Review: Come on Over!

I am going to be honest.  I have been putting off writing this review. 

I find myself in a very unusual situation.  To put it simply…I don’t know what to say.  I can’t decide if I like these two DVD’s or not!

So, I am going to tell you about them and then hopefully at the end you will be able to come to a conclusion for youself.

According to the publisher, Zondervan, the two DVD’s from the “Come on Over” series – Groovy! and Blast Off! – are created by Emmy Award Winner Joel Tanis and comes from the children’s TV show of the same name.  The mission of the show is to “inspire creativity and imagination in children”.  The primary setting for the videos is an art studio and backyard.  The cast sing, use their imaginataions, create crafts and experience faith-building activities.  Each video containes two 24-minute episodes that model healthy choices and family values. 

So far so good.

Each DVD contains a booklet of suggestions, craft ideas, discussion questions, and prayer suggestions.  These would be great for a church setting or Family Nights with preschool to elementary aged children. 

Great!

But in watching the videos, I wasn’t drawn in.  I got caught up in the actorsand production.  One various songs, the words did not match the movement of the characters’ mouths.  (Big petpeeve of mine!)  It was obvious that the vocals were pretaped.  After a while, the character grated on me and failed to win me over. 

Understand, the message was good.  I love videos that tie God, imagination, moral values, and fun into a nice package.  But, I got really lost in the delivery.

If you are wanting a children’s view…our kiddos really enjoyed the videos.  They watched the entire videos and barely blinked.  Though, they have not asked for the videos again nor talked about the characters. 

In summary, there is nothing inheriantly wrong with the Come On Over! series.  Just not my favorite.  You can see other DVDs that we really enjoy by clicking here. 

Thank you to Zondervan for allowing me to review this product.