(no subject)

Summary for The Polka Dot Door From www.imdb.com:

"The show was hosted by two, dreary Ontario civil servants and a series of stuffed animals who neither moved nor spoke -- and yet played the starring roles. Much like the Ontario government.

"Polka Dot Door, like other Ontario government shows such as the Math Patrol, Body Works or Sol, had that unmistakably bland 'do-as-we-say, is-good-for-you-no-questions' taint to it. But in a smiling, artless, stir-up-no-trouble-children way. The Canadian way.

"The hosts never lasted long in their jobs. This timid little children's show would chew them up at an alarming rate.

"Events in each episode were scheduled to the second, like the unionized ministry office TVO is. Our hosts would dutifully read children's stories at an exact time, monitored by a monolithic clock at centre stage. Each day had a different 'theme' and the hosts were forced to march in a small circle, often holding one of the stuffed animals, chanting inspirational songs about the day's theme. Like characters out of a Kafka tale, our civil servants would never leave the pink room or their slavery to the clock and woud babble incoherently about the polka dot door and the world beyond, glimpsed in short filmed sequences where the outside was shown (usually a shoe factory or a farm).

"Periodically, everyone would hallucinate an apparition named 'Polkaroo.' Polkaroo would do mischieveous things like flip up Marigold's skirt, take a crap in the bookcase or hide his stash in Dumpty's pants.

"Incidentally, I saw Dennis (one of the longer-running hosts) in a production of Godspell playing John the Baptist. He was pretty good."

Yep, it's just as I remember it. The same guy wrote a summary for Math Patrol:

"More Ministry of Education Acid Trips

"I think this show, already pretty freaky for a Government of Ontario programme(a giant kangaroo-detective who does sums), would have been much more popular if they had one anti-drug episode. Sidney hotboxes in his Chevy Acadian, tries to calculate pi and loses his goddamned mind.

"As usual I am forced to wonder what became of Sidney. Today, I wander the streets of Toronto expecting him to leap out of a grate and say "if you spared me 25 cents of change, that would be 25 cents of change more than the 40 cents of change I have now. How much change would I have?""

Man... I can't wait for Read All About It. This is going to be fun!

(no subject)

"Read All About It!" kicks butt!

I got the tape today. Wow, the school board is faster than it used to be. Sorry Louise, I watched the first chapter today. I had to see this show! :(

First: It's cheesy. Very cheesy, in a good way. The production values are sorta equal to some Doctor Who episodes. Mind you, the show dates back to the 1970s, so such is to be expected. The look of the show is a little creepy, but somehow it suits the show.

The main reason I wanted to see Read All About It!, other than to let Louise relive her past, was to see Otto and Theta. They didn't let me down! They are sooo cute. Otto is a white typewriter. He's a bit of the snob, looking down on people who don't share his large vocabuarly. He likes big words. ^_^ He also speaks on screen, like Nan-Cy on Prisoners of Gravity. Theta is a computer - on wheels. She speaks aloud, but key words appear on her screen. She can also play video messages. They both use "computer type speak" while talking, using "positive" and "negative" instead of "yes" and "no" and so on. The two make a great little team, combining their sources to help the kids.

Ah yes, the kids. Chris is the straight guy and is backed up by Lynne, a blonde chick, and Sam, a... well, she looks like the geeky girl from Scooby Doo! I was humming the Scooby theme when she appeared. All the kids are about 11 years old.

Cool characters aside, this show has something rare for a children's show: a plot! There's a very strong plot, which makes up for the production values and general cheesiness. Basically, Chris' uncle Derek disappeared seven years before the start of the series. At the start of the show, Chris is given a letter from his uncle's lawyer claiming that Derek has now been presumed dead. In his will, Derek leaves his coach house to Chris. Chris won't fully inherit the place until he's 21, but he's allowed to use the coach house if he can find a good enough reason to do so. Chris and pals go to the coach house, planning to make it a clubhouse. When they arrive, they discover that the place isn't run down, but is in very good shape - the lights still work! After exploring the house, the kids find Otto and Theta and Teddog did rejoice greatly. Theta says the Derek left Chris a message before he disappeared. Theta plays the message, in which Derek explains that there's a huge conspiracy in their sleepy town and if he should fail in stopping it, Chris is to take over and help save Herbertville. He uses the phase "trust no one", after which I fell off my chair laughing. Chris, Sam, and Lynne decide to uncover the conspiracy, ending the first episode. And these episodes are only 15 minutes long! Wow. This is show is amazing.

The school also gave me a teacher's guide. Lots of fun. I'm going to photocopy it. There was a 67 page long novel to go along with this show, but it wasn't included. ;_;

I know some teachers who are getting thank you notes!

One downside: The theme song is the worst thing I've ever heard.