Tot TV Watch

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

Sesame Street: Elmo’s World - Summer Vacation: This is a great summertime release for preschoolers. In this DVD Elmo and is pet fish, Dorothy, explore the topics of the beach, skin, and cameras. It also includes all new songs. Run time is about 50 minutes for the main feature on this DVD. I am not sure if or what special features are on this DVD or if the new songs are part of the main feature or special features.

Tak and the Power of Juju: Trouble with Magic: Tak and the Power of Juju makes its DVD debut with this DVD release today. This animated Nickelodeon show is based on the video game of the same name. It is an interesting show, especially for those that have played the game. The plots may not be the best, but the CGI animation is awesome. This DVD contains 8 half-episodes (each regular episode that shows on Nickelodeon is made up of 2 plots, which I am referring to as half-episodes). Again I do not know about what special features this DVD has, but considering this is Nickelodeon I would not expect anything good, as from my experience they have not mastered making good special features, yet. At least they cannot be off theme with the title they chose for this release because basically Tak is always facing problems with magic.

The Berenstain Bears - Fun Lessons to Learn contains 6 episodes of the show based on the famous book series that has entertained generations of kids and helped many learn to read. The show is fun if for kid that like the books, however, they are not quite as good as reading the books.

The first episode is called “Trouble at School,” which is about Brother learning about effectively managing time and making up his schoolwork after missing important math lessons while sick.

The second episode is called “Go To School.” In this episode Sister confronts her fear of starting the third grade.

The third episode is called “The Homework Haste.” This episode involves a similar issue of falling behind in schoolwork as is shown in the first episode on this DVD, however, this time Brother falls behind because he does not manage his time properly and get around to doing his school work.

The fourth episode is called “Lend a Helping Hand.” Brother and Sister learn to help others and discover that it can be an enjoyable thing to help others.

The fifth episode is called “Too Much Pressure.” I think this is an episode many families these days can relate to with getting their schedules overwhelmingly booked. The Bear family tries to minimize their activities in order to reduce their stress and be able to truly enjoy the things they do keep doing.

The sixth episode is called “The Trouble with Pets.” In this episode Brother and Sister learn about caring for a pet when they get a puppy.

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

The Naked Brothers Band: Polar Bears: This DVD contains the TV almost movie length episode “Polar Bears” in the Naked Brothers Band series of TV shows. Overall I think this is a pretty poor TV show, but this is one of the better episodes because it portrays Alex taking a stand to fight global warming, although not sure it is that great of a way to teach kids about protecting the earth we live on, however, it does get fans of this show’s to at least minimally think about the issue of global warming.

Sonic Underground, Vol. 2: Now this is an exciting DVD release this week, at least in my opinion. For one, Sonic is a fun animated show for kids that are into the Sonic the Hedgehog video game series. Also, this DVD release contains 4 discs and over 400 minutes of play, so it offers a good amount of entertainment time, which could come in handy during the summer, especially on a rainy summer day. Nice thing about this series is that many kids have not seen the episodes before since it no longer airs on television.

The Suite Life of Zack and Cody: Lip Synchin’ in the Rain: This is another DVD release of a show I think is good. It contains four episodes of The Suite Life of Zach & Cody, including the “Lip Synchin’ in the Rain” episode about their school putting on its own High School Musical production. It also sounds like it will have some great special features including trivia and a gag reel of never before seen outtakes.

Inspector Gadget – Gadget Files is a nice collection of Inspector Gadget episodes. It contains a total of five episodes. This is a fun way for a new generation of kids to enjoy this wacky inspector’s adventures. It is a kind of funny show with him rarely being the real hero, although, circumstances make him appear to be the hero, but it really is by accident and often it is his niece and dog that are the silent heroes.

The first episode is called “Winter Olympics.” In this episode Inspector Gadget is on vacation at the Winter Olympics and ends up having to stop Dr. Claw from ruining the Olympic Games.

The second episode is called “Monster Lake.” In this episode Inspector Gadget sets out to prove that the Loch Ness monster does note exist as he is on a mission to protect and them save a famous professor.

The third episode is called “Down on the Farm.” In this episode Inspector Gadget ends up in the countryside and on a farm to stop Dr. Claw from using a missile he stole.

The fourth episode is called “Gadget at the Circus.” Inspector Gadget takes on a variety of circus jobs as Dr. Claw tries to bring his demise, however, the Inspector finds a way to avoid danger mostly by accident.

The fifth episode is called “The Amazon.” In this episode Inspector Gadget’s must save the professor that invented his gadgets and stop Dr. Claw’s plan of having a gadget army, but first he has to save himself from an Amazon ritual that is actually Dr. Claw’s plan to ruin Gadget.

