“Bee-doe?”
If you’re a well-adjusted childless adult who enjoys age appropriate films, this quote probably seems like complete nonsense to you. If you are under the age of 25, or have fairly young children, you probably recognize this quote, having been uttered by one of Gru’s infamous minions.
If you’re living under a rock, you would be unaware of the “Minion Mania” that has recently taken over our culture. It seems that you can’t get away from those little yellow rascals. They’re everywhere. From Happy Meals to T-shirts to their own feature film, they’re all over the place. Many people are thrown by this sudden takeover. How did such a silly fad become an national phenomenon?
The main reason for the popularity of minions is obviously the movies that they have been a part of. In 2010, Despicable Me introduced the world to Minions. Though this movie was actually more focused on Gru, an evil mastermind voiced by Steve Carell, most everyone would agree that the Minions carried the film. Steve Carell’s Gru had a few satirical moments, and his adopted daughters were cute, but the vast majority of the laughs came from Gru’s little henchmen.
The creators of Despicable Me realized this, and in 2013 they released Despicable Me 2, bringing the Minions into the limelight even more. Though Gru was still the star of the film, the Minions were given more comedic opportunities and successfully outshined Gru once again.
When this sequel was just as, if not more, successful than the original, the creator’s decided to try their luck once again and released Minions. It made sense to give the Minions their own feature film, considering they were everyone’s favorite part of the two previous flicks. However, this movie was met with poor reviews, mostly due to the fact that those adorable yellow guys simply can’t carry their own plot. This is mainly because they can’t even carry a conversation. The Minions have their own language, which is humorous in small doses, but cannot provide the dialogue for a feature film. The devoted kid fans of Minions gave this movie box office success, but that’s all it will ever have.
Due to this slow, but seemingly fast ascent to fame, Minions have become a household item. Minion merchandise is flying off the shelves, and they’re all over social media. Some people cannot go a day without seeing a Minion. Like it or not, they’re here to stay. This “Minion Mania” is quite “bananas.”