Tot TV Watch

The latest Disney Channel Original Movie just premiered last weekend on the Disney Channel. I am on the road this summer and Disney Channel is impossible to get even in the few hotels we are staying at, so I decided to just buy it on DVD when it came out yesterday. I was not disappointed in the movie, however I was kind of disappointed in the minimal special features on the DVD release. For a movie so fresh in the minds of those that watched it last weekend it probably is not worth going out and buying it on DVD. They really should have either waited longer to release it (i.e. when it becomes aired infrequently) or at least have put an audio commentary bonus feature or perhaps even just a DVD game.

The plot is a unique princess plot that I found entertaining throughout. I am not much into fairy tale princess stories, but the more realistic ones like this and the Princess Diaries (okay that one is also a little more on the fairy tale side than this one). I thought it would perhaps be a little too much about Princess Rosalina/Rosie being a spoiled princess type person, but it is not. Actually, it is not that much about her and is way more about her and Carter (daughter of the Princess Protection Program agent) learning from each other and becoming best of friends.

Overall enjoyable movie, but again not worth buying unless you really want to watch it often. The special features only include a featurette about the cast becoming friends on set, a featurette about a real princess, and a music video of “One and the Same.” The release also comes with two best friends necklaces.

For the month of July 2009 every comment on this blog gives you an entry into the contest. At the end of the month I will put one entry per comment (no limit to number of entries) into a hat and draw a winner. The winner can then select one of the five prizes below. I plan to run a monthly contest every month until I am out of prize choices.

Prize 1: Holly Hobbie & Friends: Secret Adventures DVD with a run time of 44 minutes, a trivia game Special Feature, and a music video Special Feature

Prize 2: Go, Diego, Go! Moonlight Rescue DVD, which has 3 episodes of Go, Diego, Go!, as well as a few special features, and a Nick Jr. luggage tag with a Dora and Diego in a raft

Prize 3: Hannah Montana: Life’s What You Make It with four episodes of Hannah Montana and a “Backstage Pass: The Secrets of Hannah Montana” and “Ready, Set, Don’t Go” music video bonus features

Prize 4: Cory in the House: All-Star Edition with four episodes of the show and interviews with the Rock and Raven as guest stars on the show (the two episodes featuring them as guest stars are two of the episodes on this release). This one also comes with a High School Musical 2 Extended Edition mini poster that was packaged with the DVD and I never used.

Prize 5: iCarly Season 1 Volume 2 with 12 episodes of the show in a two disc set along with some special features

Note that in order to win the e-mail address you enter when commenting must be valid. If I get a returned undeliverable when I e-mail you to tell you you won, then I will immediately skip you over and award it to someone else. I never realized this was an issue until I had to draw three times to find someone who gave a valid e-mail address to be able to win one month.

The winner of the June Tot TV Watch Comment Contest is Ginny with her June 27, 2009 comment on the Win a DVD in the Tot TV Watch June Comment Contest post. I will be contacting Olivia Skipworth by e-mail shortly to choose which of the five DVDs she wants. I will give her until the end of the month to still be able to make her choice and get the prize.

I am going to post about the July contest shortly. I will remove the one Olivia Skipworth chooses from this month’s five from that post when I hear from her. You can start commenting for the July contest now as all comments within the month of July 2009 will count as entries even if posted before I officially announce the contest in its own post. Below are the five prizes for June and all except the one Olivia Skipworth ends up choosing will be available for the winner of July’s contest to choose from.

Prize 1: Holly Hobbie & Friends: Secret Adventures DVD with a run time of 44 minutes, a trivia game Special Feature, and a music video Special Feature

Prize 2: Go, Diego, Go! Moonlight Rescue DVD, which has 3 episodes of Go, Diego, Go!, as well as a few special features, and a Nick Jr. luggage tag with a Dora and Diego in a raft

Prize 3: Hannah Montana: Life’s What You Make It with four episodes of Hannah Montana and a “Backstage Pass: The Secrets of Hannah Montana” and “Ready, Set, Don’t Go” music video bonus features

Prize 4: Cory in the House: All-Star Edition with four episodes of the show and interviews with the Rock and Raven as guest stars on the show (the two episodes featuring them as guest stars are two of the episodes on this release). This one also comes with a High School Musical 2 Extended Edition mini poster that was packaged with the DVD and I never used.

