Television Review: Paw Paws
What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that although the Paw Paws look like
adorable Care Bears in Native American dress, there's some
violence in this cartoon that, although mild, could be scary
for very young viewers. Characters fall from great heights, are
grabbed by gigantic creatures, and call to one another in fear,
and it can be difficult to tell the "good" Paw Paws from the
"bad" ones. The bears' Native American trappings may strike
some viewers as being dated and/or stereotypical today.
Families can talk about how the show uses Native
American/"tribal" costumes and images -- in this case,
tomahawks and an all-important totem pole. Would a cartoon made
today include these items? If it did, do you think they would
be treated differently? Why? How do people's ideas of what
stereotypes aren't OK change over time? What changes them?
The Paw Paws are magical little bears, a cross between the Care Bears, the Smurfs , and the Ewoks. They live in a forest village protected by Totem Bear, Totem Eagle, and Totem Tortoise, powerful creatures that are summoned by Princess Paw Paw's (voiced by Susan Blu) moonstone necklace. Most of the episodes center around the attempts of Dark Paw (Stanley Ralph Ross) and his evil Aunt Pruney (Ruth Buzzi) to steal the necklace and gain control of the totems.
Young kids who are ready for some adventure in their viewing love the Paw Paws, who were originally on TV in the '80s. They work together, they ride flying horses, and, while they can defend themselves fairly well from Dark Paw and the "meanos," they always have their protective totems to fall back on. Few 4- and 5-year-olds would ask for more, and older kids without a lot of TV experience tend like it too, making it a good afternoon compromise for siblings. Some of the Native American imagery hasn't aged that well, but there's no cultural disrespect, either.
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