Good Luck Charlie

I started watching the show when I was 12 (I'm 19 now) and it was my favorite of the time period. The first season was great, second season was still pretty good, but then (spoilers) they added in a new baby and the show went down the tubes. I didn't enjoy the last two seasons very much and still haven't seen a handful of those episodes. I'm honestly surprised to see a lot of bad reviews, at least from when the first couple of seasons were airing. The first season especially had a lot of good family moments and the characters meshed well together. The acting was great (especially from the youngest son Gabe, he was my favorite). Teddy was (for the most part) a good role model for kids; she did well in school and was very responsible in taking care of baby sister Charlie. I don't see why so many people are calling her boy crazy--yeah, she had boyfriends, but her character didn't revolve around that. She had several plots that didn't have anything to do with boys. Even when she did date, she's a teenage girl--of course she's going to have plots about that. It's a normal part of life. And the older brother PJ isn't very smart, but he's portrayed as very sweet and caring. I can understand why some would think Gabe is a brat/bad role model, but I personally found him funny and the actor had charisma (at least when he was younger). One thing that I do agree with a lot of reviews on is that the parents aren't the best. In the beginning, they were okay, but later on the mom became really self-absorbed, rude, and obsessed with being on TV, which wasn't funny. The dad was just a lazy bum who the kids always made fun of. Later on especially the family members stop respecting each other & constantly mouth off to each other. The characters definitely got flanderized (aka taking one trait and making the whole character & all the jokes revolve around that). Like, PJ just became dumb. The mom just became selfish. Gabe just became mischievous. Early on the characters were more complex, but later on they were just one-dimensional and less funny. And then of course, add in the new baby which usually ruins shows anyway. So overall, I would strongly recommend the first two seasons for the family to watch together, but the last two are kind of forgettable. First two are funny, clever, parents are decent, characters are likable, realistic familial situations. Last two = over the top storylines, repeating plots with new baby (which are subpar), stupid parents, less funny, predictable, etc. Regardless, much better than most of the other shows on at the time.

There are one or two sex references. Nothing too extreme they say things like, "Go gave fun but not too much fun there is already enough kids in this house!" Teddy is boy crazy and lies often, but she loves and looks out for her siblings. PJ is irresponsible, but loves his sisters and brothers and tries to make them happy. He also has a strong relationship with Emmett. Gabe is a trouble maker and really not a good role model at all, but truly loves his family. Bob is often made fun of by his wife and oldest kids because he is fat, but they are jokingly making fun of him. And Amy is desperate to be on television, loves the center of attention almost as much as she loves her family. There is cheating and stuff but, I think the lesson Teddy gives Charlie at the end of each episode also helps your child.