Comedy
Dead Boy Detectives
Dead Boy Detectives targets teens in style and story. But it comes with very adult, problematic content.
Every day is a cat-tastic day in Gabby’s feline-themed playhouse.
Netflix asks viewers to join elementary aged Gabby as she awaits a daily delivery from her Meow Meow Mailbox, puts on a pair of magical cat ears and shrinks to join her animated kitty companions inside her doll house. Along the way, preschoolers will meet her meowing playmates: sidekick Pandy Paws, baker Cakey, creator Baby Box, flying Kitty Fairy and mischievous Catrat.
Each day, these pals work together to solve problems as they embark on new adventures.
Found on Netflix, Gabby’s Dollhouse is a preschool series from DreamWorks that focuses on fun original songs, as well as Gabby and her animated feline friends.
The series comes from the creators of Blue’s Clues and Daniel Tiger, shows known for their ability to teach some important lessons. So no surprise that this series also tries to make sure that preschoolers learn a thing or two along the way, like how to love who you are, how to love others and how to be kind to friends. There are also a few educational components that include learning about science experiments, shapes, colors and regulating emotions.
One cat in particular, Catrat, occasionally sports a sour attitude, just like any real-life cat. But by the episode’s end, every problem is solved, and every friend made to feel cherished.
Gabby gets a genie bottle that contains her mermaid friend SunnyCat. SunnyCat invites her to a mermaid sparkle party, where everyone shares what makes them feel good. But one Scrooge seeks to put an end to it.
Gabby is magically transformed into a mermaid (and in her case and the rest of the mermaid creatures, their scales continue all the way up their bodies like dresses rather than anyone needing a shell bikini top). They use magical crystals to create a rainbow slide, and we hear very briefly that they make potions.
The general lesson for children is to make them think about what things they like to do, and why it makes them happy.
Gabby gets a toy spaceship from her Meow Meow Mailbox and takes it into her dollhouse where things go awry.
A kitty exclaims “oh snapdragons.” One cat gets a bit of an attitude.
Kennedy Unthank studied journalism at the University of Missouri. He knew he wanted to write for a living when he won a contest for “best fantasy story” while in the 4th grade. What he didn’t know at the time, however, was that he was the only person to submit a story. Regardless, the seed was planted. Kennedy collects and plays board games in his free time, and he loves to talk about biblical apologetics. He thinks the ending of Lost “wasn’t that bad.”
Kristin Smith joined the Plugged In team in 2017. Formerly a Spanish and English teacher, Kristin loves reading literature and eating authentic Mexican tacos. She and her husband, Eddy, love raising their children Judah and Selah. Kristin also has a deep affection for coffee, music, her dog (Cali) and cat (Aslan).
Dead Boy Detectives targets teens in style and story. But it comes with very adult, problematic content.
An elf mage contemplates on connection and regret as she watches her human friends grow old and pass away.
