Post by denikke on Aug 22, 2011 7:17:52 GMT -6
Been thinking about this for a while now, and thought I'd get other moms opinions.
I know a while back there was a huge stink about all the violence that goes on in kids cartoons (roadrunner anyone?) and how that was supposedly causing children to become more violent.
I watch Treehouse with my 2.5yr old pretty much every day. For those who don't know, it's pretty much a channel that caters to young children, preschoolers etc.
Between the full 30 minute shows (yea right..more like 20 minutes
) there are some 5 minute blurb cartoons.
I can generally put them into 4 categories:
Good (Bobs & Lolo)
Kinda strange (Toopy and Binoo, 4 square)
Freaky (RolePlay)
and What were they thinking (dragon...sometimes Toopy and Binoo fall into here as well)
Now, Bobs & Lolo I like. They have little musical numbers that generally speak about getting outside, moving, recycling, all that kind of god, healthy stuff.
Toopy and Binoo is just kinda...strange. Harmless, but sometimes I wonder if the writers were on a little something when they came up with some of their ideas.
4 square, once again, generally not bad. Some of the poems are pretty cool, and some of the songs are catchy. But I think I'd shoot myself if I had to go in to work and do what they do everyday. WAY too happy for me
Roleplay can be interesting. But in general, it's just kinda creepy. They're like..glow in the dark puppet animals moved by people in black velvet that you can't see on the black background.
Now for Dragon. At a passing glance, a cute kids show. It's about a dragon and his friends (an ostrich, a beaver, a mouse, an alligator etc) Basically a day in the life of Dragon.
But when you start watching it on any kind of regular basis, you start wondering what the writers were thinking. WHY did they think certain things were good ideas. I can't help but wonder at the messages that are being subliminally pushed to my kid through this show.
Let me explain.
In a number of episodes, Dragon attempts to come up with a solution to his clutter problem. He tries moving things around, reorganizing, and on a few occasions, has a yard sale. But he cannot bear to part with ANY of his possessions because he has fond memories with them. This includes an extra fork and spoon, a pillow, an oven mitt, even an empty pickle jar. That, my friends, would be considered hoarding.
He also has no problem conning his friends. During one of his yard sales, he comes up with the idea to sell an icecube, seeing how he can always make more. But because it's a hot day, the icecube melts, so he puts the water in a cup and (sucessfully) sells it as a *do it yourself, icecube making kit*. Just add cold, tip the icecube out, and bring the cup back to him. Yay con-artist Dragon.
His friend, Alligator, is also a suspicious character. The portrayal of the character comes across as that of a fairly stereotypical stoner surfer. Not sure how I feel about that influence.
I honestly would have more concern about my kid copying things from Dragon than I realistically would were he copying Roadrunner. Hoarding is a very real, and scary problem. I highly doubt he's going to get his hands on an anvil.
Now, I hope everyone is taking this post with a grain of salt it's not meant to be entirely serious
But what do you other moms think about these kids shows? Or others that are geared towards small children. Even Bob the Builder has that creepy looking scarecrow guy among other things.
Are there ANY small children's shows that don't have a creepy character or subtle, bad messages in your mind?
I know a while back there was a huge stink about all the violence that goes on in kids cartoons (roadrunner anyone?) and how that was supposedly causing children to become more violent.
I watch Treehouse with my 2.5yr old pretty much every day. For those who don't know, it's pretty much a channel that caters to young children, preschoolers etc.
Between the full 30 minute shows (yea right..more like 20 minutes
) there are some 5 minute blurb cartoons.I can generally put them into 4 categories:
Good (Bobs & Lolo)
Kinda strange (Toopy and Binoo, 4 square)
Freaky (RolePlay)
and What were they thinking (dragon...sometimes Toopy and Binoo fall into here as well)
Now, Bobs & Lolo I like. They have little musical numbers that generally speak about getting outside, moving, recycling, all that kind of god, healthy stuff.
Toopy and Binoo is just kinda...strange. Harmless, but sometimes I wonder if the writers were on a little something when they came up with some of their ideas.
4 square, once again, generally not bad. Some of the poems are pretty cool, and some of the songs are catchy. But I think I'd shoot myself if I had to go in to work and do what they do everyday. WAY too happy for me
Roleplay can be interesting. But in general, it's just kinda creepy. They're like..glow in the dark puppet animals moved by people in black velvet that you can't see on the black background.
Now for Dragon. At a passing glance, a cute kids show. It's about a dragon and his friends (an ostrich, a beaver, a mouse, an alligator etc) Basically a day in the life of Dragon.
But when you start watching it on any kind of regular basis, you start wondering what the writers were thinking. WHY did they think certain things were good ideas. I can't help but wonder at the messages that are being subliminally pushed to my kid through this show.
Let me explain.
In a number of episodes, Dragon attempts to come up with a solution to his clutter problem. He tries moving things around, reorganizing, and on a few occasions, has a yard sale. But he cannot bear to part with ANY of his possessions because he has fond memories with them. This includes an extra fork and spoon, a pillow, an oven mitt, even an empty pickle jar. That, my friends, would be considered hoarding.
He also has no problem conning his friends. During one of his yard sales, he comes up with the idea to sell an icecube, seeing how he can always make more. But because it's a hot day, the icecube melts, so he puts the water in a cup and (sucessfully) sells it as a *do it yourself, icecube making kit*. Just add cold, tip the icecube out, and bring the cup back to him. Yay con-artist Dragon.
His friend, Alligator, is also a suspicious character. The portrayal of the character comes across as that of a fairly stereotypical stoner surfer. Not sure how I feel about that influence.
I honestly would have more concern about my kid copying things from Dragon than I realistically would were he copying Roadrunner. Hoarding is a very real, and scary problem. I highly doubt he's going to get his hands on an anvil.
Now, I hope everyone is taking this post with a grain of salt
it's not meant to be entirely serious But what do you other moms think about these kids shows? Or others that are geared towards small children. Even Bob the Builder has that creepy looking scarecrow guy among other things.
Are there ANY small children's shows that don't have a creepy character or subtle, bad messages in your mind?
