User reviews

Sometimes we have a series that we remember as being really well done and funny but come back disappointed. This I can say is not true of You Can't Do That On Television (YCDTOT). I recently was able to get a copy of the show on the internet and I must say that after almost 20 years absence this show still makes me laugh. Though I admit the disco driven episodes of the first season were a bit off, the rest of this series is quite funny and well worth a second or even first watch.

The Series is a sketch comedy show much similar to Saturday Night live without the musical number in the middle (season one disco exception). The show stars kids instead of adults and includes many of the first uses of green slime that Nicolodeon is famus for. The acting talent is shaky at first but the actors improve remarkable as the show goes on. It is well worth the multitude of seasons that have come out of it. If you ever have a chance check it out.

http://www.ycdtotv.com/ (This site is dedicated to the show for more)

One of the things I always loved about he Nickalodion channel back then was the fact that kids always had the ability to participate in a television show of their own, have their own set of rules to abide by and creative freedom.

It was one of the first TV shows I saw when I first watched Nick, two things went through my mind when I saw it for the first time. One, what in the hell did I just watch and two, this is the most bizarre, funny, creative, innovative show ever. And of course I couldn't help but watch it more and more, laughing all the way through. I remember participating a little while watching, I really wished I had a chance to be one of the cast members.

The show had strengths which have made them memorable. For one thing, the stars in the show all of them were real ordinary kids, they weren't any typical comedian, professional actor, had plastic surgery, or chiseled features. We saw kids with an honest eye, some physically attractive or not so attractive, their acting wasn't always polished (in fact most of them never acted before), however they all won us over with their bright honest personalities and were actually funny.

Also there were no special guest stars, that was a good thing because I always thought it was a hit or miss affair when it comes to comedy. Just like both "Monty Python" and "Almost Live" they carried themselves out on their own with whatever they had, it's true they were operating on a low budget but the limitations it had proved to be it's greatest strengths, and stayed true to their direction in comedy.

The show was a parody on the kids counterculture of the 80's. The skits, though not smoothly written all of them in a strange way sort of acknowledged this with honesty and tied it in with cartoon lunacy every kids common fears, experiences and anxieties within that decade some still exist today. These were things I could easily emphasize with, who hasn't felt that fear of putting a quarter into an out of order arcade game, disappointment over spending money over a bad movie, sickness over bad fast food, simple fear of death, getting tricked in some way, just anything else you can think of. All this made the comedy all the more funny because it was true.

There are a lot of favorites of mine like this one where it takes place in a movie theater. The kids see a trailer for the new Rambo film called "Rambo Kills Everyone". This kids wonder why it's called that until the character points his gun at them, and suddenly their fired on. Some actually get killed in either the shots or explosions. Being a Rambo fan it was comic gold.

Blip, a manager of a video arcade who is always scheming to steel away his customers quarters by either bad arcade cabinets which eat our quarters without giving them back or even bad video games.

Barth, my favorite comic character in the show is a burger joint cook, dirty, gruff, funny, and just plain disgusting. Like a satellite he's able to catch a crack comment about himself and say toward the kids my favorite line in a varied vocal volume, "IIIIIIIII heard that." Or even makes a strange comment that makes the kids puke out their burgers and he wears a face of glee as if he's hearing music. Just remembering this makes me glad not to eat fast food so much.

Kids about to be executed in a firing squad by some third world country (Cuba or Iran?). But the general never finishes his order, he simply always stops at "Ready, AIMMM..." because he gets caught up in a ridiculous conversation the kid is suing to trick him. And the general would accidentally say "Fire" and he would get shot. I couldn't help but pretend to be one of the firing squad every time it happened it shouldn't be funny but it is, sometimes the kid would accidentally get killed but I didn't mind because it was comedy not real.

Or how about that simple build up sketch, where in a live stage one of the characters would have a ridiculous conversation with someone and would just be leading them into a trap by tricking them into mentioning the deadly secret words "I don't know" and they would dump this load of slime, or even just mentioning another deadly word "water" and then a load of water would be dumped on them. It was always a joy to see, there is always something about making someone messy that's funny, but also made me wish that I could get slimed because it really looked fun.

By today's standards this show can be seen as a time capsule of the 80's, it's a shame it didn't have the same immortal life span of "SNL' we could have seen the counterculture of the 90's, 00's, now and beyond. Along with whole new generations of kids but after ten years the show ran out of slime and ended. "You Can't Do that on Television" is literally a part of my childhood memories, it may be gone but not forgotten, like that slime that splashes on kids it has left a mark that can't be washed away.

