If you let your kids watch TV, you have a really big learning curve to deal with. There are SO MANY SHOWS. Just on PBS you’ve got loads and loads. Sid the Science Kid, Dinosaur Train, Sesame Street, Curious George, Martha Speaks, The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That, etc. etc. etc.
If you get Netflix Instant Streaming, you not only have all those shows to deal with, you have this huge archive of shows you have never heard of anywhere. Shows from other countries, shows that have long since disappeared, and you never quite know what you’re getting into. So I’m sharing a little bit of what we’ve learned.
The Good
Harry the Bunny is a favorite that I’m always happy to let Graham watch. It has short segments, it’s geared towards young children, it addresses simple concepts and the bunny is cute. It’s pretty perfect for 3-year-olds and Graham has taken to repeating it. “Some apples are read and some apples are green!” (It also has him regularly requesting apples and carrots in his lunch. Score.) The makers of Harry also have several other offerings good for the littler folks that still entrance Graham, such as Color Inspirations, Art and Music and Eebee’s Adventures. (The last one is just babies playing. It’s full of great ideas for entertaining babies and toddlers.)
Taratabong: The World of the Meloditties is originally from Italy, and hopefully that explains the unfortunate title. But I find it charming. The characters are all musical instruments who do not talk but play music. It has a single speaking narrator whose voice is not irksome. The stories are short and simple and good for little ones.
Bo on the Go is originally from Canada and it’s basically a better version of Dora. It has all the talk-to-the-tv stuff, but Bo encourages kids to run and jump to give her energy. It’s got fun, fantastic stories but still has enough routine to it that it’s good for the littler set.
The Tolerable
Mighty Machines is another Canadian effort, this one from around 1990 or so, by the looks of it. It is not my favorite of this bunch and I can’t label it as “good,” but it’s perfect for kids with car/train/truck/vehicle/tractor/boat/etc. obsessions. There are annoying voices and such, but if you put it on mute it’s literally just vehicles doing stuff. Buses going down streets. Trains going down tracks.
Angelina Ballerina may have inspired Graham’s pink shoe obsession. While I find it just… I don’t know, weird, there’s not a lot out there featuring dancing mice in tutus. So it definitely fills a niche. There are several different episodes available.
The Bad
Educational doesn’t equal entertaining. The LeapFrog videos (Graham prefers PhonicsFarm, but there are many more) have horrible voices and while they teach lots of letters and numbers and such, I find their songs to be the opposite of catchy and not terribly helpful. It’s hard to say no to education, but there’s got to be a better way.
The Little Engine That Could appears to be a straight-to-video release, at least I hope it is because I would’ve walked out of the theater if I’d paid for it. It doesn’t have the really terrible animation some of these others have, it’s just run of the mill boring, lazy and ugh.
The Wheels on the Bus defies explanation. We turned it on because it’s Graham’s favorite song. And it appeases him because they sing it in each of the 3 episodes. It has pretty low production values (a story with fairies in the 3rd episode appears to be put on by a local dance class, there are sock puppets, the animation is… well, it’s about what I’d put together and I am not talented). And yet it has Roger Daltrey voicing a giant plush dragon. WHY, ROGER, WHY? I would avoid this one if possible because it is like crack for your children and the songs are undeniably catchy. You do not want to find yourself singing them at all hours.
Fireman Sam was tolerable in its old claymation form. But the new horrifically computer animated ones are beyond the pale. It sounds Welsh, and I’d only recommend it if you enjoy annoying red-haired children, fire trucks and listening to Welsh accents.
The Ugly
I am sad to report the existence of a film called Bratz: Super Babyz. I did not turn this on for Graham the first time. But once someone did it now shows up in our Recently Watched queue and Graham has a bizarre thing for it. HATE HATE HATE HATE.
So, I know a lot of you have strong opinions on kid shows on Netflix and I’m sure there’s stuff I haven’t gotten to yet. Share the good and the bad, please!!
My kid loves The Little Engine that Could from Netflix! He asks for it all the time. I put it on ONLY while I’m exercising so that I don’t have to listen or watch it.
Oh yeah, my kid LOVES all these shows. It’s me that’s picky.
My comments are definitely geared more towards parental sanity.
Oh my god, I HATE that Little Engine that Could movie and my 3.5 y.o. LOVES it. I start inadvertently singing the “I Think I Can Song” and then I loathe myself.
I also try so hard to avoid: Thomas the Train, Adventures of Chuck & Friends, Richard Scarrey’s Busytown, and I refuse to even introduce him to Dora.
