Agent0042

"The Pajanimals" is a series of short-form segments that air nightly on the cable/satellite network PBSKids Sprout. This series is nothing short of sheer brilliance. In each segment, four bedtime friends-- Apollo, Squacky, Cowbella and Sweetpea Sue sing a song that helps them get ready for bed. Issues explored include wanting to stay up at night, missing mom and dad, having scary dreams and getting enough sleep in order to have energy to play the next day.

The "La La Lullaby" song is played every night on Sprout. This song is amazingly soothing. The music can easily lull viewers to sleep, the lyrics are well-written and the visuals perfectly match the song. They play right at the end of "The Goodnight Show," after Nina's signoff. It's a perfect way to end the night.

Other particularly good songs include "Goodnight to Mom" and "How Do I Know When It's Morning Time?" I'll be posting individual reviews for both of them, but "Goodnight to Mom" is precious, while "How Do I Know When It's Morning Time?" is a laugh riot.

The show is visually a treat to look at. It's one the few shows in Sprout presented in widescreen and is filled with detail. The puppets and are very well-designed. There are ten episodes of the show, not including the theme song. I'm hopeful, though, that maybe they'll decide to make the program into a full series with 22 minute episodes. It seems like it could really work. Also, if you look around online, you can find a free video of the show's theme song (which is never aired on Sprout) along with high-quality downloadable images. Episodes of the show are also available to view on Sprout's website.

Disney's "My Friends Tigger & Pooh" is their newest offering in the line of television series featuring the character Winnie the Pooh. For this edition, they've decided to shake things up a bit by making some changes -- doing the show in CGI, adding a new character, Darby (with her dog Buster), and targeting the show squarely at younger preschool audiences. Each idea had the potential to be dangerous if not handled well, Yet, for all the hullabaloo about how Christopher Robin was being "replaced" and the Pooh franchise was being ruined, this show has turned out to be more than a pleasant surprise. It's lively, a lot of fun to watch, and may actually teach its target audience a few things.

Isn't it nice to know that even while some things change, the best things remain the same? Pooh and his friends are still the same old lovable characters they always are. Pooh, Tigger and Darby may now be the Super Sleuths, but in many ways, Pooh is still "a bear of little brain." Roo is endearingly cute, and Lumpy (the wonderful heffalump first seen in "Pooh's Heffalump Movie") livens up the show every time he appears, and is a great friend to Roo.

In each episode, the Super Sleuths are called upon to solve a mystery. There have been some pretty unusual turns, however, and no matter what the outcome, you can count on a lot of fun and humor along the way. Oh, and Christopher Robin isn't gone. He's appeared in two episodes so far, and could easily be back for more. The quality of the animation, and general production in general, is wonderful.

As of the writing of this review, 22 episodes and a Christmas special have been released in the United States. Three more have aired only in other markets, and I look forward to these installments of the show. The program has also been renewed for a second season, and I can't wait to see what new direction it takes. So, in the words of Tigger, "TTFN - Ta ta for now!"

The NBC "Twenty One" revival, as hosted by Maury Povich, was an under-appreciated gem that never should have been canceled, but unfortunately just couldn't muster the ratings.

This version of "Twenty One" was based on the classic "Twenty One," which was the victim of a quiz show scandal featured in the film "Quiz Show." Maury Povich seemed like an odd choice to be tapped as host, but ultimately proved to be an adept emcee.

In each episode, two players were locked in isolation booths so that they would have no idea how their opponent was doing. They would then select a category and then choose to go for a multiple-choice question with a point value from 1-11. Obviously, 1 point questions were ridiculously easy and 11 point questions were rather difficult. The first player to reach 21 was the champion. The first game won was worth $25,000, but returning champions could play for up to 1 million dollars, and keep going! "Twenty One" had truly big money and a fun format. It also had thrilling music, contestants you generally wanted to cheer for and excellent suspense. At the end of two rounds of questions, Maury would ask if either play wanted to stop the game. This often proved to be a wise decision for some players, but backfired in other cases. Generally, a contestant wanted to stop the game if he/she believed there was a good chance their point value was great than their opponents' because when the game was stopped, whoever had the most points would win.

I wouldn't mind seeing this show revived again sometime and I'm thrilled GSN has picked up the repeat rights. This show is as compelling in repeats as it was originally.