Friday night: the beginning of the dregs of television…weekend TV. Ugh. But don’t worry; there are still some shows worth watching. One of these is the fabulous Supernanny. Americans love that feisty Brit Jo Frost, and who can blame them? Somehow, there are few things more satisfying than seeing a bratty kid get a smackdown. Except Supernanny doesn’t smack. Oh, no. She speaks - sometimes firmly, sometimes kindly. She puts children in a ‘naughty chair.’ She points out what should be extremely obvious (but never is) to parents such as, “Pay attention to your children” and, my absolute favorite, “Do not let your seven-year-old punch you in the teeth.”

Interestingly, no matter how bratty the kids are when Jo arrives, it only takes her about three hours implementing the obvious to turn these kids into angels. Which makes the parents seem even more pathetic. Now, this form of discipline will not be embraced by everyone. I can only imagine the ribbing Supernanny would’ve taken from my folks. My family took an entirely different approach. Namely, the kid was sent outside to pick out a whipping switch. Although I suppose it would have been hard to find sponsors for that version of a TV show.

Why do you think Supernanny succeeds where parents fail? Is turning a kid — and often, an entire family - into a functional unit really as easy as Jo makes it look?