Rating: 3 and a half stars

I used to watch this show when I was a little girl. I remember it pretty well. If you ask me, it was a good show. I also remember the opening sequence and theme song pretty well, too. In addition to that, everyone was ideally cast, and it was always funny when someone got something dumped on them. Also, the writing was very strong. The performances were top-grade, too. I hope some network brings it back so I can see every episode. Before I wrap this up, I'd like to say that I'll always remember this show in my memory forever, even though I haven't seen every episode. Now, in conclusion, if some network ever brings it back, I hope that you catch it one day before it goes off the air for good

This show is so off the wall that it's right on target. I really MISS THIS SHOW! When I was a kid, a good dose of "You Can't Do That On Television" and then maybe a little "Out Of Control" could put me in a great mood and could also relieve my Mom of duty for a little while. :)

The silly execution sketches and the diner scenes alone make this show worthy of watching. But there's so much more. Nickelodeon's slime theme derived from the success of this show. But none of the kids nowadays will know this. Why can't they air some of the old good stuff on Nick anymore?... Hey, Nick needs to come up with a channel called "Nick - The First Generation" and then I'll actually purchase cable.

~Jennifer

I am not going to deny This show's place in children's television history. It may have been slapstick, silly humor but it still brings back so many happy memories. I watched this show as a child religiously. Back when Nickelodeon was for children. I just wanted to be part of their cast too. I loved their opposite sketches, Christine and Lisa, little Dougie, Alanis before she became a famous singer. I had a crush on Alistair. Too bad, there is not a show like this now on television for children. When Nickelodeon first came on, this show really became part of our childhood life. I remember always talking about this show and what they got up to. I only wished they did more with the original cast. They always had a theme. This was not best written show nor did it pretend to be. It was made for it's audience and that was the children of the 1980s including myself. I will always have a soft place in my heart for this show which is rarely shown. Outdated maybe for today's kids but not for me.

This show was so far ahead of it's time, cause it was a little edgy with it's humor. If you think about this show put Nicholdeon on the map. I really loved watching this show as a kid, I grew to love the young cast Christine Mcglade, Lisa Ruddy, Alasdair Gillis, Adam Reid. Lets not forget versatile performer Les Lye who made comic history with his well known characters like gross cook named Barf, bad teacher named Mr. Shindler, and dead beat dad named Lance Prevert(get the joke on that one). It was fun watching the cast get water pored on them, and getting slimed. Christine Mcglade gave the shows charm with her witty humor, quirky smile as the host. And Alasdair Gillis style of humor seem to achieve more popularity then most of the cast. But when they left, the shows appeal was slowly slipping, I understand they had to move on, but the show was not quite the same after that. It just became one bad joke after another. Episodes with Adam Reid seem to be appealing, but when he left, then the show really sank, It was amazing that it ran for three more season, giving it a 10 and a half season run.

You Can't Do That On Television is an all time Canadian TV classic. If you have never seen it you missed out because it was funny, it was groundbreaking, it was hilarious and it had real people in it with real comedy talent, even though most of the people who appeared over the years were kids they were funny and relatable and just plain fun. I wish it had never ended or would come back. 10/10.

Although some episodes were better than others, but that's typical of any show. I really enjoyed watching the episodes on Youtube when they were availiable. Most, if not all of the kids looked normal, not like the spoiled brat Disney child actors.

When I was a kid growing up in the 80s, this show was the most popular show. I remember doing a writing on the show in grade 3, and the class responded well when i said the title, So it was popular. My favourite was Christine and Lisa. Those 2 backs must been sore, they carried the show during its heyday in the early 80s. When they left and most of the original cast from its heyday, it wasn't the same. I assume the kids grew up and pursue other passions or too old to be on the show, but that would be a crock I would loved to see Christine as a late 20s as the 3rd adult on the show. I like Les Lye, what a true star doing all adult male skits. RIP.

My favourite skits were the opposite skits where they show what wouldn't happen in real life like the mother allowing her teenage daughter with makeup on and look like a tramp. And the running gags of whats in Barthy Burger Overall from a 34 year old man looking back on YouTube episodes for nostalgia, I still get a laugh here and there. But I find some skits are too fast or repetitive, if the skits were more thorough it would been better. Generally it is a good show. But one beef I have is, it's theme is "You can't do that on Television." hence its name, trying too hard to push the boundaries with it's risqué content. Like the boy's audition for the show where he can't wear white as a rule, he had to strip his shirt, T-shirt, then pants, it came close to his underpants, where it could of been paedophilia. It is trying to hard to be controversial. Then there's the banned Adoption episode, and this is supposed to be a kids show.

