User:Theleekycauldron/Claudia Kishi
| Theleekycauldron/Claudia Kishi | |
|---|---|
| The Baby-Sitters Club character | |
| First appearance |
|
| Last appearance | 2000 |
| Created by | Ann M. Martin |
| Portrayed by | Momona Tamada (2020 TV series) |
| In-universe information | |
| Home | Stoneybrook, Connecticut |
Claudia Kishi is a fictional character and the protagonist of Ann M. Martin's book series titled The Baby-Sitters Club. She is also the protagonist of an eponymous television series on Netflix, where she is played by Momona Tamada.
Creation, development, and character
[edit]Character
[edit]- actually basic bio, like, she's 12 and what is the babysitter's club
In The Baby-Sitters Club, Claudia Kishi is the vice-president of the titular organization, a group of [] schoolers who [].[1] She hosts the meetings in her bedroom because it has a landline telephone.[2]
Claudia Kishi is a notably rare example of significant and nuanced Asian-American representation in children's literature in the 1980s and 1990s. She is a Japanese-American whose grandmother, Mimi, is a Japanese immigrant. Her character also defies the "model minority" stereotype of Asian-Americans: whereas most characters in her position were relegated to being comic relief, nerdy, or otherwise one-dimensional, Claudia is artsy, fashion-focused, socially well-connected, extroverted, confident, and rebellious.[3][4][5][6] She also does not excel academically, and had to repeat seventh grade on account of her poor marks.[2]
A small number of the books directly address Claudia's heritage, such as Keep Out, Claudia!, a book where Claudia is denied a babysitting gig due to her being Asian.[5]
Martin told People in 2020 that she knew she wanted a diverse set of characters when she created the novel series;[7] David Levthian, an editor at Scholastic who worked with Martin, told the Associated Press in the same year that Martin was not intending to make a statement with it.[4]
Aesthetics
[edit]Claudia's fashion is eclectic and colorful; in the first book, she wears a white blouse with lace, purple cowboy boots and short overalls, and pink tights. Her accessories include heavy use of novelty earrings, depicting food or animals or other icons.[8][9]
Claudia's clothes hew to the same flashy style in the 2020 television adaptation. The base of her outfit is generally a jumpsuit in pink or lavender denim, a colorful top of either tie-dye or magazine or floral print, and combat boots to tone down the femininity of the look. Other materials used in her clothing include leopard print, plaid, and lace, and pieces such as dresses and pleated skirts are often layered over bodysuits and t-shirts. In addition to novelty earrings, Claudia's outfits include other women's fashion items such as handbags and belts that are remixed and rematched to create different styles throughout the first season. Ellen Anderson, a designer for the show's second season, told Elle that her first costume ideas to show creator Rachel Shukert were received warmly, but she was told to make the outfits even flashier, which she recounted as a surprising thing to hear from a showrunner.[9]
Reception, impact, and legacy
[edit]Reception for Claudia Kishi has been generally positive.
- Jynnifer Bates of the Akron Beacon Journal names Claudia her favorite[3]
- For her portrayal of Claudia Kishi, Momona Tamada was nominated for a Children's and Family Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Performer in a Preschool, Children's or Young Teen Program, along with costar Malia Baker.[11]
- In a 1992 poll of fans conducted by Scholastic, Claudia was found to be the second most popular character in the series, behind Stacey.[12]
- Megan Connor, writing in Fandom, the Next Generation, wrote that Claudia was "perhaps the most memorable
As Asian-American representation
[edit]Claudia's enduring significance mainly ties to Millennial women who grew up with The Baby-Sitters Club, and particularly Asian-American women.
