Movie Info:
Writer: Various
Director: Various
Cast: Kim Roberts, Lisa Lennox, Chad McNamara, Jonathan Wexler, John Catucci, Jackie Richardson
Rating: G
Studio: Lionsgate
Release Info:
DVD Release Date: September 9, 2008
Online Availability: Amazon
From all I have seen, parents have either a love or hate relationship with the Doodlebops. I have heard complaints that one of the characters is a homosexual in real life. I have also heard complaints that the show does not offer real educational value. However, despite these claims, which I will address in a moment, small children absolutely adore this show and with good reason!
It is true that Chad McNamara is a homosexual. However, in this instance he is not playing one on television. McNamara plays the role of Rooney Doodle and he does a good job. It should not matter that he identifies as homosexual in his personal life no more than it should matter than Anne Heche kissed Harrison Ford in a movie when she was claiming to be a lesbian. It’s acting. He acts like a character that probably has little to do with his real life. Furthermore, most kids don’t even understand what homosexuality is and even less of them can spot it in a children’s show character that is playing a part, like McNamara is here.
It’s also true that the academic value of Doodlebops is low. However, the creativity value is high. Not only that, but with all the singing and dancing kids are encouraged to get on their feet, which will be good for their health. Kids also learn some type of lesson, a la Barney that may not be educational, but is still important to learn. These lessons vary depending on the episode and range from things like sharing and being a good friend to the importance of being truthful.
I wouldn’t end up watching this all on my own, but with young children it’s an incredibly fun experience. The kids adore the show and dance and sing along with the television. The characters are harmless and good natured, not to mention amusing in many different ways. It makes for a great show for young children.
The Doodlebops: We Love our Friends Plot
There are four episodes on Doodlebops: We Love our Friends . These episodes are all listed below with brief descriptions about each one.
“All By Myself”: Jazzmin has a hard time handling her too long to-do list so she enlists Audio Murphy to help her out. Unlike Jazzmin, Audio Murphy thinks that he can get the list done all alone. It doesn’t take long for him to learn it’s better to ask for help than it is to try and tough it out alone.
“Bring-A-Sound-Arounder”: Rooney invents the Bring-a-Sound-Arounder and it’s a hit. The invention gives you the opportunity to listen to sounds that occur far away. While this invention is great, Rooney isn’t able to hear his friends that are close to him, wishing that he had time to spend with them again.
“The Chicken and the Egg”: Much to the shock of the Doodlebops they learn that the resident chicken is able to answer yes or no questions based on the color of eggs that she lays. This obviously means that the chicken is a genius so they begin to look to her for answers to every question.
“Rhymes with Orange”: Jazzmin is challenged by the Doodlebops to create rhymes for a variety of words. Everyone has a great time until Moe stumps her with the word, orange. When that happens Jazzmin is unable to rhyme anything at all! Everyone has to work together to help Jazzmin get her rhyming skills back.
Storyline/Plot: 
Replayability:
Acting: 
Directing:
Audio/Visual:
Doodlebops is available at a standard 1.33:1 aspect ratio and is viewable in fullscreen mode. This is about average for a children’s show, so it’s not a problem. There are minor instances of fuzz, and slight compression errors but nothing much that the kids noticed and nothing that made viewing a problem. Overall, this was a fair visual presentation. The colors were bright and the kids loved watching it.
The audio is available in Dolby Digital Stereo with Closed Captioning. The songs are vibrant and exciting and the dialogue comes through clear and easy to hear. The levels are well balanced so volume toggling was not necessary. This was a good presentation for both audio and visual presences.
Visual:
Audio:
Bonus Features:
Doodlebops: We Love our Friends offers a couple of bonus features, which is nice because so many children’s DVDs leave bonuses behind. This DVD offers Direct-Play, which is similar to Disney’s Fast Play. Parents can put this DVD into the player and not have to worry about hitting play when the time comes. The DVD will start on its own. So if you happen to be in the other room you won’t have anything to worry about and the kids won’t have to fiddle with the remote.
The other special features aren’t incredibly intensive, but the kids will be sure to love them. Included in the bonuses section are four songs that the kids can sing along with and two dance along songs. These provide plenty of fun and activity for the kids after the episodes are over. While these may not be the kids of bonus features you would expect to see on a standard DVD for young kids they are absolutely perfect.
Bonus Features:
Bottom Line:
Doodlebops: We Love our Friends may not be the most educational show out there, but there tends to be a lesson learned regardless of whether or not it’s an academic one. Young children love the show because it’s high energy and there is plenty of music and dancing to enjoy. The characters may be live action, but they are certainly colorful and animated. This DVD only features four episodes, but would make for a great filler for children that can’t get enough of the show when it’s on television or for parents that want to introduce their children to the show. I wouldn’t recommend this for kids over six, but the small children really do love it.
Overall Rating:
Technorati Tags: DVD Review, Lionsgate, Doodlebops, All by Myself, Bring-A-Sound-Arounder, The Chicken and the Egg, Rhymes and Orange, Jazzmin, Audio Murphy, Rooney, Kids, Music, Dancing
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Kassidy received her degree in Journalism in 2002. She lives in the Midwest with her husband of six years, Jason, their two little girls, Madison (6) and Emma (3), and four month old, Little J (Jason Jr.) . The couple is very excited to welcome their first son. Passions in life for Kassidy include painting, writing, being a Mommy, watching romantic comedies, and dancing.
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