Winx Club

Let me quickly start by saying that a small part of me agrees with some of the other reviewers that this show's boyfriend/girlfriend element is not necessary for younger kids, but I don't think it was made for super young kids anyway. That said, I do believe that its strengths completely outweigh this aspect for younger kids - not to mention the fact that the 'boyfriend' element is really pretty benign in that they generally refer to each other as friends and there is very little physical touching or sappy love talk. Now, that being said, we are pretty strict as to what we allow our children to watch and at face value perhaps would not have introduced this show to our 5 year old just yet if we were just flipping thru channels. HOWEVER, we were struggling to find a positive female superhero role model for our daughter, who was beginning to believe that only boys could be strong and fight evil and that girls were only supposed to sit back and be 'lovely' or 'cute' but were not strong and had to 'be saved'. Our daughter attends a school where most of the kids are boys (not sure why), but she was having trouble finding a "girl superhero" that she could pretend to be who was acceptable to the boys that she plays with. The boys had declared that there were no such thing as girl superhero's because there were no shows, or anything else for that matter, to depict them. We of course disputed this with her, as we all know that there are indeed girl superhero's. However, upon reflection from today's 5 year old perspective, looking at shows available to them, movies, toys, room decor, etc., they are right. There is very little depiction of wonder woman, bat girl, spider girl, etc. anywhere to be found these days. Winx Club is really a wonderful show that not only illustrates that individuals have different strengths, but emphasizes respect, acceptance and kindness. It depicts a group of girls who are each from different 'worlds' and backgrounds - some princesses, some not - who come together at school to form the Winx Club. They are at this school to learn how to develop their powers and yes, do look like Barbies that transform to Fairy's, but they are all very different in both looks, personality and strengths. To me, they are what I would call "classical" teenagers, where they spend their free time giggling, shopping, grabbing pizza and having sleepovers - there is very little thought to modern teenage drama surrounding hurtful gossip, cell phones, & facebook. The girls can only earn greater power by doing selfless things for others and are provided guidance by a kind, yet strong, older woman who is their school director. The girls all respect that fact that they come from different backgrounds and support this in each other. They also recognize and respect the fact that they each have different powers and never display envy or selfishness in believing any other girl and/or her power is any more or less important that any others. They also recognize the value in teamwork and trust, and that each of their powers is necessary to ultimately defeat the evil Valtor. Their 'boyfriends' also have some power, but tend to provide more of a support/partner element to the girls - and are completely fine with their roles. This show provides girls (and boys) of all ages the message that its OK for girls to be leaders and team players; to have great strength, yet acknowledge that we all have weaknesses; to work hard at achieving something, yet sometimes fail; to befriend others from different backgrounds and not only accept them for who they are, but to find value in each others differences; it teaches the importance of giving of yourself, of friendship, trust, courage and communication. This show is has been wonderful for our daughter, in that its helped her begin to define who she is as a girl, a friend, and a 'superhero'. :)