Kelly is just a teen – in real life, too
More often than not, we see Kelly parading around in very skimpy outfits – which was fine for the most part, as she should be able to choose to wear whatever she wants to. On the other hand – it seemed like the show was exploiting Christina Applegate’s good looks from a very young age, as she was only 15 years old when the show began.
They often put her in very revealing outfits for the sake of being leered at, and even made her bend over – while the audience woo’d.
So many weight jokes
Anyone who’s watched the show will tell you that one of the most memorable things about it is jokes about overweight women. Al’s clients are often on the heavy side (and usually claiming to be a smaller shoe size than they are), so he takes every opportunity to take shots at them.
While his insults would be met with roaring laughter from the live audience, as well as most viewers, these days it wouldn’t go over well to make fun of people for their size.
What happened to Seven?
When the showrunners thought the show needed a refreshing change, they brought in Seven – something fans still have a hard time forgiving them for. Seven was a boy who got abandoned by Peg’s relatives, and subsequently adopted by the Bundys.
He was with them for a while, cause the ratings to drop, and then mysteriously disappeared. And not only did we get no explanation for his disappearance, but he actually appeared on a milk carton as missing, later on. How is that okay?
Objectifying women
You don’t need to watch too many episodes of this show to see how horribly it’s treated women. They basically existed for one of two purposes – either to be grossly objectified, or to be mocked, all depending on how they look.
Whether it’s Al and his friends ogling at women (always somehow dressed in provocative clothes), or it’s Bud Bundy trying to come on to various girls with ridiculous pick up lines, mostly just coming off as a creep. At one point, the camera just focused on a woman’s cleavage for a long moment as the crowd cheered.
Marriage is forever
Married with Children was definitely a pioneer, considering its crassness and sharp humor, which was refreshing at the time. But one thing was very old fashioned about it – the way it treated the sanctity of marriage. Al and Peg often seem to be miserable, yet they never even consider divorcing and bettering their lives.
In one episode, “How To Marry a Moron”, Kelly is about to marry a guy who turns out to be a cheater. Al then says, “We Bundys may have our faults, but we believe that marriage should be forever—no matter how pitiful and disgusting it may be to wake up to that same horrifying face each day.”
The Camping Show
There was one episode of Married with Children on season 3 that it almost never aired, and was actually delayed for some editing prompted by the network. The original title was “A Period Piece”, which already suggests what happens on it. The Bundys go on a family camping trip, which goes awry when Peg, Kelly, and Marcy all get a visit from “Aunt Flo” at the same time.
Needless to say, this episode did not handle the subject well, with lines like “I think PMS really stands for Pommel Men’s Scrotums.” The premise basically said women on their time of the month are monsters, and men would rather face a grizzly bear than have to handle them. Not a great message, is it?
