Harry and His Bucketful of Dinosaurs - TV-Y
Common Sense Note
Parents need to know that Harry is a kid who sometimes gets discouraged by being small and relatively powerless and takes comfort in the strengths of his dinosaur friends. It's a nice message, although it's not very powerfully conveyed. Some jokes are cultural references that will sail over the head of target viewers.
Families can talk about what it's like to be the smallest and youngest in a family or any situation. Why do the dinosaurs help Harry feel better? What can Harry do to help himself?
Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: KJ Dell'Antonia
HARRY AND HIS BUCKETFUL OF DINOSAURS, based on the books written by Ian Whybrow and illustrated by Adrian Reynolds, is sweet, innocuous fare for the 6-and-under crowd. It's not particularly clever, but it's cute, and it holds the attention of younger kids, especially those already fascinated by dinos.
In every episode Harry (voiced by Andrew Chalmers), overwhelmed by the pressures of being the smallest and youngest in his family, turns to his small toy dinosaurs for comfort. If he leaps into their bucket, he enters "Dinoworld," where the dinosaurs are closer to life sized and anything he imagines can happen.
There are no striking lessons here, and little narrative complexity. The dinosaur characters aren't particularly well delineated, and the human characters are pretty flat. But it's harmless, and if your kids enjoy it, it certainly won't hurt them to watch.
Kids who like the idea of traveling into worlds created by their imagination may also enjoy Maggie and the Ferocious Beast and Harold and the Purple Crayon.
Rate It!
| Content | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CS | adults | kids | ||
Sexual Content |
||||
Violence |
||||
Language |
||||
Message |
||||
Social BehaviorHarry's dinosaurs help him cope with being the youngest in his family and encourage good behavior (most of the time). |
||||
Commercialism |
||||
Drug/Alcohol/Tobacco |
||||

DVD