DVD Review: Save the Wonder Pets!

Full disclosure: I am the father of a three-year-old girl who loves to watch television. Possibly a little too much. And as every parent knows, children's television can be annoying, especially when you've had to watch the same show over and over again. Every now and then, though, a new show comes along that parents can enjoy, too. Wonder Pets! is one of those shows.

Wonder Pets! debuted just over one year ago, and was ranked as the number one preschool program in 2006. Created using "photo-puppetry", a brand new style of animation that uses actual photographs (and occasionally reminds me of Terry Gilliam's animations on Monty Python's Flying Circus), the show also has the distinction of being the first mini-operetta for preschoolers.

In every episode of Wonder Pets! main characters Linny the Guinea Pig, Ming-Ming Duckling, and Turtle Tuck are faced with long-distance travel and high adventure as they are called upon to rescue a baby animal that's in trouble. Recurring themes, both musical and plot-related, have to do with teamwork, friendship, caring for the environment, and persistence.

On April 23 at 11:00 a.m. (ET/PT), Nick Jr. will premiere a brand new special episode of Wonder Pets! called "Save the Wonder Pets!", and the tables will be turned. After traveling all around the world, into space, and even back in time to rescue baby animals, Linny, Tuck, and Ming-Ming deal with a few moments of self-doubt. Do the baby animals remember them after they've been rescued?

Soon enough, the Wonder Pets get to find out. After rescuing a tiny blowfish, they're accidentally swallowed by a humpback whale and cannot help themselves. The blowfish enlists the help of a tiny squid and a seahorse, and by the end of the story, the Wonder Pets know just how much they are appreciated.

Article Author: Eric Friesen

Eric lives in Winnipeg, where most days it is probably not as cold as you think it is.

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