Now there's another show I used to watch all the time. One thing I found REALLY funny was that the Brother and Sister tug of war, with the Michael Jackson Record. And their mother came over because she heard the complaining about the record and she said "There is only one thing to remember". And the girl handed her mother the record, and she snapped the record in half with her left leg and says "There, now you get to share the Michael Jackson record. I even thought Michael Jackson is a queer because of the clip LOL. Another clip I like was the exaggerative homework saying "from page 103 to 896,491" LOL. I used to love that show as well. Ever since I was a kid, I watched that show all the time. I wonder what's the name of the episode with the Michael Jackson record, and the episode with the exaggerative homework? Someone should find out.

You Can't Do That On Television? Well guess what, yes you can do that on television and I know you can because you did. You did that on television.

What a fun show this was!

I barely remember it because I was so young but we watched it a lot I think and loved every minute of it. The kids on it were great and fun, not annoying and cloying and full of themselves like most young people you see on television nowadays. And the stuff they did was actually fun and funny!

This is a great example of how good television can be made on a budget in Canada.

A great lesson considering how many awful comedy shows are being made here now.

Even as a child I never really liked this show. It was extremely repetitive and gross, with lots of jokes about rotting food, etc. The child actors were very run-of-the-mill and the adults looked like they were sitting out a spell in purgatory. I think much of people's adulation of this show comes from the fact that at the time it was on the air, cable was still quite a luxury and being able to watch it was one of the bragging rights of elementary school. Perhaps this show should have been named "This Program Is Not Up To The Standards Of Network Television" to help clear up any confusion. I am not surprised that most of the actors involved (excluding the little-seen Alanis, of course) faded into obscurity.

From the Python-esque opening cartoon to the end credits, "YCDTOT" is easily one of the best sketch comedies ever made. It's faster and more frenetic than "Roundhouse," "All That," or even SNL, and it resorts to current events and pop culture less frequently than other sketch comedies.

A talented young cast is led by Les Lye (arguably the star of the show) in routines satirizing the ins-and-outs of kid life: school buses, cafeterias, arcades. Sometimes it gets even wackier - the Mexican firing squad routines and slime/water/etc. gags are priceless.

See it if you can find it.

As a child I was not the most popular, I was not the most handsome or most athletic or even the coolest.

About the only thing I could depend on as a child was turning on Nickelodeon everyday and knowing that I was going to have the time of my life even if it was just for half an hour.

This was a true one of a kind show that empowered children and let them run the show.

Of course they did not really run the show but it was the 1st time a child could turn on TV and see children making fun of stupid adults.

As a child , life was not always sunshine and roses for me and it was quite refreshing to see a group of kids control stupid adults for 30 minutes every day.

This show can never be duplicated or emulated ,especially these days.

I am actually quite upset that there is not a blue ray collection of these out and I just can't figure out why.

I mean seriously,,,WHY?????????????????????

I would be the very 1st one in line to buy the set.

Or I would try lol.

My favorite show growing up. When television was real. Lol. Available on Amazon for streaming purchase. Three volumes with a bunch of episodes.

When I was eight or nine years old I first caught an episode of the Canadian live action children's show You Can't Do That on Television on Nickelodeon at a relative's house, because we didn't have cable at home. I remember being genuinely weirded out by what I was seeing then ...and to be honest, even as an adult I ask myself questions about the seemingly alcoholic abusive parents and dirty neighborhood cook Barth.

This show was the punk rock and grunge version of youth tv in the late 20th century and I think it was originally designed with teenagers in mind. I probably realized the show's comic value around that age.

Some of the skits are still vaguely disturbing to me, many are definitely gross, but in many ways this is quality entertainment for adults beyond the nostalgia factor. Your mileage may vary.

"You Can't Do That On Television" is my earliest memory of Nickelodeon. I remember being at my friend's house and watching the show and liking it. And I also remember that it didn't come on one of the free over-the-air stations I had at home.

What I remember most of all from the show were two things:

1.) The chef who made the most inedible food imaginable. It was always disgustingly funny to see what concoction he'd made, and it was funny to me that the kids kept going to his diner.

2.) If a person said, "I don't know," he or she got slimed. It was a running gag that you knew would happen at least once per episode.

There will never be another "You Can't Do That on Television". Ever.

To many who grew up in the 1980s it was the best show on television and even today it stands up as one of the most inventive and well written kids show ever made.

It was also one of the few kids shows that had respect for its audience - YCDTOTV celebrated the distinct culture of children and not the adult view of what that culture should be like as so many "children's shows" do. A classic of its time never to be replicated!

