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Parents' Guide to

Madagascar: A Little Wild

By Melissa Camacho, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 5+

Lively, movie-inspired series has lots of positive messages.

TV Hulu , Peacock Kids' Animation 2020
Madagascar: A Little Wild Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this TV show.

Community Reviews

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age 8+

Based on 3 parent reviews

Azman A.
Azman A. Parent of 10-year-old
June 26, 2023
age 4+

START LIKING MADAGASCAR A LITTLE WILD NOW!

As a huge fan of the Madagascar Film Franchise, I was looking forward to watching this show, when it’s first been announced. After watching the first episode ever created called The Bear Necessities. I began my adventurous journey into the world of Madagascar A Little Wild (MALW.) It was pretty fun to watch, quite a bunch of funny bits and highlights added. I enjoyed my time with the Fab Four. (which are the main 4 of Madagascar, when they are younger.) Plot: Like all who land in New York, the young residents of the Central Park Zoo have big dreams and big plans in a celebration of being yourself and never giving up, Alex, Marty, Gloria and Melman sneak out from the zoo and into the city to achieve their goals with abandon, no matter the size. This show will give you no choice but to "Move It Move It." Do you know what is the best thing about this show? Just like Phineas and Ferb, there is a song in every episode. Everybody got singing voices that are talented. The most soulful one I heard comes from Shaylin B playing my favourite character, Gloria Good Stuff about MALW: MALW is surely one of my favourite musical animated series. The most awesome thing about this are the amazing songs. Some people on YouTube rant on MALW and called the songs a piece of trash. Imma Keep Trying, Just Dust It Off, MALW Theme Song, Shine. HOW ARE THERE TRASH????? The graphics are the best, The choreography of the songs are magnificent and each episode is way more exciting then the last. Is it safe to watch, you ask? Well it is safe to watch for kids, however there is this one episode called “Whatever Floats Your Float.” which is about LGBT and a Nonbinary Okapi is added into this episode. (I hate this episode, because Pride Month is prohibited in my religion.) But, for me when this episode played. I always skipped this episode or change to another channel. As this is considered illegal to watch in my personal point of view. There are some quick bander, some humors and sad moments added their too and easy situations to fix up. To conclude I give this show a 5/5 star rating. My call is to stream it, no matter how many people hated it.
Lebron45James6
Lebron45James6 Adult
September 18, 2022
age 18+

Terrible Wild Kratts rip off!

This is garbage, don't watch if you want to stay sane! Only watch it to see how bad it is. This show is basically like Wild Kratts but with the Madagascar animals. This show copied Wild Kratts and has too much product placement. Don’t watch this, it’s extremely terrible.
See all 3 parent reviews

What's the Story?

MADAGASCAR: A LITTLE WILD, an offshoot of the popular Madagascar franchise, is an animated series about the now-famous residents of New York's Central Park Zoo when they were young. Alex (Tucker Chandler) is a lion cub who likes hanging out with his best mammal Marty (Amir O'Neil) in the zoo's rescue habitat. Also joining them is Melman (Luke Lowe) a giraffe who loves cleanliness, and Gloria (Shalylin Becton) a hippo who loves to dance. When their not under the watchful eyes of Kate (Jasmine Gatewood), their keeper, they like venturing out into the city with the help of Dave and Pickle (Candace Kozak), two monkeys who use American Sign Language to communicate. Also helping them during their adventures is the talkative pigeon Ant'eny (Eric Peterson) and Sergeant Hoof (D'avine Joy Randolph), a ranger horse.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (3 ):
Kids say (4 ):

This colorful and lively series features younger and more innocent characters made popular by Dreamworks' Madagascar. Despite their youth, the original crew of animals feel familiar, even if they aren't voiced by the same actors. But the introduction of the cheeky signing monkeys, who control the exit points to the habitat, makes for a fun and interesting twist. And of course, much of the excitement comes from the gang's attempt move inconspicuously throughout the city, despite the fact that they're zoo animals on the loose in Manhattan.

Like its parent movies, Madagascar: A Little Wild focuses on friendship as well as adventure. There's also some quick banter and dry humor. But they replace the crude humor and innuendo present in the movies with consistent, positive messages about being yourself, not giving up, and being willing to pursue your dreams. The upbeat musical numbers are fun, too.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about some of the positive messages Madagascar: A Little Wild contains. Why is it important to be ourselves? What about having a special dream or goal? What if people think that your dreams are silly or unachievable?

  • How do the younger versions of Alex, Marty, Melman, and Gloria compare to their older selves? Do they behave the way you imagined them to behave?

TV Details

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

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