History YMMV / LeaveItToBeaver

* IdiotBall: This applies to Beaver for the show's entire run, with nearly every episode premise involving Beaver making poor decisions either on his own, or due to his being misled/manipulated into making said choice by his friends (usually Larry, Whitey, Gilbert, and even Eddie on occasion). The first three seasons can be excused, as Beaver really is a child and is learning about the world - in which case he is supposed to be naive or easily swayed. But the latter three seasons - as he begins to hit puberty and enter into his early teens - Beaver REALLY ought to know better, especially considering that Gilbert and his other friends are rarely ever to be found when it comes time for the consequences for his actions to be faced.

* IdiotBall: This applies to Beaver for the show's entire run, with nearly every episode premise involving Beaver making poor decisions either on his own, or due to his being misled/manipulated into making said choice by his friends (usually Larry, Whitey, Gilbert, and even Eddie on occasion). The first three seasons can be excused, as Beaver really is a child and is learning about the world - in which case he is supposed to be naive or easily swayed. But the latter three seasons - as he begins to hit puberty and enter into his early teens - Beaver REALLY ought to know better, especially considering that Gilbert and his other friends are rarely ever to be found when it comes time for the consequences to be faced for his actions.

* ValuesResonance: The episode "Beaver's I.Q." contains this conversation:

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: Some of the DarkerAndEdgier episodes of the series, depicting alcoholism, divorce, and Beaver's Hispanic friend, are quite tame by today's standards.

** In "Baby Picture," Beaver and Judy get into an argument after she claims her mother said her baby picture looks "just like Shirley Temple." Beaver counters that Shirley Temple isn't a baby, but "a grown-up lady on television." This would have been a reference to the star's eponymous anthology show "Shirley Temple's Storybook" (basically a precursor to [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Series/FaerieTaleTheatre Faerie Tale Theatre]]), which aired concurrently with ''Leave it to Beaver'' at the time. Nowadays, Shirley is almost exclusively remembered as a baby-faced child star of the 1930's - mostly due to the Shirley Temple VHS box set infomercials that aired throughout the late 1990's into the early 2000's - and few other than diehard fans of Temple are even aware that she HAD a television show in the 1950's.

** While the show was notoriously late to giving any people of color with speaking roles in its episodes - and even when they eventually did it being a maid played by Kim Hamilton in the episode "The Parking Attendants" - the use of the character in the episode would have been seen as progressive for the time. Eddie and Wally casually converse with the maid in the kitchen about parking cars at Mr. Langley's party, sounding very much like equals. Wally is shown being polite and respectful to her, while Eddie even makes an attempt to impress her with his usual arrogant bravado (claiming to have parked cars for the governor and an Indian diplomat), sounding almost flirtatious in doing so. Near the conclusion of the episode, when Wally tells Eddie off for screwing up the parking job and for being a "big, dumb, stupid loudmouth," the two exit the frame but the shot lingers for a just a few seconds longer on the maid - still in the kitchen, looking directly at the camera, and seemingly amused by everything she's just overheard. It may not say much for the show overall, but it at least was the start of attempt and was a sign that things were starting to change in terms of representation on television.

** In "Baby Picture," Beaver and Judy get into an argument after she claims her mother said her baby picture looks "just like Shirley Temple." Beaver counters that Shirley Temple isn't a baby, but "a grown-up lady on television." This would have been a reference to the star's eponymous anthology show "Shirley Temple's Storybook" (basically a precursor to [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Series/FaerieTaleTheatre Faerie Tale Theatre]]), which aired concurrently with Leave it to Beaver at the time. Nowadays, Shirley is almost exclusively remembered as a baby-faced child star of the 1930's - mostly due to the Shirley Temple VHS box set infomercials that aired throughout the late 1990's into the early 2000's - and few other than diehard fans of Temple are even aware that she HAD a television show in the 1950's.

** In "Baby Picture," Beaver and Judy get into an argument after she claims her mother said her baby picture looks "just like Shirley Temple." Beaver counters that Shirley Temple isn't a baby, but "a grown-up lady on television." This would have been a reference to the star's eponymous anthology show "Shirley Temple's Storybook" (basically a precursor to Faerie Tale Theater), which aired concurrently with Leave it to Beaver at the time. Nowadays, Shirley is almost exclusively remembered as a baby-faced child star of the 1930's - mostly due to the Shirley Temple VHS box set infomercials that aired throughout the late 1990's into the early 2000's - and few other than diehard fans of Temple are even aware that she HAD a television show in the 1950's.

** In "Beaver, the Sheepdog," a female classmate and her GirlPosse insult Beaver by comparing his unruly hair to that of a sheepdog. This causes Beaver to become self-conscious, especially when the teasing carries on for days and his own friends start in on the jokes. Despite Ward giving him some ValuesResonance advice about the other kids just wanting a reaction and they'd stop if he wouldn't let them know it bothers him, Beaver instead goes with Eddie Haskell's advice--which is to insult the girls back. He tries out a few, and makes the ringleader of the GirlPosse cry. This is treated as the very worst thing he could have done. All his friends throw him under the bus when a teacher walks comes running to see what the commotion is, and even though Beaver explains it was in response to ''her'' teasing ''him,'' he's made to write an apology letter while nothing at all is said about her behavior. In the 21st century, the DoubleStandard comes off as deeply unfair, particularly since it's heavily implied that Beaver is being punished specifically ''because'' he insulted a girl.

** In "Beaver, the Sheepdog," a female classmate and her GirlPosse insult Beaver by comparing his unruly hair to that of a sheepdog. This causes Beaver to become self-conscious, especially when the teasing carries on for days and his own friends start in on the jokes. Despite Ward giving him some ValuesResonance advice about the other kids just wanting a reaction and they'd stop if he wouldn't let them know it bothers him, Beaver instead goes with Eddie Haskell's advice--which is to insult the girls back. He tries out a few, and makes the ringleader of the GirlPosse cry. This is treated as the [[DoubleStandard very worst thing he could have done]]. All his friends throw him under the bus when a teacher walks by, and even though Beaver explains it was in response to ''her'' teasing ''him,'' he's made to write an apology letter while nothing at all is said about her behavior. In the 21 century, this comes off as InformedWrongness.

** Whenever Beaver would express his [[GirlsHaveCooties disgust for girls]], he'd confess that if he were ever to get married, it wouldn't be with a girl. Unless he meant "girl" as in a female child within his age range and thus not an adult woman, there's no way to interpret this line other than with Ho Yay subtext. Granted, this show was in TheFifties, when same-sex relationships were still [[ValuesResonance under public stigma]], and Beaver ''is'' a child after all, meaning this statement was obviously born out of naivety.