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Of all the Elmo dvd's I have bought my daughter this is her favorite. She would watch this one over and over if I let her. It has lots of great songs that she likes to sing along to. It also has a bonus episode of Elmo's World after the show. I do find that slightly anoying, but she likes it. It's great to have a show that subtly teaches things like manners without kids knowing they are being taught.
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While my 2 1/2 year old will not watch the movie "Elmo in Grouchland", he adores this video compilations of songs from the movie and Sesame Street, and will dance and laugh with delight through it. Though I think we're all getting tired of yet another "Elmo's Song" setup, the rest of the songs are clever and fun. My boy especially likes it when I sing along with "C is for Cookie" and "Welcome to Grouchland" (maybe I just sing better than the Muppet characters). Probably one of the easier Sesame Street videos for adults to take, too. All in all a winner.
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This is a cute movie, it's short enough that you don't worry about your kid being a couch potato, yet long enought and fast paced enough to get the dishes done without interuption. I really enjoy this one, however C is for cookie is COOKIE MONSTERS SONG!!!!!!!! It is a crime against humanity that they have some opera chick butchering it.
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My two daughters, ages 1 and 2, love anything Sesame Street. This video is one of their favorites. It doesn't have many of the familiar characters but it is still great! The songs are catchy. I love the fact that the words are on the screen. It makes it easier for us to sing along with the kids. The dvd has a bonus Elmo's World episode. Great choice if your kids like music.
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sesame street was successful because it had a great formula - likeable characters, great songs, and positive values. there's an old saying - don't fix it if it isn't broken. unfortunately, in entertainment there is a great deal of pressure to be innovative in order to stay relevent. hence this relatively new offering from the sesame street gang.
elmo in grouchland is not as good as the older sesame street titles. while this is a collection of both new and old, nearly every 'innovation' is bad. the action, editing and camera positioning and switching are much too busy. with all the color, movement, unusual perspectives (the camera is often too close and moves around unpredictably) you begin to understand why kids today have ADD. the "mtv" production pales in comparison to the elegant simplicity of the older shots. fortunately, there are plenty of sesame street classics in this dvd - such as "i love trash", "rubber ducky", and a new version of "c is for cookie". unforutnately, most of the songs have irritatingly active subtitling for the lyrics. this isn't helpful, as they flash by too quickly to ever be useful in teaching your kids letters or spelling, and it only adds to the distractions.
a final disturbing note - at one point in the tape, elmo mentions "sing sing", in reference to singing a song, at which point his little grouch friend mentions that an uncle spent some time there. what is the point of adding a subtle prison reference to a sesame street tape? should we think of this as daring and clever or simply irresponsible?
sesame street has a lot of great pieces, all of which were released before this one. try any other dvd with older material; i also highly recommend the 'bear in the blue house' series by jim henson. the bear is fantastic, the creatures lovable, the songs catchy and each show conveys important positive messages and helps with parenting (potty time and sleep time are both very good). does that formula sound familiar?
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