POP CULTURE

The Addams Family Legacy

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amilies that stick together, stay together. Or at least that’s how the saying goes. Well, there’s a family that’s been together through thick and thin, especially when they’re one of the weirdest and creepiest families to ever grace pop culture. And just like how they’re portrayed to be immortal, the Addams Family always seems to rise back up like a phoenix. They might literally be..immortal.

Introduced by a cartoonist named Charles Addams in 1938, the Addams Family started out as a single-panel cartoon in The New Yorker newspaper. The family consists of Gomez, the head of the family, his wife Morticia, their children Wednesday and Pugsley, and Gomez’s brother, Fester. The panel usually shows a family with gothic vibes and clothes doing mundane activities in their own unsettling way. These traits were amplified in a comedic way through TV adaptations in 1964 to 1977, which caused a rise in popularity for the family.

In the 90’s, two live action films were released to further cement the Addams in the hearts of the public. The first movie did well in the box office but critics didn’t take it too well. The sequel, Addams Family Values, weirdly had an inverse reception. Unfortunately, due to the death of Raul Julia, the actor who played Gomez, a third movie wasn’t produced. Personally, these movies and the 1992 animated series are what set the standards for an Addams Family pop culture phenomenon. This might be one of the reasons that the 2019 and 2021 animated films received less than positive reception.

However, all was not lost as a recent Netflix series might’ve helped catapult the Addams name back into the limelight. “Wednesday” is a live action series that follows one of the Addams children as the lead character, as she investigates a series of murders and untangles conspiracies. The series received positive reviews by critics and audiences alike and has already made it in meme culture as well. Although it mainly follows Wednesday, appearances by the other family members and their quirkiness have made many feel nostalgic.

Whether you adore them or not, you can’t deny that the Addams Family have always been a household name. Here’s to more of the Addams and their unconventional way of living.

by Noel Jinguli Image | Various Sources