Channel Frederator Blog

Hey Eric, where do you get this information from? I’ve never been able to find website that lets you search through ratings by age/catagory.

I would like to bring up one point I discussed a little while ago that I think might be good to reiterate here in a slightly different light. This is only my opinion, and I want to be very clear about that. As I have said, in the scope of franchising, live action shows do produce far weaker characters with nowhere near the longevity of their animated counterparts. That said, there is a definite reason people are watching live action kids shows, and that reason is also symptomatic of the little rough patch the animation industry is currently facing. Essentially, live action shows are generally set about older kids, dealing with the life issues of an older demographic, yet they are kept “all ages” appropriate. Because of this they pick up a far wider audience. The same holds true for animation. In film, movies like Shrek defined this technique. On television, some of the most successful of the animated franchises of the 90’s, such as Tiny Toons, and Animaniacs employed this. And today, the few unshakable staples of television animation, namely SpongeBob and Fairly Odd Parents, (I really cant think of any others in production now.) use this to great success. Essentially, writing any “kids” show, animated or not, a little bit older intellectually, but still maintaining an “all ages” appropriateness is usually a good key for success. Of course, the live action shows are nowhere near on par with the level of wit and sophistication of their animated counterparts, and while they do skew their material a little older, they never come close to matching the timing or memorability a good cartoon can foster. Simply put, these live action shows are the lucky recipients of some very good timing to fill a need most animation currently is not. What do I mean by that? Well, for the moment, many animated shows have made a creative mistake involving their target demographics. (And there should be no finger pointing on this, because it has been made at all levels.) These days networks generally want animated shows to be “appropriate” for anyone age 6 and up. The problem is, many individuals involved in production, at all levels, have misconstrued that to mean that animated shows should be written and produced to appeal directly to a 6 year olds’ intellectual level. Unfortunately, shows that are at the level of a 6 year old don’t have a wide appeal to anyone age 7 and up. To anyone in an older set, it simply feels like those shows are speaking beneath them, or even worse, talking down to them. All the live action shows have done is move in and fill that gap. They let a younger audience feel more mature by illustrating more mature problems and conflicts, and even humor, yet presenting them in an “all ages” appropriate manor. My suggestion for animation to muscle out these live action usurpers: take a page from both SpongeBob and Fairly Odd Parents. They both came into being somewhere around 10 years ago, which makes them 2 of the last in-production holdovers from the 2nd Golden Age of Animation, which kind of petered out early in the new millennium. There is a good reason they are still on the air. Even if their audiences are mostly kids, they still respect them. They don’t hold back on the topics of humor for fear the youngest members of their audience might not understand them. I have yet to see SpongeBob shy away from humor about being an adult working in a dead-end fast food job, nor have I seen Fairly Odd Parents shy away from some very sharp and witty marital humor. I doubt either of those topics get brought up on your average kindergarten playground, however when presented in context of the show, they are kept visually humorous enough for a 6 year old to find something to laugh at, while still intellectually humorous enough for even their parents to get a chuckle out of. Simply put, the appeal is broad. These live action shows are just mimicking this technique pioneered by animated shows. But for networks looking to them as any sort of long-term financial boon in place of animated shows, it should be noted that their life spans are fleeting, usually fading right around the time an awkward moment of puberty strikes the shows star, or when that star decides to peruse other career options. Then it’s time to start all over. It happens every few years when dealing with live action kids shows. Does anyone here remember Lizzy McGuire? It feels like a lot like she just morphed into Hanna Montana. And As for The Suite Life of Zack & Cody…. hmm… 2 identical twin tweens. Why does that feel so familiar? It’s Déjà vu all over again, and they NEVER bring the networks what they really want—a character with long-term appeal that can be franchised in many different markets. For that, they will ALWAYS have to come home to a good animated character.