Color Crew
Simple toddler series teaches colors through repetition.
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A Lot or a Little?
The parents' guide to what's in this TV show.
What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that Color Crew encourages kids' familiarity with the names and qualities of basic colors. The unique crayon characters reflect diversity but also inclusion as they join forces to embellish a series of black-and-white scenes. Each segment spotlights the work of one color in particular, giving ample time for viewers' retention through repetition. Even though the show favors conformity over creativity in its color assignments (a yellow sky is promptly erased by a stern-looking eraser, for instance), the end result is visually pleasing for kids. The show's repetitive pace is more likely to appeal to the very youngest of viewers, whom studies show learn best from loving caregivers rather than from watching videos, so that's something for parents to keep in mind.
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Baby first tv is amazing!
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Repetitive, harmless fluff.
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What's the Story?
COLOR CREW stars nine crayons of various hues that fill in a series of black-and-white picture pages as they teach kids the names and appearances of individual colors. Each scenario features the work of one crayon, who fills in his color-appropriate images in the picture before his friends come along to do their part in completing the work. When he colors a section of the page that's not meant for his shade, an eraser appears to undo his mistake before one of his pals takes over.
Is It Any Good?
This simplistic series is geared toward very young toddlers (or even babies) and teaches through lots of repetition that might wear on the parents who tune in. There's no dialogue, save the crayons' constant reminders of their names ("Brown!" "Green!" "Blue!") as they color their parts of the page, and the show's pace is slow and formulaic, all of which maximizes toddlers' retention of the information.
While Color Crew doesn't claim to teach art appreciation, it does follow some notably stringent guidelines regarding the different colors' purposes, which restricts the type of creativity many youngsters enjoy in their own coloring. Here teddy bears are always brown, frogs are always green, and a tennis ball that's shaded brown is quickly erased before yellow "fixes" the problem. This leaves little room for variety or color exploration, but it does reinforce the show's primary focus on basic color recognition.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how colors combine to enhance the world around them. Kids: Which colors do you see in the scenery outside? How do they change with the seasons? Can you find all those colors in your crayon box?
Kids: What job does each crayon perform? If one was missing, how would the overall picture be affected? What unique qualities do you bring to your family's picture?
Families can expand on this show's content by doing their own artwork. Use a variety of colors and blending techniques to create one-of-a-kind pictures with your toddlers. How do colors combine to make new ones? What creative combinations can you make?
TV Details
- Premiere date: January 1, 2012
- Network: Online
- Genre: Kids' Animation
- Topics: Arts and Dance
- TV rating: TV-Y
- Last updated: March 31, 2022
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