5 ms·

I was bored to tears and I read more than the average kid. I liked the aesthetic though and I wanted to like it because it seemed wholesome. I’ve always suspect

I was bored to tears and I read more than the average kid. I liked the aesthetic though and I wanted to like it because it seemed wholesome. I’ve always suspected RR is one of those shows that everyone knows they should like so they all talk it up as if they did like it. Kinda like Rust.

plemer 1y ago
Or maybe many did genuinely enjoy RR but you just weren’t the target audience? If it was created to combat the summer reading slump, it likely wasn’t targeting already avid readers. FWIW, though, my experience was similar to yours: I read a ton and loved the feel of the show, but the actual content was a little slow.
- aspenmayer 1y ago
  I agree that it’s the feel of the show. I grew up with 3 free to air channels, and one of them was a PBS station. The content was better than the competition or the VHS tape collection, or replaying one of the video games.
aspenmayer 1y ago
I genuinely liked it even though I could read fine. It was an excuse to use the tv when I might not have a good reason to use it instead of someone else otherwise and I enjoyed the content well enough even if I was a couple years older than the intended audience. The public broadcasting shows of that era were weirdly good imo, with Mr Rogers and Shirley Lewis doing puppets, but wholesome too. Ghost Writer was ahead of its time and deserves a post of its own. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghostwriter_(1992_TV_series) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghostwriter_(1992_TV_series) > The series revolves around a multiethnic group of friends from Brooklyn who solve neighborhood crimes and mysteries as a team of youth detectives with the help of a ghost named Ghostwriter. Ghostwriter can communicate with children only by manipulating whatever text and letters he can find and using them to form words and sentences. > Ghostwriter producer and writer Kermit Frazier revealed in a 2010 interview that Ghostwriter was a runaway slave during the American Civil War. He taught other slaves how to read and write and was killed by slave catchers and their dogs. His spirit was kept in the book that Jamal discovers and opens in the pilot episode, freeing the ghost. Wishbone has costumes and a dog for your dramatic re-enactments of books with a dog actor in the lead role. This is crazy town, and I’m here for it. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wishbone_(TV_series) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wishbone_(TV_series)
- postalcoder 1y ago
  The entire PBS slate of shows was elite. Very little did I know at the time how initiative-driven it was (a great thing). To me where in the world was Carmen Sandiego was a fun trivia game. To the creators, they were trying to address the issue of americans not knowing where the country was on a map.
  - thaumasiotes 1y ago
    > To me where in the world was Carmen Sandiego was a fun trivia game. To the creators, they were trying to address the issue of americans not knowing where the country was on a map. Was there a show? To me Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego was a reoccurring segment on a show called Square One. I liked it, but it didn't feel like it was the source of Carmen Sandiego mythology; it felt more like a minor epiphenomenon. There was also a computer game, which I didn't play much of because it was a lot of work. It felt a lot more fully developed than the TV segments, though.
    - pimlottc 1y ago
      Yes, there was half-hour game show for kids that aired on PBS in the early 90s. For anyone who's ever seen it, chances are the theme song is permanently burned into their brain: Do it, Rockapella! [1] 0: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Where_in_the_World_Is_Carmen_Sandiego%3F_(game_show) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Where_in_the_World_Is_Carmen_S... 1: https://youtu.be/9ubKvQe2hQU?si=jHjOKvKuWukQkBUJ&t=1510 https://youtu.be/9ubKvQe2hQU?si=jHjOKvKuWukQkBUJ&t=1510
    - TurkTurkleton 1y ago
      The game came first, and the TV shows were spun off from it, which is probably why the game feels more fully developed. It grew into a whole media franchise -- there were Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? and Where in Time is Carmen Sandiego? game shows on PBS, as well as a Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego? Saturday morning cartoon, and more recently, an animated series on Netflix. I don't remember there being Carmen Sandiego segments on Square One but I also don't remember Square One all that well in the first place.
bagels 1y ago
I always immediately turned it off when I was a kid. I appreciate its purpose now, but loathed it when I was in the target audience.
fracus 1y ago
I honestly just loved the theme song and the good vibes, but yeah, I didn't really watch it watch it.
gowld 1y ago
It's a TV show for kids who do NOT read.

