Parents' Guide to

The Girls Next Door

By Melissa Camacho, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 17+

Playboy fantasy becomes reality; not for kids.

TV E! Reality TV 2005
The Girls Next Door Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

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age 7+

Based on 3 parent reviews

Ben12804
Ben12804 Parent of 7-year-old
July 14, 2019
age 2+
emil.91
emil.91 Adult
May 27, 2009
age 2+

.,m.,m

,m.,m.m
See all 3 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Showing viewers the reality of the Playboy fantasy, THE GIRLS NEXT DOOR is a series created by Playboy magazine founder and editor-in-chief Hugh Hefner that gives viewers an inside look at the inner workings of the infamous Playboy mansion. The show follows Hefner's three live-in girlfriends -- Holly Madison, Bridget Marquardt, and Kendra Wilkinson -- as they live and travel with Hefner and help him host parties at the mansion. The ladies do everything from undressing and putting on S&M outfits and performing stripteases to wrapping Hef's birthday gifts with G-strings. In between are raunchy conversations that include discussing the desire to masturbate and questions about posing nude before bikini waxes became popular.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (3):
Kids say (7):

Like anything Playboy, the show is hedonistic and narcissistic and underscores (what else?!) Hefner's continuing love of beautiful women and sexual freedom. But even though these women are educated and have career goals (Bridget is working on her second master's degree, while Holly is earning her real estate license and Kendra is taking college courses online), their choice to live in the mansion's harem-like environment and their often-ditzy behavior make it hard to take them seriously. Unfortunately, they personify the stereotype of the empty-headed pinup girl whose mere presence serves to satisfy people's sexual fantasies. As a result, this series offers little more than an invitation to stop imagining and to actually look at real-life women as sexual objects.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the different attitudes our society has about sex and sexual activity. Why are some people very open about sex while others aren't? When do nudity and sexual conduct become pornographic? Families can also discuss how women appear as sexual objects in the media and how this impacts how we look at and treat women in our society.

TV Details

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