Kid Explorer

Kid Explorer episodes are 8-minute long, easily digestible history lessons that are specifically tailored for children 6 and up. Hosted by a young and charismatic Broadcast Cal, children learn a little bit about everything from Abraham Lincoln to the history of basketball.

Created and produced by obvious overachievers Elizabeth Fulcher Bubba Fulcher, who also happen to be Cal’s parents, Kid Explorer boasts a tastefully decorated set that adds to the fun atmosphere, but where the program truly shines is its host and creative cutaways. Both manage just the right amount of vim to keep young ones engaged and information to give them something to think about, all while artfully avoiding the seizure-inducing strobe effect of most modern children’s offerings.

Oftentimes, children performers can seem either stilted and amateurish or uncomfortably mature (think a young Haley Joel Osment), making for programs that only the least discerning of children can enjoy. However, Broadcast Cal has just the right mix of youthful exuberance and professional polish.

Although it is billed as a program for children 6 and up, I parked my 4, 6, 10, and 13-year-olds in front of several episodes, and all of them found them to be engaging and interesting, though for different reasons. My son enjoyed discovering that Abraham Lincoln had been a fierce and competent wrestler, while my daughters were shocked by the evolution of the telephone. To be honest, I rather enjoyed the episode about fighter jets myself.

All in all, while no single program is sufficient to warrant recommending an entire paid site or paid app by itself, Kid Explorer is one of many programs that make Bentkey Worth it.

WOKE ELEMENTS

None whatsoever.

Ratings Disclaimer

With an overall score of 95%, obviously, we think very highly of this program. However, it is important to remember that we are rating it within the context of what it is, an 8-minute children’s program. Clearly, we don’t think that its narrative is on par with Saving Private Ryan, etc.

The post Kid Explorer first appeared on Worth it or Woke.

Chip Chilla

Chip Chilla is a delightful cartoon series about a homeschool family of chinchillas and the adventures they have while teaching and learning valuable lessons. Harkening back to a time when children’s stories were as much about teaching practical and wholesome life lessons as they were entertainment, Chip Chilla is entertaining enough to have my two-year-old son (who only ever wants to watch Paw Patrol and classic Justice Friends cartoons) asking for more.

Whereas many of today’s offerings for small children fall into one of two categories: bright colors and loud noises with no substance or redeeming qualities or bright colors and loud noises with a heaping side of Woke indoctrination, Chip Chilla separates and elevates itself in virtually every respect.

It’s on par with any of the current mainstream two-dimensional animated children’s programs in both production quality and design. Its color palette is rich without being overbearing, and its animation is smooth and pleasing to the eye instead of seizure-inducing. It’s very reminiscent of the popular children’s cartoon Bluey, except you don’t have to worry that the next episode is the one in which Disney will squeeze its “not-so-secret gay agenda” down your child’s throat.

In the 24+ hours since Bentkey’s public release, a few aspersions have been cast at Chip Chilla. Specifically, that it is too reminiscent of Bluey. However, for those critics, we have but two words: Berenstain Bears. For as long as there have been ideas, there have been those who hold similar ones. What matters is what’s done with them.

What most sets Chip Chilla apart from other conservative-leaning cartoons of its type are the writing and voice talents. Often, conservative, especially religious, cartoons will suffer significantly from the shallow talent pool available to them. That said, Bentkey’s flagship toon features none other than recently uncloseted conservative-leaning (i.e., not insane) comedian Rob Schneider, as the titular character’s father, Chum Chum, as well as a host of talented, if unknown voice actor, and Chip Chilla’s vocals are as solid as its animation. Each performer breathes life into their respective character, and the animators are blessedly up to the challenge of giving that breath commensurate physicality.

Further differentiating itself from other mainstream offerings, and probably its most important distinction, are the lessons it teaches. Where Dora The Explorer treats your children like they will never have the capacity to wipe themselves clean, and countless cartoon series exist for no other purpose than to teach the alphabet, Chip Chilla acknowledges that boys learn differently than girls and that the application of science can be energetic and fun, or that you’re not always going to be the best at everything but you can be the best at something, and that hard work (rather than an unwarranted belief in oneself) is the key to achievement.

If we have one criticism of the show, it is that 8 minutes per episode isn’t enough. While there’s no arguing that it makes for a tightly woven program with no fat on it, it would be nice to see it paired with a sister program (e.g., Garfield and Friends).

ROLE MODELS IN CHIP CHILLA

Chip’s mom and dad are loving, thoughtful, and deeply engaged in their children’s lives. They also model traditional gender roles for their children, offering a level of stability that is sorely lacking in many modern homes.