plemer 1y ago

Or maybe many did genuinely enjoy RR but you just weren’t the target audience? If it was created to combat the summer reading slump, it likely wasn’t targeting already avid readers. FWIW, though, my experience was similar to yours: I read a ton and loved the feel of the show, but the actual content was a little slow.

aspenmayer 1y ago
I agree that it’s the feel of the show. I grew up with 3 free to air channels, and one of them was a PBS station. The content was better than the competition or the VHS tape collection, or replaying one of the video games.

aspenmayer 1y ago

I genuinely liked it even though I could read fine. It was an excuse to use the tv when I might not have a good reason to use it instead of someone else otherwise and I enjoyed the content well enough even if I was a couple years older than the intended audience. The public broadcasting shows of that era were weirdly good imo, with Mr Rogers and Shirley Lewis doing puppets, but wholesome too. Ghost Writer was ahead of its time and deserves a post of its own. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghostwriter_(1992_TV_series) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghostwriter_(1992_TV_series) > The series revolves around a multiethnic group of friends from Brooklyn who solve neighborhood crimes and mysteries as a team of youth detectives with the help of a ghost named Ghostwriter. Ghostwriter can communicate with children only by manipulating whatever text and letters he can find and using them to form words and sentences. > Ghostwriter producer and writer Kermit Frazier revealed in a 2010 interview that Ghostwriter was a runaway slave during the American Civil War. He taught other slaves how to read and write and was killed by slave catchers and their dogs. His spirit was kept in the book that Jamal discovers and opens in the pilot episode, freeing the ghost. Wishbone has costumes and a dog for your dramatic re-enactments of books with a dog actor in the lead role. This is crazy town, and I’m here for it. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wishbone_(TV_series) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wishbone_(TV_series)

postalcoder 1y ago
The entire PBS slate of shows was elite. Very little did I know at the time how initiative-driven it was (a great thing). To me where in the world was Carmen Sandiego was a fun trivia game. To the creators, they were trying to address the issue of americans not knowing where the country was on a map.
- thaumasiotes 1y ago
  > To me where in the world was Carmen Sandiego was a fun trivia game. To the creators, they were trying to address the issue of americans not knowing where the country was on a map. Was there a show? To me Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego was a reoccurring segment on a show called Square One. I liked it, but it didn't feel like it was the source of Carmen Sandiego mythology; it felt more like a minor epiphenomenon. There was also a computer game, which I didn't play much of because it was a lot of work. It felt a lot more fully developed than the TV segments, though.
  - pimlottc 1y ago
    Yes, there was half-hour game show for kids that aired on PBS in the early 90s. For anyone who's ever seen it, chances are the theme song is permanently burned into their brain: Do it, Rockapella! [1] 0: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Where_in_the_World_Is_Carmen_Sandiego%3F_(game_show) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Where_in_the_World_Is_Carmen_S... 1: https://youtu.be/9ubKvQe2hQU?si=jHjOKvKuWukQkBUJ&t=1510 https://youtu.be/9ubKvQe2hQU?si=jHjOKvKuWukQkBUJ&t=1510
  - TurkTurkleton 1y ago
    The game came first, and the TV shows were spun off from it, which is probably why the game feels more fully developed. It grew into a whole media franchise -- there were Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? and Where in Time is Carmen Sandiego? game shows on PBS, as well as a Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego? Saturday morning cartoon, and more recently, an animated series on Netflix. I don't remember there being Carmen Sandiego segments on Square One but I also don't remember Square One all that well in the first place.

bagels 1y ago

I always immediately turned it off when I was a kid. I appreciate its purpose now, but loathed it when I was in the target audience.

fracus 1y ago

I honestly just loved the theme song and the good vibes, but yeah, I didn't really watch it watch it.

gowld 1y ago

It's a TV show for kids who do NOT read.