Is the history in The Who Was? Show accurate?

It is broadly accurate regarding major life milestones and time periods, but it routinely exaggerates facts, uses modern pop-culture parodies, and simplifies historical context for comedy.

How much toilet humor is in the show?

A noticeable amount. Sketches frequently feature flatulence, burping, and slapstick physical comedy to keep younger kids engaged.

How does the show handle heavy topics like civil rights or war?

It addresses serious historical events in a simplified, gentle way suitable for elementary students, avoiding graphic depictions or overly dark dramatization.

Will middle schoolers or teens enjoy it?

Most kids over 11 find the energetic Nickelodeon-style acting and heavy reliance on goofy gags a bit too young.

Who Was? Show – WISE Score & Parent Review | Screenwise

Who Was? Show

Name: Screenwise
Author: Screenwise

show2018

81%

WISE Score

6.9

IMDb

Sketch comedy meets middle-school history class, complete with teen actors, slapstick, and Gandhi-versus-Ben-Franklin rap-battle energy.

6.9/10

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Who Was? Show

show

ALL, 2018

81%

WISE Score

6.9

IMDb

Sketch comedy meets middle-school history class, complete with teen actors, slapstick, and Gandhi-versus-Ben-Franklin rap-battle energy.

6.9

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Screenwise Verdict

If your kid finds traditional documentaries dry, The Who Was? Show bridges the gap by turning historical biographies into Saturday-morning sketch comedy. With an energetic cast of teen actors playing famous historical figures, the Netflix series translates the wildly popular book line into rapid-fire songs, parodies, and animated shorts.

Don't treat this as a substitute for history class—it frequently trades factual nuance for broad jokes and toilet humor. But as a low-stakes curiosity generator that makes names like King Tut, Marie Antoinette, and Pablo Picasso feel accessible, it gets kids interested in real people.

Age Fit

Best for kids ages 7 to 11 who enjoy high-energy sketch comedy. Kids over 12 will likely find the goofy Nickelodeon-style comedic pacing a bit loud.

WISE Breakdown

Wholesome

Maintains an upbeat, silly tone centered on famous historical figures. The humor leans frequently into physical slapstick and bodily functions, but the overall message encourages curiosity about real-world pioneers.

Imaginative

Uses creative sketch comedy formats, animation, parodies, and musical numbers to reframe history for young audiences.

Safe

Rated TV-Y7 with no explicit language, sexual content, or graphic violence. Heavy historical themes are sanitized and handled gently for middle-grade viewers.

Enriching

Serves as an engaging entry point to historical figures, though it consistently prioritizes comedy and sketches over deep factual rigor.

Parent Info

✓

Why It Might Be Great

Snappy sketch format breaks biographical history into bite-sized 25-minute episodes that hold short attention spans.
Solid entry point to biographies, introducing figures like Frida Kahlo, Isaac Newton, and Harriet Tubman without reading like a textbook.
Self-aware deadpan narration by H. Jon Benjamin (Bob's Burgers) gives the silly comedy a clever edge.

⚠

What to Watch For

Heavy on potty humor: expect plenty of flatulence gags, burp jokes, and exaggerated bodily-function humor used as narrative shortcuts.
Factual accuracy is lightweight: historical events are simplified or exaggerated for laughs, so treat it as a curiosity spark rather than study material.

Conversation Starters

"Which historical figure on the show had the weirdest real-life quirk?"
"If you could pitch a sketch about anyone in history today, who would you choose?"
"Did anything in that sketch sound too crazy to be true? Let's check a book and see if it really happened."

Deep Dive

Comedy First, Textbook Second

Based on the massive Who Was? biography book line sitting on nearly every elementary school media shelf, this 13-episode Netflix adaptation lands somewhere between Horrible Histories and classic All That. Each episode pairs two historical figures who share a loose thematic connection—like Albert Einstein and Joan of Arc—and spins their life stories into rap battles, fake commercials, and theatrical reenactments.

Narrated with dry deadpan delivery by H. Jon Benjamin, the show stays grounded in kid-centric absurdity. The teen cast brings genuine enthusiasm, even when the writing relies on farts, gross-out humor, and high-energy slapstick.

How to Use It for Learning

The series works best as an appetizer rather than the main lesson. Kids won't walk away with a deep understanding of complex geopolitical movements, but they will remember that Benjamin Franklin was an inventor who published almanacs, or that Mahatma Gandhi led peaceful protests.

If you want to build on their interest after an episode:

Grab the print books: The original Who Was? print series fills in the factual details the show glosses over for laughs.
Fact-check the sketches: Pick one outlandish detail from a sketch and look up together whether it actually happened in real life.

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