I’m really picky about the shows I’m going to let my daughter watch when she’s old enough to enjoy them. Generally I gravitate to the ones that can get into, or will allow me to have a conversation with her about it, when she’s old enough to have acquired conversational skills beyond that of “giddle diddle idle.” In the meantime I let her occasionally watch shows like “Teletubbies” (as much as I detest them…) just so she can see things that are colorful enough to attract her attention. Where I’m careful here is to limit the amount of time she sees TV, because I don’t want her to become as much of a couch potato as I can be, and I don’t want it to become a babysitter. When she gets older, I’m going to let her watch “Bear in the Big Blue House” because she already likes Bear and I love the life lessons it teaches. I’ve also been checking out a few other shows to give her some variety. One that I had never heard of showed up at my house recently in the form of a DVD.

It is called “Grandpa’s Place” and in reading the back it gave me the impression that it was meant to be educational and fun. I love puppets (and of course… muppets), but I was at first taken a bit aback by the pictures of the characters on the DVD cover. I thought they looked a little scary and hoped it was just a product of the photography.

When I put in the disc, my fears were allayed and the puppets weren’t scary at all. (On the picture ‘Captain Dog’ looked like ‘The Great Pumpkin’) I liked the premise of the series, which has Jason (Cody Arens) visiting the magical place that is his “Grandpa’s Place.” Ed Lauter stars as Grandpa, and I was surprised to see how warm and friendly he could be after so many years of playing tough guy roles. The puppets come into play when Jason finds three old toys in a trunk in the basement. They end up coming to life and enjoying the afternoon visits to Grandpa’s.

The series is a little sweet, but nowhere near as bad as “Barney” (which is a corporate institution my daughter will be kept far, far away from), but it does have enough song and sketches to stir the imagination while teaching all about teamwork and the importance of family.

There are two DVDs available, each with two episodes. I only have the first set in hand enjoyed it enough to try and track down the second. I was also surprised to see Lou Diamond Phillips (“La Bamba”) show up in the second episode. I understand that Dean Cain (“Lois & Clark”) guest stars in an episode on the other disc.

While I can’t say that “Grandpa’s Place” is the best show of its kind, and it suffers a little due to its low budget, it is better than most of the kids shows I’ve seen in recent times. I love the fact that it deals with the relationship between a grandfather and grandchild because it is an experience I never had. Fortunately, my daughter gets to spend all kinds of time with her grandmother, and the two of them enjoy it to no end. “Grandpa’s Place” will definitely have a place on my daughter’s shelf, ready to be brought down when she’s old enough to appreciate and learn from it.

Starring: Ed Lauter, Cody Arens
Specifications: Full Screen
Studio: Oak Films
Release Date: Available
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website

We'll give an Grandpa's Place a B-.