Doogie Howser, M.D. TV Review (2024)

Common Sense Media Review

Doogie Howser, M.D. TV Review (1) By Matt Springer , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 12+

Prodigy juggles a career as a doctor with teenage issues.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 12+?

Any Positive Content?

  • Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

    a little

    Occasional consumption of alcohol by main character (who's underage) and others in a casual social manner, never overconsumed.

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  • Language

    a little

    Words like "damn" and "crap" are used commonlly by both adults and teens.

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  • Sex, Romance & Nudity

    a little

    The show deals frankly with sexuality for its teenage leads within the standards of network television. While there's little explicit visually, conversations frequently deal with the topics of women, dating, and physical attraction.

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  • Positive Messages

    some

    While the teenage lead characters make many mistakes, each episode typically ends with a positive lesson learned.

  • Positive Role Models

    a little

    Doogie sets an example for learning as a path to success, but he also demonstrates questionable behavior as he balances his adolescent learning curve with his mature intellectual development.

  • Parents Need to Know

    Parents need to know that this sitcom from the late 1980s deals frankly with many of the typical moral, emotional, and physical issues faced by the average teenage boy ... although this boy happens to also be a working doctor. This means that many storylines and interactions deal with the ups and downs of male-female relationships. Kids in their early teens and up may find themselves relating to the experiences of the lead characters, and with a healthy and supportive family structure and positive lessons learned in almost every episode, this is a fine (if retro) choice for late tweens and up.

Where to Watch

Parent and Kid Reviews

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  • Parents say (1)
  • Kids say (7)

age 13+

Based on 1 parent review

MCA303 Parent of 11-year-old

May 18, 2024

age 13+

Highly inappropriate pilot episode

I grew up in the 80s but didn’t really watch this show. We thought we would watch the original with our 10 year old since we were watching the Dr Doogie reboot on Disney+. We watched the pilot. OMG. The pilot episode has an adult female nurse act suggestively toward Doogie, as if she will remove his pants for a sex act. Ummmmm. 😳Incredibly inappropriate and uncool. Obviously this would not fly now. While it was a “joke”, it just made me uncomfortable and we are a family who talks openly about sex safety. I’m just leery of what else may be lurking in this “cute show” from the 80-90s. No thanks.

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See all 1 parent review

What's the Story?

A child prodigy from an early age, Doogie Howser (Neil Patrick Harris) has followed in his father's footsteps by becoming a doctor ... but at age 16. As he works on his residency at a local hospital, he also engages in typical teenage misadventures with his best friend, Vinnie (Max Casella), and learns about affairs of the heart from his steady girlfriend, Wanda.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:

Parents say (1):

Kids say (7):

From its plunking synthesizer opening theme to the characters' hairstyles and clothing choices, DOOGIE HOWSER, M.D., is a true product of its time, the late '80s and early '90s. It's easy to be distracted by the show's dated look and feel, but Doogie was actually ahead of its time when it came to dealing with issues important to teens with humor and honesty.

Star Harris is better known today as the lecherous Barney on How I Met Your Mother, but this was his breakout performance, walking the fine line along Doogie's vast intellectual intelligence and still-developing emotional maturity. The show may not stack up favorably against some of today's strongest TV comedies, especially when it comes to developing a moral question and resolving the issue within 22 minutes. It can frequently feel heavy-handed in the way that many sitcoms from this era do -- episodes all too often end with the family gathered together and Doogie having learned an important lesson, a concluding moment familiar to TV viewers since the days of Leave It to Beaver. Still, there's no denying the show's good humor and strong performances, which make it eminently watchable even decades later.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how the show deals frankly with topics of sexuality. How did you think the way it covers these issues relates to your experiences?

  • Did you find the story of a teenager who becomes a doctor to be believable? Do you relate to the characters and what they're going through?

TV Details

  • Premiere date: September 19, 1989
  • Cast: James B. Sikking, Max Casella, Neil Patrick Harris
  • Network: Discovery Family Channel
  • Genre: Comedy
  • TV rating: TV-PG
  • Last updated: June 11, 2023

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

Doogie Howser, M.D.

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Doogie Howser, M.D. TV Review (2024)
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