• Is it age appropriate?

  About our ratings

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  Not age appropriate for kids under 12, age appropriate for kids over 14; suggested age 14.

• Is it any good?

  4.0

• Common Sense says

  Slapstick classic offers unique social commentary.

Why We Rated This for Ages 14 and Up

The good stuff

• Messages:

  Although the series' primary intent is to amuse, it also explores various social issues by looking at them through the aliens' eyes. The Solomons pose as an extended family unit. The cast is primarily Caucasian; a regular supporting character is African American, and some of Dick's students are from various racial/ethnic backgrounds. One secondary character is believed to be a lesbian.

What to watch out for

• Violence:

  Luckily, the aliens aren't allowed to liquidize humans, but they occasionally slap and hit each other (in one episode a team member is hit with a frying pan on the head several times). It's all played for physical-comedy laughs and is meant to be funny rather than violent.
• Sex:

  Occasional kissing and hugging, plus some sexual innuendo, including references to nudity and sexual intercourse that will likely go over the head of young viewers. The aliens sometimes find themselves in romantic relationships. Later episodes show men and women lying in bed together after being intimate. Sally sometimes discusses being impregnated to further the human race. In one episode, Dick poses nude for an art class (but no nudity is shown). Some restrained references to homosexuality.
• Language:

  Words like "damn" and "hell" are occasionally heard.
• Consumerism:

  Occasional references to brands and store names like Walmart, usually when the aliens try to figure out what they mean. Sally gets to know designer labels (like Ferragamo).
• Drinking, drugs, & smoking:

  Occasional visible beer and wine consumption.

What Parents Need to Know

About 3rd Rock from the Sun

Families Can Talk About