The graveyard of video history is scattered with the bones of failed experiments trying to document the animal kingdom for a young audience.
A few were very good but ultimately succumbed to an inability to compete in the dog-eat-dog marketplace. The majority were badly photographed or written, exploitative or misrepresentative, seemingly created for another purpose entirely: to rob the pocketbooks of unsuspecting parents.
The newest entries into this field, the premiere videos in a new series, show promise, are more good than bad, more informative than exploitative and, with a caveat or two, above-average viewing for kids 8 and older.
The one thing above all else that recommends "Kratts' Creatures: Maximum Cheetah Velocity" (PolyGram Video, 1997, live action/animation, color, 30 minutes, $12.95) and its two companion videos is that it is an unsentimental view of animals in the wild, independent of mankind (read zoos).
This video series is a joint Canadian-American venture and, in some areas of the country, has joined the PBS lineup.
The co-hosts are the brothers Kratt, Chris and Martin, whose energy levels, pratfalls, wacky "scientific" experiments and general silliness are sometimes reminiscent of the scripts by Bill Nye, the Science Guy.
Involving young viewers
Like Nye, the Kratts employ a kid, along with an animated creature, as co-host. The kid, Allison, played with sparkling enthusiasm by Sharon Duff, ties a lot of information together, bridging scenes with additional lore.
What the Kratts lack in Nye's genuine scientific achievement, and the lack is quite noticeable, they make up in trying to involve their viewers in what's on the screen, championing the mild scatological humor so universally appealing to the younger set in the process.
I have never, for example, seen a video "snowball fight" using elephant dung (which appears in "Kratts' Creatures: African Creature Quest").
The cheetah video was taped on the African savanna by someone who knew how to use a camera. Cheetahs are the fastest land animals; they achieve speeds up to 70 miles per hour. After all, their favorite prey are Thompson's gazelles, which nip along at a respectable 48 mph.
"Cheetah Velocity" includes breathtaking hunt scenes, as well as pictures of a carcass or two.
Maps and other references
But there are also interludes showing a mother cheetah raising her babies, teaching them to hunt, playing with them, and a serious discussion between Allison, the Kratts and an animated co-host named Ttark (pronounced Tark) about the cheetah's endangered status.
Brought about by a 10,000-year-old biological accident, all cheetahs are related and linked by the same gene pool. It is explained perfectly and opens a small window of fascinating information regarding the fragility of the animal kingdom.
Maps and other references help put the subject matter into perspective for young viewers. Given that failure in many nature videos now at rest in that video boneyard, this series is a remarkable achievement.
What I found irksome and distracting was the Kratts' insistence on silly subplots. I don't believe one has to be juvenile while entertaining and enlightening juveniles.
Big 5, Little 5
In "African Creature Quest," the opening shots find the dynamic duo buying supplies in a South African village, when they are suddenly diverted by signs promoting "The Big 5."
"What are "The Big 5?' " they ask a village functionary.
"Elephant, rhino, buffalo, lion, leopard," they are told. "That's what everyone comes to Africa to see."
But Allison and Ttark have raised the question about "The Little 5": the elephant shrew, rhino beetle, buffalo weaver (a bird), lion ant and leopard tortoise.
The Kratts decide to have a "scavenger hunt " with Martin taking the big five, Chris the little five; the winner gets all five of his quarries in one day. Into the wild they go, by foot, truck and helicopter. The photography is stunning, but the animals are all but overwhelmed by the hi-jinks.
The dissertation on elephant dung, however, is loving and leisurely and informative.
Closed-captioning needed
The third video in the series, "Kratts' Creatures: The Great Bear Show," features our heroes fumbling around the Northern Territories in quest of unpredictable Ursidae (order Carnivora). Pratfalls aside, it's a toothsome picture.
This is a worthwhile and genuine series with great promise, best served by just a touch less silliness.
One last caveat for parents: The release of this series will be accompanied by an elephantine promotion involving toys, merchandise, fast-food giveaways and a tour by the brothers. Think of yourselves as Thompson's gazelles and the hype as a cheetah.
Advice? Run like hell.
Also, it's too bad the money going into promoting these excellent videos could not have been applied to getting them closed-captioned for kids with hearing disorders.
(c) 1997, Scott Blakey. Distributed by Los Angeles Times Syndicate© 1997 Cable News Network, Inc.
All Rights Reserved.
