The Wonder Pets! - TV Show Review

At the end of each school day, when all of the children have gone home, Linny the Guinea Pig, Ming-Ming Duckling and Turtle Tuck become The Wonder Pets. The three unlikely heroes receive distress calls on a tin-can phone, and they travel the world saving baby animals in trouble. Their musical rescue adventures require problem solving, communication, and above all - team work!

In addition to the curricular emphases, the show also focuses on music. Most of the dialogue between the pets is sung operetta style, and the music is recorded with a live orchestra. The show is animated, but the actual Wonder Pets are animated using photo-puppetry, allowing animators to manipulate photos of real animals to create the characters.

Presented in a unique mini-operetta format, The Wonder Pets! is fun and interesting for preschoolers. The music and musical dialogue, sung by the Wonder Pets in operetta style, complement the compassionate plot lines and spark kids' imaginations.

The characters, created with photo-puppetry, seem rigid and out of place to me, but they really appeal to preschoolers. My only problem with the show, is that Ming-Ming Duckling uses "baby talk." To me, few things are as annoying as my preschooler going around saying "This is seewious!" all day.

If that doesn't bother you, though, The Wonder Pets! entertains children with a cute little musical adventure. The show also seeks to build kids' vocabularies by using a variety of challenging words, emphasizes working together, and exemplifies compassion and helping others.

• Play a game where you and your preschooler sing everything you want to say for a while. This activity engages kids' imaginations and also encourages social development and musical awareness. It can also be hilarious!
• Encourage your child to perform an act of kindness for someone else.