Jon & Kate Plus 8 - TV-G
TV Rating: TV-G
Network: Discovery Health Channel Cast: Jon Gosselin, Kate Gosselin
Genre: Reality TV
Available on: 
DVD
Common Sense Note
Parents need to know that the parents in this reality show (especially the mom) often respond to chaos-imposed stress by bickering and picking at each other. While adult viewers will probably empathize with their tense emotions (after all, they've got eight kids under the age of 7!), young kids may not understand the context of the heated comments and could be upset by them.
Families can talk about how the media portrays families. Is there a "standard" family type in today's TV shows? How do modern TV families compare to those in classic shows like Leave It to Beaver, The Brady Bunch, and The Cosby Show? How does TV's spin on family life follow society's trends? Families can also discuss how your day-to-day life compares to the Gosselins'. What unique challenges do they face on a daily basis? How do they overcome them? What makes your own family special?
Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: Emily Ashby
JON & KATE PLUS 8 takes viewers inside the Gosselin home, where two sleep-deprived-but-dedicated parents strive for as normal a life as their eight kids -- all under 7 -- will allow.
Jon and Kate and their boisterous brood -- 6-year-old twins Cara and Mady and 2-year-old sextuplets Hannah, Alexis, Leah, Collin, Joel, and Aaden -- prove that when it comes to managing a hectic family life, where there's a will, there's always a way.
From birthday parties to seasonal outings, the series captures the daily ups and downs of life with two energetic sets of multiples. Viewers see the physical and emotional challenges of balancing the children's individual needs with the struggle for harmony at home. They also learn the answers to some of the Gosselins' most-pressing questions: How many diaper changes do you do in a day? How do you go about potty-training six kids at the same time? How many gallons of milk do you go through in a week? And, of course, do you have to own a school bus to transport all those kids?
With Chief Family Officer Kate at the helm and Jon pulling double duty as an information technology specialist and an on-call dad, things in the Gosselin household work surprisingly like clockwork -- at least until one of the youngsters has a potty-training accident or a 6-year-old melts down over her shoe selection. But at the end of even the longest day, Jon and Kate are usually able to reflect on the highlights and count their blessings -- all eight of them.
While the show is fine for family viewing, moms and dads will no doubt get the most out of it, since they can relate to many of the issues Jon and Kate face (if on a slightly smaller scale). But some parents may be turned off by the frequently snide comments Kate makes about Jon, both in his presence and out of it. ("He takes longer to get ready than I do, and that's really irritating," or "Can you please help me instead of playing with toys?") Her seeming negativity, while understandable in her situation, often becomes the focal point of the show, and young viewers won't fully understand the stresses that lead the adults to talk to and about each other the way they do.
Fans may also enjoy the other series featuring the Gosselins: Surviving Twins & Sextuplets and Sextuplets and Twins: One Year Later. For more fun with amazing families, try Little People, Big World and Raising 16 Children.
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Sexual ContentBrief mention of the fertility treatments that resulted in the Gosselins' two sets of multiples. |
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Social BehaviorThe series shows how two dedicated parents cope with the daily demands of such a large family -- but they often respond to stress by arguing and picking on each other. |
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Drug/Alcohol/TobaccoAdults occasionally drink wine when they're enjoying a kid-free dinner out. |
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