Prize 5: iCarly Season 1 Volume 2 with 12 episodes of the show in a two disc set along with some special features

Here is this week’s edition of new releases of DVDs that feature kids shows. Most are previously seen episodes from television while sometimes the releases are straight to DVD releases of episodes or movies based on kids TV shows.

Dinosaur King: Volcanic Panic - This release is a one disc one of the animated Dinosaur King show. This release is the third volume of the show released on DVD. It contains 5 episodes of the show. It is also supposed to have some all new bonus features, but I was not able to figure out exactly what that meant. Sorry, but it is from the Shout Factory and I do not expect the bonus features will be all that great, as most of their so-called bonus features are lame.

Hi-5: Season Two - This release is the complete second season of Hi-5. It is a three disc set. The season consists of 20 episodes. The episodes are “Outside,” “Rainy Day,” “Fantasy,” “Physical,” “Silly Day,” “Faces,” “Arms and Legs,” “Movement,” “Inside/Out,” “Games and Sports,” “Imaginary Friends,” “When I Grow Up,” “Imaginary Place,” “Daydreams,” “What If?,” “Instruments,” “Styles of Music,” “Music From Around The World,” “Music and Movement, and “Silly Music.”

Princess Protection Program - This release is of the latest Disney Channel Original Movie that just premiered last weekend on the Disney Channel. The DVD bonus features include an exclusive music video, Royal and Loyal BFFs Selena and Demi reveal their secrets, A Royal Reality, and real life princesses share their realities.

Do not forget to comment and get an entry in our June 2009 Comment Contest and have a chance to win a TV on DVD.

Welcome to this week’s edition’s list of kid’s television shows that have new episodes airing this week. I try to make this as complete as possible, but I may sometimes miss something. Please comment and let me know if I forgot to include something that has a new episode airing this week. All times are listed as Mountain Standard Time as given by TV Guide for my local DirectTV listings, but may vary depending on your location, especially when the shows are on local stations like PBS.

Monday, June 29, 2009

4:30pm on Disney XD - The Spectacular Spider-Man: This new episode is called “Reinforcement.”

5:30pm on Disney XD - Zeke and Luther: This new episode is called “Crash and Learn.”

6pm on Disney XD - Aaron Stone: This new episode is called “Cloudy With a Chance of Ninjas.”

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

5pm on Cartoon Network - The Othersiders: This new episode is called “Mohave Airport Boneyard-Airplane Graveyard.”

5:30pm on Cartoon Network - Survive This!: This new episode is called “Hunger.”

Thursday, July 2, 2009

5pm on Cartoon Network - Chowder - This new episode is called “Big Ball/The BLTs.”

5:30pm on Cartoon Network - Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack - This new episode is called “My Guardian Angel is Killin’ Me/Love Bugs.”

6pm on Cartoon Network - Total Drama Action - This new episode is called “Beach Blanket Bogus.”

6:30pm on Cartoon Network - 6teen - This new episode is called “Sweet 6 Teen.”

Saturday, July 4, 2009

5:30am on Disney Channel - Handy Manny: This new episode is called “Lyle & Leland Lopart/Blackout on the Block.”

8am on Cartoon Network - Bakugan Battle Brawlers: This new episode is called “Freedom Run.”

5pm on Cartoon Network - BrainRush

Sunday, July 5, 2009

3pm on Discovery Kids - Saddle Club: This new episode is called “Pioneer Days.”

5pm on Disney Channel - Hannah Montana: This new episode is called “He Could Be the One.”

6pm on Disney Channel - Sonny With a Chance: This new episode is called “Prank’d.”

6:30pm on Disney Channel - JONAS: This new episode is called “Complete Repeat.”

