I’ve got to admit I never got into Hey Arnold! but I knew a lot of people that were. By the 90’s I was out of of the cartoon scene and didn’t really manage to catch the craze that was this cartoon. It seems to have drawn a pretty big crowd though and for the most part seems like an engaging movie for kids. Plus it doesn’t seem nearly as controversial as some other pictures have been in the recent and more distant past. At some point it almost seems like Hollywood decided it was okay for kids’ programming to become a little more edgy and take on a more adult look so as to stop coddling kids and treat them like little adults.
That’s okay and it’s not okay at the same time. There’s still got to be a disconnect between childhood and adulthood. Hey Arnold! might deal with a few issues that could be seen in real life but for the most part it’s still kept nice and light and not too serious. Cartoons need to retain that light and airy feel when they’re for kids to be honest. There’s no need to coddle them necessarily but there is a desire to keep them somewhat innocent for a while so that they don’t feel the need to grow up too fast. Cartoon movies like this are some of the best ways to entertain kids while keeping it within the boundaries of what’s considered good taste.
One argument against this could be that kids don’t want to lean towards wholesome fun any longer. What with the many different adult-oriented cartoons that are so easily accessible and programs that are geared for adults but can easily be watched by kids it’s hard to really keep that innocence for that long. Kids are growing up quicker and experiencing more of life, meaning adult situations, before they even hit their teens in some cases. That’s a sad commentary really on what it’s like to be a kid but in truth a lot of it is on the parents.
A lot of people don’t want to hear this because it flies in the face of what they think of themselves as parents. No one wants to be told that all they have to do is monitor their children because it seems to indicate that they aren’t doing their job and don’t care that much about their kids. That’s the wrong message to send but when it comes to type of programming that their kids watch it really is up to the parent. If the kids want to watch Night of the Living Dead over something like Hey Arnold! then there might be a reason, and it’s rarely personal preference. It’s because someone in their life decided to introduce them to what they define as normal.
Is it wrong? Not really, so long as the individual doing the teaching, the parent hopefully, is on hand to let the children know what they’re watching and that it’s all make-believe. Normalcy is allowing your child to choose what they want to watch and then having the decency to tell them about it when they start peppering you with questions.
Hey Arnold! is no different when it comes to that regard, but the questions might be easier to answer in regards to a child.
Follow Us
