Parents' Guide to Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum

As an appealing "you can do anything!" adventure cartoon for kids, this animated show is moderately successful, but its tendency to play fast and loose with historical facts is puzzling. The idea of a secret world that lies beneath our ordinary one is a time-honored literary and cinematic setup, so the subterranean museum that Xavier, Yadina, and Brad have discovered beneath a regular science museum is a cool entry point into the trio's adventures. It may even spark imaginative fantasies for young viewers, already seeking Narnia in closets and Platform 9 3/4 in train stations.

But the series' many historical inaccuracies are odd for a show that clearly wants to make history come alive for kids. "Go for it!" is an unlikely motto for Amelia Earhart, who disappeared in 1937, and she certainly didn't complete her solo Atlantic flight as a grade schooler, as Xavier Riddle depicts. George Washington Carver did have a secret garden as a child, in which he learned important lessons that impacted his career in botany, but it's a real stretch to imagine him having to defend plants from renegade soccer players in 19th century Missouri -- and the show seems to overlook his importance as an activist for ex-slaves and champion of sustainable agriculture, instead boiling his messages down to "take care of plants and you'll take care of the earth." Parents who let their kids watch may want to supplement the lessons learned.