Childrens Hospital
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A Lot or a Little?
The parents' guide to what's in this TV show.
What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that this comedy -- which began life as a Web series -- is a spot-on parody of earnest TV medical dramas like Grey's Anatomy. The characters may look like caring doctors, but they're so clueless, narcissistic, and completely deranged that they're about the last people you should trust with medical equipment. The over-the-top situations come complete with some swearing (though the strongest words are bleeped), drinking, and a fair amount of sexual innuendo/references, so this Hospital isn't really meant for children.
Community Reviews
My tween killed.
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Funny show
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What's the Story?
The staff at CHILDRENS HOSPITAL may not be especially attentive to patients or the particularly talented medical professionals, but, boy, do they take their love lives seriously. This send-up of so many prime-time doctor dramas dispenses with those messy medical subplots and gets right to the heart of the inter-hospital romance and gossip. That's all that viewers care about anyway, right? The show originated online as the brainchild of comedian Rob Corddry, who also stars as Blake Downs, a doctor who roams the halls in full clownface makeup and surgical scrubs covered in blood -- looking more like a serial killer than a healer. The rest of the excessively earnest team is equally deranged. (Need an example? Watching a young cancer patient give a heartwarming speech, one doctor comments on the inspiring example: "God, I wish I had cancer.")
Is It Any Good?
Ever think the treacly, life-saving antics on ER or Grey's Anatomy are just too predictable? Tired of watching inter-hospital romance as cast members move from one co-worker to another, ignoring the entire dating pool outside the examining room? Then this is the show for you. Childrens Hospital tweaks one TV drama convention after another, starting with an over-the-top voice-over that sounds like it should be meaningful, but is really just schmaltz.
The characters all fit into standard roles (the hotshot doctor, the lovelorn nurse, the tyrannical administrator), but the delightfully ludicrous situations and the crazy dialogue delivered with a straight face (how do they refrain from laughing?) makes it all work. This quick show -- episodes are just 15 minutes -- delivers highly concentrated laughs in bite-size packages.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about parody. Do you think this show is funny? What makes it different from a real medical drama? Do you have to be familiar with the genre to appreciate the humor here?
Can you think of other spoofs/parodies that do the same kind of thing this show sets out to? What makes some successful while others aren't?
What do you think about Rob Corddry's clown face? Do you find it funny or creepy? What is its intent?
TV Details
- Premiere date: December 8, 2008
- Cast: Erinn Hayes, Lake Bell, Rob Corddry, Rob Huebel
- Network: Comedy Central
- Genre: Comedy
- TV rating: TV-14
- Last updated: March 31, 2022
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