Ner ner ner ner ner! (Horrid Henry)

Member Name: wendybull

Product:	Horrid Henry
Date:	01/03/08 (458 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Good, funny entertainment

Disadvantages: Kids voices can be annoying.

Who would have thought that my Barbie loving daughter would be interested in a cartoon about a naughty little boy called Henry?

This has turned into a favourite of mine and the children's and watching the antics of naughty Henry gives us all a daily laugh.

Each cartoon focuses on something Henry is trying to achieve, like getting the tickets to his favourite football match or seeing his beloved band The Killer Boy Rats in concert. He will do anything to achieve his goal in each episode and unfortunately by any means. He is more than happy to be nasty to his little brother Peter (also known as Perfect Peter) and will stitch up his friends at the drop of a hat.

However in the end he will always get his comeuppance and be punished or caught red-handed before any serious damage is done; teaching the kids there is no use in being naughty as they will always have to pay in the end.

I love the way the cartoonists have drawn his mum. She is so typically the mother of a naughty child and it shows in her appearance, with her lanky hair and stooped shoulders. His father fairs a little better although it is obvious he's totally fed yup too.

Henry always wants his own way and will stop at nothing to get it., This brings about some very funny situations like being chased by bulls or everyone's tents collapsing while on a camping holiday. My daughter especially laughs a lot through this programme and although my six year old son will watch it he is not as enthralled as his little sister.

I think all children fantasise a little about being naughty and getting away with things and this cartoon is a kind of release for their naughty tendencies without actually doing anything and getting caught. I guess Horrid Henry is in the same vain as Dennis the Menace was in my childhood and kids enjoy that kind of humour.

The voices of some of the characters are annoying, like Henry's friends, Moody Margaret and this can get on your nerves a little but on the whole I really enjoy this programme and we tape it so my daughter can watch it over and over again. All the characters have a description before their names like Rude Ralph - Henry's best friend. Then there is Weepy William, Sour Susan and so on. I think you get the picture and my daughter quite enjoys matching their names with their personalities or traits and realising why they have that name. I think this is really good for expanding her vocabulary, and helping her learn new describing words through something she really enjoys.

I don't think Henry has ever done anything seriously naughty like stealing otherwise I might have to think twice about letting them watch it at their ages but so far nothing has been copied and they see it as simple entertainment and nothing more. My mum used to ban me from watching Grange Hill when I was young in case I became naughty like some of the kids on that programme, which is not something I would have done and I was really disappointed for missing a lot of this. So for me, as long the programme my children want to watch is within their age group then I have no problem letting them watch different scenarios of life and taking what they want from it. I have faith that my children are already sensible enough and well enough behaved not to be affected by the goings on in Horrid Henry.

You can catch Horrid Henry on CITV every week day at 3.30 & 4pm on SKY.

Summary: RECOMMENDED xx