Overall this is a fun series of action filled episodes, although the DVD extras are kind of limited. The extras, though, do include a short interview with the creator and the Public Service Announcements about safety related issues in each episode shown.

Curious George - Zoo Night and Other Animal Stories is a great DVD that actually sticks to its theme of animals. These are fun adventures with Curious George the monkey and his curiosity leading to animal themed adventures. This is a good DVD for preschoolers who like Curious George to enjoy when it is not live on television. Plus it is a great option for kids that are particularly into seeing more animals than just the monkey.

In total there are 8 episodes on this DVD. In the first episode called “Zoo Night” several different animals are seen including penguins, but it is the baby panda that is the main featured animal in this episode. Other animals seen in this DVD’s episodes include bunnies in “Curious George’s Bunny Hunt,” a bear in “Bee is for Bear,” pigeons in “Curious George’s Home for Pigeons,” a cat “”From Scratch,” dogs in “Curious George, Dog Counter,” squirrels in “Squirrel for a Day,” and frogs in “Curious George Discovers the ‘Poles.”

Special Features wise this DVD is not too bad. It has two DVD games. One is called Daily Donuts Game and the other is called Magic Numbers Game. It also has some printable coloring pages that can be accessed when you put the DVD into a computer, however, when I tried to get them off the DVD using a Mac I found it quite confusing to find and download them.

Overall I recommend Curious George - Zoo Night & Other Animal Stories as a good DVD release for fans of Curious George because it has a good amount of episodes. Plus it has two decent DVD games as special features, although the coloring special feature is not well incorporated.

Please click button below and rate my blog post.

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

Go Diego Go!: Great Gorilla!: This is another DVD release with episodes of Go, Diego, Go! Not that it is a bad thing, but it just seems that the Go, Diego, Go! Moonlight Rescue DVD came out not too long ago and it is too soon for another Diego DVD. This new DVD release likely contains one double length episode and two regular episodes, which seems to be the norm for this show’s releases. I could not find exact details, though, but I think the Gorilla Fun episode premieres on this DVD.

Kenny The Shark -Catch a Wave Vol. 3: Wow, I did not know this show had any DVD releases, yet, but it apparently does as this is volume 3 (yes, I did just add the first two volumes to my Netflix queue as well as this release). This is a fun Discovery Kids cartoon show with a talking shark that lives on land with a girl. It is not really educational like many other Discovery Kids shows, but it is an appropriate cartoon kids of all ages can enjoy. This DVD has three episodes including one about Father’s Day.

Wonder Pets!: Save The Nursery Rhyme: This is another Nick Jr. show with a new DVD release and yet another one to frustrate me with how hard it is to find any details about the release. How do you expect people to want your product when it comes out if you do not tell them what it is? Anyways, not being a fan of this show at all I honestly did not try as hard to find details of the release as I did for the Go, Diego, Go release. All I figured out was according to the Amazon listing it is about 100 minutes in length, so about 4 episodes maybe.

Please click button below and rate my blog post.

I kept waffling about if VeggieTales counted as a television show, but with the new Indiana Jones movie recently released this VeggieTales parody came to mind as a good one to review on this blog. After looking at the episode list of what VeggieTales DVD stories have aired as part of the VeggieTales shows on NBC and ION I decided this one definitely fits with in with my kid’s tv blog.

VeggieTales - Minnesota Cuke and the Search for Samson’s Hairbrush is a parody of Indiana Jones with Larry the Cucumber playing Minnesota Cuke, who is an Indiana Jones like character. The DVD also contains another VeggieTales story about Junior Asparagus dealing with bullies. The lesson taught in this DVD is about dealing with bullies as God would want you to.

The Minnesota Cuke and the Search for Samson’s Hairbrush parody is one of the most interesting ones done in the VeggieTales series. It has some adventure to it with Minnesota Cuke getting artifacts such as a golden carrot and Samson’s hairbrush for the Moose Lake Children’s Museum.

The silly song on this DVD is “Pizza Angel,” which is also among my favorite of the VeggieTales silly songs. It is Larry the Cucumber singing about wanting his pizza to come as he waits forever for the delivery guy to come.

Besides the great stories that teach kids how to deal with bullies, this DVD also contains a lot of special features. My favorite being the audio commentary, but there are also some fun things for kids such as a Catacomb Game, Worm Pit Family Activity Idea, and Petunia’s Worm recipe.

Please click button below and rate my blog post.

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

Cory in the House - Newt & Improved Edition: This DVD contains three episodes of Cory in the House that have been shown on television before and one never before seen episode of the show. If the new episode is not enough to make this seem worth owning, then consider the fact that it also has special features that go behind the scenes and tell about the making of the never before seen episode.

