The Big Comfy Couch

The Big Comfy Couch was on Maryland's PBS when my first daughter was born. A much better show than the kid fare norm.

Not as preachy as Barney, but not as educational as Ses. Street.

Dust Bunnies kill me, and Snicklefrtiz, Major Bedhead, Lunette, and Molly all had us cracking up.

It's too bad shows like this do not have the staying power as those mentioned above.

I did track down some DVD's for my youngest daughter to enjoy.

I find this to be a wonderful show, I can find it on my local PBS station on Saturdays at 8 am. My almost 4 yr old daughter has enjoyed this program since she was under a year old. The should bring it back and try it for another season. It must be good if kids are enjoying it a decade later!!!

Upon perusing some of my, and my daughters' favourite t.v. programmes, I came upon a rather nasty review of The Big Comfy Couch, right here on IMDB. Unfortunately, the writer doesn't "get" the idea behind the show.

First of all, it is a show for TODDLERS! It seems inane to anyone over six, but then, it's not meant for older children, or adults. Do we criticize a Japanese movie for unintelligible dialogue (assuming, of course, that you don't speak Japanese)? Of course not, the film is intended for people who DO speak Japanese and can understand what is going on.

My two year-old daughter loves Big Comfy Couch. It entertains her, and that is what is important. The show's main characters are female, which was unheard of back in my day (in the 50's and 60's the only female characters were the girlfriends of the heroes and played mostly damsel-in-distress roles, like Olive Oyl, or very secondary roles, like Minnie Mouse). So Big Comfy Couch is not especially educational--does everything have to be? Can a two year-old only watch t.v. programmes that educate? Teletubbies (my daughter's favourite show) also is not really big on educating, but my daughter enjoys it anyway. Heck, how much education is in the programmes we watch? Unless you watch nothing but PBS all day, and even they run movies and concerts of questionable educational value.

So, don't worry so much about what your children are learning from a show--sometimes they just need entertainment. And, just for the record, there is plenty of educational value from Big Comfy Couch--when you are two or three years old, just socializing, cleaning up after yourself, sharing, etc. are things you need to learn. If the programme is cute, or fun, children will tune in again tomorrow, and the next day. If the show is not, then what's the point of making it if no one watches after seeing it once?

This is one of my 3 year old daughter's favourite programs, and I gladly encourage her to watch it. It's a cute little show that encourages activity (the "clock" stretch, dancing), storytelling, friendship, etc. while addressing common fears and concerns of small children. I like the Foley family, too! :o)

The actress who portrays Loonette is fantastic. I totally disagree with the poster that thought a woman playing a child is creepy. I'm sorry, but I find Mr. Rogers MUCH more creepy and don't appreciate his condescension towards children. There are also a few jokes that fly over my daughter's head but get me giggling.

Two thumbs up!

It's sad that Allison Court is going to be known more for doing the voice of Jubilee on "X-Men" (yes, that's her!) than for this show, which is one of dozens of promising and solid children's shows that never got enough of a chance to catch on. Maybe in its native Canada it gets more respect, but here on the other side of the falls, an educational show is judged more by how much merchandise it sells than how much children learn from it.

For an adult, the show may look at times silly and cheesy, but to toddlers and pre-schoolers, who these shows are aimed at, it's a show that is at the same time exciting and soothing.