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Yesterday I saw linked on Club Jade a couple of articles on whether Clone Wars has gone too far with violence in a show that is marketed to kids. What raised the hubbub was last week's episode "Landing At Point Rain." Fans loved it but were the flaming Geonosians and clonetroopers blown out of the sky a bit too much for the small fry?
It is interesting that after four broadcasts (five episode) at 8 p.m., CW is going back to its 9 p.m. slot. Sure it gets repeated at different times but I have to wonder if there were complaints sent to Cartoon Network or if the guys at the network decided that CW is a little rough for 8 p.m.. The show is mega-popular with boys 6-12 and there's a ton of merch aimed at kids age 3 on up. But there have been concerns before about violence and even mild swearing in that episode from last season, "Rookies." Even in the first few episodes of this season, clonetroopers are slaughtered, a Jedi is tortured to death, and there's a knockdown fight between Cad Bane and Ahsoka. Ahsoka seems to break or dislocate Cad's arm at one point, while the Cadster kicks Ahsoka in the gut. Babies are put in peril.
I'm not a parent, so maybe my perspective is worthless. But I don't think CW is any more violent than any of the Star Wars films and if parents let their kids watch the movies, I don't see why they would have a problem with the show. It might be too much for a two-year-old, but I think two is a little young for SW anyway. And if it bothers you that much, DVR the show, watch it first, and "censor" the parts that might frighten your kids. CW isn't a patch on fare you find on network television either. "Heroes" toned down its gore somewhat now that it's on at 8, but it was on at 9, it was one of the goriest shows on t.v.. The CSI franchise has pushed the gore envelope for years. As Richard Roeper said in his review of ROTS, chances are your kids play video games that are a lot more violent.
Some are less concerned with content than with context…is CW glorifying war and violence as a way to solve your problems? One of the articles was troubled by Anakin and Ahsoka's score-keeping and felt there should have been a definitive message that This Is Bad. But what's great about CW is that they've miraculously kept the frying pan style of delivering a message to a minimum. With the heavy-handed exceptions of "Jedi Crash" and "Trespass," CW is more subtle, designed to make you ask questions instead of answering them for you. Clearly the war is changing the role of the Jedi and they are being made to contradict their own philosophy in order to fit into that role. Maybe that's a little sophisticated for a very small child, but that's why parents are supposed to watch with their kids and discuss these things.
Don't get me wrong, I think excessive, gratuitous violence and sex on t.v. are problematic and kids are exposed to far too much of it. But I can guarantee you there won't be anyone sitting on death row in the future because he watched CW when he was nine.
It is interesting that after four broadcasts (five episode) at 8 p.m., CW is going back to its 9 p.m. slot. Sure it gets repeated at different times but I have to wonder if there were complaints sent to Cartoon Network or if the guys at the network decided that CW is a little rough for 8 p.m.. The show is mega-popular with boys 6-12 and there's a ton of merch aimed at kids age 3 on up. But there have been concerns before about violence and even mild swearing in that episode from last season, "Rookies." Even in the first few episodes of this season, clonetroopers are slaughtered, a Jedi is tortured to death, and there's a knockdown fight between Cad Bane and Ahsoka. Ahsoka seems to break or dislocate Cad's arm at one point, while the Cadster kicks Ahsoka in the gut. Babies are put in peril.
I'm not a parent, so maybe my perspective is worthless. But I don't think CW is any more violent than any of the Star Wars films and if parents let their kids watch the movies, I don't see why they would have a problem with the show. It might be too much for a two-year-old, but I think two is a little young for SW anyway. And if it bothers you that much, DVR the show, watch it first, and "censor" the parts that might frighten your kids. CW isn't a patch on fare you find on network television either. "Heroes" toned down its gore somewhat now that it's on at 8, but it was on at 9, it was one of the goriest shows on t.v.. The CSI franchise has pushed the gore envelope for years. As Richard Roeper said in his review of ROTS, chances are your kids play video games that are a lot more violent.
Some are less concerned with content than with context…is CW glorifying war and violence as a way to solve your problems? One of the articles was troubled by Anakin and Ahsoka's score-keeping and felt there should have been a definitive message that This Is Bad. But what's great about CW is that they've miraculously kept the frying pan style of delivering a message to a minimum. With the heavy-handed exceptions of "Jedi Crash" and "Trespass," CW is more subtle, designed to make you ask questions instead of answering them for you. Clearly the war is changing the role of the Jedi and they are being made to contradict their own philosophy in order to fit into that role. Maybe that's a little sophisticated for a very small child, but that's why parents are supposed to watch with their kids and discuss these things.
Don't get me wrong, I think excessive, gratuitous violence and sex on t.v. are problematic and kids are exposed to far too much of it. But I can guarantee you there won't be anyone sitting on death row in the future because he watched CW when he was nine.
