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JoJo's Circus: Take a Bow! DVD Review
Every morning, the Disney Channel's Playhouse Disney programming block brings delight in the form of educational entertainment to preschoolers around the country. One of its most popular shows, JoJo's Circus, has never been released on DVD...until now. Its protagonist and
namesake is JoJo Tickle, a curious little girl who just happens to be a
clown. As such, her home, a world depicted with colorful stop-animation
that seems to intentionally resemble the look and texture of Play-Doh,
is called Circus Town. It therefore seems appropriate that one of the
first two installments of the series on DVD centers around episodes
dealing prominently with JoJo's circus-related adventures. JoJo's Circus: Take a Bow! does just that.
Along with her pet lion, Goliath, JoJo makes her way around school
and other places in Circus Town wandering aloud about such things as
thinking skills, physical activities, and moral lessons. The plotlines are
loosely constructed to allow room for exploration of concepts, as well
as interactivity. In fact, JoJo often asks the audience questions and
pauses to give them time to respond. This pace likely enables the show
to create one of the more responsive environments in preschool
entertainment.
Each episode is set to a lively soundtrack and features a catchy
song-and-dance number. To sum up the lessons learned, JoJo herself
reflects on the knowledge she's gained at the end of each episode.
The DVD consists of four episodes, each circus-themed and running
around 11 minutes in duration (routinely aired in back-to-back fifteen
minute time slots on the Disney Channel). "Easy As Pie" and "Take a Bow"
were originally broadcast together and they are a nice inclusion as
they made up the "pilot" airing, so to speak. "JoJo on the Tightrope" is
not presented with the episode it originally aired beside, which is fine
as this disc doesn't strive to be part of a complete collection. "Happy
Hoppy Day" is a previously unseen episode that is exclusive to this
DVD.
In between each episode, JoJo (and sometimes Goliath) speaks
directly to the audience in order to establish a theme that bridges the
previous episode with the upcoming one. All four episodes, these
interstitials, and the opening sequence and end credits amount to a total feature
running time of about 49 minutes.
"Easy As Pie"
"Take A Bow"
"JoJo On The Tightrope"
"Happy Hoppy Day"
VIDEO and AUDIO
Video and audio quality are great and both appear to be without
fault. The style of JoJo's Circus's animation lends itself to a few
oohs and ahhs and that translates well to the DVD. The audio track
isn't exactly overwhelming, but there's nothing wrong with it and for a
morning preschool television series, it's extremely adequate.
The show is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.33:1 and
features a basic Dolby Surround Sound track.
BONUS FEATURES
While it's certainly not "chock-full," the DVD does sport a
surprising amount of enjoyable bonus features for a release of its type. The
most prominent is an episode of Higglytown Heroes, which airs on
Playhouse Disney in fifteen minute time slots much like JoJo's
Circus. This particular episode is entitled "Havin' A Ball," and while
it's not specifically related to JoJo's Circus or the circus in
general, it is a likeable short. The plot can't be made to sound too
rousing: the children (which are uniquely CGI-animated Russian Matrioshka
dolls) play with a brand new ball! Still, I found this episode to be the
most enjoyable of the entire disc and the series seems like a charming
one.
Next up is yet another installment of the Disney DVD
Disneypedia series, "Going To The Circus" (a different title than the one
listed on the case). This presentation of Disneypedia is a bit
different, though, in that it comes in the form of a game. By watching
mini-featurettes on various animals and performers that make up a traditional
circus (interwoven with clips from the show), you help JoJo and her
friends set up the circus. The game draws out the featurette but makes for
an interesting way to present informative footage and is sure to please
children. Of course the duration depends on the speed with which you
play the game, but it can easily last nearly ten minutes.
The final bonus feature comes in the form of DVD-ROM and is
advertised on the DVD. By inserting the disc into your computer, you'll gain
access to five printable coloring pages from JoJo's Circus.
The disc launches with sneak peeks at Pooh's Heffalump Movie,
Little Einstein, and the second wave of the Disney Princess DVD
line. The Sneak Peeks menu adds looks at Bear in the Big Blue
House, Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch, future Pooh-related
installments of Disney Learning Adventures, and JoJo's Circus
(the series itself) on Playhouse Disney.
MENUS and PACKAGING
The menus are all very snazzy and the main menu makes use of lively
animation, rotating clips from the show, and the theme song. The less
active but still aesthetically pleasing sub-menus are set to music as
well.
The DVD is equipped with Disney's FastPlay, which celebrates the
olden days of VHS by preserving its restrictive spirit on DVD. If left
unattended, your DVD will automatically launch the FastPlay system from
the get-go and play most of what you'd probably want to see without ever
requiring input from the user. To bypass FastPlay, simply hit the menu
button.
An enclosed coupon booklet offers $2 savings on JoJo's Circus
and "Here Come The ABCs" CDs as well as DVD releases of Disney Learning
Adventures, the Disney Princess line, and Bear in the Big Blue
House. The flyer also promotes Pooh's Heffalump Movie and
Little Einstein. A scene selections insert is also included.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
JoJo's Circus probably isn't the best series of its ilk, but
it certainly isn't among the worst. Overall it seems to be
well-intentioned and successful. The animation is appealing, the lessons are valid,
and the delivery is applaudable. It's unlikely that an older audience
will find it to their liking but children will likely love it and
parents probably won't mind watching this one with them as much as they would
others.
The DVD doesn't really leave one with any complaints. For a
preschool television series, the content and presentation seems surprisingly
satisfactory. Though the series isn't quite as educational as some, the
Disneypedia bonus feature is a nice balance. Therefore, the disc
earns a recommendation for those shopping for its intended audience.
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Related Items
JoJo's Circus Soundtrack
Easy-to-Read JoJo's Circus Books: #1 - My Name is JoJo, #2 - Clown School
JoJo's Circus: Twist and Turn - Big Crayon Book to Color (with Crayons)
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