#HubClubBloggers - Parent and Kid Review of Spooksville!

Image © Hub Network.

As part of my membership in the Hub Club Bloggers, I was given the chance to preview this weekend's episode of their popular new series, Spooksville, before it airs on Saturday March 22nd at 5pm Eastern/2pm Pacific. This review is special because it's the first video that TV Boy gets to appear in! (This kid LOVES reviewing stuff. In fact, after we finished making this video, he wanted to do a review of one of his LEGO sets.)

Image © Hub Network.

This weekend's episode is entitled "Phone Fear". Several students from the Lizzie Borden High School are taken on a "field trip" that is really a week-long survival exercise. When they get trapped in the rain, they seek shelter in an abandoned logging camp that has a scary past involving one of the earliest cellular phones in the 80's. The camp is engulfed in a mysterious fog when anyone tries to make a call. Can Adam figure out the secret of the fog and save his friends from disappearing?

Check out what TV Boy had to say about the episode in the video below, and be sure to tune in to Spooksville this weekend on Hub Network!





Disclosure: This is a sponsored post with the Hub Club. Please see my Disclosure tab for more information.

Spooksville Returns to Hub Network This Saturday!

The groundbreaking kids' thriller series Spooksville gears up for the spring season on Hub Network this Saturday, March 8th at 5pm Eastern/2pm Pacific. The mid-season return kicks off with action-packed episode “Shell Shock” in which Sally reluctantly agrees to go along with her parents to visit the exclusive Springville Yacht Club, where a teenaged boy, who is an aspiring yacht club member, disappears. To help solve this mysterious disappearance, Sally enlists the  help of Adam and Watch to investigate and they soon discover that the Yacht club is  home to Spooksville’s  latest supernatural terror  –  a giant mutant crab pirate.  

Image courtesy Hub Network.

Check out this #HubClubBlogger exclusive "Behind the Screams" video featuring the Spooksville cast... "What would your super power be?":

Thinking About Buying This Game For Your Regular Show Fan?

Have you seen Regular Show on Cartoon Network and thought, gee, this might be a fun game? Well, apparently someone did. There is now a 3DS version of the show entitled Mordecai & Rigby in 8-Bit Land... but it's not what you'd expect it to be.

Image courtesy D3Publisher.

While the premise of the game is... what am I talking about? There IS no premise to the game. Of course, one could argue the same of the series, but I digress. The game has very little to do with the popular Cartoon Network program, and really the 3D aspect is a gimmick at best.

Check out my full review over at About.com!

Gravity Falls: Six Strange Tales on DVD

Gravity Falls is another one of those Disney shows like Phineas and Ferb that is totally okay to be watching without your kids. Don't believe me? Check it out on Disney Channel or Disney XD sometime. It has Kristen Schaal for pete's sake! And they really do let her run amok! You won't be sorry!

Image courtesy Disney.

Be sure to check out my DVD review over at the Kids' Cartoons page at About.com! 

Aaahh! Real Monsters returns to DVD!

Just in time for Halloween, introduce your kids to the original scary monsters: Ichis, Oblina, and Krumm!

Image courtesy Shout! Factory.

That's right, the 90's Nicktoon "Aaahh! Real Monsters" is back on DVD thanks to Shout! Factory! For those of us who were young in the 90's, it's a blast from the past and a return to some of the best kids television in modern history.

Be sure to check out the Kids' Cartoon Page at About.com for a full review! 

New "Magical Animal Battle" series episodes on DVD

I've mentioned how I feel about the "Pokemon Formula" shows before. I feel like I'm watching the same battles with different critters... over, and over, and over again. But they wouldn't make them if kids didn't go bananas over them!

Image courtesy Shout! Factory.

The same is true for these two series, Monsuno and Kaijudo. (Both also include a tabletop game version, the former with little cores that plastic animals pop out of and the latter a card game a la Magic: The Gathering.)

Image courtesy Shout! Factory.

My friends at Shout! Factory have released new DVDs for both series, Monsuno: Combat Chaos and Kaijudo: Darkness of Heart. Both are available now in stores and online. Check out my reviews and episode synopses by clicking on the links.

Regular Show... Yeh-yah!

Regular Show is one of my favorite Cartoon Network shows at the moment. The humor is similar to Adventure Time, but not nearly as weird. In fact, the characters Mordecai and Rigby remind me of guys I went to school with over the years, and some of the stupid stuff they'd do in the name of fun. (Those of you who know me from that era, you get to guess to which of you I'm referring... muah-ha-ha-ha!)