Claudia Kishi is widely thought to have influenced Asian-Americans who grew
Given that an important aspect of fan perception of The Baby-Sitters Club has been personally identifying with the characters,[13]
- even people who weren't like claudia liked her (important given the identification with characters)
- but it wasn't perfect
Tribute creations
[edit]Claudia is the subject of several noted fan works by Asian-Americans. Kim Hutt Mayhew ran a blog from 2007 to 2018 titled What Claudia Wore, detailing each of Claudia's outfits based on the books.[6] Yumi Sakugawa drew a zine titled "Claudia Kishi: My Asian-American Female Role Model of the 90's [sic]", [14][15]
In 2020, filmmaker Sue Ding released The Claudia Kishi Club, a short documentary about the impact of Claudia on Asian-Americans who grew up during the heyday of The Baby-Sitters Club. Sue Ding told the Daily Bruin that in 2013, she noticed an outbreak of content from Asian-Americans about Claudia;[1] in 2018, she successfully crowdfunded a documentary project.[16] The Claudia Kishi Club consists of several interviewees, including Sakugawa, whose zine is featured in the documentary; Naia Cuckov, executive producer of the television adaptation of The Baby-Sitters Club; Phil Yu; and a handful of other creatives.[4][6][17]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Yam, Kimmy (July 8, 2020). "'Baby-Sitters Club' actress on filling Claudia Kishi's trailblazing — and stylish — shoes". NBC News. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
- ^ a b Connor 2022, p. 83.
- ^ a b Bates, Jynnifer (September 30, 1992). "Here's a vote for 'Baby-Sitters Club' series". Akron Beacon Journal. Retrieved October 28, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c Tang, Terry (July 9, 2020). "Asian American girls saw pivotal icon in 'Baby-Sitters Club'". Associated Press. Retrieved October 28, 2023.
- ^ a b Tran, Diep (July 10, 2020). "How Netflix's 'The Baby-Sitters Club' spotlights Claudia Kishi's Japanese heritage". NBC News. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
- ^ a b c Makalintal, Bettina (July 9, 2020). "An ode to Claudia Kishi, the coolest kid in 'The Baby-Sitters Club'". Vice. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
- ^ Nahas, Aili (July 16, 2020). "The Baby-Sitters Club author Ann M. Martin is 'proud' of Netflix's diverse spin on series". People. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
- ^ Connor 2022, p. 82.
- ^ a b Puckett-Pope, Lauren (October 22, 2021). "So, you want to dress like the Baby-Sitters Club". Elle. Retrieved October 28, 2023.
- ^ Crawford & Wilson 2021.
- ^ Schneider, Michael (November 1, 2022). "Netflix Leads Nomination Tally for First-Ever Children's & Family Emmys". Variety. Retrieved October 28, 2023.
- ^ Creager, Ellen (July 31, 1992). "Baby-sitter books for kids spawn hundreds of sitter businesses". The Tampa Tribune. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Connor 2022, p. 78.
- ^ Mazzucato, Olivia (July 10, 2020). "'The Claudia Kishi Club' explores cultural impact of Asian American representation". Daily Bruin. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
- ^ Gandhi, Lakshmi (November 9, 2023). "Looking back on Claudia Kishi 30 years after the debut of The Baby-Sitters Club". NBC News. Retrieved November 9, 2023.
- ^ Makalintal, Bettina (July 9, 2020). "An ode to Claudia Kishi, the coolest kid in The Baby-Sitters Club". Vice. Retrieved November 6, 2023.
- ^ Yu, Yi-Jin (July 10, 2020). "The Claudia Kishi Club is a love letter to the beloved Baby-Sitters Club character". Today. Retrieved November 6, 2023.
Works cited
[edit]- Crawford, Marisa; Wilson, Mara (2021). Milks, Megan; Crawford, Marisa (eds.). We Are the Baby-Sitters Club. Chicago Review Press. ISBN 9781641604932.
- Connor, Megan (2022). "Looking back, looking bi: Queering a lifelong fandom of The Baby-Sitters Club". In Kies, Bridget; Connor, Megan (eds.). Fandom, the Next Generation. University of Iowa Press.