TV Show Info:
Creators: Larry Schwarz, Ken Katsumoto
Cast: Kurt Csolak, Robbie Sublett, Peter Fernandez, Sahra Mellesse, Carter Jackson, Michal Friedman, Dave Skigen, Michael Sinterniklaas, David “Zen Mansley”
Rating: Not Rated
Studio: Paramount & CBS

Release Info:
Original Air Dates: June 27, 2008-July 11, 2008
Season Air Dates: April 27, 2008-Present
DVD Box Set Release Date: August 12, 2008
Online Availability: Amazon for $42.49
Episodes: Three episodes from the first season of Speed Racer: The Next Generation “The Fast Track I, II and III”

My nickname in high school was Speed Racer. It’s not something I cared to be called one way or another. It also wasn’t because I had exceptional driving skills. I’d be hard pressed to find any person in a power wheelchair not called Speed Racer (or who hadn’t heard someone say to them “Go, Go Speed Racer in their life) who grew up in the 1970s or 1980s. I grew up in the 80s. We all knew of and had watched the original Speed Racer cartoon from the 70s, so it seemed like a fitting nickname.

When I heard that Speed Racer: The Next Generation was being developed by Lionsgate Entertainment for NickToons, I was curious. We’ve seen some successful re-doings of shows from when I grew up such as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and even the Carebears. While these shows just can’t compare to the originals, they are enjoyable as fresh, new interpretations in their ow right. This could go either way, though. Speed Racer: The Next Generation could either be a totally new, hip incarnation or it could totally bomb.

Not surprisingly, I find that I’m not overly fond of Speed Racer: The Next Generation. The animation gets on my nerves more than anything. If they wanted to go modern, they should have gone completely modern. I much prefer the older animation styles of my youth, but times are a-changing and everything is beginning to look digitized. Unfortunately, Speed Racer: The Next Generation suffers from being stuck somewhere between digitized and static animation. It gives the entire animation process a choppy feel. That is, by far, my biggest complaint.

Not far off is the story writing. Speed Racer: The Next Generation is lame. I didn’t laugh once at any of the supposed jokes. I counted down the seconds until the show was over. There are way too many unlikeable or annoying characters (Conor, Jesse, Jared, Annalise). Even Speed Jr. isn’t exactly likable. The dialogue is corny and the entire premise that Speed Racer had two children he’s never seen or met is just ridiculous. The whole premise of Speed Racer disappearing is dumb because nothing or no one could have ever made the original Speed Racer disappear and/or go off into hiding.

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TV Show Info:
Creator: Dan Schneider
Cast: Miranda Cosgrove, Jennette McCurdy, Nathan Kress, Jerry Trainor, Mary Scheer
Rating: G
Studio: Nickelodeon

Release Info:
Original Air Dates: September 8, 2007-Present
Season Air Dates: September 8, 2007-February 23, 2008
DVD Box Set Release Date: September 23, 2008
Online Availability: Amazon for $18.99
Episodes: A variety of 13 episodes (from within the first 16 episodes) from Season One of iCarly

I had to review a screener copy of iCarly when Nickelodeon sent it to us, before the premiere of the show last year. I decided to watch it with my then 12 year old son. It only took one episode for me to realize he loved it and I hated it. The show is annoying, obnoxious and somewhat pretentious. Miranda Cosgrove and her overacting gets on my nerves. Jeanette McCurdy seems to have some comedic ability that is wasted when Miranda tries to overact and Jeanette overcompensates to keep up with her. The only good actors on this show are Nathan Kress and Jerry Trainor.

When Carly and Sam are hosting their show, I seriously think they’re either trying to be game show hosts with their fake smiles and over-exuberant attitudes or they’re just fakey fake actresses. It’s the worst part of iCarly, and considering that’s the main point of the show, it makes me dislike this show. It isn’t necessarily that the writing is bad. Heck, I like Dan Schneider. I have ever since he was on Head of the Class and its clear he’s also the same dude who wrote a Nick show I loved All That. iCarly has the same kind of humor, but the actors ruin the show.

Of course, kids won’t mind. They really don’t pay that much attention to acting. Most of them like over the top acting anyway. My son is now 13. He loves iCarly. It is hilarious to him and if its on television, he always makes me watch it. When it comes down to it, iCarly is one of his favorite shows. I can’t say it’s all negative either because it feeds the needs of technology junkies and makes kids aware of their ability to use technology in this high tech world.

