Poor Courage!! You see, Courage was abandoned as a puppy. Muriel Bagge found him, and brought him home to live with her and her husband Eustace Bagge, in their rickety old farmhouse located in the middle of Nowhere. (Actually… that's really where thy "live"… in the Town of Nowhere, Kansas).

Muriel and Courage share a strong bond and love with one-another. However, life isn't always serene and perfect. You see… Eustace doesn't like Courage (frankly… he's just jealous of the attention that Courage gets), and he frequently teases him, scares him, and calls him "Stupid Dog".

Let me tell you a little bit about these three main characters.

Courage is a… well… cowardly, plump, little pinkish/purple dog, who has yellow teeth (one with a hole in it), short, skinny arms and legs, and is afraid of his own shadow. He gets so scared, that he'll "burst", or "melt", or "shrivel" with fear.

As irony would have it… this poor little guy is faced with overcoming his fears, in every episode, in order to save his beloved Muriel from danger.

Courage doesn't really "speak". Sometimes he'll say something to the "viewers" (us) that we can understand, but for the most part, he just sort of babbles incoherent words and jumps up and down as he acts out what it is that he's trying to tell Muriel or Eustace.

Like, for example, say….. He's trying to warn Muriel of a Monster that's in the basement. He'll basically contort his body and morph to look like the monsters, pulling his face into the shape of the monster's, conforming his tail to look like the monster's, and growling or roaring like the monster does. All the time he'll be pointing to the basement door, and jumping up and down babbling.

Of course Muriel and/or Eustace don't understand…. and so the "fun" begins!! Muriel will inevitably get whisked into danger, and Courage will be chasing right behind her, trying to save her.

Muriel Bagge is a kind, sweet, loving, somewhat naive, plump little old lady with an accent (Scottish, I believe). She loves Courage with all her heart. Unfortunately, due to her naiveness, she gets tricked into being a victim, far to often.

One time, she was so desperate to make friends, she joined a "quilting club". Unbeknownst to her, the other members of the club were hundreds of years old and what they did was "quilt" the new member into their quilt. Courage saved the day by doing some "quilting" of his own on the quilt, showing Muriel all the wonderful things and folks that she loved, "waking her up" and pulling her out of the "quilt trap".

Eustace Bagge is a bitter, ignorant, arrogant, obstinate, greedy, selfish, old man. He's mean, ornery, and always demanding that Muriel cook him something to eat. This man is the epitome of what not to be like.

Now, the show Courage the Cowardly Dog isn't on, on a regular basis anymore. It's one of those cartoons that Cartoon Network plays during their "Cartoon Cartoon" times. What this means is… during "Cartoon Cartoon", they play a menagerie of numerous different things. Sometimes a bunch of different shows, or….. sometimes a "marathon" of one certain show.

Anyway… it's really funny that I decided to finish this review tonight., because….

As I got Cherub ready for bed, and turned the TV on for his "last TV Time of the night", there was Courage.

Hmmmm… Tonight's episode is the one where Muriel and Eustace have befriended this lost "girl" who wears a mask because she "doesn't want to face reality". They take her in for the night. Courage is immediately suspicious, and later finds out that she is really a CAT and that she hates ALL dogs. She starts treating Courage the same way that Eustace does. Fearing that this Cat is going to do something to Muriel, Courage goes looking for the Cat's long lost Bunny friend. Upon finding her, he discovers that the Bunny is in danger, and he suppresses his fears, encounters fights with vicious dogs and a train wreck, saving the Bunny, and re-uniting the Cat and the Bunny together. After the Bunny tells the Cat that the "small dog" saved her, the Cat said "I was wrong… not all dogs are bad".

No matter what, there's always something going on where Courage has to put his fears aside and take a hold of the situation. Whether it be Aliens that want Muriel's DNA to help them survive, an Evil Snowman that wants to live in their house, a deserted island that appears to be a tropical resort (yet has an evil creature that just wants to turn Muriel and Eustace into appliances), or an Evil fox that wants to make Muriel into a "Granny Stew"…… Courage always comes to the rescue of his beloved Muriel and her jerk for a husband.

Ok…. so how do we handle this show ????

When we watch TV (and I EMPHASIZE WE… because, being the couch potato that I am, I often sit and watch cartoons WITH my son) we will openly discuss what is going on in the show. We will talk about what is "pretend", "imaginary", and "made up". We will chat about the fact that this is just TV and MOST of what is on TV is not "REAL".

