Channel Frederator Blog

While I stand behind what Tom says here, I do have to point out that their might be a bias:Tom has especially smart, funny, and whimsical kids.

With all due respect to Mr. Kenny…I really don’t think it’s *parent’s* fault that kids are now brutally beating each other up, filming it and putting it on YouTube. Somewhere, somehow, kids got the idea that such stuff is “entertainment”…all I’m saying is, certainly TV/cartoon violence can’t be blamed for all of society’s woes, but anyone who thinks kids aren’t affected by EVERYTHING they see, including shows on television, is in serious denial or is a network programmer. I think what’s really bad is not so much cartoon slapstick as the way characters treat each other in a cartoon. If a so-called “good guy” treats his friends badly for a joke, and does not receive any retaliation, nor does he learn better or express remorse, then you’ve got anti-social behavior being presented to kids as a way to be cool and funny. And now we’ve got bullying at an all-time high and being treated as a serious issue by parents and teachers. Sorry, you guys in toonland, you do have to take some responsibility for what you create. If you don’t regulate yourselves, sooner or later you’ll get regulated by some outside party, such as the federal government. Oh, the horror!

I don’t know how much of a “responsibility” it is, but it sure does make for irritating entertainment when an anti-social ass character doesn’t get their comeuppance. I remember being a very little kid watching Muppet Babies, and while I liked the show and it inspired me to be creative, I couldn’t help but desperately want someone to beat the snot out of Baby Piggy. She was such a creep to everyone on that show, in particular the characters I most identified with (Gonzo and Fozzie), and until someone figured it out in the later seasons, she never got her comeuppance. To this day, I have no idea how anyone could think that was a good idea.