I’ve been writing with Monkeys Fighting Robots for a few months now so that makes us family .. right? Well, family shares big news and I’ve got big news to share with you all. My wife and I are expecting our second child (a boy) in January of 2016. We couldn’t be more thrilled about this and our son, Charlie, is going to be a great big brother, even at three years old. Right now, Charlie’s days are filled with trying various acts that cause his mother and I to have a heart attack and watching his favorite show, Thomas the Tank Engine. Let me slightly correct that previous statement, when I say watch Thomas the Tank Engine I mean watch it… All the time. So I decided that enough was enough and I would begin the search for alternative shows for my son Charlie and for my new son, TBD, to watch. Now, conventional wisdom would dictate that I would call friends or people that I know and ask for some advice, but that would mean I would have to use a phone and that can be such a drag. So, I decided to do the obvious and ask people on the internet (for those of you wondering .. this where my wife rolled her eyes and walked away from my computer screen). I put the question out .. What are the best children’s cartoons I should introduce to my two sons? And boy or boy the results were quite interesting.
5) Peppa The Pig – From what I’ve gathered, this show revolves around Peppa, a female pig, and her pals. Each of her friends are a different species of mammal. Every episode tends to feature typical activities and Peppa saying “no” a ton. Truthfully, the last thing I need is Charlie and our second son saying “no” all the time, so I’m not sure this one will make the cut.
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4) GI Joe (80’s edition) – Yes! What better show to teach my two sons that difference between good and evil? GI Joe would also teach my boys to not trust anybody who’s wearing a mask that obscures their entire face. If you don’t see my point … would you want your boys to trust Cobra Commander or Darth Vader? If those reasons don’t seal it, then who wouldn’t want to expose their boys to the voice acting prowess of Sgt. Slaughter? I guess now I know and knowing is half the battle.
3) Adventure Time – So I flipped this show on to give it a go and I am truly convinced that this show must be what it feels like to be tripping Acid. Apparently this story is about a 12-year old boy name Finn as he battles evil in the land Ooo. Ooo was the noise that was being shouted as I agonized making it through one episode. I guess if I need to ground the boys down the road I could punish them by enduring this very trippy show.
2) Scooby Doo – Okay, now we are talking.. this is my speed and I feel that it teaches great lessons to any and all children. For starters, it shows the kiddos that you shouldn’t trust any strangers, especially if they have last name withers (did you ever notice that the writers on Scooby Doo would generally make the villain some sort older stranger who was referenced as Old man ___ )? It would teach my sons that if you are ever in a pickle to reach out to closest world famous basketball team to help him out. Finally, it teaches children that dogs make the worst plans.
1) Animanics – I would have to say Animanics was the best suggestion I received and it wasn’t even close. A show with old-fashioned wit, slapstick, and pop culture references is the perfect show to introduce to my sons. Each episode was generally comprised of three episodes mixed in with a few skits. A show that both my wife and I grew up on and it contains valuable lessons in it such as never irritate a squirrel . It could also show our boys the importance of higher education, even if that means they want to go to Acme University to earn their toon degree. Above all else, it would be shared experience that my wife and I could pass on together.
What do you guys think? What Children’s cartoons would introduce to your children?
