noggin

Most of the time that the TV is on in our house while NJ is awake it is on Noggin, which is a preschool channel that is somehow associated with Nick Jr. I have had plenty of time to critique the shows on Noggin. There are some very good ones and some very bad ones. Golden and I almost completely agree on what the good and bad shows are as well. Thankfully, NJ seems to like the good ones in general the most.

The Good

For something to qualify as good it simply has to not drive me crazy to watch frequently. For example, I am not going to watch Blue's Clues on my own time, but I don't mind watching it with NJ.

Go, Diego, Go

The point of most Diego episodes is to show Diego trying to rescue some animal or get some baby animal to its mother. The stories are ridiculous, but they keep moving, which is huge.

Dora the Explorer

The predecessor to Diego, the Dora episodes are even more ludicrous than the Diego episodes. The other day she was followed by a pack of mail-carrier-chasing chickens. Sane people don't think this stuff up.

Dora is typically trying to get to some party or festival or something of that nature. Again, the story keeps moving, which is essential in preschool programming.

The Backyardigans

I first saw this show in an airport a few years ago and thought it was just a computer animated mutation of Barney. I was very wrong. The idea is that a group of kids play in their back yards and imagine up storylines to act out.

The show is actually probably the best preschool show ever made. I can't imagine a better one. The stories hold my interest and, rather than being ridiculously silly, a lot of the humor tends to be more ironic. The writers of this show are geniuses.

Blue's Clues

This show has been on for a while. The main character pieces together small clues around his house to try to figure out what his dog is doing. This is on the list of good shows mainly because I don't hate watching it.

The Bad

It should be noted that one common bond that in my interpretation of the "bad" shows is that I do not detect much masculine influence in the shows. This is only my interpretation, and it may explain my biases, but the three shows below feel devoid of testosterone.

Little Bear

A year or a year-and-a-half ago Golden pointed out that she could not stand this show. I have to agree. There are two problems with it. First, there never really seems to be a point to whatever the story is for the episode. Second, it appears to have been designed with the express purpose of boring adults. Even the voices for the characters in the show sound bored.

On the flip side, NJ likes to watch this show because it gives him the opportunity to point to animals and state what they are.

Franklin

Franklin is essentially Little Bear, but replace the bear with a turtle and add just a little more plot. This is probably me being more judgmental than I should be because this cartoon looks so much like Little Bear. I really don't like watching it, though.

Max and Ruby

Max is the toddler who can't talk and Ruby is his older nagging sister. She is always trying to do something to get a "Bunny Scouts" badge and he is always doing something that appears to ruin her attempt, but ends up helping her. For me, to watch this show is to grow more and more irritated at the Ruby character. After seeing quite a bit of this show, since it is often on at times when I am home, I'd prefer just to avoid it altogether.

The Ugly

The only reason that this might qualify as ugly is that it appears to encourage kids to not chew their food. In any case, it is the only place this video from Yo! Gabba Gabba fits. Ever since Golden pointed me to it, I have thought this video was hilarious. That could be because I have a twenty-one-month-old and have been watching kids shows for the last year or two.