LazyTown (2004)

Wonderful character development!

Truly Dreadful Film

Overrated

Disturbing yet enthralling

One of the best animes ever along with Cory in the House, Shrek, Bee Movie, Seinfeld, Married...with Children and Nanalan'. If you want your kids to watch quality anime, you've come to the right place. Plus, this anime features some of the greatest songs I've ever heard in my life, such as "You Are a Pirate", "The Mine Song", "Cooking by the Book", "Master of Disguise" and, of course, "We Are Number One". Watch one episode and your life will be changed forever. 10/10

Although my youngest is ten, all my other kids are teens, we all watch this show. It is both funny and entertaining. The characters are all portrayed with real foibles that are used to gently teach kids to make good choices such as loyalty, being true to yourself etc. The town's hero is a kind, patient father figure to the children while the villain is a grincy grump who just wants peace and quiet but also has a soft side to him as well. The little girl, Stephanie, is a talented dancer and singer that really injects life into the show. The message in the show is simple but effective. Eat a healthy diet and play games, but most of all-have fun. Kids really respond to this and it is nice to finally see a childens show that does not talk down to kids. How anyone can find Lazytown creepy is beyond me. The show is good natured and has a gentle humour despite its frenetic pace. Even though has a hero and a villain, there is no violence, no humiliation. The central message here is kindness, inclusion and friendship. A message that is so sadly lacking in so many kids shows today.

I love this programme.Robbie Rotton, the bad guy, is a fantastic rendition of a sinister Jim Carrey character, Sporticus, the good guy that gets his energy from Sports Fruit (or fruit) is a great role model for kids, and the characters in the rest of the show, especially Stingy, who has me in fits whenever he commandeers the other kids' stuff and states "Mine!", are well presented and a good likeness to what real kids can be like. I'm 27 and normally watch this show with my 3 year old, but this show even catches my eye when I'm on my own in the house and I stand watching, gormless!Fantastic!

Now, I know that Lazy Town is intended to be a program for young children to start developing good habits like brushing their teeth, getting enough sleep and eating fruit (or "Sports Candy" as they refer to it on the show), but there's a whole lot more going on here that makes it entertaining fare for anyone who wants to give it a look.The program's theme song explains the premise, just as many of the classic sitcoms did. There's a new girl in town and she's looking Pink. Stephanie (played by Julianna Rose Mauriello in seasons 1 and 2, Chloe Lang, thereafter) is the prepubescent niece of the mayor of Lazy Town and comes there to live. The other children she encounters there are all well-crafted puppets. Ziggy is the Youngest: a blond, cape wearing wannabe hero who favors taffy as a treat. Stingy lives up to his name by claiming everything he sees as his own. Pixel is a tech expert who has a giant satellite dish on his house. And Trixie is a wise cracking athletic type.There is a guy named Robbie Rotten (played by Stefán Karl Stefánsson), an exceptional villain if only because he wears spats! But the lantern-jawed stylish character is brilliant because you always know what's on his mind: he wants Lazy Town to remain lazy. But Stephanie is bored with a town where nothing happens and her puppet uncle explains that in the past, there was a superhero called "Number 9." She tries to contact him, but is surprised when she is greeted by a guy in a giant airship (which he pedals himself) who first identifies himself as Number 10, but his name is Sportacus (series creator, writer and star, Magnús Scheving). Sportacus is an acrobatic athlete who can't go anywhere unless he is flipping and leaping and doing mid-air splits to get there. He has a magic crystal on his chest that flashes when someone is town is in trouble and is always ready to either help or have fun, whichever is needed.There are a lot of wonderful things about this show, from the topsy turvy curvy styled world the characters inhabit (including a really brilliant set design and green screen technique to make the puppets and humans interact seamlessly) to the personalities of each castmemeber, it's cute and clowny and funny and great for anyone who gets the concepts to view.It's a program gentle enough for very young children and fun and active enough for pre-teens to watch, and there's a lot for parents to like here as well.There are some lessons about life here, but there's enough entertainment that it doesn't feel like it's some sort of lecture. The songs performed are actually pretty fun to listen to, something that isn't always true for kids' shows with music. And Robbie is as hilarious as a villain can be.There are elements of camp that recall the television version of "Batman," and the Muppets, and for that alone, the series deserves kudos! It's a smart show that never talks down to its core audience.Lazy Town may not change the world (who knows? Maybe it will!) but it might get the kids to think about being healthy and get them to try some back flips off the couch instead of just sitting on it!