I spend a lot of time watching preschool television and reading children's book to my son. If you just suspend disbelief a lot of it is palatable, and even cute. (Big shout out to Jack's Big Music Show and Maggie and the Ferocious Beast.)
But some of it is just too much for my psyche. I can't even talk about why adults think children like clowns. Clowns are just...never mind, I can't talk about it. I need to sleep tonight.
So, without further ado, I present:
THE TOP TEN MYSTERIES OF CHILDREN'S ENTERTAINMENT
2. Why is Caillou bald? For that matter, what kind of name is Caillou?
3. Why does Mickey wear shorts and Donald a shirt? Why do some cartoons wear clothes at all, while others wear none?
4. How did this creepy guy get a televisions show?
4. How did this creepy guy get a televisions show?
5. Why does Franklin (and the rest of his family) have names, but all his friends are named Bear, Skunk, Goose, and so on?
6. Why are all puppets not created by Jim Henson so creepy?
7. Why is there only one female Smurf? Do Smurfs reproduce like bees, with all the males serving one great queen?
8. Why is paranoid 1950s propaganda scare-fest Harold's Trip to the Sky still in print? And why does my son like it so much?
9. Why hasn't someone knocked Wow Wow Wubbzy out with a mallet, tied him up in a bag and tossed it into the nearest river?
10. If Dora has two perfectly good parents, why do they let her go wandering through the jungle alone all the time?
I know I'm just touching the tip of the iceberg.
What bugs you in children's entertainment?
- Liz