Do not forget to comment and get an entry in our June 2009 Comment Contest and have a chance to win a TV on DVD.

Tomorrow, June 27, 2009, is Playhouse Disney’s Cowboys and Cowgirls Saturday on the Disney Channel. The special mostly western themed episodes line up begins at 8am Eastern Time/7am Central Time. Below is the complete line up for the special morning.

8am Eastern Time/7am Central Time - Little Einsteins “Go West, Young Train” episode

8:25am Eastern Time/7:25am Central Time - Ooh, Aah, and You “Cowboy Day” episode

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse “Mickey’s Countdown” music video

8:30am Eastern Time/7:30am Central Time - Handy Manny “The Good, The Bad, The Handy” episode

8:55am Eastern Time/7:55am Central Time - Happy Monster Band “At the Rodeo” episode

9am Eastern Time/8am Central Time - Mickey Mouse Clubhouse “Mickey’s Round-Up” episode

9:25am Eastern Time/8:25am Central Time - Ooh, Aah, and You “Cowboy Day” episode

9:30am Eastern Time/8:30am Central Time - Handy Manny “Skateboard Park/Cowboy Manny” episode

10am Eastern Time/9am Central Time - Imagination Movers “Big Pumpkin Problem” episode

10:25am Eastern Time/9:25am Central Time - Happy Monster Band “Monster Hoe Down” episode

10:30am Eastern Time/9:30am Central Time - Handy Manny “The Good, The Bad, The Handy” episode

10:55am Eastern Time/9:55am Central Time - Happy Monster Band “At the Rodeo” episode

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse “Mickey’s Countdown” music video

Do not forget to comment and get an entry in our June 2009 Comment Contest and have a chance to win a TV on DVD.

Disney Channel has some great triple crossover specials before, such as “That’s So Suite Life of Hannah Montana” and the Wish Gone Amiss specials. On July 17, 2009, another triple crossover special will premiere on the Disney Channel. This new crossover special is called “Wizards on Deck with Hannah Montana.” The special will feature the characters from Hannah Montana, Wizards of Waverly Place, and The Suite Life on Deck.

The special begins at 8pm Eastern Time/Pacific Time on July 17, 2009, with the “Cast Away (To Another show)” episode about Justin from Wizards of Waverly Place getting the chance to meet London Tipton when he wins a trip on the SS Tipton as an essay contest prize. Alex and Max also are along on the cruise. Alex makes friends with Bailey, but causes trouble when she brings Harper aboard using magic. Max and Zack compete in a series of competitions.

The second episode is at 8:30pm Eastern Time/Pacific Time and is called “Double-Crossed.” In this episode Hannah Montana comes aboard the SS Tipton to get to a concert in Honolulu. Cody tries to impress Bailey by getting Woody to help him score some Hannah Montana concert tickets. The Russos are still on board in this episode and their use of magic includes Max introducing London to a magic suitcase.

The final episode of the triple crossover is at 9pm Eastern Time/Pacific Time and is called “Double-Crossed.” In this episode Miley loses her lucky charm bracelet she got from her mother and things begin to go wrong without her lucky charm. Cody tells Bailey that he is friends with Hannah and that he will get her great seats to a Hannah concert.

DisneyChannel.com is having a special promotion related to this triple crossover episode. The promotion is called Wizards on Deck with Hannah Montana Scavenger Hunt Sweepstakes. Prizes will include props from the three shows. You will be able to enter the sweepstakes by finding a list of scavenger hunt items on the website and then watching Disney Channel every night at 8pm Eastern Time/Pacific Time from Sunday, July 12, 2009, through Friday, July 17, 2009, to find the scavenger hunt items. You get entered into the sweepstakes by correctly answering all the scavenger hunt questions correctly.

Do not forget to comment and get an entry in our June 2009 Comment Contest and have a chance to win a TV on DVD.

On July 5, 2009, there will be an hour long special of Hannah Montana. This special length episode is called “He Could Be the One?” The special will premiere at 8pm Eastern Time/Pacific Time. A Hannah Montana marathon that will start at 1pm Eastern Time/Pacific Time on July 5, 2009, will lead up to the premiere of the hour long special on the Disney Channel.