This show is hilarious! I discovered it browsing on this website. Inspired by Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In, You Can't Do That on Television was a Canadian sketch comedy that ran from the late 70s to the early 80s. It's basically like the kid version of SNL. I'm 31, and to be honest, this made me laugh way more than I was expecting. It has a down-to-earth, old school vibe that you just don't see anymore, and the jokes were delivered so naturally by the kids. I'm obviously too old for it, but with having a stressful job, I need something that helps my brain relax. SNL is more age-appropriate, but all it does is remind me of the craziness and confusion that's going on. The news causes enough anxiety as it is, and then you have comedians impersonating billionaires and politicians every single episode. That ends up having the opposite effect of being funny, and is actually depressing. It's hard to find anything humorous in current events. The people at the center of such events are idiots, which makes it easy to ridicule them, but they're also the ones who are going to be in charge of some high leadership positions, so when I look at it that way, it's not funny (it would be funny if I was living in another country). That's why I feel like comedy should be imaginative. I still have my inner child, so watching this helps me escape.

You Can't Do That on Television was one of the most funniest kid shows that I remember watching as a kid.

The comedy of Les Lye as Barth serving burgers or handy man Ross is priceless or the endless bad jokes that somehow were funny.

I'll always remember catch phases like "I head that" or if one of the crew said I don't know they would get slimed.

Recently VH1 did a I Love the 80's 3D and they did cover You Can't Do That on Television.

I wish they would put all the episodes on DVD, so my kids could watch it.

This was a truly hilarious show, not in spite of what some attribute to amateurishness, but probably in part because of it. The best were the earlier seasons, with Christine, Lisa, Alasdair, Vanessa, and of course Les Lye and Abby Hagyard. Nothing against her, but Alanis faded so efficiently into the background that I didn't even know she was on the show til years after it was off the air. Chalk me up as an old pervert if you must [I'm over 40 now], but I thought Moose was HOT in the extreme. Smart, funny, and damn good looking. In my defense I was in my 20's when I watched the show, and she was older than the other cast members. Abby Hagyard was actually pretty decent looking, too, under all the crap she usually wore. But I digress... It's a shame this show didn't continue, and more so that it's not available in reruns. Nobody would ever mistake it with Shakespeare, but there was no mistaking the good fun it was to watch.

You take a look at kids' television today, and it's amazing that this show saw the light of day. Consider the following aspects of "You Can't Do That On Television"....

• Kids are chained up and put in front of a firing squad in a third world country. They usually trick their captor into getting shot himself, but occasionally the kids themselves end up being fired upon. Today, the show would be criticized for depicting violence against children, as well as perpetuating negative stereotypes against foreigners.

• "Ross", the supposed director of the show, tortures the kids and treats them as slave labor. Today, the show would be attacked for glorifying exploitation of children.

• Blip, the owner of the local arcade, finds whatever ways he can to cheat the video-game obsessed youth that frequent his business. Today, the show would be protested for making light of adults cheating children out of money.

• The "family" scenes depict parents as lazy, poor role models, or just plain cruel. Today, the show would be boycotted for making a joke of dysfunctional families.

• The two most frequently featured female characters (Moose and Lisa) are constantly taunted about their weight. This is despite the fact that, while not thin, neither girl is really all that fat. Today, parents would fear the show could cause eating disorders.

• Even the theme show of the song depicts children being ground up into hamburger meat (or is it hot dog meat -- I forget). I won't even touch this one! While outrageous shows depicting children exist today (i.e. "South Park"), these are aimed at ADULTS, and are given TV-MA ratings. You Can't Do That On Television was aimed at (and watched almost exclusively by) kids. That's the amazing part. You'll never see another kids show like it again.

This wasn't a show with educational or cultural value. It had value in other ways, though, which are harder to quantify.

It was funny and entertaining. It was outrageous enough to be interesting, but never so over-the-top to where it could be considered a true danger to anyone. I don't know anyone who had nightmares about being in front of a South American firing squad. Somehow we all got the sick humor in that, and didn't really see it as real violence.

The kids seemed real. They weren't beautiful, didn't seem precocious, and in fact all used their real names on the show. Alasdair, Kevin, Lisa, Moose, and the bunch seemed like the rest of us. This made the characters easy to like and relate to.

The show tapped into the minds of kids in the '80s. We were all obsessed with arcades, yet all knew the pain of losing quarters in malfunctioning games with "no refunds". We all dealt with controlling and irrational teachers, difficult parents, and incompetent/obnoxious bus drivers.

The show wasn't brilliantly written or produced, but it was fun, and it grew on you over time. Too often growing up I found that kids' shows were talking down to me, and I didn't like it. This was one show that wasn't guilty of that, and set out to entertain me, rather than preach to me or teach me a lesson. I didn't realize it back then, but that was perhaps the aspect of it that I appreciated the most.

Sadly, children's fare of today is over-scrutinized, and any program that can be deemed a bad influence is deepsixed. Just the weight jokes alone would put this show in the 2005 trash can. The fact that we have gotten to this point is indeed a tragedy.

Les Lye did a fine job with all of the different characters he played. I remember being amazed as a kid when I realized that he played every single adult character on the show. He's 80 years old now -- can you believe it?