Justice For Cocomelon Mommy
Judith Butler would have a field day
I’m sorry to say that today’s cultural analysis comes to you by way of Cocomelon.
Cocomelon is a television “show” with which far too many parents have been forcibly familiarized in recent years, and if you are the rare person reading this newsletter who needed that explainer, I envy you.
I’m confident I could fill the pages of a book with rants about Cocomelon, but this particular essay is leveled at two songs in the Cocomelon catalogue: “My Mommy Song” and “My Daddy Song.” If you’ve made it this far in life without having listened to either of these songs, please don’t click on those links and ruin that for yourself.
The Mommy Song and The Daddy Song have identical melodies and are structured around the same premise: that each of them are “the best that ever was.”
Where the Mommy Song and The Daddy Song part ways, however, is in substance. Sure, Mommy and Daddy are both “the best that ever was,” but their reasons for being so celebrated are worlds apart.
According to the lyrics in The Mommy Song, “Mommy is the best” for the following reasons:
She gives JJ a bandaid for some bullshit “boo-boo.” (I saw no blood.)
She vacuums with a smile on her face and bends down MID-VACUUM to play fucking checkers with the girl kid (sorry I don’t know her name). “Even when she’s busy, she loves me just the same.”
Because she makes the boy kid (I don’t care that I don’t know his name) “his favorite snack” even though he’s an entitled little shit and literally smiles and shakes his head condescendingly at Mommy when she gives him the wrong snack before pointing to the RIGHT snack she should’ve given him.
Because Mommy is the best, she giggles and corrects her mistake before something horrible happens.
Mommy is the best because she laughs at her fourth child’s (Daddy) inane jokes even though it’s obvious to anyone looking that she’s dying inside.
She’s also the best because she and Daddy have a vaudeville act.
Lastly, Mommy is the best because she “always takes good care of us and she should be a queen” except she’s the Cocomelon Mommy so she’s not a queen, she’s a robot.
At the end of the Mommy Song music video, Mommy’s children (JJ, boy kid, girl kid, and Daddy) give her a book they’ve made and she is thrilled because honestly it’s a rare moment she gets to sit down and also a rare moment that she’s not serving somebody or cleaning something.
Let’s move onto The Daddy Song.
Daddy is the best because:
He tells JJ silly stories at bedtime. Lest you think this illustrates Daddy’s sense of humor or his narrative abilities, by all accounts, JJ is a baby (who sometimes giggles like a 6-month-old and sometimes speaks in clearly enunciated full sentences) so the bar for “silly” or even “story” isn’t high.
He plays the guitar for the girl kid (sorry I still don’t know her name) and “let’s her sing along.” We can’t hear the song he’s playing though, so I remain dubious he’s doing anything other than pretending to play a song.
He takes the boy kid (still don’t care that I don’t know his name because he was an absolute dick to Mommy over a fucking sandwich and Mommy deserves better) camping and on hikes. He also taught him how to catch a fish and how to ride a bike.
Daddy is also the best because he listens to Mommy’s problems and “knows just what to do.” And by this I mean he answers the phone when Mommy calls to tell him she got a flat tire, and then he appears out of nowhere to fix the flat tire.
To celebrate Daddy being the Best There Ever Was, his kids (siblings?) give him a medal, a trophy, AND a badge. His Mommy gives him a personalized tie. Please remember, all Mommy got was a bullshit homemade book.
Remember how The Daddy Song music video started with Daddy looking like a capable adult because he was stationed at the grill and was wearing an apron? The conclusion of the music video reveals that Daddy’s grill and apron were just part of a play-set Mommy gave him because obviously Daddy can’t be trusted with hot appliances or sharp objects. MOMMY OBVIOUSLY did the real grilling.
Let’s recap!
Mommy is the best because she’s good at cleaning, caretaking, cooking, and managing her biggest child’s fragile ego by laughing at his surely humiliating jokes and participating in their sad song and dance act. Mommy is the best because she is a domestic robot with no individual needs or interior life.
Daddy is the best because he’s good at being the Fun One: he tells silly stories, dances, “plays” the guitar, fishes, eats s’mores, and changes Mommy’s tire which you know she deliberately popped so Daddy could have the thrill of “listening to her problems and knowing just what to do.” This is the only reasonable explanation. Mommy keeps the Cocomelon household afloat singlehandedly (and does literally everything) so there’s no way in hell we (as the audience god help us) can be expected to believe that Mommy doesn’t know how to replace a goddamn tire. Mommy is the best because someone programmed her that way and Daddy is the best because he’s fun to play with.
Final thought: Mommy should trade Daddy in for a puppy. Puppies are (like Daddy) fun to play with and also way cuter (and less emotionally needy) than Mommy’s biggest, most obnoxious (this is saying a lot if you’ve ever watched Cocomelon) child, Daddy.
I absolutely hate Cocomelon, and unfortunately I failed to mention that to my MIL and she let my daughter watch a little on her phone before. My daughter complained about wanting to watch it later after that happened, but I told her I am firm on no you can’t watch it because Mommy doesn’t like it, and you’re not allowed to watch it without me. Thankfully she seemed to forget about it recently with her excitement over the new season of Gabby’s Dollhouse and enjoying watching Magic School Bus Rides Again.
Justice for Cocomelon Mommy!