Also, leading up to the special will be the premiere of five music videos from the Hannah Montana Season 3 soundtrack. One video will premiere each night from June 29 through July 3, 2009 at 7pm Eastern Time/Pacific Time. The five new music videos are “Mixed Up,” “Just A Girl,” “Let’s Get Crazy,” “Supergirl” and “Every Part of Me” and they will all air again after the “He Could Be the One?” episode.

The episode will guest star Brooke Shields (Miley’s late mother) and Cody Linley (Miley’s ex-boyfriend Jake Ryan). The episode is about Miley trying to tell Robby Ray (her dad) that she is dating Jake Ryan again, but she keeps failing. Robby begins to suspect that Miley is hiding something from him. In order to make him thankful for Jake, Miley pretends to date a bad boy that is in her band and named Jesse. She ends up over her head and Robby helps her get out of the trouble with the help of Miley’s late mother, who I assume will again be appearing in an advice giving dream type way that may or may not involve crazy loco hot cocoa or whatever they call it.

Do not forget to comment and get an entry in our June 2009 Comment Contest and have a chance to win a TV on DVD.

Princess Protection Program is the latest Disney Channel Original Movie. It premieres tomorrow night, June 26, 2009, on the Disney Channel. It is technically just the United States premiere of this movie, as it has already shown in several European countries. Also, interesting is that this movie is getting a very quick DVD release with is coming out on Tuesday, June 30, 2009. Princess Protection Program sounds like an entertaining plot and I actually think this might be a great Disney Channel movie. Probably the best they have premiered so far this year, but that is not too hard, especially since I really think Hatching Pete stunk.

Princess Protection Program is about Princess Rosalinda (played by Demi Lovato) entering the Princess Protection Program (a witness protection like program for royalty) and being placed in Louisiana after her country is invaded by an evil dictator. She is placed with Mason and his daughter, Carter (played by Selena Gomez). Carter, a tomboy, helps Rosie (name she goes by in the Princess Protection Program) become a normal American teenage girl while Rosie helps Carter discover her inner princess.

The special weekend premiere of this movie is hosted by Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato. The weekend with include some sneak peak stuff on Friday that includes looks at an upcoming hour long Hannah Montana special, the “Wizards on Deck with Hannah Montana” crossover event, and Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie. Saturday viewers are asked to count how many times princess is said during the movie and then unlock new episodes of Wizards of Waverly Place and Sonny with a Chance on Disney Channel’s website. Sunday there is a sneak peak of the upcoming Disney movie The Princess and the Frog.

Do not forget to comment and get an entry in our June 2009 Comment Contest and have a chance to win a TV on DVD.

Has this crappy cartoon really been around for 10 years? It really does not seem that long, but I guess it has since it first aired on July 17, 1999. Not that it is entirely a bad show, but it is rather stupid humor that I just never could get into. However, it does still have quite a fan base and I got to give them credit for actually having some good stuff coming up to celebrate the anniversary for fans of the show to enjoy. If you are a SpongeBob fan get ready to mark your calendar for July 14, 17, 18, and 19.

One of the biggest ways the 10th anniversary of Spongebob Squarepants is being celebrated is with the Ultimate Spongebob SpongeBash Weekend marathon on Nickelodeon. This marathon runs from July 17 through July 19, 2009, and will include 50 hours of Spongebob. The marathon will include 11 new episodes and a top ten countdown of celebrities’ favorite episodes.

The marathon starts with a new Spongebob episode “To SquarePants or Not to SquarePants” at 8pm Eastern and Pacific Time on Friday, July 17, 2009 and ends with 10 new episodes airing on Sunday night starting at 7pm Eastern and Pacific time. On Saturday episodes begin at 10am and the line up ends with the SpongeBob SquarePants movie at 8pm. Sunday begins with episodes at 10am and ends after the 10 new episodes.

