All Rise...

Judge David Johnson got kicked off of the animal show for public drunkenness.

The Charge

The world's first animal talk show.

The Case

From the Jim Henson Company, a quirky kids show from the early '90s about animals, by animals, featuring animal footage.

Your hosts for the festivities are Stinky the Skunk and Jake the Polar Bear, a pair of real cards! Each show features Stinky and Jake taking their host desk, trading playful barbs, and bantering with their co-hosts, one of whom is a bird with a blank stare.

Onto the meat of the show, where Stinky and Jake welcome an animal (also in puppet form) to the set and they discuss all kinds of interesting factoids about said animal like diet, habitat, foot speed and any other info you'd find in your typical issue of Ranger Rick. Interspersed with these live-action puppet interview segments is a boatload of documentary footage from the field. The result is live-action puppet interview segments and a boatload of documentary footage.

Five episodes on the disc:
• "Zebra and Lion"
• "Tiger and Tiger Beetle"
• "Raccoon and Polar Bear"
• "Grizzly Bear and Hedgehog"
• "Chimpanzee and Hyena"

This is fun little series that sports the requisite Henson charm. Stinky and Jake are fun characters, well-orchestrated and the beneficiaries of some snappy writing. The various animal guests (there are more than one per show) are also great examples of creativity and puppetry.

There you go, an oldie but a goodie and a nifty choice for young children interested in the animal kingdom. The DVD is no frills, full frame, 2.0 stereo, with no extras.

The Verdict

Not Guilty.

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