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movies/tv What elements turn a "kids" show into something else?


ManaMinori

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What makes a "kids show" for kids? Excluding sex and gore, are there elements that can be added to a "kids show" to make it dark and gritty, and in the grey area between "kids show" and "adult"? For example, I see a lot of people say the latest generation of My Little Ponh is a "kids show", or that "x elements will never be in the sho, because too dark", but when someone says "kids show", I think of stuff like Caillou, Barney, Teletubbies, Sesame Street, Charlie Brown, etc.

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The childish adult generation it appeals to. I suppose that what classifies it as a kids show is the original target demographic, but I mean society will take their spin on that.

 

Another example of this is Scion, which is a brand owned by Toyota which was meant to advertise to young teenagers but older people ended up buying more of them than the original target demographic. Who knows?

Edited by Phanact
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No matter how you twist and turn it, it's a kids show.

 

But why does it really matter? Is it wrong when you look at something you enjoy and it's generally considered a kids show?

 

One of the things why I like to watch MLP, is because it reminds me of simpler times and most of the time, the show dosen't take itself too seriously.

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As a parent I'd say any program that I can sit and watch with my daughter is one that has successfully bridged the generational barrier.  If she's watching it, and rather than messing about on my phone or doing something else, I'm actually enjoying it as well, and not wanting to shoot myself in the face at the sheer vapid banality of it, then it's a winner.  This is how I discovered MLP, Adventure Time and The Amazing World of Gumball, all cartoons that I will now watch not only with her, but quite happily watch by myself as well.

 

As to the actual content, harder to define.  Funny is a major factor, if a cartoon can make me laugh as much as Gumball does then it's off to a great start.  Good stories, some kind of a message and engaging characters are all important too.

Edited by Concerned Bystander
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No matter how you twist and turn it, it's a kids show.

 

But why does it really matter? Is it wrong when you look at something you enjoy and it's generally considered a kids show?

 

One of the things why I like to watch MLP, is because it reminds me of simpler times and most of the time, the show dosen't take itself too seriously.

all I asked what what makes a kids show a kids show. Your post answers none of what I asked

As a parent I'd say any program that I can sit and watch with my daughter is one that has successfully bridged the generational barrier.  If she's watching it, and rather than messing about on my phone or doing something else, I'm actually enjoying it as well, and not wanting to shoot myself in the face at the sheer vapid banality of it, then it's a winner.  This is how I discovered MLP, Adventure Time and The Amazing World of Gumball, all cartoons that I will now watch not only with her, but quite happily watch by myself as well.

 

As to the actual content, harder to define.  Funny is a major factor, if a cartoon can make me laugh as much as Gumball does then it's off to a great start.  Good stories, some kind of a message and engaging characters are all important too.

but humor and good storytelling can be applied to shows aimed at adults, too. Would those elements make something aimed at an adult audience make it a "kids show", instead?

The internet. And people without shame.

I'm sorry, what? Your post makes no sense with the questions I asked.
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but humor and good storytelling can be applied to shows aimed at adults, too. Would those elements make something aimed at an adult audience make it a "kids show", instead?

 

Not at all, there are numerous programs that feature all of those elements, but also cover mature subject matter that would be unsuitable for children, it doesn't go both ways by any means.  Take something like Blue Mountain state as an example of that.

Edited by Concerned Bystander
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all I asked what what makes a kids show a kids show. Your post answers none of what I askedbut humor and good storytelling can be applied to shows aimed at adults, too. Would those elements make something aimed at an adult audience make it a "kids show", instead?

 

You know that there are different types of humor and storytelling, right?

 

There are certain things that are only appropriate for kids. If someone in an adult show would say the word "Fuck" as a use to make a funny scene, would you let a kid watch it?

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The characters have to be coherent, endearing, deep (to an extent), and not come off as overly naive. The writing has to have a wit and humor that speaks to an adult's sensibilities, and finally, it all has to come from a position of complete authenticity. MLP has these features, and it's why I'm glad to have been willing to judge it based on the quality of its content, rather than blindly reject it out of hand because of its intended demographic. 

Edited by EquestriaGuy
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Usually what would classify as a "kids show" would be something which most people would agree would be appropriate for children in other words free of things like gratuitous sex and gore. With that said though there have been some that have pushed the limits of what is considered appropriate for children with may 90's cartoon being very good examples of that with innuendo hidden in many of them with Rocko's Modern Life being the most blatant about it and shameless grossout humor in the case of Ren and Stimpy. There are also some that can seem more "mature" in the sense not so much of seeing what they can get away with but in terms of telling sophistical stories of complex adult issues in a very thoughtful manner. A good example of this is Hey Arnold which has a significant amount of episodes that fit that description. There is the episode where it talks about Arnold's missing and possibly dead parents, the episode where Arnold and Gerald find out that Geralds brothers new girlfriend is a gold digger and the dilemma of whether or not to tell him on the count of him not always being the nicest older brother. There is the Christmas episode where Arnold tries to re unite Mr Ngyuen with his daughter who he hasn't seen in years and more. I suppose the short answer would be that it depends on what "kids show" you are talking about.

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When adult/other references occur in the show and the little one's face is clueless.

 

I bet that same thing happened in MLP especially when "Slice of Life" aired, little kids everywhere confused!

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I'm sorry, what? Your post makes no sense with the questions I asked.

But you see it does. It makes perfect sense! It's just on the wrong thread...

 

Posted it on the wrong topic... mah bad

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When adult/other references occur in the show and the little one's face is clueless.

I bet that same thing happened in MLP especially when "Slice of Life" aired, little kids everywhere confused!

one could argue that such references were made- in the case of mlp, snce season 1, with "the punch has been Spiked" line, or RD's cider/alcohol addiction, Discord's Mary Poppins reference, etc.
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one could argue that such references were made- in the case of mlp, snce season 1, with "the punch has been Spiked" line, or RD's cider/alcohol addiction, Discord's Mary Poppins reference, etc.

Yep and Spike's drunk lamp hat in the first episode.

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To me, a 'kid's show' can be classified as anything that is friendly for children, but at that point, I call it 'family friendly', because I hate the term 'kid's show'. Just because it is family friendly doesn't mean that it was purely meant for children watching it and nobody else. 

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A kids' show is mainly defined as such because it's targeted and marketed primarily towards kids. Generally, that carries negative connotations of not being entertaining to adults, or writers laying back or drudging through their jobs waiting to go onto bigger and better things. Kids' show to me can refer to shows aimed only at kids or can be shorthand for kids and family, as in shows enjoyable at any age. Usually, these shows are defined in how they keep out heavy adult themes and potentially objectionable content.

 

However, as a regular on ToonZone, I've noticed a lot of people saying that kids' animation these days is arguably more mature than adult cartoons, many of which are laced with crude humor and tasteless shock comedy, or genre parody. Kids' cartoons, including KorraAdventure TimeGravity Falls, and Steven Universe, are often praised for mature storylines and themes, as well as character development. The Internet is mainly responsible for this - once people realized that there is a large, untapped community of animation fans in their adult and teen years, writers started to appeal to these demographics as well, when they had formerly written adult references only to entertain themselves through the drudgery of writing for a show no one was passionate about. Good cartoons are finally getting the attention and respect they deserve rather than passing through the revolving door as they did in the past couple of decades.

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