Degrassi The Next Generation - Season 6: This is a 4 disc DVD collection containing all the episodes of sixth season of the high school drama series. The drama is as intense as ever in this season that includes them losing one of their own.

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe Volume 2: This contains 13 episodes of the remake version of the He-Man cartoon series.

Minutemen: Minutmen is the latest of the Disney Channel Original Movies. It first aired on the Disney Channel earlier this year and now you can own it on DVD. This is a fun movie about some high school kids inventing a time machine and then having to save the world. Not sure if and what special features it has, but if it does at least have some good behind the scenes stuff like they showed as shorts on the Disney Channel before the movie was released it might be worth owning.

Please click button below and rate my blog post.

Bear in the Big Blue House: A Bear for All Seasons is a fun DVD for preschoolers that like Bear in the Big Blue House. Also, since the show is no longer on TV it is a good way to introduce kids to this show who have never seen it before and it is definitely one of those old shows worth showing new generations of preschoolers. The show teaches about different things with its fun plots with fun songs and a lovable big Bear character. The only issue with this particular DVD of Bear in the Big Blue House is that the title implies it covers all four seasons, but it really only ends up covering summer and fall.

The first episode is about summer and is called “Summer Cooler.” The second episode is about fall and is called “Falling for Fall.” The third and final episode is called “All-Weather Bear.” This episode deals with different weather including sunshine and rain, but it in the end seems like another summer episode with them going swimming. It could arguably be classified as a spring episode. One thing is for certain winter is not covered at all on this DVD. Thus while I still think this is a great show and DVD of the show, I think it is important to not be expecting to see all seasons represented as if you then you will be very disappointed as I was.

This DVD also has a nice special feature of Sing Alongs for four of the songs featured in the episodes on this DVD. The songs are “In the Middle of the Summer” from the “Summer Cooler” episode, “Falling for Fall” from the episode of the same name, and “Good Morning” and “Weather” from the “All-Weather Bear” episode.

Please click button below and rate my blog post.

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

Pokemon - Adventures on the Orange Islands Box Set: This box set includes the 36 episodes that are part of the season of Pokemon in which the main characters take on the Orange League. These are the episodes from the original Pokemon series that relate to the time the main characters adventures are set in the Orange Islands. Seems like a great DVD release for old and new Pokemon fans, however, it appears it has absolutely no special features.

The Muppet Show - The Complete Third Season: This DVD collection consists of 4 discs and features the episodes from the 1978-1979 season. This season had many famous guest stars including Roy Rogers, Sylvester Stallone, and Harry Belefonte. It also has bonus features such as a brand new behind-the-scenes documentary and original Muppet commercials.

The Richie Rich/Scooby Doo Hour: The Complete Series, Vol. One: This contains 7 episodes of the Richie Rich/Scooby Doo Hour show. One of the bonus features is a featurette called “Golden Boy: The Story of Richie Rich.” The show is about half Richie Rich and half Scooby Doo shorts. The thing is that the included Scooby Doo shorts are usually not mysteries and only feature Scooby, Shaggy, and Scrappy. While Richie Rich is a good cartoon, the Scooby Doo parts are not even that enjoyable for hardcore Scooby fans.

Please click button below and rate my blog post.

Clifford: Big Fun in the Sun is a good DVD anytime of year for those that like Clifford the Big Red Dog, although it is an even better DVD for the summer. The DVD has two sections of four episodes, which I believe is due to it combining two previous VHS releases, but I am not positive on that. The first section is called Big Fun in the Sun and the second section is called Look Out, Clifford.

The Big Fun in the Sun episodes are “Camping it Up,” “Hooray for Cleo,” “Home is Where the Fun Is,” and “Lights Out.” The first one is obviously about camping and fits in with the summer, as well as spring and fall, which can be good times for camping out, too. The second one is about beach volleyball. The third one really is not much about any particular season with Clifford showing Emily that there are fun things to do on the island. The last one has to do with summer in that it is hot and everyone is staying indoors using too much electricity causing the power to go out. The bigger thing it is about, though, is how you do not need electricity to have fun.

The Look Out, Clifford episodes are “Clifford’s Charm School,” “Best Paw Forward,” “Clifford’s Hiccups,” and “An Itchy Patch.” This is kind of a loosely themed part with them being about things like Clifford trying to no ruin a neighbors party, making a paw print in concrete, Clifford having hiccups, and Clifford having a rash and not wanting to go to the vet.

This DVD also has some great special features. The best features are the Big Idea ones that show a clip from Clifford and then has tips on teaching lessons like playing fairly with some activity ideas.

Please click button below and rate my blog post.

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

Backyardigans: High Flying Adventures: This new release contains 4 episodes of The Backyardigans. The episodes on this DVD are “Fly Girl,” “What’s Bugging You?,” “Who Goes There?,” and “Chichen-Itza Pizza.”