So, you all know how much I LOVE my job, right? Because I really do. I get to do reviews of awesome stuff... like Regular Show: The Complete First and Second Seasons on Blu-ray. That's right, my friends at Cartoon Network hooked me UP. And I tell you what... this one got a full five stars from me. Why, you ask? Well, the discs included just about everything I could want in a Blu-ray release: Animatics? Check. Commentary? Check. Behind the Scenes stuff? Interviews with people who work on the show? Checkedy-check check. I am a happy cartoon geek with this one! I can't wait until it "hits the street" in a couple of weeks so fans everywhere can snap this baby up.

Image courtesy Cartoon Network.

In short, I highly recommend picking this one up when it releases on July 16th. You will NOT be disappointed if you're a fan.  And if you know me "in the real world", maybe if you're nice I'll lend you my copy. Maybe.

DVD Review: Slugterra - Slugs Unleashed

Another one of those "kids throwing magical animals at each other" shows, Slugterra is among the cuter of the lot. It plays weekends on DisneyXD channel, but you can also own them on DVD. I had the opportunity to review Volume 2 in the DVD collection, "Slugs Unleashed". Check it out over at the Kids' Cartoons page!

Image courtesy Shout! Factory.

Adventure Time Seasons 1 and 2 on Blu-ray

"Come along with me..." Adventure Time! I know I have a LOT of readers who are fans of this show. I, personally, think it is beyond weird, but I see the appeal. It's different than other shows (and boy is that an understatement!), it's amusing, and the music is actually pretty rad. Plus, I tend to love anything voiceover actor John DiMaggio touches.... (by the way, if Mr. DiMaggio's people end up finding this post somehow, he is on my list of legendary voiceover actors to interview! Call me! Pretty please?)

Things are finally dying down here in the TVhousehold (boy, I need to think of a better term for that... I don't live in TVLand, and I might get sued if I use that one... hm. I'll sleep on it I guess.) after two birthday parties, two separate cakes-with-fondant-that-I've-never-used-before, a birthday trip to the zoo, family, TV Dad's and my seventh wedding anniversary and subsequent Columbus-area food tour (did you see all my tasty treats on my TVMom Instagram account?)... I was finally able to give these discs the attention they deserved!

Image courtesy Warner Home Entertainment.

Image courtesy Warner Home Entertainment.

So, here it is, my discussion on the Adventure Time seasons 1 and 2 Blu-rays! Check it out and be sure to pick up your copies, in stores now!

Giveaway! Kaijudo Clash of the Duel Masters

Hey Readers! In celebration of the new season of Kaijudo on The Hub (which premieres on Friday, June 21st at 6:30pm Eastern), my friends at The Hub have offered me the chance to give away TWO sets of Kaijudo competitive trading card decks!

Check out a preview of the new season:

Now, for the giveaway... there will be TWO winners! Each winner will receive one of each deck pictured, sent directly from The Hub.

Use the Rafflecopter entry widget below to enter. This contest is only open to US Residents only due to shipping constraints.

Contest runs until Midnight on Friday. You can do some of the entries daily, so be sure to come back each day to earn more entries! Also make sure I have your email address somehow so I can notify the winner (you should be prompted to enter it your first time using Rafflecopter). Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sanjay and Craig, a first look!

Memorial Day weekend, Nick premiered their newest cartoon series, Sanjay and Craig. From the previews of it, I honestly thought there was no way I could like the show... until I heard the cast list. I'm a HUGE fan of Chris Hardwick (who voices Craig the snake), so there was hope.

Image courtesy Nickelodeon.

 After the premiere, I have to say, I'm actually impressed. The show is funny and fresh. The animation reminds me of Bob's Burgers, but don't hold that against it. Check out more of my thoughts on the new series, Sanjay and Craig, at the Kids' Cartoons page on About.com!

A look at Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters

Transformers Prime is back for season three in spectacular fashion! The Hub was nice enough to give me a preview of the first few episodes of the series as it returns. Check it out over at the About.com page! This is funny, because I wrote the whole piece and then realized it was basically a giant spoiler alert, so I had to start over. I want to talk about Optimus Prime!!! Ahhh!

Image courtesy The Hub.

Bumblebee with new paint job! Image courtesy The Hub.

The formidable Predicon. Image courtesy The Hub.

Welcome back to the '90s with Rocko's Modern Life

Image courtesy Shout! Factory.