In honor of the 10th anniversary, VH1 (a sister network of Nickelodeon) will air a special documentary about the show. The documentary is called Square Roots: The Story of SpongeBob SquarePants. It will premiere on July 14, 2009 at 9pm Eastern and Pacific Time.

Stanley: Spring Fever is a collection of four episodes of the Playhouse Disney show, Stanley. This show is a great one that teaches about animals with story lines of the curious preschooler, Stanley, and his friends that are typical of preschool curiosity. The educational aspect of the show also includes the alphabet to some extent, as they always say the alphabet in order to get to the letter page of the animal they are looking up in the Great Big Book of Everything.

The episodes on this DVD are “Searching for Spring,” “Save the Bluebird,” “Caterpillar Countdown,” and “Baby Pictures.” The first is an interesting about it Stanley and his friends anxious for it to be spring and learning about the myth of Groundhog Day. I also found the third one interesting about Elsie finding caterpillars boring, but finding them interesting when she learns they eventually turn into butterflies. The last one is my favorite, though, as it is about growing up. Stanley is afraid he will be a grown up soon, but learns that different animals grow up at different rates and he still has plenty of years to be a kid.

This release includes a few bonus features. One is a Make Your Very Own Great Big Book of Everything activity in which you choose animals based on their pictures, sounds, and then put the book together in alphabetical order. The other special feature is The Great Big Book of Everything that tells a little about the 10 animals you put in the book in the first activity. The last special feature is a “Stanley’s Theme” music video performed by the Baha Men.

Overall this is a good release considering the show is rarely on Playhouse Disney these days. It is somewhat limited in content, as the episodes are really just half-episodes. The good special features make up for that to some extent, though.

Check out the other TV on DVD reviews I have blogged about here.

Do not forget to comment and get an entry in our June 2009 Comment Contest and have a chance to win a TV on DVD.

Yesterday, June 22, 2009, Disney announced that they have ordered a second season of Special Agent Oso. This show is the newest one in the Playhouse Disney line up, which is geared towards preschoolers. The show has been a huge success since it first premiered back in April 2009. According to Nancy Kanter, senior vice president, Playhouse Disney Worldwide, “‘Special Agent Oso’ has launched stronger and faster than any preschool series in our history – not just in the U.S., but around the world.” The show has been number 1 in its timeslot for preschool viewers since its premiere. It really is a great show that makes learning simple everyday things that preschoolers eventually should learn to do a fun and interactive television experience. I think this show can get old and out of ideas fast, but I think there are enough things that a second season will still be pretty fresh.

Here is this week’s edition of new releases of DVDs that feature kids shows. Most are previously seen episodes from television while sometimes the releases are straight to DVD releases of episodes or movies based on kids TV shows.

Barney: Let’s Pretend - This release is of the Let’s Pretend Barney episode. I think it might have been released on DVD before and definitely was released on VHS years ago. I think this might be the episode BJ is introduced in.

Bob the Builder: Bob’s Top Team - This release has a run time of about 45 minutes. In this release Bob works on finishing his workshop, building a new school, and a visitor center.

Doodlebops: Get on the Bus - This release includes four episodes of the Doodlebops.

Fireman Sam: Saves the Day - The episodes included in this release are “Beast Of Pontypandy,” “Fit For Nothing,” “Neighbourhood Watch Out,” “The Case Of The Liquorice Shoelaces” and “Firefighter Of Tomorrow.” I think this has been released in the UK before, but this is the first time it is being released in the US region.

Thomas & Friends: Track Stars - This Thomas & Friends release includes six episodes, three read alongs, six sing alongs, DVD-ROM games, character gallery, and two DVD games. The stories part has a run time of about 50 minutes.

Tom and Jerry: The Chuck Jones Collection - This release is a two disc set. This release consists of the 34 Tom and Jerry shorts worked on by Chuck Jones. It includes two documentaries called “Tom and Jerry…and Chuck” and “Chuck Jones: Memories of a Childhood.”

