Fratricide, genocide, sabotage, war, abuse, the pain of growing up, and suicide. Every single one of these words were explored on a "children's" show. Avatar: The Last Airbender, The Legend of Korra, and My Little Pony are good examples of "children" shows that aren't childish in their content. In fact, I'm not entirely sure how they were able to broadcast Avatar or Korra as children show, but whatever. Every single one of these shows has stellar animation and complex story lines without overdoing it. They send good messages and shouldn't be written off as worthless television by everyone over nine. Children shows can be daring, exposing children to not the only the beauty of the world, but its brutality.
We'll start with the lesser of three evils, My Little Pony. MLP is fairly lighthearted compared to the shows after it. However, it does feature a few relatable story lines, specifically, "The Cutie Mark Crusaders." The Cutie Mark Crusaders (CMC) is a trio of three fillies who haven't received their "cutie marks. " A cutie mark is the marking on a pony's flank. These marks symbolize a pony's true calling in life, what they are made to do. The CMC are the last three fillies to receive their cutie marks and feel alone because they don't know what they're true calling is. This story is legitimately the life of every high school-er ever. It's completely relatable and it offers us advice. "Scootaloo: It means she could be great at anything. The possibilities are, like, endless. Sweetie Belle: She could be a great scientist, or an amazing artist, or a famous writer, she could even be mayor of Ponyville some day..."(Call of the Cutie). A true reminder that even while growing up and finding your unique talents is challenging it really means that you are full of potential. That's a great message to send to people of all ages. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic was developed by Lauren Faust. It currently airs on the Hild ub at 10 AM.
Second up is Avatar :The Last Airbender. Avatar has a large amount of violence and is set in the middle of a war. WAR. This is a children's show that heavily revolves on war and defeating an abusive tyrant. Aang, the Avatar, wakes up after being frozen in an iceberg to find the world at war. He's been asleep for 100 years. He has missed the genocide of his people, the air-benders. Genocide, I'm not kidding. The show is rated Y7 and the mass killing of a race is not only implied but seen. Add some torture, child abuse, and innuendo and you have Avatar summed up perfectly. One of the main characters, Zuko, had his face permanently scarred by his father. A princess that sacrifices herself for her people. Katara watches her mother die on screen. An elderly women "blood-bends", aka tortures, soldiers.Remember this is a kid's show. Look how many risks it took and ultimately its beautiful message. It preaches the importance of having hope even when hope seems impossible, like a 100 year war. Again, not a bad message to be sending all people. Avatar: The Last Airbender was created by Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino. It aired on Nickelodeon from 2005-2008.
I've saved the worst for last,
The Legend of Korra. I'm not saying it's bad show, I'm saying it's the most mature. And boy do the creators take advantage of that!
LoK, like its predecessor, is violent. The first season is set in a large city and focuses on class struggle and the corruption of politician.The show got particularly mature in the season one finale. I can't find any legit clips on YouTube, but I'll give you a rundown. The protagonist is tortured, a man kills himself and his brother. I'm not kidding,the man pictured below blew himself and his brother up for the greater good. That's a bit unsettling. Don't you think? That's the biggest offense, but really suicide? Good one, Nick.
So what am I saying exactly? That animated shows or shows aimed at children aren't worthless. Not every children's show is like Dora. Some challenge contemporary, some teach timeless lessons. We should give them a chance.
No comments:
Post a Comment