Common Sense Media Review
By Joyce Slaton
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Just as cartoonishly violent as classic, plus stereotypes.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 8+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
What's the Story?
Like similar cartoon characters Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck created in the 1940s, Woody Woodpecker has always been a classic "screwball." He's daffy, he's wacky, he doesn't care about reality or other characters as long as he gets what he wants (usually tasty food and a nice, long rest). But in THE NEW WOODY WOODPECKER SHOW, Woody (Billy West) is less all-out daffy than in the past, and more calculating. Most episodes revolve around a character trying to keep Woody from getting something: Buzz Buzzard (Mark Hamill) tries to keep Woody from enjoying a sandwich, say. Woody uses all manner of tricks to deceive Buzz, ultimately getting what he wants by the end of the segment. On some segments, Woody's friends, like Chilly Willy or girlfriend Winnie Woodpecker, take over and have their own outrageous adventures.
Is It Any Good?
The New Woody Woodpecker Show is a throwback, in the worst sense of the word. Just as violent as Looney Tunes (though not as violent as Tom and Jerry), The New Woody Woodpecker Show lacks the cleverness of classic cartoons, with its sophisticated references to (then-current) movies and stars, its beautiful classical music, its plots ripped from fairy tales and literature.
What you get instead are broad, dumb plots about Woody trying to trick a bunch of pirates into feeding him for free, or babysitting a group of unruly kids. Kids who haven't seen these same plots on equally dumb sitcoms may be diverted, but parents most definitely won't. And the violence, gender, and ethnic stereotyping are intrusive enough that parents won't want kids to watch either.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about whether the violence in cartoons like The New Woody Woodpecker Show are dangerous for kids to watch. Do violent cartoons desensitize kids to violence? Do they give kids the idea that violence is fun, funny, and not really that dangerous, since any injuries are healed within minutes?
How can you tell that Buzz Buzzard is a "bad" character? How is his appearance different than Woody's? What about his accent and the words he uses? Why are bad characters in cartoons so frequently black or dark?
Have you seen Woody Woodpecker cartoons from the '40s and '50s? How are these different? How are they the same? Is Woody as a character the same as he was in the earlier cartoons?
TV Details
- Premiere date : May 8, 1999
- Cast : Billy West , E. G. Daily , Mark Hamill
- Network : Fox
- Genre : Kids' Animation
- TV rating :
- Last updated : October 22, 2022
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