Where Recovering Veggie Tales Addicts Can Get Their Fix

The late 90's found me deep in the throes of raising my kids. And because every American kid seems to have a pre-disposed bent toward watching TV, we found ourselves constantly looking for videos (this was pre-DVD) that entertained AND taught some worthwhile values in our home.

Enter Veggie Tales.

Phil Vischer and company did an excellent job of creatively conveying Biblical truth in a way that both parents and children (and even teenagers) could enjoy. If you're not familiar with Bob and Larry, then there is a small but significant hole in your Christian experience. Just imagine taking two parts Sunday School and mixing it with one part Disney, one part Monty Python, and one part vegetable. It has to be experienced. This is one of my favorite "Silly Songs with Larry."

After some complicated business arrangements in the early 2000's, Vischer had to give control of Veggie Tales to others. I'm not sure of all the details, but I know that the quality and freshness of the product suffered during this season.

Now Vischer has formed Jellyfish Labs and has a vision to create video projects that teach children about the power of God's Word. They are just as fun and fresh as the old Veggie Tales, but the content is even more directed at teaching Biblical truth. There are a variety of media on the videos, including live action, animation, and puppets (puppetry was Vischer's original skill...long before digital animation came along).

You can find a review of "What's in the Bible" on the MovieGuide website here. You can also see a promo video featuring Phil Vischer and his vision below.

This just might be the perfect fix for all the struggling Veggie Tales addicts out there.

 

 

Comments

[Michael Jones]

The last couple of VeggieTales videos have been MUCH better. My 2-year-old girl is positively ADDICTED to "Pistachio". The one that came out this past weekend simultaneously exceeds expectations, and disappoints... the stories (which are VERY girly!) are extremely well-written and performed, and the animation is genuine Veggie, but oddly, many of the shots in both segments look unfinished. Have you ever watched one of those "storyboard-to-finished-shot" extras on the DVD of a computer animated show? parts of this video looks like the shots right before the final render, when they still haven't set up the finished lighting and textures. There's even a scene where one of the characters pours punch into a cup... and there's a sound effect, but no punch! Which, oddly, seems to describe the video in a pun sort of way. The sound is great, but the "punch" is lacking because the animation is spotty. It might not bother a little girl at all, but it annoys me the whole time I'm watching.