Go Diego Go! The Iguana Sing-a-long. Out today. (****4/10)
After Dora The Explorer: Catch The Stars threw me for a total loop, I was a little resistant to the idea of watching her spin-off show, Go Diego Go! I am not sure whether it’s a genuine spin-off, it may well just be the same show created by the same people and animated by the same people and written by the same people. Basically, it is the exact same show. Diego is just Dora with a different haircut. It attempts to teach kids the same things that Dora does. Spanish, and…other stuff. But Dora comes off as merely a near-sighted explorer, which means that all I have to do while watching her show is point out the things she can’t see for her damn self.
With Diego, there is a lot more work involved. I have to crawl to make otters crawl. I have to jump to make them jump. I have to duck to avoid a mudball. I have to sing in Spanish to make a llama go up a hill. All of which means that Diego episodes have even less actual story than Dora, but far more participation. I’m not really helping Diego the way I help Dora, but rather I’m simply mimicking his actions. Which is way more work and far less rewarding. Adding more filler and less story to Diego is a series of supporting characters who each have their own theme songs. Like his backpack. It can rescue him from any situation, but first it sings a very long and obnoxious theme song. I guess assuming that he will not be caught by the puma in the meantime. Dora has a map that does the same thing, but at least it’s theme song is kinda catchy.
One more thing. Diego is constantly extolling the virtues of playing outside, being active, and reading books. What kind of TV marketing genius came up with that one? If kids read books and play outside, they aren’t watching TV! Your show is on TV! That’s just bad marketing. Go Diego Go: The Iguana Sing-A-Long comes out Tuesday, July 29th, from Paramount Home Entertainment.