Max & Ruby's Halloween DVD Review
Nick Jr. Show Halloween Video About Fun Fall Activites
Sep 28, 2009
Both fans of the main characters from Rosemary Wells' Max and Ruby books and parents looking for cute preschool Halloween videos that introduce Halloween in a fun and not very scary way will like Max & Ruby's Halloween DVD, a collection of Max and Ruby episodes that, for the most part, have Halloween and autumn themes.
Max & Ruby Halloween episode – Max's Halloween
In the Nick Jr. Max & Ruby Halloween episode Max's Halloween, Max and Ruby are putting on their Halloween costumes in preparation for trick or treating with Ruby's friend Louise. Big sister Ruby, naturally, dresses as a fancy princess. Little brother Max, always fond of gory and scary things, wants to be a vampire, while Ruby keeps insisting that he dress as a little prince and confiscating his many pairs of vampire teeth. After all, Ruby insists, their grandmother will not want to be scared by a vampire when they go to trick or treat at her house.
Stubborn Max refuses to back down, and Ruby finally relents and allows him to be a scary vampire, though she does note that scary vampires don't get treats. However, as so often happens when Max and Ruby disagree on a subject, Max turns out to be correct. Not only is Grandma's house decorated with spooky cobwebs and spiders, but Grandma herself has dressed as vampire, much to Louise and Ruby's initial fright when Grandma opens her door.
Although Max's vampire teeth do ooze liquid red syrup and children scared of vampires and/or monsters in general may be a bit afraid of Max's Halloween costume, overall there is nothing too frightening or scary in this Nick Jr. Max & Ruby episode. Young viewers will especially delight in Max's triumph over Ruby at the end as he and Grandma happily shout "Vampire!" together.
Max & Ruby Episodes – Fun Fall Activities and Spooky Halloween Fun
Several of the other Max & Ruby episodes collected on the Max & Ruby Halloween DVD are about fun fall activities or spooky fun. For example, in Ruby's Leaf Collection, Ruby models how to collect, identify, and preserve autumn leaves in a leaf collection. From watching this cute Max & Ruby cartoon, preschoolers will learn about how leaves fall from trees in the fall and how different kinds of trees have leaves of different shapes and colors. (Young children may also enjoy reading Ruby's Falling Leaves, the Max & Ruby book version of this story.)
In the Max & Ruby cartoon The Blue Tarantula, Max is too spooked to sleep after Ruby (at his request) reads him a scary story right before bedtime. The strong and realistic sibling relationship between the two bunnies is on full display in this episode, as Ruby bravely checks under Max's bed to investigate a scary sound (pointing out that looking under beds is a big sister's job) and Max cunningly gets what he wants (Ruby sharing his bed to keep him safe) by spooking her with a toy lobster. Children spooked by Halloween's various creatures and scary stories will empathize with both Max and Ruby's fears in this story.
In the Max & Ruby cartoon Ghost Bunny, Max accompanies Ruby on a Bunny Scout camp out at the park. Ruby tries to get Max to go to sleep so he won't hear the scary tales the Bunny Scouts are swapping around the campfire, but he keeps getting up (and even scaring the Bunny Scouts by popping up unexpectedly). Eventually he plays a trick and scares them on purpose by using a flashlight to make himself look like the Ghost Bunny in Valerie's spooky tale, and everyone laughs when the Ghost Bunny is revealed to be Max. Children in the mood to hear scary tales for Halloween will enjoy Valerie's Ghost Bunny story, and young preschoolers nervous about monsters and such will be pleased to see that the only monster in this cartoon is a joke played by Max.
The other Max & Ruby episodes collected on the Max & Ruby's Halloween DVD are Ruby's Panda Prize, Ruby's Roller Skates, Max's Shadow, Max Remembers, Ruby's Candy Store, Max's Thanksgiving, Max's Pretend Friend, and Fireman Max.
Max & Ruby's Halloween DVD Review
Although the Max & Ruby DVD Max & Ruby's Perfect Pumpkin contains more strictly Halloween-themed Max & Ruby episodes, the Max & Ruby's Halloween DVD will still provide families with a great deal of family friendly and preschool-appropriate spooky Halloween fun. The relationship between Max and his big sister Ruby is always funny to watch, especially in cases where Max's meddling or refusal to do exactly what Ruby tells him to do ends up benefiting them both. The Max & Ruby episodes collected on this Max & Ruby DVD are entertaining enough to hold up after repeated viewings, and families that do purchase this preschool Halloween video may find themselves watching it all year round.
Families may also be interested in other fun Halloween videos for kids, such as the Sesame Street DVD Elmo Says Boo!, or in other Max & Ruby videos, such as Easter with Max & Ruby.
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