Television Review: Finders Keepers
What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that one of the hosts of this series
pretty clearly hated his job and was prone to having fun at the
expense of his colleagues, his writers, and occasionally his
kid "guests." Younger kids won't notice, but older ones may
smell the sense of failure and pity the guy. The room-trashing
example the show sets is a bit iffy, but it's made pretty clear
that kids shouldn't try it at home.
Families can talk about who should win -- for example, was the
red team really first in that round? They can also discuss the
importance of smart strategy. Should the team figure out the
clues first, so they know what they're looking for, or just
trash the room and hope they find it?
The premise of FINDERS KEEPERS gets increasingly wacky as kid contestants go from finding hidden pictures to trashing whole set rooms in search of hidden objects. What kid wouldn't like smashing vases with impunity?
This series was filmed in the late '80s, when Nick was in its infancy, reality TV was just a gleam in Jeff Probst's eye, and kids weren't nearly as media savvy as they are today -- and it shows. The contestants' naivete is refreshing and might even spark a conversation with older kids -- what's changed?
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