Good day, my dear Hoot readers! I hope life is treating you well. I’m doing fine, just procrastinating like usual. After last month’s grand declaration of down-badness and the debauchery of my January article, I thought I’d keep it chill this time. Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about comfort characters. I have really gravitated towards Marlin, the clownfish voiced by Albert Brooks who races to find his son in the 2002 Pixar animated classic, “Finding Nemo.” You may ask why. The problem is, I don’t quite know. Follow me on this journey as we figure out why I feel so connected to this 3D animated clownfish.

Exhibit A: My twin sister LOVES “Finding Nemo” (2002)

“Finding Nemo” was a large part of my childhood due to my twin sister’s love of marine life. Whenever she was sad or scared by something, we’d watch “Finding Nemo” and she’d feel much better. While I was much more of a “Toy Story” kid, Nemo became a comfort by extension. As the main protagonist of the film, Marlin is heavily associated with this sense of comfort, planting the seeds for my future gravitation towards the character. In addition, my family and I love “The Seas with Nemo and Friends” ride at Epcot. My mom used to play the song from that ride in the car, which makes Nemo even more nostalgic for me. So when I think of Marlin (or Nemo, or Dory, or Crush or Gil) I’m brought back to my wonderful childhood. 

Exhibit B: He’s in “Defending Your Life” (1991)

Now, why am I drawn to Marlin specifically? It all started in 2019 when my aunt showed me the movie “Defending Your Life” starring Albert Brooks and Meryl Streep. This film is about a man (Albert Brooks) who dies and arrives in “Judgement City” where he must defend his Earthly life in front of a heavenly court. The court will decide whether he deserves to live another life on Earth or move into a higher plane of being. You’ll be surprised to learn this is a (very good) rom-com! Its outlandish premise leads to some hilarious moments and very deep themes about what makes for a successful life. I was moved and thoroughly entertained by the movie, which heightened my opinion of its star, director and writer, Albert Brooks. 

Exhibit C: Albert Brooks is in a comfort movie of mine, “Taxi Driver” (1976)

Let’s skip forward to 2021 when I watched what would become one of my favorite movies, “Taxi Driver.” This film is a masterpiece and I find it to be a sort of discomforting comfort movie. The smooth jazz soundtrack and hypnotic cinematography make it rather calming despite the film’s focus on Travis Bickle’s (Robert De Niro) descent into violent madness. Another comforting aspect of the movie is Albert Brooks. He plays Tom, a co-worker of Travis’ romantic obsession, Betsy. Tom may be reviled by the reclusive Travis, but he’s actually pretty cool (imo). He tells jokes sometimes and protects Betsy when an enraged Travis storms into their workplace after being rejected. Tom’s a stand-up guy who further endeared me to Albert Brooks. Being charmed by Albert Brooks for this third time may have set the stage for my immense appreciation of Marlin the clownfish.

Exhibit D: My Moment of Madness

It was October 2023 and I had just experienced two extremely difficult personal losses. Prior to those, I had COVID. Immediately following all of this, I was exhausted, sad and very stressed with work. My most imminently due assignment was an essay about none other than clownfish. For this essay, I had to pick a trait of an animal and track its evolutionary history. Given my love of “Finding Nemo,” the brightness of clownfish felt like the natural selection for my trait (pun intended). However, my stress in cramming this essay and recent losses had brought me to the brink of total madness. Was some of this dramatic? Sure. But was I actually hurting? Absolutely. 

When googling information about clownfish, I came across an image of Marlin that really spoke to me. It depicted the iconic clownfish on a white background staring into the camera with a big smile. Though, don’t be deceived by his seemingly happy expression. When I looked into Marlin’s eyes I saw nothing but pain. In Marlin, I saw someone else who had momentarily snapped. And why wouldn’t he? His poor son was ripped away from him, forcing him to embark on a dangerous journey to Sydney, Australia. Then his bestie Dory got lost in the sequel, requiring another harrowing journey! Marlin has been through non-stop turmoil. To adapt the words of Travis Bickle, here is a fish who could not take it anymore.

This instantly resonated with me and I immediately downloaded the photo. Next, I photoshopped in some 2014-era meme text. The top text read “MY SANITY IS NO MORE” and was complemented by bottom text begging to “PLEASE END MY SUFFERING.” I then spent at least five minutes laughing at my creation. After sending it to a friend and laughing at it with her, I began to feel much better. This is likely due to the therapeutic conversation with my friend, but that wouldn’t have happened without Marlin.

Exhibit E: Future Creations

From that day forward, poor quality Marlin memes became a coping mechanism. I’ve made four more memes using similarly anguished photos of Marlin and am far from finished! Subsequent editions include Marlin regaining sanity, inquiring about drugs (NOT BASED ON PERSONAL EXPERIENCES), losing control of his life and telling Nemo about his decision to prolong his own suffering. In these memes, Marlin is at his most relatable. So next time you see me, ask me about the Marlin memes. I’ll be happy to show you them all. For real, just ask. 

Conclusion: What the hell did I just write?

Alright, we’ve gone through the evidence, so let’s draw some conclusions. Why do I love Marlin so much? The answer could be simple. I clearly find Marlin’s expressions of poorly masked anguish very amusing. Is that it? Do I just find his facial expressions funny? Yeah, probably. 

But what if there’s more to it?????? Albert Brooks’ presence in certain comforting and impactful media from my childhood definitely left an impression on me. It didn’t matter if he was finding his son, defending his life or playing second fiddle to De Niro; he was always there for me if I needed him. When I post my unhinged Marlin memes, my friends are there for me too. Out of concern. Genuine concern. For my mental health. I swear I’m fine though! I have wonderful friends, an amazing family and Marlin to keep me sane. The sense of commonality I feel with Marlin in my darkest moments can never be taken away. His subtle emotional expressions can always be interpreted as mirroring mine, so no matter what, I feel understood. As with any dear friend: I get Marlin and Marlin gets me.

EPILOGUE: 

Hey hey future job vetters! I’m sorry if you found this article alarming, I’m actually a chill guy. Writing happens to be one of my coping mechanisms (in addition to the Marlin memes). With The Hoot, I’ve found thousands of adoring fans (don’t fact check that) who find enjoyment in my written coping. Deep down, I’m a people pleaser and I’ve got to keep the fans fed! This desire to work hard to please others would make me a great employee. Feel free to contact me for an interview.