Messy Goes to OKIDO
By Polly Conway,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Curious monster asks questions in fun preschool series.
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Messy Goes to OKIDO
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What's the Story?
Based on characters from British kids' magazine OKIDO, this preschool series is all about an inquisitive blue monster named Messy (voiced by comedian Adam Buxton). When Messy has a question, he goes to OKIDO, a town where his human friends Zoe and Felix live. Together, they get help with answers from science experts Zim, Zam, and Zoom. Questions run the gamut from where moon rocks come from to why humans lose their voices.
Is It Any Good?
This fun series is a worthy entry into the "creatures answer kids' questions" genre of preschool TV. The charming, colorful animations blended with live action are a pleasure to watch, and the voice actors are delightful. Messy is very high-energy in a Tigger-type way, starting his journeys with the exclamation "Let's skidoodle, Okidoodle!" Kids will love that his favorite food is green socks, and the bouncy music is lively without being annoying.
Sometimes the learning angles may be confusing for young kids; one episode implies that that moon rocks really are made of cheese (do kids these days even know about this cliche?), but the explanations for how rainfall works and how the voice box works are solid, so it's a mixed bag educationally.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about science. How do scientists find answers that they know are correct? How long does this process take? Have you ever done an experiment and discovered surprising results?
What things is Messy curious about? Why do you think being curious is an important character strength?
TV Details
- Premiere date: January 1, 2015
- Cast: Adam Buxton
- Network: Max
- Genre: Educational
- Topics: STEM, Science and Nature
- Character Strengths: Curiosity
- TV rating: TV-Y
- Last updated: February 28, 2022
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