Posted: 09/22/2011

Bob Lends a Helping Hand

(2011)

by Caress Thirus

This title will be released on DVD on October 18th, 2011

Veggie Tales has been around for years, and it’s just one of those things you know is going to last for a while. In a few years, the program will have been around long enough for parents who grew up on it to introduce it to their children, if it hasn’t been around that long already. Bob Lends a Helping Hand teaches viewers the benefits of helping and sharing through two stories: Big River Rush and Lyle the Kindly Viking.

Veggie Tales is adorable, even down to the blooper reel and the newly renovated theme song, which had the same lyrics but was sung by new characters. Clips of more recent episodes were included in the theme song, too.

The show is heartwarming. It’s familiar enough for kids, but it’s not too repetitive. Anyone can enjoy time spent with Bob and Larry. Bob’s wisdom along with Larry’s silliness produces a combo that has worked wonders for years.

In Big River Rush, “Huckleberry Larry” and “Tomato Sawyer” help their new found friend Big Jim find his way to St. Louis so he can sing with his mama at the fair. Clark Wayne, a Mark Twain-esque character, narrates the story, playing his banjo as he leads the audience down the Mississippi River.

Lyle the Kindly Viking tells the clever story of a Viking who doesn’t fit in with the others, because he likes to give things back to the monks in the villages that are plundered by the mean Vikings. It’s an older story, but its lesson is still relevant and the story is still fun.
The creativity, culture, and silliness of this show is ingenious, and it’s what keeps the show going. Kids don’t even realize they’re being fed facts about tax refunds and historical tales as they sing catchy songs with the beloved characters gracing the screen.

Bob Lends a Helping Hand is hilarious, clever, and cute. Kids learn not to judge a book by its cover, and that “Sometimes, not helping is the same as hurting.” Both shorts have jet-rocket endings, but it’s a children’s program. There are also randomly placed cheerleaders in Big River Rush, but hey, the more the merrier, right?

Veggie Tales is great because it doesn’t assume children are so naïve, as much of today’s media does. If kids can understand how a business starts and how to make it successful, why not explain it to them? If parents are going to be watching these shows with their kids, why not throw in a few jokes for them? As the old slogan used to say, Veggie Tales teaches “Sunday Morning Values [and] Saturday Morning Fun!” It proves that shows can be clean and entertaining for the whole family. In the words of Roger Ebert (and Larry, with his new found gloves), “I give this episode two thumbs up!”

Caress Thirus is a student at Roosevelt University and a film enthusiast.

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