Super Why!: Jack and the Beanstalk & Other Story Book Adventures

One of the newer shows in the PBS kids lineup is also one of their best from both educational and entertainment standpoints. Super Why! follows the adventures of four Super Reader friends who band together to solve storybook puzzles based on familiar titles such as “Little Red Riding Hood”. Although the show is only two years old, it has garnered significant recognition such as the Parents’ Choice Silver Honor Award and National Parenting Center Seal of Approval and was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Preschool Children’s Series. It’s presented in an appealing format that will allow discerning parents to happily join in the viewing experience, unlike some other painful shows out there (I’m looking at you, Dora).

Each episode opens with the star character, a little boy named Whyatt, encountering a problem that needs solving with the help of his three friends: Alpha Pig with Alphabet Power, Wonder Red with Word Power, Princess Presto with Spelling Power. Whyatt, aka Super Why, has his own Power to Read and the characters frequently address the viewer for assistance as well, making your child Super YOU with the Power to Help. The four friends have their own vehicles called Why Flyers that allow them to enter the storybook of their choice where they interact with the characters while searching for Super Letters to help them solve the word puzzle of the day which also ties into the problem resolution.

The presentation of the program really shines, as it’s rendered in a colorful widescreen CG world that really pops in HD. It doesn’t feel like a cut-rate production in any way, and in fact can go toe-to-toe with the best of anything else on Nick Jr. or the Disney Channel. The character designs are well done and the vocal talent is perfectly matched to their animated avatars.

The best part is the show’s strong emphasis on reading comprehension, as it constantly asks children to spell out the letters they find and compare the differences that happen when the characters change key letters in words, then replace those words in sentences. While it’s geared toward children in the 3-6 age range, younger children can also join in the fun as the show moves at a forgiving pace that allows even the youngest viewers to grasp the gist of the adventures. Nick Jr. and Disney may boast of shows that promote positive social values, but Super Why! is one of those far too rare shows that actually packs in some core educational content, dovetailing nicely with fellow PBS stalwart Sesame Street.

The new DVD, which is the first widespread US DVD release for the show, contains four full half-hour episodes: Jack and the Beanstalk, Princess and the Pea, The Three Little Pigs, and Little Red Riding Hood. In addition to the episodes, the DVD includes Interactive Games, Music Videos, Printable Activities and Coloring Pages, and Resources for Parents. The extras are largely inconsequential, but the episodes are entertaining and well worth repeat viewing. Super Why!: Jack and the Beanstalk & Other Story Book Adventures is now available on DVD.

Jakers! Treasure Hunt on Raloo Farm

Jakers! hasn’t made much of an impression on the US public, which is really a shame because it’s a great children’s show with extraordinary production values. It doesn’t garner much attention in its PBS home, and it hasn’t been mass-marketed with a multitude of product tie-ins, just a few books and DVDs including this new release. As opposed to its more manic kin on the likes of Nick Jr. and The Disney Channel, its pace is a bit slower, a bit sweeter, and hence maybe a bit more in tune with tv’s golden age than modern standards. That’s not to say it’s outmoded or irrelevant, in fact its high-gloss CGI presentation puts its animation quality fully on par with the likes of The Backyardigans, Pororo and My Friends Tigger and Pooh, nearly approaching Pixar quality.

The show has a framing device that opens each episode in present times where a grandpa pig recounts the tales of his youth in rural Ireland to his three grandchildren, usually imparting some seeds of wisdom that offer them educational insight. The framing device gives way to the adventures of grandpa as a young pig named Piggley Winks, along with his sister Molly and his friends Ferny the cow and Dannan the duck. The show’s principal setting in the lush Irish countryside of the 1950s gives it a warmth and depth that just couldn’t be possible in its introductory urban environment, and provides added appeal to parents and grandparents who might wish to share a bit of the flavor of their own rural past with their urban descendants.

In addition to his adventures with his friends, Piggley’s life on Raloo Farm also brings him into frequent contact with Wiley the sheep, a comic character always up to some new mischief. Wiley’s misadventures aren’t always directly related to Piggley’s, which exposes an amusing flaw in the show’s structure (how are we witnessing Wiley’s tales in grandpa’s flashbacks if Piggley wasn’t there?), but also offers opportunity for some Looney Tunes-inspired hilarity honed to perfection by the stellar vocal casting of the legendary Mel Brooks.

The new DVD includes four full episodes. In “Treasure Hunt”, the gang have so much fun following a set of clues left by Piggley’s dad that they don’t realize they’re completing their farm chores until they reach their treasure. In “Our Dragon’s Egg”, the friends find a mysterious egg and learn to take care of it while theorizing about its contents. In “Dannan Does a Jig”, Dannan learns that natural dancing prowess isn’t hereditary but also doesn’t affect the unconditional love of her relatives. Finally, in “Growing Pains”, Piggley learns that being grown-up isn’t all it’s cracked up to be when he’s called to step into his injured father’s shoes. All four episodes are charming and worthwhile family viewing, although I preferred “Treasure Hunt” purely for its instructional value to me as future plans for my own child.

The DVD’s special features include live-action segments that air during the PBS broadcasts, where real grandparents share educational stories of their youth and different storytellers entertain a group of children via various techniques such as freestyle hip-hop and mime. The DVD also includes a fun read-along Piggley tale that allows young viewers to turn virtual pages with the remote while the story is being told onscreen.

Jakers! Treasure Hunt on Raloo Farm is available on DVD on February 19th, 2008. For additional information about the show, visit www.pbskids.org/jakers.