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Joan of Arcadia

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TV Series

The Resume

    (September 16, 2003-April 22, 2005)
    Aired Friday 8:00-9:00 PM on CBS
    Amber Tamblyn as Joan Girardi
    Joe Mantegna as Will Girardi
    Mary Steenburgen as Helen Girardi
    Christopher Marquette - Adam Rove
    Becky Wahlstrom as Grace Polk (Polansky)
    Jason Ritter as Kevin Girardi
    Michael Welch - Luke Girardi
    Aaron Himelstein - Friedman
    Mageina Tovah - Glynis Figliola
    Sprague Grayden - Judith Montgomery
    Misti Traya - Iris
    Sydney Tamiia Poitier as Rebecca Askew
    April Grace - Lt. Det. Toni Williams
    Elaine Hendrix - Ms. Lischak
    Patrick Fabian - Gavin Price
    Creator: Barbara Hall
    Won the People's Choice Award for Favorite New Dramatic Series (2003)
    Won American Film Institute Top 10 TV Programs of the Year (2003)
    Theme Song: 'One of Us' by Joan Osborne
    Premise: A typical nerdy teenage high school girl is given missions by God
    Joan's birthday is November 24, 1987
    Obvious play on Joan of Arc

Why Joan of Arcadia might be annoying:

    Despite Amber Tamblyn being in her twenties she portrays a sixteen year old.
    God tends to ask questions and rarely explains his motivations.
    Originally the Girardi family was named Delaney.
    Adam continually calls 'Joan,' 'Jane' to a point of irritation.
    Originally Arcadia was in California but changed to Maryland.
    God allows a six year old kid to die.
    The show tends to be a tear-jerker. It is a lot easier to make people cry, than laugh.
    When God appears to Joan, he may be working in a store or playing in a basketball game. When Joan leaves does God continue working or playing basketball?
    Since God comes in many forms, the writers have dubbed them such as 'cute boy god,' 'old lady god,' 'mime god' and 'goth god.'
    The show writers are given the show's ten commandments similar to 'Star Trek's Prime Directive,' of no interference.
    They use lots of Avril Lavigne's music.

Why Joan of Arcadia might not be annoying:

    The show has highly credential actors, Joe Mantegna won a Tony and Mary Steenburgen won an Oscar.
    The show was critically acclaimed and was still able to gather a sizeable audience.
    Although the show concerns God, it does not preach any religion.
    This first episode was named #10 on The Futon Critic's Top 50 Episodes of 2003.
    In one episode, they focus on a misfit bully and school shootings.
    Because it was mentioned on the series, they purchased the web site www.wrathoffriedman.com.
    Although Joan talks with God, she still questions his existence and her own sanity.
    Joan is faced with the dilemma of not really understanding God's reasons nor if it really is God.
    After spending a summer in therapy, she stands up to God and says 'you really hurt me.'
    Joan is geeky.
    'Will Girardi' was ranked #40 in TV Guide's list of the '50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time' (June 20, 2004).
    Barbara Hall's Ten Commandments of Joan of Arcadia
    1. God cannot directly intervene.
    2. Good and evil exist.
    3. God can never identify one religion as being right.
    4. The job of every human being is to fulfill his or her true nature.
    5. Everyone is allowed to say 'no' to God, including Joan.
    6. God is not bound by time. This is a human concept.
    7. God is not a person and does not possess a human personality.
    8. God talks to everyone all the time in different ways.
    9. God's plan is what is good for us, not what is good for him.
    10. God's purpose for talking to Joan, and everyone, is to get her (us) to recognize the interconnectedness of all things.
    (you cannot hurt a person without hurting yourself; all of your actions have consequences; God can be found in the smallest actions; God expects us to learn and grow from all our experiences. However, the exact nature of God is a mystery, and the mystery can never be solved.)

Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 5 Votes: 20.0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 9 Votes: 44.44% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 8 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 17 Votes: 35.29% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 7 Votes: 71.43% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 10 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 9 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 13 Votes: 61.54% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 20 Votes: 70.0% Annoying
    In 2009, Out of 49 Votes: 44.90% Annoying
    In 2008, Out of 69 Votes: 39.13% Annoying
    In 2007, Out of 207 Votes: 43.96% Annoying
    In 2006, Out of 143 Votes: 57.34% Annoying
    In 2005, Out of 500 Votes: 52.40% Annoying
    In 2004, Out of 421 Votes: 43.47% Annoying