DinoDiva blog

BASIC INFO  Year(s): 2007-2009 Country - the US, Japan Language - English Studio - Cartoon Network Studios Developed by: Marty Isenberg Written by: various writers  Suitable for ages: 5+ REVIEWER'S RATING  Writing: 9/10 Sound design: 10/10 Characters: 8/10 Animation: 6/10  OVERALL: 8/10  Before we start... I'd just like to wish a dear friend of mine, O., a happy birthday. This review is sort of a gift from me to him. Again, happy birthday, my friend, I hope this special is filled with joy for you, even if your mood isn't the greatest. :)  FINAL THOUGHTS:  Transformers: Animated ,   to me, is one of the best Transformers shows to be made to date, rivaled only by the likes of Prime (that's not to say I don't enjoy some of the other  Transformers shows, like Rescue Bots ,  EarthSpark  or  Cyberverse , quite the opposite!). Okay, let's get down to actually explaining what makes this show so good.  Surorisingly enough, what mak...

BASIC INFO Country: the USA Year(s): 2005-2006 Network: Smile of a Child Runtime: 11 minutes Number of episodes: 63 (2 seasons) Directed by: Handen Jetmall & several others  Suitable for ages: 5+  REVIEWER'S RATING  Animation: 6/10  Sound design: 8/10 Characters: 7/10  Writing: 7/10 OVERALL: 7/10 FINAL THOUGHTS: The world of animation is no stranger to films and TV series featuring antropomorphic (showing human traits) automobiles or other vehicles, with Pixar's Cars , Hasbro's The Adventures of Chuck & Friends and even the British stop-motion cartoon, Roary the Racing Car , being just some examples I remember from my childhood.  With that said, how does Auto-B-Good , a cartoon created for the TV network Smile (formerly known as Smile of a Child) fare in comparison to these creations? Well... There's actually a lot to enjoy here. The stories, while pretty simple, are excuted in an interesting and cute way children and parents alike can understand an...

  BASIC INFO  Year - 1994  Country - the U.S  Language - English, Zulu, Swahili, Xhosa Company - Walt Disney Studios Directed by - Rob Minkoff, Roger Allers Runtime - 88 minutes Based on - "Hamlet" (by William Shakespeare) Age rating - U (the UK) REVIEWER'S SCORE  Animation - 10/10 Story - 9/10 Characters - 9/10 Sound design - 8/10 OVERALL - 9/10 Before we start... I just wanted to say: thank you to a friend of mine who gave me constructive criticism regarding my previous mini-reviews. It means a lot to me. You're one of the best friends I could have asked for. :) Even if my life isn't always that colourful. FINAL THOUGHTS:  I can't say I blame myself for being so engrossed in this film, whether as a young girl or a fully-grown woman. I also don't care what others think about it, I will never forget how good The Lion King trilogy is as a whole. But I'm going to focus on the first movie in particular for purposes of this review.  With an array of catchy...

  BASIC INFO  Directed by: Kirk Wise, Gary Trousdale  Country: the US  Year: 1991 Language: English, French  Runtime: 84 minutes (original), 91 minutes (special edition) Age rating: U (the UK) REVIEWER'S RATING  Animation: 10/10 Writing: 10/10 Characters: 10/10 Sound design: 10/10 OVERALL: 10/10 FINAL NOTES:  What else can I say about this movie? It's truly a Disney classic and one of my favourites, just like The Lion King ! With a powerful moral lesson for all ages to never judge a book by its cover, further hammered home by the stark contrast between Beast, who may be scary on the outside but is a kind soul on the inside, and Gaston, a good-looking but self-centred man.  Thanks to it's gorgeous animation, loveable characters, elegant storytelling, catchy songs and a powerful message - there's more to a person than you can see on the surface - make this film a truly timeless watch for both kids and adults. Oh, and the romance between our titular...

  BASIC INFO  Directed by: Brent Dawes Country: South Africa  Year: 2003 Language: English (no dialogue) Runtime: 5 minutes Suitable for ages: 3+  REVIEWER'S SCORE   Animation: 7/10 Writing: 6/10 Characters: 6/10 Sound design: 8/10 OVERALL: 6/10 FINAL NOTES: Although of an acceptable quality for a show aimed at younger kids and 5 times more tolerable than something like  PAW Patrol , Jungle Beat offers very little for older children & parents to enjoy. Which is NOT a bad thing in and of itself. ☺ However, I must stress, there are better shows for toddlers and pre-school aged children, like The Adventures of Chuck & Friends and Gazoon. In conclusion, there's no harm in letting your little ones watching this show, but don't expect to be carried away by it yourself.  BEFORE WE GO... Thanks for reading my thoughts and let me know if you agree or not. :) (Just keep it civil while discussing, 'kay?) My next mini-review will be released on February 7t...

  It was a grey December morning and the snow was falling all around the town. 12-year-old Chris woke up to this view and he felt excited. - Mum, Dad, Tea! - he shouted cheerfully - It's today, it's today! The Christmas Eve is today!   - He's pretty enthusiastic about what's going to happen today, isn't he? - said Tifa, as she looked at her son from across the kitchen. - Yeah, right - replied Tea, letting out a big yawn. She did not get much sleep the previous night.  - Alright, kids, we're visiting your grandmum, Jun, for the Christmas Eve dinner - announced Cloud. - Please, be on your absolute best behaviour.  - We promise, dad - replied Danzel and Marlene.  - But first, we need your help with preparing our house for tonight's celebration - said Tifa and the all kids got swiftly to work after breakfast. Before the clock struck noon, the place was spic-and-span clean. When the evening came, the whole family arrived at Jun's place. They were welcomed by ...