Pingu

This is it. We have surpassed all other forms of human entertainment. This claymation penguin has tapped into a well of pure art that will never run dry. This is your life. And it will never, Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeverrr, be the same, again.

Who doesn't like watching clay penguins running around talking random gibberish for 5 minutes? Even though the show is only 5 minutes an episode and half of the time you don't understand a thing that is coming out of the mouths of these funny little creatures it gets the message through to you, the message that not everything need to make sense to be brilliant. There is pretty much no plot but has the characters of the show and every episode creates some whacky scenario for Pingu. Scenarios vary from fishing (which is where he meets Robbie the seal), the dreaming about a very disturbing walrus that made me cry as a child. Pingu is lots of fun to watch especially if you aren't looking for something intelligent to watch. The older I still love this show.

All my kids like Pingu, from the 7-year-old down to the 2-year-old, and I have to admit to watching it when the kids aren't even home. It's humorous and innocent, the characters are endearing, and the fact that the characters don't speak any language -- the dialogue is in "Penguinese" -- means that they convey their stories wholly with action, vocal inflection and body language. This is extremely intriguing.

Pingu is refreshingly unlike all the mainstream toddlers' programs out there, which are either excruciatingly heartwarming, unbearably didactic or just plain inane. It's a bit hard to find; at this point we're only able to get it from Time Warner On Demand cable. There are some DVDs available too. But if you have young kids, do check it out. The whole family will enjoy it.

Netflix has its share of undiscovered foreign offerings (YouTube also knows a thing or two about dark corners), but "Pingu" is worth the dice roll. I love the dialogue (even though I have no idea how they come up with that wonderful gibberish language) and the claymation has its own physically comedic charm. I'm a cynical adult and I can watch this with my kid any time of the day, which is not something I'd say often about children's TV. There's surprising entertainment value in hearing a clay penguin squeal, "Noot Noot!". Thirty years old, and it's still fresh.

I love this stuff.

8/10

The very idea that there are a few comments here which deride the educational and artistic merit of "Pingu" leads me to believe that the writers did not watch the programs very carefully. The first thing that struck me about "Pingu" was that the program was intelligent and subversively educational. That is to say that it teaches without being obvious. In fact, in some ways it feels very un-PC, which is great because it feels much more genuine that most of the muck posing as "educational programming" or "children's programming" these days. What we deal with here are real emotions and situations that children encounter through play and family life. There is no fear of bringing in sadness, distress, jealousy, selfishness or recklessness into the mix whether in terms of Pingu's actions or the affects of his actions on others, and the show does not shy away from showing that even if he is a good-natured penguin he is still capable of being a real pill sometimes. In short, it is not syrupy but it is definitely sweet and more satisfying than the sugar coated nonsense that fills most of the television bandwidth.

Educationally, "Pingu" is loaded to the gills with social lessons that are all the more impressive for not being preachy. Perhaps this is why some people miss them, since we are used to smothering our kids with the obvious, but that heavy-handedness often results in a rebellious rejection to what is being shoved down a child's throat and the more subversive nature of "Pingu" makes it even more brilliant. Beyond that, "Pingu" serves as a remarkable language / communication tool that teaches more about language and expression than any other show I have seen without ever using real "words" in the process. Infants and toddlers can understand the interactions without the speaking, which may in turn make it easier for them to work on their own communication skills. I am constantly impressed by the range of emotion conveyed by the characters, as simple as much of it is.

Artistically, the program is genius. The animation is whimsical and fun and always inventive. And because of the level of intelligence and the lack of condescension it truly rises above mere entertainment. As an adult, I find it refreshing to see a program that does not speak down to me, does not pander to its "intended" audience, and leaves me satisfied after every viewing.