Television

Fairly Odd Parents
Nickelodeon, Fridays, 8:30 pm, ET
Invader Zim
Fridays, 9:00 pm, ET
On these pages, we usually feature our favorites and discard the rest, but when a questionable television program debuts on a popular all-kids network, I feel it's important as a parent to know the reel deal. In March, Nickelodeon debuted two new cartoons for their Friday night line-up. The Fairly Odd Parents boasts its irreverence by featuring 10-year-old Timmy and a pair of magical godparents (in the form of goldfish) who incite mayhem when they grant Timmy's wishes. Disrespect is rampant in this half-hour series, as are subtle adult themes.

The other series, Invader Zim, is Nickelodeon's first animated sci-fi fantasy. Zim, the paranoid alien, is perceived by his fellows as a hopeless failure, yet he refuses to let his alien peers bring him down. Zim is determined to be a good alien and conquer Earth, so he goes undercover as a green-skinned school-aged kid. While the underlying message is pretty good, there is some cartoony violence that makes this a show for older kids. Invader Zim is cute and funny in a strange way and far less offensive than its Fairly Odd sibling.

—Jennifer

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