Michael Davis and Mark Nollinger, two dads who write and edit the family page for TV Guide, got to talking recently about the state of teen TV, the importation of Canadian angst, bikini shows and snow parkas.
Michael Davis: What do you think is the best show for teens on TV? My favorite, Everwood, got killed when WB merged with UPN to form CW. So CW is dead to me, even though it hasn't signed on yet.
Mark Nollinger: Yeah, it's too bad about Everwood. I think Smallville and Veronica Mars are pretty cool, too. But speaking as a parent, my favorite show — for older teens, anyway — isn't aimed at teens at all: read more
Former adolescents Michael Davis and Mark Nollinger can still summon their inner middle-schooler when they watch tween TV. They got together the other day to compare notes on the new season for kids who are approximately 5 feet tall, wear braces and inject the word "like" between words, like, all the time.
Michael Davis: Which new or returning shows will send parents screaming out of the room?
Nollinger: It's too early to tell with the new shows, although I can imagine that even some folks who loved Beavis and Butt-Head as college students might not welcome Mr. Meaty (premiering Sept. 22, on Nickelodeon) into their living rooms as parents. Personally, I can handle just about anything as long as I don't have to hear the Camp Lazlo theme song ever again. I doread more
Robert Edelstein, father of kids 11, 7 and 2 and frequent contributor to TV Guide on the subject of kids' TV, recently exchanged some observations about the new fall season with Tv Guide's family editor, Michael Davis. They screened previews of some new and returning shows for schoolkids, including one from André Benjamin of OutKast.
Michael Davis: I love the idea that André Benjamin from OutKast has created a series for Cartoon Network, entitled Class of 3000 (November, Cartoon Network). You liked it, right?
Robert Edelstein: Absolutely — though, to be fair, I've only seen one two-minute preview reel. But you can tell by the style, the look, the sound of the voices and the pedigree (Benjamin and cocreator Tread more