Holmes on Homes

Review

Common Sense Media says

Contractor rebuilds what went wrong; won't interest kids.
greenON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
yellowPAUSE: Know your child; some content
may not be right for some kids.
redOFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
not for kidsNOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age.

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Quality
 
Sometimes media can be age appropriate but a real waste of time. Our star rating assesses the media's overall quality.

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Parents say

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Kids say

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What parents need to know

Parents need to know that the star of this series -- contractor Mike Holmes -- has a fair amount of attitude, especially toward shoddy construction work. He clearly expresses his disdain, with errant contractors and builders earning the lion's share fair of his ire. These people aren't named or shown, but some parents might take issue with Holmes pointing the finger of blame. That said, kids probably won't be too interested in the subject matter, so the point may be moot.

  • Positive messages3
    The series' overall message is about taking pride in your work and doing it right the first time -- and when a worker does a task well, Holmes is very generous with his praise. He's annoyed by laziness and sloppiness, and what sets him off the most is when another builder or contractor obviously cuts corners to save money on a project. On the other hand, very few women work for Holmes, and the occasional macho attitude crops up.  That said, he doesn't expect the women on his crew to be any less capable than the guys.
  • Positive role models3
    Holmes shows the importance of doing work well and getting the job done right the first time. He works hard and is something of a crusader for homeowners stuck with problems they didn't create.
  • Violence1
    There's a fair amount of demolition, and Holmes can get pretty angry at mistakes made by previous contractors.
  • Sex0
    Not applicable.
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What's the story?

When you hire a contractor or builder who messes up, Canadian contractor Mike Holmes is the guy you want fixing it. In each episode of HOLMES ON HOMES, Holmes comes in and fixes the damage that other folks left behind -- often finding even more wrong than he originally thought.

Is it any good?

 

What makes Holmes entertaining to watch is that he's very opinionated and has no patience with shoddy workmanship. In fact, half the fun of the show is watching Holmes all but lose it when he discovers that a given problem is worse than he originally thought. For example, in an episode in which a builder messed up a flat roof so that water ran into the rest of the house, Holmes found that the exterior wall was installed so that it looked insulated but was actually only insulated at the top, where the building inspector would see it. He didn't quite break down and swear, but you know he wanted to.

The show's only downside is that it requires viewers to decipher the language of home construction. Unless you're already a contractor, when Holmes is talking about a specific task, it can be a little tricky to figure out what he's talking about.

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What families can talk about

  • Families can talk about how the show is edited. How long do you think the featured construction jobs actually took to complete? Why would producers want to speed up viewers' sense of the time involved? Do any errors or mistakes get introduced as a result?

  • Also, what's the appeal of shows about home construction/decoration/sales? Why are there so many shows like this on the air?

This review was written by Anne Louise Bannon
Parent of 3 and 5 year old
August 10, 2009
AGE
5
 
Good dose of reality, great role model
I think Mike Holmes is a fabulous role model. He works hard, he's honest, he's fair, he's generous, he teaches, he's kind.... And kids learn how much hard, knowledgeable work goes into building a house. My 4 year old loves to watch this show with me (we're renovating our house, so maybe we relate more than most).
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This review was written by Anne Louise Bannon
TV rating:TV-G
Network:HGTV
Cast:Mike Holmes
Genre:Reality TV
This review was written by Anne Louise Bannon
 

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About our rating system
ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids.
OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
Learning ratings
BEST: Really engaging, great learning approach.
GOOD: Pretty engaging, good learning approach.
FAIR: Somewhat engaging, OK learning approach.
NOT FOR LEARNING: Not recommended for learning.
Our child development rating guidelines

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