Parents have long trusted Sesame Street to teach their kids about important social issues with grace and nuance, but some are upset about a recent episode of the show: Do you think Sesame Street went too far with the episode where Elmo stayed friends with Grover after allegations that Grover was in a manipulative age-gap relationship to teach kids that cancel culture has its gray areas?
Hundreds of disgruntled parents have taken to social media this week to complain about a recent segment on the show where Elmo spent the day hanging out with Grover despite the fact that 37-year-old Grover had just days earlier gotten in trouble with the Sesame Street gang for allegedly mistreating his 21-year-old ex-girlfriend, a Muppet named Miss Gigi. The start of the episode seemed to suggest that this relationship was highly inappropriate, as evidenced by the Count’s song about the number 16, in which he explained that “A 16-year gap is too big / Grover is a creepy pig / We don’t like him anymore / Put him in jail and lock the door!” But later on, Elmo was seen sampling taco salad with Grover at Cookie Monster’s food truck, where he explained, “Elmo loves his friend Grover even though Grover had a dicey relationship! Elmo thinks it’s maybe not so black and white—maybe Grover is old enough to make better decisions, but Grover is not a predator! Elmo is not afraid to be seen with Grover in public!”
Elmo’s thoughts on the matter sharply diverged from the other characters on Sesame Street, who shunned Grover and called out his toxic behavior. In one scene, Snuffleupagus accused Grover of gaslighting Miss Gigi into performing a square dance with him in a previous episode, suggesting that Grover liked dating younger Muppets because he could easily manipulate them into doing things with him like making up dances and learning about multiplication. However, Elmo remained by Grover’s side, even inviting him over for an Elmo’s World segment in which the two talked to Mr. Noodle about how friendships can endure even when one friend does not necessarily approve of all the other friend’s actions. And when, in a later segment, a child visiting Sesame Street asked Elmo, “Why do you still hang out with Grover? I heard he asked out Miss Gigi while she was a student in his drawing class, which is kind of weird,” Elmo simply responded, “Elmo thinks it’s a little weird too, but Elmo believes Grover is a good friend at heart.”
It definitely gives you a lot to think about!
Sesame Street has since defended their decision to air the episode, noting that it’s crucial to expose children to the idea that friendships can be complicated and that some things in life aren’t always as straightforward as they seem. However, it seems that many parents are still enraged and believe that Elmo should have cut Grover out as soon as he heard about Grover’s morally questionable relationship. What do you think? Did the episode go too far, or do you believe it taught a valuable lesson? Let us know in the comments!
