Daria: Road Worrier (1997)

Daria (voice of Tracy Grandstaff) and Quinn (voice of Wendy Hoopes) attempt to join the alternative generation in this episode of the animated MTV series Daria. The alt-rock immersion begins when Daria and Jane (voice of Wendy Hoopes) suffer through a loud rehearsal of Mystik Spiral, the struggling band whose singer/lyricist, Trent (voice of Alvaro J. Gonzalez), is both Jane's brother and the object of Daria's unvoiced affections. It turns out that Trent and bandmate Jesse (voice of Willy Schwenz) want to attend Alternapalooza, the big alt-rock festival, so Jane offers to chip in gas money. On the day of the event, Daria forces herself into clothing that's somewhat hipper than her normal green-and-black outfit and climbs into the band's van for a long road trip. An unfortunate series of events, however, deprives the journey of its potential joy: Daria's tribulations include injuries to herself, her clothing, her glasses -- and her pride, for she's forced to urinate in the woods by the side of the road, thereby letting it slip to Trent that she's a normal human, with embarrassing bodily functions to conduct. Car problems keep the gang from ever reaching the festival, but the upside is that Daria gets a little one-on-one time chatting with Trent. Meanwhile, Quinn, too, attempts to attend the concert. But in her case, it's just a ploy to exploit the fashionability of "alternative" culture. She assembles a safely "edgy" ensemble and heads off in style, but outlet shopping (and a mouthy waitress) preclude her and the Fashion Club from ever making it to the venue. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi