The first time I ever watched it that’s what I instantly thought. I’ll bet the actress swings one helluva tennis racket.
I’m a 34-year-old woman with no kids, and I also love the show, and the movies!
I agree that the actress who plays Sam has promise and could go into movies.
I like Freddie. I keep hoping that he and Carly end up together.
I also really like Spencer. He’s hot!
I have a 10YO daughter, and am so glad she likes iCarly instead of Hannah Montana (gag)!
I don’t go out of my way to watch iCarly, but mudgirl records every episode, and sometimes, if she wants to hang out together by watching something on TV, it’ll be be either iCarly, Ellen (have every ep set to record!) or Man vs Food.
The only time I can’t stand the show is when, on occasion, Carly and Sam go on ‘screaming sprees’, where they shriek like 15YO girls. Yikes. Like nails in my brain!
I’ve also seen Miranda Cosgrove on talk shows (including Ellen; we love Ellen, can you tell? 
) and she seems really bright, down-to-earth, and is ethereally beautiful. Yeah, she was cute as the little sister on Drake and Josh, but ‘cute kid’ does not always equal ‘attractive teen/young adult’. Miranda Cosgrove has grown up well so far.
I will echo the lurve for Jeanette McCurdy (I, too, get a ‘gaydar’ ping off the actress); I think she’s immensely talented, and hope to see her go far.
I’m under the impression that iCarly has become something of a monster hit. I’ve seen maybe ten eps in total, plus, by way of comparison, about the same number each of shows that seem to have inspired it: Hannah Montana and The Suite Life on Deck on Disney. They’re way too broadly-played and unrealistic for me (TSLoD in particular), but I can certainly see why kids go for these brightly-colored little fantasies. If I was the age, of (presumably) most of the viewers, you probably couldn’t drag me away from the TV.
Anyway, a few random thoughts:
The formula to all these kid shows is pretty transparent, eh?
Not having any kids of my own, it didn’t really hit me until I opened this thread that these shows are actually intended for an audience somewhat younger than the protagonists. They all seem to be heavily calculated to appeal to pre-teen fantasies about what it will be like when they reach teenhood: generally liked, completely self-sufficient, able to afford the nicest clothes and electronic dood-dads, and with the restrictive hands of parent almost entirely absent.
And yep, the overacting is of the level of a traveling acting troupe of the 1880’s having to shout to be heard at the back of the hall. But, then, of course, these are aimed at kids who are unlikely to get the subtleties of the Method.
Of the three shows I mentioned at the top, I’ll agree that iCarly is the best of the lot, for a) more engaging main characters (Cosgrove/McCurdy are better actors and a far more interesting pair to me than Cyrus/Osment) and b) for being marginally more edgy than the Disney shows. A surprising number of the eps I’ve seen seem to deal with threatened or implied violence to Cosgrove, who looks like she’d fall over in a stiff breeze. Then there are things like Freddy (?)'s Mom, who apparently infantilizes him in a way that came off as seriously creepy, the flamingness of Neville, and the suggestion that the only reason Gibby doesn’t get buck naked every episode is that the FCC would come down like a ton of bricks.
Anyway, even if I don’t necessarily think it’s great TV, it’s at least interesting TV. An “event sociological”, as someone once said in a movie.
There’s outright violence in plenty of episodes. It’s usually aimed at Sam who’s a bit of an antagonist, but Spencer has been tossed around a few times as well (and pushed into traffic on his skateboard at least once).
Then there was the iCarly movie iPsycho, which had Gibby beating the crap out of the stalker/kidnapper girl…and getting smacked around a fair bit himself.
I should clarify that by ‘violence’ I’m talking about wrestling, maybe a few punches and plenty of slaps to the face, and since it’s a TV show everyone tends to be find a few seconds later. It’s mostly slapstick type stuff.
For all I know, Sam, or Jenna McCurdy, may be gay or not. I don’t get that vibe, but then, I’m pretty oblivious to that sort of thing.
For those who do think the character leans that way, however, I reiterate that her “Melanie” alter ego, which various sources claim is close to her real personality, is friendly, pretty, and feminine. Make of it what you will.
