Ban pokemon?

[Littlemother]

My 2 ds10 just discovered Pokemon. They have a DS game called Pokemon Ranger but they just found out that there is also a t.v. show. They want to get dvd's on Netflix. I got a dvd and preveiwed it. It is way different from my ds's game. The pokemon fight but the show does teach lessons about friendship. I'd let my ds watch the show but I have 2 young dd4 who might get the wrong idea....... I need help!

 

Littlemother

Edited November 3, 2010 by Littlemother

[FriedClams]

In our home - if it doesn't build up, encourage, help the kids grow in some way - we usually pass. We try really hard to use Philippians 4:8 as a guide: Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. It helps to make the decisions a whole lot less emotionally driven. And, I have no problems saying no. None what-so-ever. :001_smile:

[Parrothead]

Really it is going to depend on what you want to hear.

 

If you want to allow it for your boys then let them watch. Have dd do something else.

 

Being significantly older the boys are going to always want to do things/watch movies/TV that will not be age appropriate for the younger set. Either you have to ban it all and cater to the youngers, remove the youngers or allow the youngers to keep up with the olders hoping most of it goes over their heads.

 

What are you planning to do with the boys are 16 and the then 10-year old girls wants to watch what the boys are watching?

 

ETA: I'm confused about your kids and ages. Do you have two 10-year old boys and two 4-year old girls?

[Littlemother]

Really it is going to depend on what you want to hear.

 

If you want to allow it for your boys then let them watch. Have dd do something else.

 

Being significantly older the boys are going to always want to do things/watch movies/TV that will not be age appropriate for the younger set. Either you have to ban it all and cater to the youngers, remove the youngers or allow the youngers to keep up with the olders hoping most of it goes over their heads.

 

What are you planning to do with the boys are 16 and the then 10-year old girls wants to watch what the boys are watching?

 

ETA: I'm confused about your kids and ages. Do you have two 10-year old boys and two 4-year old girls?

 

I have twin boys who are 10 and twin girls who are 4. Sorry for confusing you. I'm new

[Tidbits of Learning]

To be honest, if I could go back and ban pokemon before it got started in our house I would. Not b/c of the video games or the cartoons, but b/c of the senseless waste of money on the cards. We started out watching the movie and then a little neighbor boy brought the cards down and now we have a lot of wasted money on pokemon.

It is a phase. They will outgrow it at some point, but I would strongly discourage buying into all the pokemon things out there. A movie here or there on netflix is fine, but our pokemon mania grew to include trading cards, video games, and trading books....

I am trying to phase it out slowly and was secretly ecstatic that ds7 left all of his cards outside unprotected on the patio table during a rain storm. Now if there were some way to get rid of the girls' cards.

I dislike this type of thing b/c it isn't constructive. The same as the webkinz. It is a marketing frenzy and it all ties in some how. You have to buy new webkinz or your code expires in a year and you lose all your webkinz you have made on the computer.

I like for toys to be toys or have a purpose. I just don't see where these type of toys have any purpose other than for you to buy more and more things that will pile up in the kid's room.

I would discourage pokemon if I had to do it over again. It does encourage all these weird battles and odd morals based on this alternate universe where pokemon exist and your child wants to capture them and battle with them.

Thankfully, soccer season is here and we haven't had any time for pokemon recently.

[flyingmommy]

I despise Pokemon! I can't tell you how thankful I was when my son outgrew that garbage and I refused to let the girls get sucked in. I never realized how awful it was till I actually sat and watched an episode of the cartoon. I was appalled at just how terrible it was on so many levels. Of course, I pretty much feel that way about Barney, so maybe I'm not a good one to give advice.....

:tongue_smilie:

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

I do allow Pokemon in my house because I did watch the TV show, and although it is mind-numbingly idiotic, it didn't seem as violent as some of the other things they wanted to watch. I've watched as they played their Pokemon DS game (rated E) and it wasn't too violent, either. I do get sick of the Pokemon cards everywhere, but at least it keeps them busy. They like to draw Pokemon, too.

[Pam Wilhelm]

I think Pokeman is stupid......but what the heck, I grew up watching The Brady Bunch and The Banana Splits and reading Mad Magazine.... :lol: I turned out okay. :D

[Rhonda in TX]

The show is annoying and I finally did ban that. If I heard "Pikachoooo" in that high-pitched voice one more time I was going to lose my mind. The kids never got into the cards much. They still play the DS games and I don't have a problem that.

 

Overall, I think it's annoying, but harmless.

[Littlemother]

Thanks for the advice, but would you allow a 4 year old to watch Pokemon? Would you allow a 10 year old to watch Pokemon?

