Where Has Children's TV Gone?

Posted by alfro from Cardiff - Published on 20/07/2012 at 11:32
7 comments » - Tagged as Culture

This article is pending translation.

I ponder through my channels and come across a recent episode of Adventure Time on Cartoon Network and wonder whatever happen to my beloved childhood TV programmes, which had an enormous impact on my life.

TV programs such as Hey Arnold, Ed, Edd N Eddy, Courage The Cowardly Dog, Johnny Bravo and many more. It is a big disappointment to rob kids of the next generation of viewing pleasure as good as this. The show Kenan & Kel was one of the highlights on my early years. It was cancelled and replaced with an alternate show with white characters Drake and Josh, which share the same comedic jokes with two contrasting characters; the fat one is sensible and the slim one is impulsive.

I remember the golden days when I was introduced to Tom & Jerry, the two iconic characters of the cartoon industry. The endless cat versus mouse fight has now been altered; no more is it a silent comedy duo where actions are used instead of words. They've broken their silence with shows containing them conversing with one another, which takes away the comedy element; the violence during the show has a crucial element. There is some controversy with certain episodes because of racist themes. Yet for all of its faults the show is widely renowned as one the cartoon greats. Originally this show was created for adults, which is why some episodes are different in nature.

Tom & Jerry was a pioneer for other shows with slapstick violence in them such shows as Oggy & The Cockroaches; a French show, which shares the inaudibility of the characters, the humour is entirely visual. The silence only to be broken every three minutes by the high-pitched laughter of the cockroaches. The show in itself is full of violent comedy with well-written comedic situations where characters get thrown into space and into large vehicles and get hurt in a large climax. The protagonist Oggy is a fat, lazy cat who watches TV all day, with the peace being casually interrupted by the three colourful cockroaches Joey, Dee Dee and Marky all named after the punk band The Ramones. They enjoy making Oggy miserable, which usually involves them raiding his fridge to awkward things like stopping Oggy from completing a puzzle.

Cartoon Network was there for my viewing pleasure and full of shows I look back on with nostalgia. TV shows aired on CBeebies always have an effect on the very young with shows that teach the viewer a moral story at the end, which is very good for children to watch but one show in particular borders on the psychedelic. In The Night Garden is regularly aired on CBeebies and I watch in disgust as the unpronounceable characters come across the TV screen. I wonder has happened to The Tweenies or Teletubbies even the show Broom, where the small toy car went on glorious adventures across Britain, with his owner none the wiser.

Over time most shows become outdated or are cancelled; only a few have not, shows like Scooby Doo, which has lasted for decades and has been enjoyed by children and adults across the world. Other shows like Bagpuss, an iconic children’s character in the 70s, have been cancelled due to their outdated look. Children now enjoy a colourful background on shows. The main factor for success in the children’s industry is for the program to be animated and to contain animals, which appeal to the viewer, this is the reason why Tom & Jerry was successful, same with Scooby Doo. The Warner Brothers franchise, which is home to cartoon characters like Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, has appealed to masses of children for decades.

Over the years children’s TV has progressed and many people have different opinions and preferences from my collection of favourite childhood shows, but many can agree that the children’s TV has rapidly changed over the years and soon to come this generation will be reminiscing over the great days when the saw In The Night Garden or Shaun The Sheep. Shows from the 90s have influenced me in a large way yet I don’t see these recent shows influencing children now, as how can they remember the key features of the shows? For instance Tom & Jerry is widely remembered as the cartoon where a cat and mouse are pitted against each other in a comedic battle. Where as In The Night Garden will be remembered as the psychedelic fluffy show where characters with weird names flounce around doing nothing, which doesn't gives the viewer any sort of comedy or entertainment.

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7 Comments – Post a comment

Sam (Sub-Editor)

Commented 10 months ago - 19th July 2012 - 12:05pm

I love Adventure Time!

Ihavethecyrusvirusx

Commented 10 months ago - 20th July 2012 - 12:31pm

I was made to watch 4 hours of some kids In The Night Garden DVD on the way home from Disneyland back in 2008. It was horrible. Even worse that it was a tiny coach and my Head could only face forward making me either watch it or try to sleep and then I would still hear it.

But, you're right about the programmes. I miss them! I remember Sheep in the Big City, which I didn't really understand because I was so young (or, I did understand but I can't remember...) but I still loved it. Ed, Edd and Eddy are still on from time to time, but rarely. Ditto Tom & Jerry. But I miss the old episodes. Not the new ones and all that.

cindyCLIC

Commented 10 months ago - 20th July 2012 - 15:17pm

My favourite was Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!

Wizzer

Commented 10 months ago - 20th July 2012 - 18:58pm

anyone remember sharkey and george? sabrina the teenage witch ?

Ihavethecyrusvirusx

Commented 10 months ago - 21st July 2012 - 11:51am

@wizzer I remember Sabrina! I watched the cartoon version more, though. I liked Bagpuss, too, though I don't think it was as popular as the other shows. The Amanda Show was good. Loads of shows have jumped on the band wagon with the style of that one. Like "So Random!" on Disney Channel- but I do watch that occasionally.

Birdyxx

Commented 10 months ago - 21st July 2012 - 16:53pm

I love Oggy and the Cockroaches! It's still on tv, on Pop.

I remember shows from CBeebies that are nowhere to be seen now, like Bill and Ben the Flowerpot Men, anybody remember that? And Pingu!!!

P.S. Sabrina the Teenage Witch is still on