Wu Di Lu Zhan Dui

When it comes to Asian animated shows appearing in a high profile US channel, most of those shows come from Japan. But whoever thought about a show from China also making it? That is the case for Deer Squad which is extraordinary.

The show centers on a deer quartet who have powers based on the classic elements in Chinese tradition. Kai has water powers, and is a bit of techno wizard. Rammy has sun powers, and is the athletic one. Bobbi has earth powers, and is the little kid of the group. And we have Lola who has wood powers (I have yet to figure what kind of character she has.).

The show has some inspiration from shows like Paw Patrol, and Captain Planet and the Planeteers. But it's still cute and adorable. With regards to the choice of animals used as the protagonists, you can thank Santa Claus for that.

How many more of these Paw Patrol clones is Nickelodeon going to make/license? At this point, Top Wing, Rainbow Rangers and now Deer Squad are all one and the same, and are nothing of substance.

What can I say about this that I haven't already said for other shows? The characters yet again have little personality beyond being nice and heroic. Lola in particular is the generic girl. Being a girl isn't a personality trait, and assuming that it is is actually misogynist in and of itself.

Sir Steel is the worst. He's supposed to be a self-centered entrepreneur, which could make for a good critique of capitalism but Steel comes off as extremely annoying and petulant rather than funny. It doesn't help that his voice is awful to listen to. It might even give you a headache like it did me.

There are better shows you can watch besides this. I still think that if the makers of shows like this don't want to treat young kids with respect, they should just make shows for older audiences with more action and character depth. This could actually be a cool show if it was reworked into an action-comedy show with streamlined, slick animation (such as The Spectacular Spider-Man).

This show basically came out of nowhere like Kinderwood and I don't really have good things to say as a first impression. It looks like Paw Patrol's Mighty Pups mixed with the Avatar franchise but in the modern era put together for preschoolers.

To be honest, this is just another cash grab from Nickelodeon. Even if it's an Asian animated show, the show really looks like some money making show from Nick.

I'll redo the review after I really watch it but for now, it doesn't look too good especially in televised ratings.