[Margo out of lurking]

We've never had any problems with Pokemon, which my dd began watching when she was about 4. My ds became the Pokemon fan, with the stacks of trading cards, learning the zillions of characters, powers, evolutions, and all that. The only time it is sometimes an issue is with friends who don't allow Pokemon (they see the "magic" aspect of it--we are very conservative and most of our friends don't do Harry Potter, Halloween, Bionicles, etc.). When that's the case, ds just doesn't bring it up/out.

 

Pokemon is fun. I have huge issues, however, with video games in general--that's what I wish we'd never have allowed into our home--from the Gameboys, to the PlayStation, to the Wii.

[TanuvasaMama]

 

Overall, I think it's annoying, but harmless.

:iagree:

 

Yes, ALL my kids watch the show on occasion. I see no harm in it. Sure, their time could be spent doing better things, but I like to let my kids be kids sometimes. On the scale of violent kids shows...it's pretty tame.

[Gwenhwyfar]

Thanks for the advice, but would you allow a 4 year old to watch Pokemon? Would you allow a 10 year old to watch Pokemon?

 

yes and yes.

 

obviously i don't have any problems with pokemon ~ in fact, i have quite a large collection of pokemon stuff myself, from the first time the games/show/etc was popular (99/2000) :laugh:

[Rhonda in TX]

Thanks for the advice, but would you allow a 4 year old to watch Pokemon? Would you allow a 10 year old to watch Pokemon?

 

Yeah, I would. I would hope that it wouldn't last long, though. :tongue_smilie:

[kalanamak]

I was appalled at just how terrible it was on so many levels.

 

 

:iagree: And ugly!

[Julie in AZ]

No, we don't allow it in our home. (We don't have video games here either. My dc play for fun with the grandparents.)

[Joanne]

Thanks for the advice, but would you allow a 4 year old to watch Pokemon? Would you allow a 10 year old to watch Pokemon?

 

Harmless fun.

 

Really. There are real, harmful, life sucking things going on in the world. Letting kids watch Pokemon, buying some cards, letting them trade is nothing compared to *real* risks, *real* wastes, *real* issues of character and quality.

[kalanamak]

Harmless fun.

 

Really. There are real, harmful, life sucking things going on in the world. Letting kids watch Pokemon, buying some cards, letting them trade is nothing compared to *real* risks, *real* wastes, *real* issues of character and quality.

 

Well, one can avoid real, harmful, life sucking things AND trash TV, too. If kiddo has done his work well, and earned his hour-before-bed screen time (and he almost always does), there is so much wonderful stuff* to watch, why bother with something designed to suck in kids and make them spend money? Pokemon may be nothing compared to drugs and domestic violence, but it is "something" compared to the general way our family exists. IMO, and not so humble :). As SWB said in WTM, once more independent, kids catch up on pop culture in no time.

 

*(Charlie Chaplin, the 1950s Robin Hood, nature shows, Marx Brothers, Mr. Wizard (anyone else remember Watch Mr. Wizard?)etc. I remember seeing Death of a Salesman on a motel TV when I was 8. I went to bed knowing the world was a bigger place than I ever imaged it to be.)

Edited November 5, 2010 by kalanamak
typo

[ThatCyndiGirl]

Until this thread I had no idea that Pokemon was still around. I thought it was a fad that died about a decade ago. :lol:

[hsmom]

Thanks for the advice, but would you allow a 4 year old to watch Pokemon? Would you allow a 10 year old to watch Pokemon?

 

 

Yes and yes. It really is harmless, I believe there is much worse out there.

 

My boys do enjoy Pokemon, now I could really care less for it.

 

Now word of advice Pokemon tends to drain your pocket too!:lol: Those cards that the kids "have" to have just add up really really fast. Even though you think oh it is just $3 now. Dishes throughout the day are put in the dishwasher so it can be started when full. Even though he doesn't do anything with them anymore, he still holds on to them like a treasure.

[KristineinKS]

My kids have been watching it for who-knows-how-many-years & I think it's pretty harmless, though certainly not the best television programming ever. I wouldn't hesitate to let a younger child watch it either.

 

Only 2 of my kids are still obsessed (DS 12 & DD 10) & they no longer collect the cards, but have to have every new Pokemon Wii or DS game that comes out. A word of warning, the games seem to come out often!

[littlebug42]

My daughters watched when they were that young and honestly, I have no problem with it. It has always given them some common ground with their older cousins as well. In fact, it was early memory work as my oldest dd memorized all the Pokemon and could tell you what they evolve into etc. I have watched several of the movies and the show and I honestly believe that it is harmless and does have some good messages in there on occasion. I prefer it to some of the other stuff that we have encountered.

 

The sounds can drive me nuts and I did institute that the living room is a Pokemon free zone unless they are watching a movie. I have limited the cards though because the number of those could get out of hand really fast. The thrill of it has mostly faded around here now except we have occasional waves where they want to watch or play again. They do play the gameboy games still pretty regularly.