Common Sense Media Review
By Stephanie Morgan
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Interactive cartoon has violence but no innovation (or fun).
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 11+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Cat Burglar
What's the Story?
CAT BURGLAR, written by Charlie Brooker (Black Mirror), is an adult interactive cartoon heist in which a museum guard dog is pitted against a cat burglar trying to steal the most expensive painting in the world. Viewers are rooting for the cat and help him along by correctly answering three multiple choice questions before the clock runs out. Each time the viewer is successful, the cat makes it further into the museum. Each time the viewer fails, the cat dies. After three lives, the viewer is giving the option to start again without re-watching the introduction.
Is It Any Good?
This latest installment in Netflix's interactive line up, sadly, feels less like a technological advance and more like a dumbing down. Viewers who were excited about previous interactive offerings like Black Mirror: Bandersnatch will be disappointed in the rudimentary level of interaction in Cat Burglar. The viewer has no influence on the choices the cat makes and can only continue the cat's journey by picking correctly from two possible trivia question answers. While fun the first few times, this soon becomes tiresome and the only thing the show has left to offer are gratuitously violent cartoon gags. Nobody over the age of 8 will find them very funny, yet this isn't a show for young kids. Violence aside, its clear the trivia portion also isn't for them. It's fast pace will frustrate kids that can't read quickly enough to beat the buzzer, and a lot of the subject matter is decidedly adult. Answers include things like "unchecked capitalism" and "the Crimean War." Too boring for adults and not well-suited to kids, Cat Burglar is a new type of time suck that lacks a well-suited target audience.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how this type of show makes it hard to stop watching. Have you ever experienced interactive TV before? Is it fun? Stressful?
How did you like the repetition? How many scenes do you think you watched twice? What was most (or least) satisfying about this way of watching a show?
What do you think about the violence in this cartoon? Is it appropriate for everyone? Who is the target audience for this show?
TV Details
- Premiere date : February 22, 2022
- Cast : Trevor Devall
- Network : Netflix
- Genre : Game Shows
- Topics : Animals
- TV rating :
- Last updated : September 29, 2025
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