Nostalgia at its finest
August 28, 2007 (263 days ago) at 7:28 pm
Posted in Entertainment, Opinions, Rants
There are certain memories that we all have that we carry with us through our lives. Even memories as simple as watching a favorite t.v. show as a kid - can leave an impression on us even through adulthood. I was browsing Youtube yesterday evening, looking for interesting videos, when I accidentally stumbled upon one of my favorite classic t.v. shows from the 90’s…Are You Afraid of the Dark?
It aired on Nickelodeon Saturday nights at 8:00 (at that time it was known as SNICK) and my mom and I would huddle on the couch in the dark with some popcorn and enjoy the show together. I remember watching and being truly mesmerized…it really got my imagination going, and I think that’s what made me enjoy it so much. It took some pretty serious and very real situations and portrayed them in a way that kids could understand and relate to them. Even someone as young as I was at the time (I think I was around 7 or 8 years old when this show was popular). Let’s not forget about the other classic Nick shows of the time - The Secret World of Alex Mack, Clarissa Explains it All, Pete & Pete, Ahhh! Real Monsters, just to name a few. Does anyone remember Stick Stickly? Ah, those were the days…
It makes me wonder though, what kids these days (including tweens…ugh, hate that word) have to look forward to for entertainment. The mindless drivel of the Naked Brothers Band? The fabrication of ‘real-life experiences’ in Zoey 101 and Unfabulous? I’m not sure what has happened to these kids channels these past few years, but it seems to me like the imaginative ideas that made those shows so popular has died, and has been replaced with shows that try to portray a perfect world - where no one is ever hurt, sad, or depressed. No crimes are ever committed, and all your problems can be worked out in a 30 minute (or sometimes a whopping hour!) time slot. I remember Clarissa Explains it All - that show actually dealt with real-life adolescent problems and worries: zits, relationships, sibling rivalry, and even sex. Zoey, on the other hand, doesn’t really delve into those subjects, that I’ve seen anyway. I really truly feel like kids these days are being dumbed down by these shows and I believe it’s possible that they can develop a false impression of what life will be like for them as they get older. Bottom line: it makes me sad. :( (Although, I will admit that I can’t resist the slapstick humor that is Spongebob Squarepants!) At least shows like Are You Afraid of the Dark pushed the limits of what was real and what was imaginary - it really made you think: “Could that really happen? Could that be real?” The shows directed for the same age group today have answered those questions for us: No, nothing bad ever happens, and everything is worked out in the end. No one ever dies, and the worst injury you can ever get is from…I don’t know…falling off a bicycle or something. Please…just spare me the earbleed from listening to Jamie Lynn Spears talk about the ups and downs of adolescence, and bring back the classic Nick shows!
So tell me, what were some of your favorite t.v. shows as children?
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I absolutely agree with you. Television today is not what it used to be, especially on the kids’ channels.
I remember watching Sesame Street when I was growing up, that was 30 minutes each night during which I actually learned something. At least that’s what I believe, even though I know that Sesame Street was not the most realistic show out there. It definitely wasn’t as far off as Zoey 101 or The Suite Life are today. (Also, Sesame Street is the only show I can think of that we had back then that you might know as well. :tongue: )
Which brings me to the next thing: we get all those shows coming over here from the US which makes things even more confusing and dumbing for the kids because the life that is portrayed in them? It is not at all like life will be for kids over here. Our schools are not called “high school”, there are no cheerleaders or football players, we don’t celebrate Thanksgiving. It’s all these things that have me somewhat worried about televison for kids these days.
Let alone all the crap I would have to put up with as an adult if I was watching TV as often as I used to a few years back. I consider myself smart for not watching TV anymore, I can’t deal with all the shit that’s being thrown my way including 10-minute-blocks of annoying ringtone commercials and stupid synchronized US shows (if, at least, they would show the original!). So, as you can see, I got all kinds of problems with watching TV, ha ha. I am so far anti TV that I’m thinking of selling mine. *lol
But maybe that would be taking it a step too far…
And I do like TV in the US, though! I love Oprah and the Discovery Health Channel and Food Network and all that! But we don’t get all the good stuff! We only get Zoey 101 episodes translated into German, now what the heck is up with that?? :wink:
Well, take care and thanks for all your comments! I need to get back to returning them right away, or else I can’t keep up. And sorry for this insanely long comment! :upsidedown:
Ah! I remember that show! I used to have the biggest crush on some of the boys that were in the Midnight Society. I’m like you, I miss those shows and wish they’d bring them (or a likeness of them) back. The shows on Nick today aren’t nearly as cool. My daughter loves Drake and Josh (and I’ll admit, I kinda like that one too) but most of the other shows are just not as interesting and she points that out quite often.
I miss shows like Hey Dude!, Salute Your Shorts, Eureka’s Castle, Clarissa, and all the game shows like Legends of the Hidden Temple, Guts and Double Dare.
I’ve seen several online petitions trying to get these shows back, but I guess only time will tell if they’ll eventually be put back on the air. Maybe the lack of good TV programming is a blessing in disguise; it makes kids want to go outside instead and get some exercise (or unfortunately, spend all day watching something else).
Thanks for bringing up one of my favorite childhood memories!
i LOVED that show & yeah… i miss stuff like that. i miss “snick” and the shows that used to be in nickelodeon.
Omg i remember all those shows. I remember snick too. They need to put that back on. The Pete and Pete show came to the town next to mine and filmed for months there. Some of my friends are on it! How exciting!
I loved Are You Afraid of the Dark, Pete & Pete, and Clarissa. Did you ever watch Salute Your Shorts? That was a good one too! I actually ran across a website a couple of months ago that had full episodes of Are You Afraid of the Dark on there. Very cool.
I haven’t watched Zoey 101. I do watch Hannah Montana and I’ve seen things like Drake and Josh. I think it’s kind of good that kids have some real-life people to look up to and not just cartoons. From the things I’ve seen, Drake and Josh is a pretty reasonable show, and I love Hannah Montana! I know what you mean about things changing as far as TV goes. High School Musical is a huge phenomena and I think that it can be a very positive thing for young kids and pre-teens.
Some people argue that these shows aren’t realistic and are too bubble-gummy, but if we had real life stuff on TV, people would complain it’s too graphic. Imagine a show where kids are made fun of every day. No one wants to see that, but that’s real life. I think TV is a good escape for people (not just kids).
I love to watch Degrassi. Not for really young kids, but it deals with real issues like homosexuality, rape, drugs, school violence, etc.
Everyone has different opinions on what’s on tv these days. Personally, I think SpongeBob is a worse influence than Bratz dolls or Zoe 101. I’m so not a SpongeBob fan though.
Anyway, great post. Gave me a lot of think about! :D I may want to blog about this issue soon maybe.
BTW, I gotta update my dailies list and add your site. And I love the new layout! ;)
I remember that show! It was the height of scary when I was younger.
My favourite nostalgia show? I never really watched anything -regularly- but pretty much just random shows on ABC saturday in the mid nineties.
I remember that show, LOVED it!! :heart: :heart:
I have a hard time with anything not on PBS lately. We’re not big TV watchers, so we don’t do cable (as of right now, I think my husband would like it, though).
I haven’t seen “are you afraid of the dark?” in years. I used to be obsessed wtih that show. Do you remember the show Clarissa Explains it All? Man, those were some awesome shows. I hate the shows that air on Nickelodeon now.