Bottom line: Victorious presents a hip, tech savvy, and slightly sexy comedy for tweens and teens about Tori, a young girl attending Hollywood Arts High School. Topics and themes in the show revolve around Tori's school experiences, performing arts, her relationships with other students, and her family. The comedy in the show often includes sarcasm, insults, and mildly rude language.
TV Rating: TV-GGenre: Comedy
Guide age recommendation: 12+
Episode length: Approx. 30 minutes
Network: Nickelodeon
Victorious - Overview
The Nickelodeon TV comedy series Victorious stars Victoria Justice as Tori Vega, a down-to-earth teen who unexpectedly finds herself attending the elite Hollywood Arts High School. She earns a place at the performing arts school when she has to fill in for her attention-loving sister Trina (Daniella Monet) on the night of the school’s annual talent showcase. Impressed with her singing and dancing, the principal offers Tori a place at Hollywood Arts.
Among the friends who help Tori navigate life at her new school are André (Leon Thomas), a talented musician; Cat (Ariana Grande), a kind but ditsy girl who adds a lot of humor to the show; Beck (Avan Jogia), a good-looking bad boy; and Ronnie (Matthew Bennett), a friendly and somewhat nerdy ventriloquist who goes everywhere with his puppet, Rex. Tori's chief nemesis and biggest headache is Beck's mean girlfriend Jade (Elizabeth Gillies), although, Tori's patience and kindness sometimes win the day, and the girls find themselves on the same side. Victorious is all about the funny moments and crazy experiences that Tori and the gang have as they immerse themselves in their performance curriculum.
Jade, Trina and Tori on Victorious
Photo credit: Lisa Rose/NickelodeonVictorious - Guide Review for Parents
The adorable Victoria Justice shines in the lead role in this comedy for tweens and teens, but unfortunately, she doesn't have a lot to work with. The show is semi-funny, and it is popular with the target age group, but the episodes are shallow, the character development is lacking, and the humor doesn't have that clever quality that other current shows for tweens and teens have. In an effort to reach the target audience, the show incorporates a lot of technology, with Tori updating text messages and sharing her mood throughout the show, and there is also a website, TheSlap.com, where kids can go online to see updates, photos, videos, and more.
As far as content, the show focuses on comical situations that arise due to interactions between the stereotyped personalities and the challenges they face as they attend school. The female characters often wear sexy outfits -- think tight, short skirts and sleeveless or off the shoulder tight tops -- to school and as they perform. At least one episode contains a somewhat lengthy kissing scene. Characters use mild rude words like "butt" or "stupid." They also frequently use the phrase "Oh my God," or variations of the phrase. Although characters do use sarcasm and sometimes insult each other (whether joking or not), the exchanges are generally mild.
Tori sets a good example as an honest, fair, and kind student who is just following her dream and trying to be the best that she can be, and she even has a lot of patience with Jade, who can be downright mean and overtly dislikes Tori. The show lightly explores topics like friendship, going after your dreams, and being yourself, but mostly it's just about fun, comedy, and music.
