The Proud Family follows the exploits of 14 year old Penny Proud, and her group of friends and family.
This show has the potential to be a great show. Penny is an extremely likable character, being kind, smart, level-headed, and all around a good kid, with the occasional foray into juvenile idiocy. The problem emerges in the show's realism.
Penny's friends are cruel and undependable. While it's a fact that this is often how the friendships between teenage girls operate, it does not make for good television. LaCienega is snobbish and cruel to the other characters, and Dijonay is undependable, willing to sacrifice Penny for her own means at any moment. Zoe is by far the best (personality-wise) of Penny's friends, and even she leaves much to be desired.
Penny and her friends are often victimized by bullies. This is a common theme in children's shows, yet The Proud Family does nothing to educate one on what one should do if being bullied, and offers no justice. The only thing the show seems to be teaching children is that if you report bullying to an authority figure, then you're sure to be victimized even further (Which is often not the case in real life).
Adding further to the show's offences is the occasional venture into fantasy. Throughout most of the series, The Proud Family is quite settled in reality, with an extreme level of realism. However, every once in a while an episode occurs that diverges completely away from the show's internal logic, and requires a complete suspension of disbelief - for example, an episode where Al Roker begins talking to Penny through a television set.
The shows animation is beautiful, if a bit dull and lacklustre (A personal choice however, not a technical one). However, this isn't enough enough to make up for the unpleasantness of watching a show that is show severely grounded in reality (On most occasions) - there's little appeal in watching Penny be betrayed by her friends and attacked by her peers, episode after episode.
This show has the potential to be a great show. Penny is an extremely likable character, being kind, smart, level-headed, and all around a good kid, with the occasional foray into juvenile idiocy. The problem emerges in the show's realism.
Penny's friends are cruel and undependable. While it's a fact that this is often how the friendships between teenage girls operate, it does not make for good television. LaCienega is snobbish and cruel to the other characters, and Dijonay is undependable, willing to sacrifice Penny for her own means at any moment. Zoe is by far the best (personality-wise) of Penny's friends, and even she leaves much to be desired.
Penny and her friends are often victimized by bullies. This is a common theme in children's shows, yet The Proud Family does nothing to educate one on what one should do if being bullied, and offers no justice. The only thing the show seems to be teaching children is that if you report bullying to an authority figure, then you're sure to be victimized even further (Which is often not the case in real life).
Adding further to the show's offences is the occasional venture into fantasy. Throughout most of the series, The Proud Family is quite settled in reality, with an extreme level of realism. However, every once in a while an episode occurs that diverges completely away from the show's internal logic, and requires a complete suspension of disbelief - for example, an episode where Al Roker begins talking to Penny through a television set.
The shows animation is beautiful, if a bit dull and lacklustre (A personal choice however, not a technical one). However, this isn't enough enough to make up for the unpleasantness of watching a show that is show severely grounded in reality (On most occasions) - there's little appeal in watching Penny be betrayed by her friends and attacked by her peers, episode after episode.
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