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TV Show Info:
Creators: Michael Dante DiMartino, Bryan Konietzko
Cast: Dee Bradley Baker, Zach Tyler, Mae Whitman, Jack De Sena, Dante Bosco, Mako, Jessie Flower, Grey DeLisle, Olivia Hack, Cricket Leigh
Rating: Not Rated
Studio: Nickelodeon/Paramount Home Video

Release Info:
Original Air Dates: February 21, 2005-July 19, 2008
Season Air Dates: September 21, 2007-July 19, 2008
DVD Box Set Release Date: September 16, 2008
Online Availability: Amazon for $44.99
Episodes:

It’s with a heavy heart that I write this review. I’ve been reviewing Avatar - The Last Airbender since Book 2. I’ve been watching the show just as long. As a lover of great cartoons, Avatar - The Last Airbender was one of my favorite shows. A casualty of the writer’s strike and Nickelodeon fooling around, the third season of Avatar, Book Three, was also the last season of this Emmy-winning series. With the way Nickelodeon pushed the remaining episodes of Avatar - The Last Airbender Book Three under the rug for so long, smushing them together in  a one week long event in July, it’s no surprise the series, which was originally slated for two more seasons, ended.

I can’t say this enough. I love Avatar - The Last Airbender. It’s one of those shows I can enjoy with my kid. Our entire family watched this show together. We had a marathon during that July week in which the last episodes aired. It was sad to see this show go, but there is hope. There is a rumor going around that an animated movie will be made about the series. Hopefully it’s being made to tie up the loose ends. M. Night Shyamalan is also making a live action trilogy of the show. That should prove to be rather interesting based on his past movies.

While this season, especially the end, felt a bit rushed, the overall quality of Avatar - The Last Airbender is on par with the quality of the first two seasons. There are some corny moments, but the humor is part of the show’s charm. While Avatar - The Last Airbender has some violence (the fighting scenes), it’s definitely geared towards a younger audience, so it can be enjoyed by anyone from around the age of 6 or 7 upward until adulthood. I know I’m not the only adult who enjoys this show, so the whole family can really get into this show together.

Avatar - The Last Airbender may have been somewhat predictable at the end, but kids can learn some good moral lessons here. What’s interesting about this season is that it becomes very clear that the main character, Aang, will not compromise his values for anyone or anything. In the eternal battle of good vs. evil, good always prevails, even if it looks like evil is going to win or evil appears to be more powerful. Finally, and most importantly, any person regardless of whether they are good or evil, can change for the better. These are all of the things I’ve learned (and your kids can learn) from Avatar - The Last Airbender.

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TV Show Info:
Writer:John Derevlany
Director:Riccardo Durante
Cast: Mark Rendall, Denise Oliver, Tara Strong, Martin Villafana, Lisa Ng, Julie Lemieux, Kedar Brown, Jason Marsden, Jayne Eastwood, Terry McGurrin
Rating: Not Rated
Studio: Nickelodeon/Paramount

Release Info:
Original Air Dates: June 25, 2007-Present
Season Air Dates: June 25, 2007 – December 24, 2007
DVD Box Set Release Date: August 19, 2008
Online Availability: Amazon for $17.99
Episodes: 13 episodes from Season One

I reviewed Wayside: The Movie last year when it first came to DVD. I had heard buzz about a television show being planned. At the time I wasn’t sure if I was going to be a fan or not. In cases like that, where I am not fond of a cartoon, I usually let my girls decide. If they like it, I will begrudgingly watch it for them, but that doesn’t mean I look forward to the process. However, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that I like Wayside School a lot more than I did the movie version.

The premise of the show is still the same, based on a series of books that offer a unique spin on the classroom environment. Kids really do seem to like this and after giving it a second try I have to admit it’s not a bad show. The main difference between the movie and the show is that many of the voice actors are different. The most noticeable difference is the teacher; Mrs. Jewls is no longer voiced by the talented Kathy Najimy. The new Mrs. Jewls, Julie Lemieux, is equally as amusing, but it would have been nice to see Najimy stick around.

The Wayside School: Season One Plot
Rather than take about the inner workings of the plot, I have decided to offer a plot synopsis for each episode. This gives you, as parents, the chance to see what each show is about and it will help you decide if you feel the show is right for your kids.

