Winner
Claire Guo, 14, from Lynbrook High School in San Jose, Calif., chose an article from the Movies section headlined “The Real Reason the Minions Have Taken Over the World” and wrote:
Minions: round, yellow, incomprehensible, yet adorable. The Minions have taken the world by storm, breaking records at the box office and even igniting a global trend on TikTok. #Gentleminions have been flocking to theaters in formal attire, dapped up in suits and ties; part of the reason I was also inclined to march to my local AMC in a white suit, while fellow middle schoolers and high schoolers filled the seats. Sitting there, as MINIONS flashed across the big screen and the audience began to whoop and cheer, I felt part of something bigger. I felt trendy.
So when the article that claims to know the “real reason” behind the Minions’ popularity only mentioned TikTok in passing, I was appalled. Critic Calum Marsh aptly argues that the Minions’ purely physical, almost silent-era, comedy has many appeals, yet I believe that TikTok had a larger role in the Minions’ success. Like the “Jeffrey Bezos” song and the newly popular “Jiggle Jiggle” rap, TikTok has made “Minions” into a must see.
No doubt, the in-depth analysis that Mr. Marsh made about the influences of silent comedy, the refreshing slapstick jokes and the pure substance of every gag were part of the reason the Minions have taken over the world. But the millions of Instagram stories of teenagers in suits, and the millions of TikTok videos under the hashtag #gentleminions should not be overlooked either. After all, TikTok is powerful. Peer pressure, even more so.
Runners-Up
In alphabetical order by the writer’s first name.
Bersu on “An Innovator Sold Jordan’s National Dish in a To-Go Cup. Controversy Ensued.”
Harsimran on “Poems in a Time of Crisis”
Jessie on “No, Justice Alito, Reproductive Justice Is in the Constitution”
Maggie on “How the Elites Monopolize Empathy”
Zihan on “Ready Player Two (or Three)”
Honorable Mentions
Addison on “The Sleep Debt Collector Is Here”
Amelia on “Documenting India’s Distinctive Birdhouses”
Angel on “When Antlers Tangle, Sometimes Both Animals Lose”