WOKE ELEMENTS

Chip Chilla is the nega-woke.

The post Chip Chilla first appeared on Worth it or Woke.

A Wonderful Day with Mabel Maclay (S1: E1 & 2)

Normally, I try to avoid writing reviews in the first person. It looks less professional and makes me a part of the story, which is antithetical to writing with objectivity. However, I’m breaking this rule with some of this article for two reasons. First, I find The Daily Wire’s venture into children’s programming deeply personal.

I have a small army of school-aged children, and my wife and I are constantly struggling to find appropriate and engaging programming that won’t turn them into blue-haired vagina hat-wearing lunatics willing to sacrifice their sexual organs for Instagram likes. They are the reason that I launched Worth it or Woke nine months ago and have been living on three hours of sleep and 5-Hour Energy (I figure that equals 8 hours) ever since, as I watch hours of programming, write reviews, try to build our social media presence, create new products for our store, all while I run my other full-time small business.

Second, this particular program, A Wonderful Day with Mabel Maclay, is purpose-built to appeal to small children, making my perspective on it virtually irrelevant, except to give any warnings to my fellow parents, should they be warranted.

As luck would have it, our youngest children (ages 9 – 2) were home sick today (luck has a sense of humor dunnit?) and were happy to be drafted to watch TV with their daddy. Therefore, a goodly portion of this review revolves around my observations of them and what they thought.

Let’s start with what I can comfortably comment on. The production design is absolutely top-tier and is easily on par with anything coming out of PBS, etc. The colors pop without being loud and busy, and the 1950’s-sheek meets 2023-traditional aesthetic, along with some loving attention to detail, gives the eye plenty to look at. All of this aids in making Mabel Maclay feel like an established property.

The general vibe of the program has heavy notes of Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood combined with the vibrance of Barney and Friends (minus the soul-sucking sappiness) and just enough originality to give it potential. With a mixture of creative animation, special guests, and her puppet sidekick Jasper, Mabel and her friends teach life lessons about creativity, being intellectually curious, etc.

Like those mentioned above, the success of this show will likely fall squarely on the shoulders of its characters. Jasper, a puppet dog with a twangy Southern accent and lovable disposition, is impressively voiced by Rickey Boyd, who has done voice work for Sesame Street and more.

The show’s lead, Mabel Maclay, is played by its co-creator and writer, Katy Chase. Without a doubt, Chase looks the part. She is attractive yet reserved and modest and has a warm and inviting smile. Unfortunately, she often seems uncomfortable, regularly making halfhearted and awkward arm gestures while occasionally running out of steam mid-sentence, making her performance inconsistent and lethargic when dynamism is needed.

That said, there is something to be said for slowing things down and not making this another hyperfrenetic ADD-inducing montage of colors and sounds, and there was a marked improvement between Chase’s performance and energy level in the pilot and the second episode. Furthermore, a quick Google search shows that both she and her co-creator husband have an extensive IMPROV background. This leads me to believe that she will come along nicely once Chase better defines the character and spends more time in her shoes.

No one cares, James. Tell us what your kids thought.

The Daily Wire provided us with the first two episodes today, and the six of us sat down for a back-to-back viewing.

My first observation was that all five of them were engaged and, more importantly, silent throughout both episodes. Even the 9-year-old boy, who later told me that he thought it was “a little bit more for little kids,” sat and watched without fidgeting while the littlest among them were excitedly responding to questions being asked by the host.

As a general consensus, my children liked the program and specifically enjoyed all of the major points of interest it presented (e.g., Jasper, the Masterpiece Machine, storytime, and especially the boat-car). Since I love my children and they aren’t Amish-like entertainment-deprived kids like those of Matt Walsh, who likely feared that the black box on the wall was about to steal their souls when it was turned on for the first time yesterday, this is high praise indeed.

Summary

A Wonderful Day with Mabel Maclay is a pleasant children’s program. If I have one criticism, it would be that the “lessons” could stand to be better focused and a wee bit more poignant or of more practical value. However, it’s very early in the show’s run, and it has all of the components it needs to grow and mature for us to mark it as Worth it as it is, with the caveat that it’s Worth it for children five and under.

WOKE ELEMENTS

It was such an unmitigated relief to know that there would be no attempts to indoctrinate my children into radical Leftism, Marxism, or the Church of LGBTQRSTUV.

The post A Wonderful Day with Mabel Maclay (season 1) first appeared on Worth it or Woke.