DVDs and now on Netflix.
Season 2 Disc 1 was unfortunately lost to an Ex during a break-up, but I like
to think having even those few episodes in his life helped him to grow, even if
I had to buy another boxed set.
When I was studying abroad, those DVDs of the Bluths were my
antidote to homesickness. Some people lose themselves in fantasy worlds with
wizards and dragons but I prefer the world of the Bluths. While not far in time
or distance, Arrested Development is still a complex, fully developed universe,
which is what we seek in great literature. I always come back to them. I am
lucky that they are not my family, but just like breakfast, they are one of the
most important things to me. Sometimes to fall asleep, I listen to episodes
like a radio play, a familiar yet dysfunctional bedtime story.
The self-referential nature of the show combined with my
frequent re-watching has made Arrested Development a lens through which I view
my own experience. It brings smiles and chuckles into my day, whether it be
hearing the Final Countdown on the radio or driving by the Legoland exit,
imagining of Ice the Bounty Hunter on his motorcycle. My friend recently texted me “Exciting news – I am going to
UC Irvine, just like George Michael!” Arrested Development is a common language
that always makes us laugh.
