Caillou is Leaving PBS After 20+ Years & WOW Do Parents Have Mixed Feelings

It's truly the end of an era, but not everyone can decide if that's a good thing or bad thing. In fact, parents' reactions to Caillou leaving PBS are truly all over the map.

On Jan. 5, PBS Kids announced it would no longer be airing episodes of Caillou, the Canadian educational children's series featuring the adventures of a 4-year-old little boy along with his parents and younger sister Rosie. PBS Kids wrote in a tweet, "We're saying farewell to @cailloudhx, but remember, when we say goodbye to something it just means we get to say hello to something new!" The network also shared tips on how to help kids deal with the disappointment when their favorite media is no longer available.

Perhaps PBS should have shared some helpful tips for parents dealing with the end of Caillou as well. The announcement has seen a pretty strong response from adults right out of the gate, although to be fair not everyone appears to be filled with grief at the end of the series, which first debuted way back in 1997. Some seem disappointed, sure, but others are relieved to see the end of the series.

So let's break down the stronger reactions to the news of Caillou's departure from PBS, shall we?

Good Riddance

One of the stronger emotions being felt by parents and fans appears to be relief. As one person wrote, "I can’t think of a single person who stans Caillou. How was this show made?! How does it still have watchers?!"

Meanwhile, one mom wrote on Facebook, "Thank goodness!! That little boy was so rude to his mom and disobedient. I didn’t allow my kids to watch him because of that reason."

One parent wrote that they believed Caillou is moving on to conquer a different world now that it achieved "maximum damage" here. "Remember having to endure watching Caillou with your kids?" one dad tweeted. "Apparently the show is now leaving PBS. I guess they've achieved maximum damage on Earth and plan to move onto a different world to conquer."

One mom wrote on Facebook, "I absolutely hate that little cry baby. My daughter was never allowed to watch it. Farewell, don't come back," while another simply wrote on Twitter, "Good riddance, you whiney little f**k," which seems harsh since Caillou is technically perpetually 4 years old.

End Of An Era

While there are loads of people who are glad to see the show go, some are bummed to hear the news. Like one fan of the show who tweeted that "it feels like an end of [an] era."

One mom tweeted, "Just when I thought 2021 wasn’t going to be more than 2020 part 2, PBS goes and cancels Caillou!! 2021 stop now, you win."

Another noted that the loss of the show on PBS Kids was an important moment, "The moment that Caillou leaving PBS Kids is such a big loss that PBS Kids themselves have to tweet about it."

Too Whiney By A Mile

Whether they are sad to see it go or not, one thing many people seem to agree on is that Caillou was way too whiney in general. As this social media user explained it, "Caillou is a sniveling little kid on a television show ... that teaches kids to whine about everything."

Another parent remembers her own child acting out after watching the show, "Oh my gosh. I’ll never ever forget my oldest child throwing a massive tantrum when he was little telling me how awful I was and that I never let him have any fun because he couldn’t give a police officer a juice box like Caillou did. GOODBYE CAILLOU."

Finally, one person simply had this to say about Caillou, "Name a character brattier than Caillou. I'll wait."

Anyone who would still like to watch Caillou can catch new episodes on the YouTube channel WildBrain, so it seems he will not disappear completely. Take from that what you will.