Bob der Baumeister

I just got addicted to this show just recently, when my 3 year old nephew wanted some Bob the Builder DVD's for Christmas. I watched them just to make sure they played OK............wait.......OK, I was curious too. I thoroughly enjoyed all 3 DVD's I bought. The show isn't preachy but teaches kids the importance of teamwork and getting along. At first I wasn't sure about the "pumpkinhead character" which turned out to be Spud, but he's my favorite character now. Highly recommended for small and big kids alike. I'm not sure I want to part with these DVD';s now, maybe I'll buy my nephew something else for Christmas. No, I'm kidding.

My three year old son has loved Bob the Builder and friends for almost two years. He loves anything with tools, trucks and construction equipment, and this is right at his level. He has been Bob the Builder for Halloween for two years now. He uses the tools, his Bob the Builder fan club hat, and his Bob the Builder boots when he has to "fix" things around the house. He also enjoys the games on the website. Perfect for small ones to play with little assistance. As for the show, the tales and animation are simple enough for little ones, but not too annoying for the parents, too. Now that he is a bit older, we especially enjoy the Bob movies, Knights of Can-a-Lot and A Christmas to Remember. We look forward to more from this crew.

Well let me start by saying this is a great show, if your 3 years old. my nephew could sit for hours watching bob the builder. And quite obviously the last person to make a comment on this show, has got so lost in his childish behaviour (just read his previous comments) , to see that this show is purely for children age 1 to 5.

the show itself is great, the lack of negative emotion between the characters is great for little minds, genereally passing over a happy felling to the young viewer, this is a great kiddies show.

And how couldn't I? This show was like a miracle waiting impatiently to happen. Bob the Builder showed in a majestic way that shows for children don't need to be corny, preachy or shallow for children to appreciate them. All characters are extremely charismatic; I seriously find it impossible to dislike any of them. The stop-motion animation is spectacularly beautiful. But most of all, I think it's the writing that truly makes the show. I don't remember seeing any story that went into a tired, obvious cliché just for the sake of being "educational". The focus is always on the diverse construction jobs - a most interesting and rich subject for children - and on topics like teamwork, cooperation and friendship. The stories are very well thought out. I have to say that several moments of the series are just plain funny, and I actually laughed out loud sometimes.

The characters aren't banal at all. With time, you can pick up some delicate intricacies and twists in their personalities that makes everything very believable. Bob himself, for example, is an extremely competent worker and a friendly guy, but he has his own moments of silliness: he built a cornet for himself once, and got so excited that he played his loud, out-of-tune ramblings all night long (either that or he was acquiring the taste for avantgarde). Other time, he found an old tambourine while cleaning a house's attic, and while playing with it, causes a tiny catastrophe; and while seeking for buried treasure with his metal detector, he broke a water pipe on farmer Pickles's field. Those small things make the series much more believable and palpable than other children's series, and in the end, you surrender and start to believe that marionettes can live a happy, joyous life in perfect harmonies with talking machines. Not everyone can create a series like that, you know.

I honestly recommend this series for everyone. And if you (or your kid) already are a fan, please, don't miss the Album. If you live in the US and are used to the Nickelodeon dubbing, you'll have to conform with the British voices (which I personally prefer). Either way, it's excellent, exciting music.

We first encountered Bob the Builder when my daughter returned from a trip to England with a CD copy of the theme song for my son. We went around singing it for days! When we heard that the program was going to be broadcast on Nickelodeon we were delighted. What a disappointment! Why was it necessary to dub the show into American? It takes away half of the charm. Nobody thought of dubbing Wallace and Gromit.

Our only hope is that eventually there will be a DVD with a choice of English or American soundtracks. Is anyone out there listening?