“Blue’s Clues & You!” host Josh Dela Cruz (L), Carolyn Fe and the fictional puppy named Blue. Image: Instagram/@thecarolynfe
The animated TV series “Blue’s Clues & You!” is set to highlight the Filipino roots of its host, Filipino American Josh Dela Cruz, in an upcoming episode.
Dela Cruz introduces his lola (grandmother) to the show’s viewers when she visits his fictional home, as seen in a snippet shared by E.J. Ramos David, Ph.D. on Twitter today, Nov. 13. Filipino Canadian actress Carolyn Fe portrays Dela Cruz’s grandmother in the episode.
After Dela Cruz lets her in and gives her a hug, he then bows slightly and presses his forehead to one of her hands — a Filipino gesture called “mano po.” It is used to show respect to one’s elders.
We have an entire generation of American kids being exposed to a Filipino dude on TV, doing the “Mano po” to his Lola, & making bibingka. My kids are seeing their lives on TV. 😊🤎 pic.twitter.com/ds4zgdxOJ9
— E.J. Ramos David, Ph.D. (@ejrdavid) November 12, 2020
“We have an entire generation of American kids being exposed to a Filipino dude on TV, doing the ‘Mano po’ to his Lola, [and] making bibingka. My kids are seeing their lives on TV,” David said.
David is a clinical psychologist, author and professor who discusses internalized oppression and colonial mentality in his works. Following David’s post, fellow Filipinos could not help but express their joy over the upcoming episode.
“I didn’t think this would make me cry, but it did,” a certain @marscaplsw said alongside a GIF of a teary-eyed Will Smith.
https://twitter.com/marscaplsw/status/1326957865307934723
Meanwhile, @superkirby982 stated that even though the original show “Blue’s Clues” previously featured a Filipino dish called “Paella Rice,” the new episode “takes the cake.”
“The [mano po], which is a gesture we do to greet relatives, the bibingka, which I never had before but I’d like to try, Josh referring to his grandma as [lola], etc. I just love it so much!” the Twitter user stated.
But this just takes the cake. The Mano po, which is a gesture we do to greet relatives, the bibingka, which I never had before but I'd like to try, Josh referring to his grandma as Lola, etc. I just love it so much! 😊😊
— Skirbs (@Superkirby982) November 13, 2020
“Ok but the minute he said ‘it’s my lola!’ Then did the mano po, a singular tear fell. Representation really does matter,” @davostating1 noted.
Ok but the minute he said "it's my lola!" Then did the mano po, a singular tear fell. Representation really does matter
— Ella Vater (@davostating1) November 13, 2020
The new episode will premiere on Friday, Nov. 20, on Nickelodeon.
Along with the “Blue’s Clues & You!” episode, other aspects of Filipino culture have been featured in different productions as well. Disney United Kingdom recently showcased the tradition of Christmas “parols (lanterns)” in a holiday ad.
Meanwhile, the 2019 short film “Float” is the first-ever all-Filipino computer-generated imagery (CGI) animated movie from Disney’s Pixar. Filipino American Bobby Rubio created, produced, and directed the project. NVG
RELATED STORIES:
Thesis film by Filipino students to screen in New York LGBT film fest
A Filipino in Disney TV lives to write our ‘wild, worth-telling’ stories