This is our first ( first, means there is more coming?) delve into PBS as a lookback , but they do children's programming, they are more well, the opposite. (Viewers like you)
PBS's children's shows are either known for educational or preschoolers. PBS deiced to make a new block (mostly aired in afternoon, but depended on your market as most PBS stuff does) it's target audience were children who were probably outgrown the needs of "Sesame Street" and watching shows like "Arthur" , "Zoom" (the revived one from 1999 ) , and "CyberChase". This bring us to PBS Kids GO! (shout the Go , or you are doing it wrong) which was introduced in 2004 it was going to also be a new channel (a digital over the air channel) . Which sounds great.
It's look was the PBS Kids logo but no face of a child thing .
PBS Kids go! incorporated two long running PBS series : Arthur ( 1996-present) and Cyberchase (which began in 2002 ) , and depending on your market , Zoom (which began in 1999 and ended in 2005). They also introduced two new series to PBS' fall line up, First , a spin-off of Arthur featuring Buster, the bunny. Which featured , the character in a series where was video taping different kids in his travels around the United States with his Father. It was based off an episode of Arthur of the same name where Buster's Father takes him and Arthur's Family to New York . It was a mixture of live action and animation. (not live animation that would hurt the drawer's wrist)
Meanwhile ... how many times can someone say Buster?
While another series was Maya and Miguel , which focused on twin brother and Sister 10 year olds and the things they get into. Since this is PBS Kids and not some other thing , it had a focus on multiculturalism and language learning. Maya usually tries to help a family member or a friend but her plans, which sometimes includes her friends go wrong, It ran 65 episodes from 2004-2007 (some PBS stations repeat the show as of now )
These were the first "core 4 " series of PBS Kids GO!
In 2006 they added a new series called "Fetch With Ruff Ruffman" which like Postcards from Buster it was half animation , half live-action. A Game show where kids competed on challenges and the host was a cartoon dog named Ruff. This series ran from 2006 to 2010. With the challenges the contestants had the viewers at home were able to learn along with the contestants.
Also, in 2006 as a short at the end of "Maya and Miguel" a series called "Word Girl" started airing and it became it's own 30 minute show in 2007. (Still running today) This series is about a girl named Word Girl who has come to our world and acts as a superhero who also has a large knowledge of vocabulary. (Remember this is PBS) She was adopted by an Earth couple , called the Boxfords and she is known as Becky Boxford , because all great superheros have secret identities.
The series , features a word each episode that is repeated at times when need during the 11 minute period. (Most episodes were two 11 minute segments) Which makes it fit in that educational thing it has.
Now a word from some guy ... we don't have commercials thanks to you.
I would say that the PBS Kids go shows were targeted to older kids , and they were educational ,yet still somewhat not irritating with it.
In 2008, they added another show about a talking dog called "Martha Speaks" it is based off a book by Susan Meddaugh. Martha is a dog who can talk she got the ability by eating a bowl of alphabet soup and it went to her brain instead of the other way. (Ummmm don't try that at home , we think) Anyway the other characters (though not all of them) include a 10 year old girl named Helen, she is Martha's owner and also voice of reason in her group of friends.
Most dogs go Ruff Ruff Ruff
Now a reboot, remake, re-do? The Electric Company was a PBS show from the 70's , in 2009 PBS remade it for PBS Kids Go. It was also created by Sesame Workshop (they also make the famous show about a street , but they don't make the seeds). It was a show with clips , animations, sketches , and Music videos and with a connected storyline. The main characters were teenage literacy heroes (whatever that means) who battle vandals . Of course it was a show that was meaning to teach kids about language usage and words. It ran from 2009 to 2011,
Design Squad (sounds like a show on HGTV) , was a show that had middle and high school children compete in designing whimsical machine to win $10,000 scholarship.
Another series was Biz Kids ( or Biz Kid$) it taught financial understating to pre-teens. There was sketch comedy used to teach the audience to explain economic concepts.
Sci Girls was an educational show about Girls being in the STEM (Science , Technology , engineering and Math). Each episode started with cartoon characters named Izzie and Jake , as Izzie has some problem she needs solved , she has a handy database of real life "SciGirls". The Viewer sees a girl or group of girls are solving in either of the STEM branches, this returns us back to Izzie as she uses what she (and we ) saw for her own solution.
Now the final series we are talking about is Wild Kratts. It features brothers Chris and Martian Kratt and they save an animal from a situation it is caught in. Or the show the viewers that some pre conceived notion of animals is not what they seem to be. 's a live action and animated show interweave between each other.
That was the last new series under the PBS kids Go! Branding as in 2013, after 8 years the brand was retired and programs were put under the PBS Kids banner, That PBS Kids Go ! wasn't as a recognized brand as PBS though it would have been as much as PBS kids is. But they felt that their mission to get kids older than base preschoolers had worked. PBS kids now is meld of both programs for preschoolers and school aged kids , that it might not been as well established with if not for PBS Kids Go!
That's our look back ... stay tuned next time when we make a show about the PBS head getting married to the CBS eye. (what?)
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