Those of us who grew up in the '90s will surely remember Rocko and his wacky friends. We can now relive our childhood (or for some of us, our teen years) by owning Rocko's Modern Life: The Complete Series on DVD. A fabulous 8-disc set with every episode ever aired, including the pilot version of "Trash-O-Madness".  If you loved this cartoon, you have to own this one, and at only $25, it's tough to pass up!

Check out more at my About.com page!

Slugterra DVD Review

Image courtesy Shout Factory.

Yes, it's yet another cartoon where people use magical animals in battle against one another. This time, we get adorable little squeaky slugs as our ammo of choice in Slugterra, a DisneyXD series.

I'm not sure I'm a fan of this emerging genre, which I have dubbed "The Pokemon Effect", but it must really resonate with the young boy demographic, because they sure keep making them.

It really isn't bad. The CGI is actually gorgeous and the slugs are pretty cute, for being, well, slugs.

Read my full review at the About.com page!

DVD Review: Monsuno

Image courtesy Shout! Factory.

Monsuno is an anime action show that airs on the Nicktoons channel. Until this DVD, I'd never watched it myself, and I have to say, I probably won't after this either (good thing I have a lot of nephews to give DVDs to!). For some reason, this one didn't hook me like Kaijudo did.

Anyhow, head on over to my About.com page to read more about it and find out why it's not my favorite kids action cartoon. However, in doing some research, I was in fact impressed with the game that goes along with the cartoon. No boring cards here! You actually get a cute little core with a mini Monsuno critter inside! Not too shabby for a card game!

Kaijudo: Rise of the Duel Masters DVD Review and Giveaway!

Image courtesy Hasbro Studios/Shout! Factory.

I have never been one for the serial marital arts cartoon series, but I have to say, Kaijudo: Rise of the Duel Masters - Creatures Unleashed has made a believer out of me. I'm actually kind of annoyed with myself that I haven't been watching this all along already! It's REALLY GOOD. No, I mean REALLY.

Check out my full review of the DVD at my About.com page!

This new DVD from Hasbro Studios and Shout! Factory doesn't hit the streets until December 4th, but they were kind enough to send me a copy to give away to one of my lucky readers! Enter easily using the Rafflecopter widget below! Contest ends December 4, 2012.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

First Look: Littlest Pet Shop

Hey TV Mom readers! Sorry it's been so quiet around here. The month of November took a few turns I wasn't expecting. There was a death in my family a few days after my birthday (I was posting on the go for my last entry, unfortunately, which led to some typos that I got raked across the coals by the Brony community for... sorry, DJ-Pon3 is a girl, I know!), and after a week of being two states away from home for the funeral, I came back to have a minor surgical procedure I wasn't planning on. It wasn't a great way to start off my thirtieth year on this planet, for sure. So, with all that said, I finally have some new content for you!

Image courtesy The Hub/Discovery Networks.

In case you've missed it, The Hub premiered their new series, Littlest Pet Shop on November 10th. There are only about three episodes so far, but if you have a little girl, it's worth checking out. TV Boy isn't so enthused with it, honestly, because there is a LOT of pink and adorableness that he isn't entirely on board with... and that's coming from my son, the Brony. He did, however, enjoy the adorable press kit I got that looks like the pet shop and includes a little "elevator" that he can play with... I don't know what it is with this boy and elevators lately, but it attracted him like a moth to the flame.

Check out my full article about Littlest Pet Shop at my About.com page!

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: My Initial Thoughts

Image courtesy Nickelodeon (c)

This weekend marks the premiere of the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series on Nickelodeon. As an avid Turtles fan of the '80s and '90s, I was interested to see how Nick would handle the reboot of the series. Past attempts, in my opinion, were not so successful, thanks in part to fans like myself picking apart every little difference. So, what does a diehard TMNT fan think of the new version? Check out my About.com page to read my full review!

Ben 10 Omniverse Premiere

Image courtesy Cartoon Network (c)

Fans of Ben 10 will rejoice in a new incarnation of the alien fighting cartoon series in Ben 10 Omniverse. It premieres tomorrow morning on Cartoon Network at 9am EST. I got a chance to see the full series premiere a little in advance. Check out my full review at About.com!

Review: DreamWorks Dragons - Riders of Berk

Image courtesy Cartoon Network (c)

Okay, so I'll admit I only just recently watched the movie How To Train Your Dragon, but I will say that I instantly fell in love with it. The fact that Cartoon Network has just premiered their new series DreamWorks Dragons: Riders of Berk is just icing on my awesome dragon-loving cake. If you liked the movie, you're going to love the new cartoon series.

Check out my full review of the new series at About.com!