Spirit: Au galop en toute liberté

Perhaps if you've not seen the movie, you would enjoy the Spirit series as much as we do. We like how girls are empowered to be problem solvers even if situations are improbable and often dangerous. Watching the same episodes multiple times does not diminish the excellent characterization. We are thankful the series is continuing.

The horse in Spirit Riding Free is not the same horse as the horse in Spirit Stallion of the Cimarron. The original Spirit was a Dun (Dun stripe down the middle of his back) The Horse in Spirit Riding Free is a Buckskin and has no Dun stripe.

Now. Problem solved. All of you that are so offended can calm down.

More than one horse name Spirit in this world. My son has a Dun horse, colored like the original Spirit because he Loves the Original movie. He also Loves the series too. Not the same story. Not the same horse. Calm down. Enjoy the series. It's good fun and in no way has insulted your favorite of the Spirits.

Also I'd like to point out that the original movie and the series are fictional. Horses do not behave in this manner. I've trained horses for over twenty years. These stories are for kids. They are not real.

This isn't about the movie.

This isn't about frontier history.

It's a stand-alone project for tween girls, and it's excellent. Empowerment, freedom, rising to meet a challenge, humility, courage, empathy, unbreakable friendships and fierce loyalty, responsibility, facing your fears, risking your life for loved ones, family, resisting the pressure to 'conform to the norm, ' admitting mistakes, apologizing and saying, "I'm sorry," childish mistakes not blown out of proportion, willful disobedience dealt with compassionately and straightforwardly, blended family, single parent - a great many situations that tween girls face are modeled and dealt with superbly.

You don't have to like the show. Just quit picking on it for not being what you want it to be. It isn't your show. If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything. Young girls are watching.

No, "Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron" it is not. I can see why fans of the movie are disappointed (offended just screams snowflake to me) and yes, historically it is not accurate in terms of fashion and life in frontier America. There are anachronisms aplenty. BUT it's a children's show about girls who go on adventures with their horses and learn important lessons in friendship and life. Yes the animation is somewhat lazy (limited character types) but I would argue that the storylines are original and interesting. There is humour and some very touching moments too. I really enjoy it as does my 4 year old daughter. And the 3 protagonists represent all kinds of girl, from girly girl to tomboy and all independent, intelligent people who are kind and loyal to their friends with an accurate amount of teenage attitude I'd say. It really doesn't deserve the bad reviews it's getting here! The toys (barbie type dolls) are crap so buy the Playmobil stuff as this is good. Or don't buy the toys and just enjoy a wholesome kids show about young girls and their horses. Just chill out a bit about it!

Sure, this isn't a show for history buffs or die-hard Spirit enthusiasts, but it's a cute and entertaining show for kids. If the horse had any other name I think people could calm down and stop getting so angry that this isn't a "true" depiction of wild horses and their behaviour. The characters' eyes are also bigger than their mouths, so chill out. The show is entertaining and one of the few things I can watch with my toddler and not hate. The characters are sweet, mostly likable and the stories - while far-fetched - are fun and usually have some kind of lesson thrown in.