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Magic Cellar

  • Is it age appropriate?

    About our ratings

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    Not age appropriate for kids under 4, age appropriate for kids over 6; suggested age 6.
  • Is it any good?

    4.0
  • Common Sense says

    Folktales come alive in engaging African series.

Why We Rated This on for Ages 6 and Up

The good stuff

  • Messages:

    Multicultural characters (African, Caucasian, Indian, and Asian) and traditional African folk tales combine to promote positive messages about patience, sharing, honesty, interpersonal relationships, and more. One character stutters, but it's never cause for teasing from his friends. Another boy occasionally bullies his peers, but through the folktales he learns respect and compassion.
 

What to watch out for

  • Violence & scariness:

    Minor injuries like bumps or nosebleeds are said to result from falls, but they're not shown. In at least one of the traditional stories, a character dies.
  • Sexy stuff:

    Storylines occasionally call for brief kisses between folk tale characters, who are played by kids.
  • Language:

    Not an issue.
  • Consumerism:

    Not an issue.
  • Drinking, drugs, & smoking:

    In one tale, a man dies after falling victim to the devil's plan to get him to smoke a pipe. From then on, his death reminds others of the dangers of smoking.
 

What Parents Need to Know

About Magic Cellar

Parents need to know that this imaginative animated series exposes kids to African folktales that are acted out by a multicultural group of characters. The show celebrates the oral history that's central to African traditions and draws parallels between the tribal stories and scenarios that kids will relate to, like disputes among friends and feeling let down by a parent. Lessons in patience, generosity, fairness, and honesty are central to this worthwhile series. At least one tale includes a death, but no violence is shown on screen. Characters kiss briefly when acting out some tales.

Did this review help you decide?

Families Can Talk About

  • Families can talk about the show's messages. What lessons does it teach? Are those lessons easier -- or more fun -- to learn because of the folktale format? Families can also discuss what we can learn from the stories of our elders. Kids: What stories have your parents or grandparents told you about their lives and experiences? Could you relate to what they were saying? What lessons did they pass on to you? This series will encourage storytelling between parents and kids, as well as discussions about different cultures.

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Most Recent Reviews

  1. Adult Reviewer
    Lives in Oklahoma
    I rate this title iffy for age 5 and give it 3.0

    African tales? Awesome! Animation? Awful!

    I love ancient stories, and stories from other cultures are no exception. African stories, i've found, are generally kinder towards women than other cultures, so i'm all for these stories. But the animation makes me want to vomit, and the voice-acting makes my head explode. Seriously, i think only dogs can hear Pula's voice. But who knows? Maybe it'll take off and they'll get some funding for an actual animation studio and some real voice actors!

  2. Adult Reviewer
    Lives in Texas
    I rate this title off for age 5 and give it 0.0

    I was MAD

    No problem with other episodes as I was trying on this new show for size with my six year old son. Also I understand the concept of existing folktales revamped Though I found no actual folktale based on the episode "The Devil's Trick?? And African people smoke natural tabaccos throughout history commonly? The episode portrayed a man being tricked by the Devil to smoke and then becoming ill and reduced to smoke/ashes (don't know exactly visually how to describe, read about the conclusion as I changed the channel due to my outrage) My husband and I have both sucessfully quite smoking and we have discussed the issue with our son. The real consequences of smoking are lung cancer, other diseases and unhealthy environment BUT that has nothing to do with religion or the Devil himself! This connects morality with the choice to smoke and is unfair to parents who do smoke and /or are not religious or express their faith in different ways. BAD CHOICE!

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