(See, the item is a DVD. And well, the DVD player is ALL the way downstairs. And um...I was upstairs that month.)
Anyway, like I said, the item in question is a DVD. A TRAVEL DVD.
(Pretty apropos, don'tcha think considering all of my cross country flitting?) So, despite my procrastination, I was excited to check it out!
It's called "TripFlix" and it's designed to make road trips a little more fun with a little less "Are we there yet?".
Let's get the negative part of this review out of the way first. Here's the downside:I know we don't judge books by their cover's. ('Cause everyone says we shouldn't.)
But no one ever said don't judge a DVD by it's cover.
So I can.
And I did.
And it was weighed in the balance and found wanting.
What I'm trying to say here is, I REALLY don't like the DVD jacket. I don't like the graphics, and I don't like the lay-out. I think it looks unprofessional and I personally wouldn't stop to pick it up off the shelf at the store.
Here's a real live quote from Max (age 6.5) upon seeing it:
"I can tell I'm not going to like this."
So, for the second edition, I recommend a re-design. (I personally would like to see it go in a vintage direction. I LOVE vintage travel posters. But that's just me. And I don't know how appealing that would be to kids either. But whatever. Just hire a new designer next time.)
Now. That said, the actual DVD is great! The kids loved it. All of them. I watched it at my sister's house so we had a large and diverse audience. Ryan was the oldest at 13, Gabe was the youngest at 1, and there were two seven-year-olds, one six year old, and one 3 year old inbetween.They all liked it!!!
They all got sucked in and watched intently. And later, almost all fought over where to go next. (The interactive menu allows you to choose a region or a particular state so you can pick and choose where you want to go.)
In the next few days, then watched it numerous times, going to different destinations and repeating favorites over and over.
It was definitely a success and I imagine it would be equally popular viewed in the car.
For the next edition (I recommend a next edition(s)) I'd make regional DVD's and feature more destinations in each state in that region. That way, you could buy the DVD for the region you live in, and learn about all the kid friendly stuff near-by and in neighboring states. (As well as teaching the kids facts and trivia about those states.)
Anyway, for what it's worth:
Maxwell and Samuel give it two thumbs up!!!
(as do their cousins.)
Emily gives the cover thumbs down, but content thumbs up!
So if you want a fun show for your next road trip,
or if your kids are learning about the 50 states,
jaunt on over to Amazon and grab a copy.
You'll be glad you did!
*This blog is paying off BIG time!
This is a new hip-hop toy line created by the Family Knowles. The songs on the c.d. are old stand-