Maybe this post is just an excuse for me to talk about my deep and unabashed love for 90's Nickelodeon, but I'd like to think there's a little more to it than that.
Every generation sings the same tired song. Movies were better made when they were young, music had more soul when they were growing up, their pot was way better than the shit kids smoke today. Every generation seems to enjoy boasting about how much better it was back then while simultaneously raining on the parade of anyone younger than them. While relatively harmless, it can be more than a little annoying to hear from older people how great the 1950s were. There's always the "Well that's because you were white, asshole" comment on the tip of your tongue.
There is one thing, however, that I will not apologize for being ageist about, and that's my belief that children's television programming just has taken a significant turn for the worst over the past fifteen years.
Now I'm not going to sit here and claim that I watch a ton of current children's programming, but every once in awhile I'll stumble across something on Nickelodeon or the Disney Channel. I watched an entire episode of Wizards of Waverly Place with my girlfriend a few weeks back for some unknown reason. While far from an expert, it's not difficult to see why the shows of my youth were so much better. It's not because I grew up with them, it's because they were more intelligently written, they had adult themes, and they didn't talk down to us!
Think about some of the shows on Nickelodeon from 1991-1998. Salute Your Shorts, Pete and Pete, Rocko's Modern Life, Hey Arnold, Rugrats. What do all these shows have in common? THEY CHALLENGED AUTHORITY! Salute Your Shorts was a show about young teens trying to outwit a semi-fascist camp counselor. Pete and Pete was about two odd brothers living in a suburban town and was set to an early 90's indie rock soundtrack. Rocko's Modern Life was a few f-bombs away from being a show on "Adult Swim." Hey Arnold was about inner-city kids who lived more like street kids from the 1940's than the 1990's, and Rugrats was a show centered around a rebel baby who led his faithful followers against the tyranny of bedtimes, potty training, and his own sadistic cousin. That's some heavy shit!
What do we have today? We have shows about wizard families who all love each other. We have shows about pop stars who have secret identities. We have ICarly. I really don't think it's me romanticizing my youth here. I think maybe these shows just suck.
Look, there are other important lessons to teach kids besides just challenging authority. Dignity, respect for others, and simple kindness are all well and good. But would it hurt to throw a little badassness into the pot? I think not.
