Nuff cheese.

   If you're not familiar with Cbeebies' racial stereotype creole Rastamouse, this blog looks to service such lack of knowledge. I was recently pointed in the direction of Rastamouse by fellow fan Kiah and have made the following observations on the show aimed at three to five year-old children and available on iPlayer here.

   The series of ten minute stop-motion animations is set in Grovetown, Mouseland and its worth pointing out now that all the characters are personified mice voiced by, among others, Reggie Yates, Radio1 DJ and star of whatever that thing on a Saturday morning was that threw the horrific Fearne Cotton into our lives. The main character Rastamouse is the frontman and guitarist of the Easy Crew, a reggae band who have a direct radio link with President Wensley Dale (see what they did there?) for the purposes of crime-solving, but not prevention.

Easy Crew at Nuff Sound Records.

   Most crimes in the city seem to revolve around the theft of goods and the impact of this upon the children at one orphanage run by what can only be described as the greasiest, dodgiest looking mouse this side of Tower Hamlets, Harlem or the heartier side of Kingston is the basis of the story. Apparently President Dale's dictatorship didn't go down well with the city's polis who now refuse to solve crime without large payments in cheese, which the president doesn't have because it keeps getting nicked. Grovetown's security is therefore instead left to a reggae band on roller blades, though Rastamouse has a skateboard, because he's the flyest of motherfuckers about.

Bagga T, Mouseland's leading hip hop act, dj, drug dealer and
owner of the most crime-ridden orphanage in the world.

   Bagga's employment policy is just as questionable, the chef was convicted of the theft of food way back when and was given the job on the word of all people, President Dale. The President himself wears a military uniform and awards prizes unduly to his family members. His nephew, a convicted thief, is at one point awarded a trophy for art work, much in the same was Rupert Murdoch's son is head of New International for Europe or Kim Jong Un is an army general.

Colonel Dale pleads to a group of musicians on children's modes of transport
to help find missing cheese.

   Beyond the political corruption, child abuse and lawlessness of Mouseland though, there are some good messages. The theme tune proclaims that Rastamouse and co. are "always there to make a bad thing good" and to be honest, they usually are. Most criminals seem resentful and any negative situation is eventually turned around by Easy Crew, even if Rastamouse does most of the work. 

   The haplessness of President Dale and most other members of the society however, overshadows the whole show and you can't help but think that Rastamouse feels they're all beneath him, single-handedly solving most crimes in the city when the witnesses come out with such beauties as "No clues 'ere Rastamouse... But da window was open and it shouldn't 'ave been" and keeping together a band whose drummer is a serial eater and the bassist a whining whore "Wha'cha a'lways tinkin' 'bout cha stomach bwooy?" I don't particularly blame him for making a pretty penny from the broken system.

   In conclusion, Rastamouse may appear to be an entertaining ethnic quota-filling children's television show but on closer inspection it tells the tale of political corruption, high rates of criminal activity and the story of one mouse holding together a whole system.

   Irie man,

-Nous.