Parents' Guide to

The Boondocks

By Elisabeth Chaney, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 16+

This cutting-edge cartoon is for adults only.

TV Cartoon Network Comedy 2005
The Boondocks Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this TV show.

Community Reviews

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age 15+

Based on 22 parent reviews

HollyKay12
HollyKay12 Adult
April 12, 2021
age 12+

Really good educational show.

This show may seem bad just because its on "Adult Swim", but as a black woman with 2 sons they get everything that happens on this show. We can relate to the show a lot, not only that but it is also funny. Nothing MAJORLY Inappropriate. Common Sense Media always over-exaggerates reviews, the show really isn't that bad.

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models
3 people found this helpful.
jlgren68
jlgren68 Adult
January 12, 2021
age 14+

alright if you are able to handle it.

the show is about 2 African American brothers, 8 and 10, living with their grandfather in a middle class white neighborhood in fictional woodcrest, Maryland. Riley, 8 aspires to be a gangster and a rapper while Huey, 10 is a left leaning activist who always thinks about what's right. I watch this show with my 12 year old brother (I am 14) and we laugh at the vast majority of the jokes and humorous scenes, however there is a lot of language, mainly the wide use of the n word. the show also uses about every swear word but not very frequently. there is some violence but not a whole lot. there is a minor detail in the show about "A Pimp Named Slickback" who tries to give advice while using words such as bitch and hoe to describe women. there isn't a whole lot of sexual scenes but there is a lot of women in bikinis shown which shouldn't be an issue. there is also use of the word faggot, fag and gay ass n word. which is used by Riley mainly. This show is appropriate for typically 12 and up if you can handle it. otherwise I would give it a 14+ rating. the shows episodes usually end with a positive message or moral portrayed by Huey, such as it isn't okay to lie, violence is not the answer, and you shouldn't say racial slurs.

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models
Too much swearing
1 person found this helpful.
See all 22 parent reviews

What's the Story?

The premise of THE BOONDOCKS is that 10-year-old Huey, a self-proclaimed leftist revolutionary, and 8-year-old Riley, an aspiring gangsta, have gone to live with their grandfather, \"Granddad,\" in the suburbs of Chicago. The boys, but more often Granddad, get into sticky situations, but at the end of each episode there's a moral, whether it's that a soul food diet is dangerous, or that it isn't right to lie to people.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (22):
Kids say (103):

The Boondocks began as a critically acclaimed, award-winning newspaper comic strip and became so popular that it was picked up as a TV show by the Cartoon Network. It's featured in their Adult Swim line-up, as its controversial material is meant for adults only.

It's certainly not meant for everyone, and is definitely not meant for kids, but its edgy humor may appeal to many adults and older teens.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the relationships in The Boondocks. How do the brothers relate to each other even though they have very different points of view about the world?

  • Families can also talk about social commentary on TV. How does this series address complex issues like race, family, and justice? What other series can you think of that also tackle these topics?

TV Details

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