Welcome to this week’s edition’s list of kid’s television shows that have new episodes airing this week. I try to make this as complete as possible, but I may sometimes miss something. Please comment and let me know if I forgot to include something that has a new episode airing this week. All times are listed as Mountain Standard Time as given by TV Guide for my local DirectTV listings, but may vary depending on your location, especially when the shows are on local stations like PBS.

Monday, June 22, 2009

3pm on Cartoon Network - Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack: This new episode is called “Lovebugs/Ben Boozled.”

4pm on Disney XD - The Spectacular Spider-Man: This new episode is called “Blueprints.”

4:30pm on Disney XD - The Spectacular Spider-Man: This new episode is called “Destructive Testing.”

5:30pm on Disney XD - Zeke and Luther: This new episode is called “Donut Jockey.”

6pm on Disney XD - Aaron Stone: This new episode is called “Xero Control.”

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

8pm on Cartoon Network - The Othersiders: This new episode is called “Queen Mary.”

8:30pm on Cartoon Network - Survive This!: This new episode is called “Shelter.”

Thursday, June 25, 2009

5pm on Cartoon Network - Chowder - This new episode is called “Dinner Theater Parts 1 & 2.”

5:30pm on Cartoon Network - Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack - This new episode is called “Candy Cruise Blues/Fish Heads.”

6pm on Cartoon Network - Total Drama Action - This new episode is called “Riot on the Set.”

6:30pm on Cartoon Network - 6teen - This new episode is called “The Slow and the Even-Tempered.”

Friday, June 26, 2009

5pm on Disney Channel - Princess Protection Program - This is the premiere of Disney Channel’s latest original movie.

5pm on Cartoon Network - Secret Saturdays - This new episode is called “Food of the Giants.”

5pm on Nickelodeon - Penguins of Madagascar - This new episode is called “Mort Unbound/Roomies.”

6pm on Cartoon Network - Star Wars The Clone Wars - This new episode is called “Cloak of Darkness.”

6:40pm on Disney Chanel - Wizards of Waverly Place - This new episode is called “Paint by Committee.”

Saturday, June 27, 2009

5:30am on Disney Channel - Handy Manny: This new episode is called “The Good, the Bad, the Handy.”

7am on CW - Yu-gi-oh 5Ds: This new episode is called “Dark Signs Part 2.”

8am on Cartoon Network - Bakugan Battle Brawlers: This new episode is called “What’s the Plan?”

11:30am on CW - Huntik: This new episode is called “The Bookshop Hunter.”

5pm on Nickelodeon - iCarly: This new episode is called “iMust Have Locker 239.”

5pm on Cartoon Network - BrainRush

5:30pm on Cartoon Network - Destroy Build Destroy: This new episode is called “Crane Wreck: Surfers vs. Techies.”

5:30pm on Nickelodeon - True Jackson, VP: This new episode is called “The Wedding.”

Sunday, June 28, 2009

5:40pm on Disney Channel - JONAS: This new episode is called “That Ding You Do.”

Do not forget to comment and get an entry in our June 2009 Comment Contest and have a chance to win a TV on DVD.

Tomorrow, June 20, 2009, is the first Handy Manny Superstar Summer Saturday. This is a special Playhouse Disney line up that consists of a new Handy Manny episode every Saturday through August 8, 2009. Basically Playhouse Disney is celebrating Saturdays throughout the summer with new episodes of Handy Manny. Below is the line up of the new episodes as part of the Handy Manny Superstar Summer Saturdays. The new episodes all first air at 8:30am Eastern Time/7:30am Central Time.

June 20, 2009 - “Danny Starr/Quinceanera”
June 27, 2009 - “The Good, The Bad, The Handy”
July 4, 2009 - “Lyle & Leland Lopart/Blackout on the Block”
July 11, 2009 - “A Day at the Beach/The Party Dress”
July 18, 2009 - “Singing Salon/Manny’s Makeover”
July 25, 2009 - “A Night with Abuelito/Canine Case”
August 1, 2009 - “Saving the Turtles/Abuelito’s Siesta”
August 8, 2009 - “Picture Perfect/Some Assembly Required.”