“Pull My Pigtail”/”Class Cow”: Dana wants to force Todd to love Maurecia because it’s Valentine’s Day. She plans to make Todd fall in love by having him pull on Maurecia’s ponytail. Next up, Mrs. Jewls is away from class on a faculty retreat and while she’s gone a cow wonders into class! The students assume that it is their substitute teacher and wouldn’t you know it, they end up learning more from the cow than their own teacher!

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TV Show Info:
Creators: Michael Dante DiMartino, Bryan Konietzko
Cast: Dee Bradley Baker, Zach Tyler, Mae Whitman, Jack De Sena, Dante Bosco, Mako, Jessie Flower, Grey DeLisleRating: Not Rated
Studio: Paramount and Nickelodeon

Release Info:
Original Air Dates: February 21, 2005-July 19, 2008
Season Air Dates: July 17, 2008-July 19, 2008
DVD Box Set Release Date: July 29, 2008
Online Availability: Amazon for $11.99
Episodes: Six Episodes from Book 3: Fire, 3.16-3.21

I love the cartoon Avatar: The Last Airbender. I fell in love with this show after I reviewed Avatar: The Last Airbender - The Entire Book Two Collection. I had never seen the Nickelodeon show. It was one of those shows my son had missed watching. Needless to say, it wasn’t long before all of us (Ash, the O.G. Kid (our son) and me) were hooked. Avatar became a mainstay in our household and we quickly caught up on the season we missed by watching reruns on the Nick Toons network. So, when we heard that Avatar was planning three or four more seasons, we were thrilled!

Then the writer’s strike happened. Television was all messed up. Avatar: The Last Airbender had a messed up season. Rather than air the third season all in order, Nickelodeon decided to take a hiatus from the show. It aired reruns of Zoey 101 and Spongebob in its time slot. Needless to say, the hordes of Avatar fans, myself included, were not very happy. Then, to add insult to injury, the last few episodes aired in a one week span, building up to the “ultimate” Avatar, TV movie . Made up of the last four episodes of the season, “Sozin’s Comet” was said to be the last episode of the show…ever.

This was a major disservice to both the series and the fans of the show. Nickelodeon really didn’t seem to care if Avatar aired on the network. Talk of four more seasons ended abruptly and the word on the street is that “Sozin’s Comet” is the last episode to air on Nickelodeon and for the series period. Sure, there are a lot of things that seem to point towards “maybe” an additional season. IMDB would have the series end date as 2008, but the show still shows 2005-????, which is typical for a show that is still in production. The finale didn’t answer some very important questions, specifically, where is Zuko’s mother? There hasn’t seemed to be a formal announcement about the end of the series, and the Nickelodeon advertisements aired during the show had it listed as the series finale, but the announcer on the ads actually called it the “season” finale instead.

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Writers: Various
Directors: Various
Cast: Hal Sparks, Kari Wahlgren, Dannah Feinglass, Maurice LaMarche, Lloyd Sherr, Patrick Warburton, John Dimaggio, Megan Cavanagh
Rating: Not Rated
Studio: Paramount & Nickelodeon
Release Date: June 24, 2008

I was given the opportunity by Nickelodeon to preview the new show, Tak and the Power of Juju before it aired. I liked it then and I still like it now. I’m a fan of Hal Sparks and Kari Wahlgren. Both of them do an excellent job in this series. The show is funny. Adults can get as much humor from Tak and the Power of Juju because the humor in the show is multi-generational. There is something pretty funny in a show that has a 30-something man voicing a young, villager boy. That’s just part of the show’s charm. Villager life is amusingly personified through the majority of slightly dimwitted characters that are a part of the show.

While this isn’t the best comedy show I’ve seen, I will turn it on if I see it is going to be airing. I enjoy the show with my 13 year old son. Even my 4 year old nephew, Lil B, likes Tak. He’s funny. He’s somewhat clueless at times. He always seems to make mistakes, but in the end, everything is usually all right. This is a coming of age cartoon. Older kids will most likely enjoy this, but younger kids will find the humor and silliness in it, as well. Adults will get the subtle parent friendly jokes that will fly over their child’s head, and everyone in the family can enjoy Tak as he learns how to use the power of Juju.

Release Information:
Tak and the Power of Juju is a show that airs on the cable network, Nickelodeon. It is based on the “Tak and the Power of Juju” video game series. The show debuted in its first season on August 31, 2007. Tak and the Power of Juju’s first season ran from August 2007-May 2008. There is talk of a second season though I have no official confirmation on that, as of yet. The first season was comprised of 16 episodes, most of which feature two mini-episodes within them.

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