Sushi Pack (CBS)

SUSHI PACK chronicles the crime-fighting efforts of a quintet of do-gooders who join forces to combat the nefarious schemes of villains in their hometown. The show's small stars are individual, color-coded pieces of sushi who were brought to life by a freak lightning storm and now make their home in a nearby doughnut shop. Each 11-minute cartoon follows a similar pattern: Somewhere within the Wharf City limits a minor crime ensues, and the fast-acting Sushi Pack quickly pieces together clues to unearth the commonly dimwitted villain. The physical confrontations typically involve some kind of battle, but the fishy friends mostly use their skills in conjuring force fields and fighting fire with hurled handfuls of mustard to ward off their adversaries.

For parents, the good news is that, as action cartoons go, Sushi Pack is light on violence (and devoid of anything realistic) and strives to push strong lessons in each episode. Kids who tune in will see the characters (who, despite their oceanic heritage, look more like Pokemon or PowerPuff Girls characters than fillets of fish) using good communication skills to resolve conflicts among friends, learn to acknowledge and better respect the feelings of others, and cooperate to become a more effective team.

All in all, it's a fun, fantasy-based series that may leave parents wondering about the source of the writers' character inspiration (a bad lunch at Nobu?) but is still likely to entertain kids. Plus, it boasts some solid behind-the-scenes credits; Emmy-winning writers Tom Ruegger and Nicholas Hollander were also behind hits like Animaniacs and Tiny Toons.