I actually like Mighty Machines, but it was really a boon to find Linnea in Monet’s Garden and The Red Balloon.
Yes, that awful song!! (Now it’s in my head, too…)
Thomas is a staple around here. I’ve stopped fighting it. But I’m definitely going to have to look up those others. Thanks!
How about Busytown Mysteries? I have a weakness for Lowly Worm (and all things Richard Scarry). Plot is cute, music repetitive yet tolerable and whoever sings the theme song sounds like the guy from Barenaked Ladies.
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I’m putting some of your recommendations in the queue. Beckett loves Mighty Machines and Fireman Sam. I thought Fireman Sam was really annoying until Beckett started playing Fireman Beckett all the time. He even gets faxes with emergencies that he has to go take care of. And I always get to be the chief.
This is not an unusual show, but all of the episodes of Blue’s Clues are on Netflix, and watching Beckett watch Blue’s Clues was so cute. They did that show well. Beckett would do all the dances. He would sing all the songs. He would find the clues. He started calling our couch a “thinkin chair” And he sang “Mail” whenever we saw a mail truck.
After a long and happy relationship with Mighty Machines, Sebastien discovered the “All About” series. Dear God, stay away. It’s tolerable the first time to laugh at Hard Hat Harry and his sidekicks’ ridiculous 80′s outfits, but then oh so painful the next 80 times. And I’ll never understand the appeal of the older Thomas the Train episodes. They totally put me to sleep so I don’t get how they hold the attention of a 3yo!
We don’t have Netflix but…
Fireman Sam & Angelina are regulars on Sprout – Fireman Sam is on in the mornings (used to be on a lot on weekend mornings, but now they have worse stuff). I don’t mind it so much, although it’s insanely predictable. Angelina is on in the afternoon (used to be on in the evening & they replaced it with 64 Zoo Lane, which my son loves the song for). Angelina replaced Kipper & I will never forgive Sprout for that…moving on!
I kinda like the Little Engine that Could movie – they showed it on Sprout a few times as a special – I think it’s pretty well done – if it’s the same one I’m thinking. But the nightmare train is a little scary for my kid.
I still do everything I can to avoid Barney – but he seems to always be on when there is absolutely nothing on that my son wants to watch & he really wants to leave it on. Why? Why?
We had a Dora obsession going on here for a couple weeks – it was nonstop Dora – but only a few episodes, over & over again. I had those songs stuck in my head nonstop for days. Now he only likes 2 of the episodes & rarely requests them. He actually asked to see Dora after seeing a commercial for it – he’d never seen it before, but his EI teachers had Dora-related toys, so there you go.
My kids can’t stand the new fireman Sam in cgi. They are all mad about it. Roary the racing car bugs me too…that may just be on demand but I thought I saw it on Netflix too.
My biggest irritation was Fishtronaut. It’s a fish in an astronaut helmet. On land. With a monkey and a girl sidekick. My son was obsessed. We watch episode after episode. It was HORRIBLE.
I HATE Roary – he used to be on Sprout early in the mornings. It’s WAY too loud, that awful song – and there was a toy car commercial that went with it too all the time. So glad it’s not on anymore.
I love Word World (on Hulu) and Daph loves Wallace and Gromit, although the situations in W&G are pretty serious (murder, sheep wrangling, etc.) Pingu totally cracks me up makes Daphne laugh out loud.
I dislike Curious George because his messes stress me out. Francis is super cute, but I think she gave Daphne some bad ideas about avoiding going to bed. I’ve tried really hard to prevent my kids from getting too obsessed with any one show and I can’t even contemplate Dora or anyone that annoys me before I even “meet” them.
Great list! Haven’t heard of most of these. I don’t find “Fireman Sam” THAT annoying except for the one shrieky mom who’s prone to histrionics. Ugh.
You forgot “Thomas the Train” in the Bad list. Those trains are EVIL and mean and horrid.
PS I love this line: “..there’s not a lot out there featuring dancing mice in tutus. So it definitely fills a niche. ”
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I love love love Dinosaur Train on PBS. like, i’d watch it even if bubba was down for his nap. :-X don’t know if it’s on Netflix though!
Bubba also loved SuperWhy, and I did too for a while. Then i realized that EVERYTHING was a “Super big problem!!!!!!!!!!!!” and that is basically just teaching kids to make a big deal out of the tiniest thing. Ah well.
Both Dinosaur Train and Super Why are on Netflix Instant. (Graham always makes us watch the same Dinosaur Train Christmas episode.)
I have the same gripe about SuperWhy. I always want to say, “Is it REALLY a super-big problem, Wyatt? I think your perspective is skewed.”