I feel that it is IMPORTANT for parents to get involved in/view what their children are watching (I also happen to enjoy quite a few of the shows he watches, too… (Ya, So what… I'm a kid at heart !!!).

I have always made it a practice to talk about what is happening in a show, discussing what is "real" or not, as well as what is "right" and what is "wrong" (actually… after many years of doing this, I don't even have to say it very often…. our son comes out with "that wasn't cool", before I can even get the words out). I also get into what "lesson" the show is trying to teach (even though he may actually "get" it, I want to re-enforce it, in the event that he "missed" something).

Take, for example, the episode where courage finds a box that belonged to Eustace's deceased brother. Eustace's brother was rich and Eustace knew that he had hid all his money in a box. But, Eustace couldn't find the key to the box. They got a Medium to come over and contact Eustace's brother from beyond the grave. BUT, the medium and the brother's spirit warned Eustace not to open the box.

Because Eustace was pigheaded and obstinate, he didn't listen. He sent the Medium away, found the key himself, and opened the box. Then, a huge monster tried to pull Eustace and Muriel into the box.

Well, once again, Courage was forced to help "rescue" his beloved Muriel, and being a loyal dog, Eustace too. Courage managed to get the Medium back to the house and they got the monster back into the box.

However, greedy Eustace had seen all the money in the box, while they were struggling with the monster. Sure enough, Eustace opened the box again and was pulled inside. He sat there, surrounded by all that money. Finally… the greedy bugger was filthy rich! BUT, he quickly realized that it wasn't going to do him any good. He was now trapped in the box. What good is all that money, if there's no way to use it?

Oh, there are several morals and lessons in this episode. My son and I discussed how Eustace didn't listen, and how if he had listened, he wouldn't have put his family in danger. We'd talk about how greed got him into trouble, and even about how trying to get what you want, the wrong way, will always backfire on you and it won't make you happy!!

"But, what about all the violence?", you ask…..

Sure, there is "violence" (for lack of a better word) in this cartoon. Courage's brain might pop out of his head, or he might "explode" with fear (he always returns to "normal" after that). These are actually over-dramatizations to show you the fear that Courage is feeling. And, yes…. Eustace is really mean to Courage, and calls him "Stupid Dog," amongst other bad things. That shows that there are ignorant, bitter people in this world. (And, don't worry…. Eustace always gets what's coming to him in the end !!!…. Another "lesson" taught about how your actions and what "type of person" you are will always come back on you.)

But, honestly, what cartoons beyond pre-school age don't have violence. This isn't a cartoon for that "younger crowd" !! I'd say that no one who isn't old enough to "rationalize" the difference between right and wrong, should watch this. My recommendation would be say…. ages 7 and up (depending on maturity level).

Realistically…. My 8 1/2 year old son is not about to sit there an watch Dora the Explorer, Blues Clues, or Backyardigains. The days of "everything is peachy-keen and hunky-dory" cartoons are over for us.

And really, take a look at even the more "tame" cartoons. Sponge Bob for example….. Even SpongeBob's eyeballs burst out of his head, his brain flops to the floor, or he gets sliced into pieces. And Squidward is constantly, insulting & berating SpongeBob and putting him down !!

Again… it's all about interaction between parent and child.

One of OUR typical Conversations during a Courage the Cowardly Dog show would consist of this:

Cherub: "Wow… that was cool!!

Me: Ya, Honey, it was "cool", but this is just a WHAT?

Cherub: "A cartoon….

Me: "…. and cartoons are just WHAT?"

Cherub: "fake"

Me: "… and what would really happen in REAL life, if Courage got trapped in a meat grinder?"

Cherub: "He'd be dead".

Me: That’s right… this show is pretty cool, isn't it. But, this is all just…"

Cherub: "Pretend" !

What a smart boy !!

Gruesome as it might all seem…. if viewed under the right "atmosphere" and with proper guidance, then this show can be enjoyed for exactly what it is. Pure entertainment and imagination (with some "lessons" thrown in).

Listen, we all grew up with the likes of Tom & Jerry smashing each other with anvils - or one crushing the other with a bulldozer. What about Wile E. Coyote getting blown to pieces with TNT ?? WE all turned out okay, didn't we? (Well, most of us…. my sanity is still up for debate!!… LOL)

Recommended: Yes

Type of Program: Cartoon or Animated
Program Quality: Thought-provoking, original material