"It's a show about a girl who decides to make her own Web show just to express herself," Cosgrove said, "and it becomes really popular."

Much like that show-within-a-show, iCarly (Saturdays, 8 p.m. ET) has also developed quite a following. It may have something to do with the fact that it's the first scripted TV series to insert fan-generated videos into the program. By uploading clips of their own quirky skills and hidden talents at icarly.com, young viewers share a YouTube-like forum that rewards silliness and gives kids a shot at seeing themselves embedded within (or during the end credits of) an actual iCarly episode. More than 100,000 fans have contributed videos. You can bet they're all tuning in to see if they make it on the air.

The show itself focuses on bubbly, dutiful Carly and her weekly webcast with co-host and gal pal Sam (Jennette McCurdy), a snarky tomboy who gets laughs for her Seinfeld-esque insensitivity. Sam is always armed with an insult for the duo's young cameraman/producer Freddy (Nathan Kress), who's smothered by his mom and has a crush on Carly.

This being a Nick show, it's no surprise to find adults marginalized or vilified. But even though most authority figures are obstacles to be overcome, the children still need a guardian. Enter Carly's 26-year-old brother, Spencer. Played with comic abandon by Jerry Trainor (a funny guy who's equal parts Jimmy Fallon and Jim Carrey), the self-absorbed pop artist is just enough of a presence to keep the social workers at bay, but not enough to destroy the kid-empowerment image of Carly and her friends essentially raising themselves and solving their own problems.

iCarly usually includes a moral about friendship, forgiveness, self-control or unselfishness which, along with Spencer's pratfalls and prop comedy, make the show watchable. However, each episode resorts to at least one chic exclamation of "oh my god" and name-calling ("whiz pants," "doof-butt cops," "you're dumb," "bubble butt," etc.). Then there's the irreverent "kids rule" attitude. Sam in particular models apathy and a snippy disrespect that parents wouldn't want creeping into their child's character. Something else to keep in mind is that commercials for PG-13 movies, as well as a steamy promo for TEENick's H2O, also aired during the episodes we watched.