Happy Tree Friends
The comic duo of Tom and Jerry are perhaps the best example of a violent, childish cartoon show. Though they’re both cute characters, Jerry especially, with his giant head and mischievous expressions, they get into a lot of trouble. Things generally go worse for Tom than they do for Jerry, and he usually doesn’t escape an episode without getting burned, cut, beaten, or mutilated. Though it’s unlikely that children, after watching an episode of Tom and Jerry, will try and run each other through a meat grinder or something of the sort, it’s still a pretty violent cartoon. Other children’s television shows like Power Rangers or G.I. Joe are equally violent, though we notice it more with these sorts of shows are the characters aren’t quite as cute or “cartoonish” as Tom and Jerry.
Itchy and Scratchy, the cartoon show within a cartoon show (Itchy and Scratchy make a number of appearances on The Simpsons) have been created as a bit of a commentary on Tom and Jerry. Itchy and Scratchy are also a cat and mouse duo, though their adventures usually lead to more gruesome ends like getting chopped to bits by a meat slicer or skewered by garden equipment.
Though Itchy and Scratchy get into some pretty tough scrapes, perhaps the pinnacle of cutsie, animated violence is the internet-only series of the Happy Tree Friends. The Happy Tree Friends are a group of cute little animated animals who live in a magical forest. Of course, this magical forest is wrought with danger, and the Happy Tree Friends usually find themselves meeting terrible, painful deaths or mutilations by the end of each episode. For example, there’s an episode of The Happy Tree Friends in which an anteater is tortured by a group of angry ants, and the torture includes running his long tongue over a cheese grater and then dousing it with lemon.
Though gruesome, the Happy Tree Friends can be entertaining (in black humor, laughing at the grave sort of way), they do add an interesting (though probably inadvertent) commentary on violence in cartoons on the whole. Why do we allow cartoons to be so violent? What do our children learn from this sort of media? And why do we have such a strong double standard between violence and sexuality? For example, we let our older children watch violent films before we’d let them watch a sex scene, and though it’s all right for Jerry to get bashed with a mallet every few minutes I’m sure nobody would let their children watch the show if Tom and Jerry realized their love for each other and tried to settle down together.
Happy Tree Friends related articles:
Harry Potter
The best selling children’s books of all time list never seemed wanting before 1997 (and the landslide popularity of Harry Potter books). Over a hundred hard-bound and over a hundred paper back books kept millions of children and pre-adolescents riveted.... Health Food Supplements
How often are you hitting up the local fast-food joints for a burger or fried chicken? It seems that most Americans make this mistake on a daily basis. My family doctor tells me that it's actually common for most families to do this once or twice a day. O... Health Safety Jobs
There are thousands of environmental health and safety jobs in all industries, and these jobs are an exciting and practical career path. Think about it, health safety jobs will never go away. As long as there are laws regulating food, worker safety, consu... Healthcare Advertising
Most governments, all over the world, spend a lot of many on various things. Advertising, whether in newspapers, television the Internet or even direct advertising, is one such expense that the government uses to communicate with the general public. But o... Healthy Desserts
Is there such a thing as a good tasting healthy dessert? Or is that just a myth? If you are dieting and exercising, and you think of the idea of a healthy dessert, do you immediately think of yucky oat cakes that will never sateify your dessert cravi...
more Pocket Links articles:
Answer Job Interview Questions
It seems that each field and each set of interviewers have different ideas on how one should answer job interview questions. Some are listening for buzz words like “team player” or “best practices” while others are seeking the unique and authentic applic... Hairloss
For most people, a full head of hair means confidence. We all love to comb, style, and gunk up our dews for different occasions. However, how do we deal with hairloss? What do we do if those shiny follicles gradually decrease, leaving us with nothing b... Living Room Designs
In most homes the living room is the one space where the family can relax and comfortably visit with each other. Every family has their own unique taste when it comes to living room designs.
Deciding on living room designs can be a task that in... Cure For Morning Sickness
When you are pregnant you are looking forward to one of the most amazing events in your life; the birth of your baby. If you suffer from morning sickness though, that joy and anticipation is often replaced by a feeling of nausea and listlessness.Cell Phone Number
I have just come to the realization that I do not know my own cell phone number. This is a very disturbing fact because I have had the same cell phone number for years. The other day, a friend of mine asked me for the number and I spouted a series of numb... |