DVD Review - The Snow Fort

Got this from Netflix.com and my kids love it! They didn't want to watch anything else for several days.

Just like It's Great to Be a Ghost, The Snow Fort has four episodes.

• The Snow Fort - While Ski Patrol members Tasha and Uniqua try to rescue them, Mounties Pablo and Tyrone defend the snow fort against what they think is the girls' attempt to steal the giant snowball.
  
• The Yeti - Tasha, Uniqua and Tyrone track Yeti Pablo.
  
• Knights are Brave and Strong - Queen Tasha sends Uniqua to deliver an important message to King Austin. Pablo and Tyrone join in her quest to become a knight.
  
• Secret Mission - Description

There weren't as many Special Features as before, but they are much better. There are two music videos, Ski Patrol to the Rescue and The Yeti Stomp, and a Previews section which advertises miscellaneous Dora the Explorer, Blue's Room and My Little Pony videos. The music videos are not just clipped straight from the episode where the characters are singing. They show several bits from the episode, tied together by an overarching theme. The Ski Patrol video shows the girls skiing, interspersed with clips from the episode; The Yeti Stomp video focuses on Pablo, with occasional shots of the other three characters that are in that episode.

You can play the DVD in English or French. You can Play All, which will play each of the episodes and then automatically restart through the entire thing, or choose one episode at a time, which will not automatically start again upon finishing. Leave it too long on the menu page (15 seconds) and it will automatically go into Play All.

This is very good video, a must have if you are looking to build up a Backyardigans collection and an excellent choice if you only want one Backyardigans DVD. If I had to choose between this and It's Great to Be a Ghost, I'd choose The Snow Fort.

No, really, I mean it. I really, really am back, this time.

First it was my wrist, and carpal tunnel syndrome.

Now it's my knee and a sprain.

That'll teach me to take the kids sledding.

So I've been laid up for way too long, spending all my time on the couch and feeding my family things like pizza and tv dinners. And even that hurt. Do you have any idea how much you use the muscles around your knee, even just to shift position when you're sitting down?

By this point I am completely out of the rhythm of blogging, so bear with me, please, while I get back into the habit of posting regularly.

Meanwhile, I'll be posting my long-promised review of The Snow Fort, today.

Honest, I will!

Trivia - Snacktime

"We've got the whole wide world in our yard to explore, now it's time to have a snack, see you next time when we're back, with your friends the Backyardigans."

Ah, but what snack are Uniqua, Tasha, Austin, Pablo and Tyrone going to have? Here's a complete list of the episodes so far and the snacks the Backyardigans have at the end of the episode, as far as we know at least. Special thanks to Backyardiganteen, who did most of the work in putting this together!

• Knights Are Brave and Strong - Pretzels and juice, at Uniqua's house (Ben notes: Tasha is the one that offered the snack, right? Why did they go to Uniqua’s house instead of Tasha’s?)
• The Yeti - Hot chocolate, at Uniqua's house
• Pirate Treasure - Not specified, at Uniqua's house
• The Heart of the Jungle - Pretzels, at Uniqua's house
• Secret Mission - Brownies, at Uniqua's house
• Riding the Range - Cookies, at Pablo's house
• The Key to the Nile - Cheese, crackers and apple juice, at Tasha's house
• The Snow Fort - Not specified, at Tyrone's house
• It's Great to Be a Ghost - Apples, at Pablo's house
• Viking Voyage - Graham crackers, at Uniqua's house
• The Quest for the Flying Rock - Waffles, at Tyrone's house
• Surf's Up - Grilled cheese, at Pablo's house
• Race to the Tower of Power - Granola bars, at Tyrone's house
• Castaways - Applesauce, at Uniqua's house
• Cave Party - Cinnamon toast, at Pablo's house
• High Tea - Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches, at Pablo's house (Thanks to Grandpa Phil for this information.)
• Eureka! - Graham Crackers, at Uniqua's house
• Polka Palace Party - Strawberries, at Uniqua's house
• Race Around the World - Chocolate Chip Cookies, at Uniqua's house (Thanks to Grandpa Phil for this information.)
  
• Monster Detectives - Celery with hummus, at Tyrone's house

Brownie points to the first person to post in comments about a noticeable oddity here! Hint: His name starts with an "A".

Backyardigans radio

Want to listen to Backyardigans music but don't have your Backyardigans music CD? You can listen to many of the songs online!

Just go to Nick Jr., and click on the Nick Jr. Playtime link on the upper left side of the screen. This will open another window. Click on the red radio on the upper right, then click on either arrow until you see a picture of the Backyardigans. Click on that picture and you'll be hearing songs from the episodes right away!

Sorry for being gone!

I haven't been well, which is why I've mostly been offline the last couple of weeks. I hope none of you have given up on me coming back!

I'm working on a review of the Snow Fort DVD. I'll get that up as soon as possible.

Trivia - Who is Where?

So you're only interested in episodes that have Austin? Upset that Tasha doesn't seem to be getting her fair share of screen time? Well, here's a list of which Backyardigans are in each episode.

Episodes with all five Backyardigans:

• The Key to the Nile
• Knights Are Brave and Strong
• Cave People
• Race Around the World
• High Tea
  

Episodes with four of the Backyardigans:

• Pirate Treasure - Uniqua, Austin, Pablo and Tyrone
  
• Yeti - Pablo, Tyrone, Tasha and Uniqua
  
• The Heart of the Jungle - Tyrone, Pablo, Austin and Uniqua
• The Snow Fort - Pablo, Tyrone, Uniqua and Tasha
• It's Great to Be a Ghost - Tyrone, Pablo, Uniqua and Tasha
• Riding the Range - Tyrone, Uniqua, Pablo and Austin
  
• Viking Voyage - Pablo, Tyrone, Uniqua and Tasha
• Castaways - Uniqua, Tyrone, Pablo and Austin
• Race to the Tower of Power - Uniqua, Austin, Tyrone and Pablo
• The Quest for the Flying Rock - Uniqua, Tasha, Tyrone and Pablo
• Polka Palace Party - Tyrone, Uniqua, Pablo and Austin
• Surf's Up - Pablo, Tyrone, Uniqua and Austin
• Eureka! - Tyrone, Pablo, Tasha and Uniqua

Episodes with only three Backyardigans:

• Secret Mission - Uniqua, Pablo, Tyrone
  
• Monster Detectives - Pablo, Uniqua and Tyrone

It wasn't until I sat down and starting counting that I realized that Pablo, Uniqua and Tyrone are in every episode. Austin and Tasha are the two that trade off when there are less than all five Backyardigans. Of the 20 episodes so far, Austin is in 12 and Tasha is in 11.

Mommy, Mommy, I'm playing with the Backyardigans!

Interesting - just saw an ad for this at Amazon and I was very startled:

Backyardigans Make Your Own Little Golden Book (Make Your Own LGB) (Hardcover)

Now, this isn't available until next July, but it really got my attention. Could this be a book you could put your child's name in? One of those type of books that they can read it and see their name as being one of the Backyardigan's friends?

Wouldn't that be cool?