Bob the Builder: The Three Musketrucks: This DVD contains two Bob the Builder episodes. One is the milk truck Dodger arriving in town. The other is about Scrambler, Packer, and Dodger becoming The Three Musketrucks, which is a play on The Three Musketeers.

Curious George - Takes a Vacation & Discovers New Things: This DVD contains seven episodes of Curious George related to going places and discovering new things.

The Land Before Time: Through the Eyes of a Spiketail: This DVD contains 4 episodes of the Land Before Time TV series.

Sesame Street Dinosaurs: This is a Sesame Street DVD movie.

Please click button below and rate my blog post.

Cyberchase - Totally Rad DVD contains three episodes of the PBS Kids Cyberchase animated show. The first episode on this DVD is called “Totally Rad.” This episode teaches the difference between perimeter and area as part of a plot of the kids competing in a skate off against Hacker. The second episode is called “The Borg of the Ring.” In this episode the kids learn about circles as they try to get a special powerful ring away from Hacker. The third episode is called “Fortress of Attitude. In this episode the kids use different objects to make measurements to avoid bobby traps as they try to stop a Hacker statue from broadcasting his voice and trying to get all of Cyberspace to surrender to him.

This DVD is a little short on the amount of episodes it has on it, but it does have some awesome special features. On the normal DVD menu there is a how to draw Digit tutorial that is easy to follow, as well as bloopers from the For Real segment. If you put the DVD into a computer, then you can play three games. Best of all these games even work on a Mac, as long as you have the flash player installed. One of the games is a maze that you follow given directions following colored paths, one is a jigsaw puzzle that requires you to double or halve the pieces to get them to be the right size, and one is a fraction matching game.

Please click button below and rate my blog post.

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

Avatar the Last Airbender - Book 3 Fire, Vol. 3: This new DVD release of Avatar the Last Airbender contains the episodes relating mostly to Aang and the search for the Fire Lord.

Barney: Hi I’m Riff: Riff is the first new dinosaur introduced to the show in over a decade and now he is on DVD with this release. I personally think Barney is still at least a half way decent show for young kids, but the looks of this new dino is kind of more freaky looking than the others.

Doodlebops - Live in Concert: This DVD is of the Doodlebops in concert. It shows the Doodlebops performing 25 of their favorite songs as done in a live concert. Great for those that like the Doodlebops music parts of the show, especially if they cannot actually go to a Doodlebops concert in person.

Thomas & Friends: Mud Glorious Mud: Another Thomas & Friends DVD is being released today. This ever growing series keeps chugging along entertaining kids. This DVD contains three episodes including ones involving mud baths and avalanches.

Speed Racer the Next Generation - The Beginning: This DVD release is of the recent pilot “movie” for the new Speed Racer animated show on Nicktoons. Note that this is replaying this upcoming Friday afternoon (5/9), so hopefully this DVD has some cool special features or else it does not seem worth purchasing.

Please click the button below and rate my blog post.

The Land Before Time: Adventuring in the Mysterious Beyond is one of three DVDs already out (another one is coming out in May 2008) with episodes of the Land Before Time television cartoon series. This cartoon series features kid dinosaurs of different species that are all friends. The show is based on the series of Land Before Time movies, which still has sequels being released almost every year with number 14 coming out later this year. This DVD contains four episodes of the show and has a run time of about an hour and a half.

The first episode is called “The Great Egg Adventure.” In this episode the group of friends team up with one of their enemies to get the sharp tooth eggs out of the Great Valley and keep their home a safe place. he second episode is called “Escape From the Mysterious Beyond.” In this episode two of the dinosaur friends including the friendly sharp tooth, Chomper, get stuck on a ledge with a mean sharp tooth who wants to eat them. The third episode is called “The Lonely Journey.” In this episode Chomper feels left out as his vegetarian friends prepare for the Thanksgiving like holiday and the adult plant eaters make general remarks against sharp tooths. The fourth episode is called “The Hermit of Black Rock.” In this episode the flying friend of the group, Petri, and a glider get lost and befriend a blind flying dinosaur and work together to get back to the Great Valley.

This show is a great entertaining show about dinosaurs that work together and display how the bonds of friendship should be. The shows are still played often on Cartoon Network, so it really is not a must get for the shows, however, I do recommend this DVD because it has some good special features. The main special feature is a pattern game that challenges kids to pick the next egg that goes in the pattern. It really does a great job of being challenging on the harder version and I bet even some adults will need to take some time to figure a few of the patterns out. Also, if you put the DVD in a DVD-ROM you can get access to coloring pages and connect-the-dot pages to print out.