[quote=“Shagnasty, post:36, topic:549729”]
I love Gibby! The kid who plays him is fantastic. My favorite Gibby moment is the one where the girls have to ask the boys to a dance, and at the last minute Sam shows up at Gibby’s house to ask him to go with her, but he’s already chilling with his girlfriend for the evening. He was so smooth and in control, it was adorable.
I love Gibby! The kid who plays him is fantastic. My favorite Gibby moment is the one where the girls have to ask the boys to a dance, and at the last minute Sam shows up at Gibby’s house to ask him to go with her, but he’s already chilling with his girlfriend for the evening. He was so smooth and in control, it was adorable.
ETA: Found the scene.
Did you see McCurdy’s tap dance routine from the episode called iWas a Pageant Girl? Indeed she is versatile.
My daughter and I love this show. Am I a weirdo for thinking Spencer is kind of hot?
As for the relationships on this show: I think Carly should end up with Freddie, but my daughter thinks Sam should end up with him.
I’m American and the show makes me want to stab ice picks into my eyes and ears.
I saw her in an episode of Law & Order: SVU, where she plays a molested little girl who is so afraid of her molester that she falsly accuses a family friend of doing it. She was very, very good in the role. Very convincing.
Another American who just absolutely detests this show - most of what my kids watch, down to the 9 year old girl, I can stand … some I enjoy … this is unfunny and annoying. And while I do not look for TV to teach my kids values, this particular show sends its target audience - girls my daughter’s age for example - a particularly detestable set of them. Its only value is that when she has it on and I am nearby I can engage her in a conversation about the messages the show sends and what she thinks about them.
No knock on the acting talent. Or the sexual preferences of the performers. It’s the writing that sucks.
Well, if you’re a weirdo, so am I. Spencer is definitely hot.
My daughter loves this show. I watch it with her and we have a good time. Because of this show, she is completely in love with Seattle.
The best thing- Mcdonalds had an iCarly happy meal.
We have gotten so much milage from Spenser’s magic meatball. The voice is Peter Lorre-ish and it makes me laugh.
I’ve only seen a handful of episodes, but one of the things I really like is how obviously unfit her brother(?) is to be her guardian. While I think Cosgrove has pretty good stage presence, I agree that Jeanette McCurdy (Sam) is the one to watch. The chemistry is a lot better between Sam and the tech boy (Freddie?). Carly & Sam seem kind of hit and miss sometimes.
Dan Schneider’s made some shows that really have some nice details in them, and usually don’t skimp on the background characters. He also made the Jamie Lynn Spears show Zoey 101, which isn’t that great but does have the same feel that all the characters are fully people. One thing I think has carried through on iCarly - the fake Apple computers made by a pear company, complete with glowing pear on the back of the screens. Drake & Josh also had some rather amusing movie titles and posters that show up only briefly, even with sequels.
I see the overacting as being a modern take on how the old Batman show worked.
And it works with the premise. A webshow run by kids (barely) in high school is going to be campy. That the characters are actually like that works.
As for Jennette McCurdy’s character Sam–she’s carrying on the tradition of all Nickelodeon shows. There’s always a tomboyish character who is a bit of a rebel that is 100% NOT GAY. I’m just glad that, this time, it’s played by quite a pretty actress. I’m actually surprised that she’s just 18.
It is a culturally accepted fact that iCarly pwns!!
Right. Those who think they overact should try subjecting themselves to Zack and Cody’s the Sweet Life, or Life on Deck. That, my friends, is premium over acting. That one little Asian girl…can’t take her. She is beyond overacting. She is mugging and shucking and jiving and steppin’ and fetchin’ and chewing the scenery and gnawing the props. Can’t take her.
After seeing that, watching iCarly’s cast masterfully handle comedy like a bunch of pros is really refreshing.
iLove iCarly.
OK, got that out of my system. I would also like to echo the Spencer love. Yay for eye candy for the moms (or so-inclined dads)! My kids, both boys, love the show. We also watch Suite Life (both versions) and I really enjoyed the episode with George Takei. We round out the week with Unnatural History or Total Drama Island. Anything to stay away from that horrid piece of crap that is Adventure Time.
Sure, they aren’t Shakespeare. But they are darn entertaining!