Charlie and Lola

Okay, so South Park has a lot to answer for.  It gave animators across the
world the idea that cartoons could be produced on a shoestring budget.  

Shows like Charlie and Lola,
Storymakers and many others show scant
regard for any traditional animation values and instead punt out cheaply
made ugly cartoons.  Saying that, there is something endearing about
Charlie and Lola.  We hated it at first, but gradually, like a painful verruca,
it has grown on us.

The plot is straightforward.  Lola is a hyperactive and annoying five-year
old with a particularly vivid imagination.  Mum and Dad have clearly given
up trying to bring her up, and instead loll about on the couch watching
Tricia and eating chocolate whilst handing all parental responsibility over
to big brother Charlie.

Chaos ensues as Charlie desperately tries to achieve some level of
discipline in the household in his parents absence.  For instance, trying to
get Lola to bed, whilst Mum and Dad indulge in their diet of Corrie, Benny
Hennies and tins of Tennent's Super.

Lola has an imaginary friend Soren Lorenson, who turns up just in time to
be scapegoat for the worst of Lola's misdemeanours.  The rest of the cast
include friends like Marv, Lotta and Morton.

We shouldn't however slate it too much.  The show is well observed and
full of genuinely funny moments for both parents and children.  If you can
tear yourself away from daytime TV for long enough...

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