10:30 a.m. Saturday, April 26
Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon’s new animated series “The Mighty B!” has what every kid needs in order to grow up strong and self-sufficient in today’s adult world: violence, nonsensical verbiage and, most importantly, a built-in idea that you rule the universe. It used to be called narcissism, something that kids are thought to need in order to negotiate childhood. Then it’s supposed to disappear. But with the violent, clanging-banging kids and action we see in “Mighty B!” it could last forever if young minds get overloaded on programming with this kind of senselessness.
Co-created by comedian Amy Poehler and Nick animation vets Cynthia True and Erik Wiese, “Mighty B!” will air regularly on Saturdays. The show’s heroine, Bessie Higgenbottom (voiced by Poehler), is a foot-stomping, chest-pounding 9 1/2-year-old who does not want for aggression and a great sense of competition. Her extremely opinionated younger brother (Andy Richter) follows right behind, the two of them coalescing into a lean, kind of mean kid machine traipsing down the street.
Their adventures are loud and messy, supported by frenzied animation and lots of sound effects. It’s all very lively and mesmerizing in a frenetic kind of way, but in the end, it’s not very original and not very thoughtful.
