America's Funniest Home Videos – WISE Score & Parent Review | Screenwise

America's Funniest Home Videos

Name: Screenwise
Author: Screenwise

show1990

42%

WISE Score

People falling down: The Show. It's been on since 1990, which tells you everything about how cutting-edge it isn't.

America's Funniest Home Videos

show

TV-PG, 1990

42%

WISE Score

People falling down: The Show. It's been on since 1990, which tells you everything about how cutting-edge it isn't.

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Screenwise Verdict

Let's be real: AFV is a relic. It's been on ABC since 1990, which means it predates the internet, smartphones, and any concept of modern pacing. For kids growing up on YouTube and TikTok, watching a 22-minute TV show of carefully curated home videos with a cheesy host and laugh track is like asking them to use a rotary phone.

The content itself is harmless—families, pets, wedding mishaps, nothing objectionable. But "harmless" doesn't mean "worth watching." The Metacritic score of 38 and IMDb rating of 6.2 reflect what we all know: this is low-effort, low-reward television. Your kids can watch infinitely better (and funnier) fail compilations on YouTube in a fraction of the time.

The one scenario where AFV makes sense? You're at your parents' house on a Sunday evening, it's on in the background, and nobody cares enough to change the channel. Otherwise, there are about 10,000 better ways to spend family screen time.

Age Fit

Common Sense Media suggests age 10+, which feels right for kids who can handle slapstick humor without getting scared or trying to recreate dangerous stunts. Realistically, though, most kids under 12 will find this show boring compared to modern content, and teens will actively avoid it. This is background noise at best.

WISE Breakdown

Wholesome

AFV showcases real families laughing together at everyday mishaps—kids falling off bikes, pets doing silly things, wedding cake disasters. The tone is gentle and celebratory of human imperfection. However, the show does include some schadenfreude humor (laughing at people getting hurt) and occasional groin-hit jokes that walk a fine line. The host keeps things family-friendly, and the show models finding humor in life's embarrassing moments without cruelty.

Imaginative

This is passive viewing of user-generated content—there's virtually no storytelling, world-building, or creative inspiration. Kids aren't invited to imagine, build, or explore anything. The format is repetitive: watch clip, hear audience laugh, move to next clip. It might inspire kids to film their own funny moments, but that's a stretch. It's entertainment, not imagination fuel.

Safe

Content is heavily curated for broadcast TV—no gore, nudity, profanity, or genuinely disturbing content. Common Sense Media rates it for age 10, and it has kids mode available on streaming platforms. The main safety consideration is the physical comedy: lots of people falling, getting hit, or experiencing minor injuries (though nothing graphic). Some kids might find certain pratfalls anxiety-inducing or might copy dangerous stunts. No toxic social features or concerning monetization since it's traditional broadcast content.

Enriching

AFV offers minimal educational or developmental value. There's no skill-building, no meaningful lessons, no character development, no empathy cultivation. It's pure entertainment built on watching people fail at things. The IMDb rating of 6.2 and Metacritic score of 38 suggest even audiences recognize it's lightweight fare. Kids learn nothing except maybe that falling down is funny. It's brain candy—not harmful, but not nourishing either.

Parent Info

✓

Why It Might Be Great

Genuinely family-friendly—no swearing, violence, or inappropriate content, just wholesome pratfalls
Can spark conversations about laughing with people vs. at people, and what makes physical comedy funny
Nostalgic comfort viewing if you grew up with it; might work for multi-generational viewing at grandma's house
Shows real families and everyday moments, not polished Hollywood content

⚠

What to Watch For

The entire premise is laughing at people getting hurt—decide if that aligns with your family's humor values
Painfully dated format: corny host jokes, canned laughter, glacial pacing that will bore kids raised on 15-second TikToks
Some physical stunts might inspire copycat behavior (kids trying to recreate fails)
Zero substance—this is the definition of empty-calorie TV

Conversation Starters

"Why do you think people find it funny when someone falls down? Is it always okay to laugh?"
"Would you want a video of you messing up to be on TV for everyone to see?"
"What's the difference between laughing with someone and laughing at them?"

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