Los héroes de la ciudad

At first sight, this new Playhouse Disney animated show looks a little bit odd. However, it immediately caught the attention of my very active 2 1/2 year old daughter, Gretchen and my wiggle-worm 1 year old daughter, Heidi.

My daughters absolutely LOVE this new show and can't get enough of it. My 2 1/2 year old is entranced by the bright colors and easy to follow story line, while my 1 year old giggles at all the silly characters. I love it because it teaches them an important lesson and introduces them to interesting professions in every episode.

It's also worth notable mention that the guest stars who lend their voices as "Higglytown Heroes" make it interesting for grown ups to watch with their children too.

Hooray for Higglytown Heroes! This Mom of two toddlers gives this show a double thumbs up! A + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + !!!!!

My 3-year-old liked this show at first. The bright colors and basic shapes are easy to watch for really small children. After a while though, her interest waned and my patience for this show is at an all-time low.

My main complaint is the all-too-obvious attempt to be politically correct. Besides all the family and ethnic stereotypes, all of the unusual or "cool" heroes (astronauts, zoo-keepers, doctors, nuclear physicists) are all women while men fill the more mundane, everyday roles (bakers, gardeners, garbage collectors). I just think it's weird and silly to try so hard.

The other thing that drives me crazy is the animation. The character's arms disappear whenever they are at rest. If you haven't noticed this, keep an eye on their arms. When someone puts their arms at their side, the arm gets sucked into their body and leaves only a hand sitting on the side of the character. It's strange, distracting and makes me think that the animators could have tried to perfect their technology before making hundreds of shows.

All in all, I don't think this is a terrible show, but I don't like it as much as others. I think it teaches kids some valuable lessons (positive thinking, respect for others) but also implies that every kid needs to find an adult or "hero" to solve every single one of life's problems. I"d like to see the kids (or Pizza Guy for heaven's sake!) succeed on their own every once in a while.

My son and I stumbled onto this show one morning and he's been watching it ever since. We watch it twice a day. And seeing its not out on DVD or video we have been recording it so he can watch it throughout the day if he wanted to. I love the concept of the show also. Show's him that there are many heroes in his town. I hope that they will be bringing this out on video soon. I know it will be a hit. I know we will be buying several copies. I've even told friends about it and their children have started watching too. Please Please Please bring this out on DVD/video. Or even some music. I know my son would love that. Again, this is a wonderful concept showing kids what wonderful heroes they have around their neighborhoods.

I love how every episode teaches kids the value of everyday heroes. I also think Wild Brain Entertainment is a good name for this show's production company, as I always found it funny when Twinkle comes up with a silly genius idea for a solution to their problem, but then someone else (usually Fran) tells her one problem with the plan she just drew up, and she says "Aw, pickles."

Now, first a sort of disclaimer: I know this show is meant for young kids, and as a man in my thirties, I am not included in the intended target audience for this show. This comment is written as an adult and a father, and describes my feelings after watching this show on Disney channel for almost two days while staying home with my sick kid.

This show has taken away my good humor. I am now an official hater of Higglytown. The theme song invades your brain, the way the word "hero" is used waters out the very concept of a hero, the babushka-style figures leave a lot to be desired when it comes to exciting animation. But the worst thing is how perfect the world of Higglytown is. Even though I have to agree that it is educational about different types of work, friendship and problem-solving, I get a really sticky feeling in my throat and in my head. It is simply too nice and friendly, and alienates the real world where things are far from this world of perfection.

Now I am really happy that I got out of the house, I couldn't stand much more of the show. I was almost afraid of going postal or to be lulled into a candy-covered pastel world inside my own head. Watching this WITH my kid is out of the question, and that may very well be the worst bit. Because this is the kind of show that kids probably watch alone most of the time. It easily becomes a parent substitute. It gives the kids solutions to everything, and does little to stimulate curiosity and independent thinking. Little of what is learned is applicable to a kids world of problems, and applying the "solutions" to real world problems will probably leave the kids disillusioned and apathic with no thinking on their own.

I would rather watch old, not so politically correct, classic Disney animation movies with my kids, where there is real anger (Donald Duck), playful action and fun quarreling. This means I have to explain stuff to them, and I truly think good parent-kid interaction is much more valuable and educational for the kids than this utopian world of Higglytown.

In the future I will put on my DVDs with classic Disney cartoons instead of the Playhouse Disney channel. For both my sanity and for my kids.