Animation
Blood of Zeus
Creativity abounds here, but those artistic measures can’t blur the obvious issues that families are sure to discover.
You’ve probably slept late before. But have you ever overslept by more than 20 years?
Carlo has.
In this Brazilian kid’s show, Carlo and his friends once lived on the Island of Fun for No Reason. When they were kids, its leader, Mount Solange, led them in goofy games like hide-and-seek and the “majestic torch of ice cream”. Although there were no winners, each kid could enjoy delicious guavito cookies when they completed the games.
Carlo loved the cookies, but he also desired real competition. Carlo wanted to be the winner of hide-and-seek. And that meant finding the very best hiding place on the whole island. Despite Mount Solange’s warnings, Carlo hid in the Sinister Forest, containing some equally sinister creatures, and fell asleep (certain that this hidden area would secure first place).
Unfortunately, Carlo’s hiding spot was a little too good.
When he awakes, more than 20 years later, the Island of Fun for No Reason is no more. It has been transformed into the Kingdom of Decisions, and its elephant-like leader, King Blaus, rules with an iron trunk. While Carlo remains a child, all his friends (including his monster best friend, Berto) are now adults who seem to have forgotten the Island of Fun for No Reason. And their forgetfulness is no mistake. King Blaus, desperate to keep his power, forces his citizens to lock any fun memories in the city’s Collective Past Locker. This way, they will continue to lead their serious, adult lives, ignorant of their whimsical past.
But Carlo doesn’t mix well with this “serious” thing. To the chagrin of King Blaus, Carlo, Berto and their new friend, Tatiana, recover the goofiness of the past as they go on adventures. And Carlo’s quirky spirit might just revive the Island of Fun for No Reason.
Carlos has a “loud” personality. He doesn’t hesitate to don a stinky hat or dance to the relentless sound of a blaring car horn. And even with Carlos’ hip-heavy dance moves, the show’s cartoon violence and some rude language, the content is generally navigable. Parents will also want to be aware of the magical elements in most episodes. The magic typically feels more whimsical than wicked, but there are some scenes in which menacing fog threatens to harm characters.
Wake Up, Carlo does contain some positive messaging such as the importance of being true to yourself and some themes about friendship. Still, I wouldn’t characterize its content as particularly substantive. Contrasting shows like Curious George, which primarily aim to educate, Wake Up, Carlo’s goal seems to be pure children’s entertainment.
For some families, this might be perfectly fine, but for others, the overall inanity might have them looking somewhere else for kids’ shows.
The citizens of the Island of Fun for No Reason are playing hide-and-seek. And there’s one very important rule: no competition. But Carlo has his heart set on being the hide-and-seek champion, and he’ll do anything to win. Even if that means waiting 20 years.
Clearly, Carlo isn’t very concerned about the rules. Not only does he reject the “no competition” rule, but he also goes to prohibited places. Carlo smacks other kids and sabotages their chances in the name of competition. Hoping to win the hide-and-seek challenge, Carlo runs into the dark forest. When his best friend, Berto, follows him, the forest looks frightening, and sometimes things pop out at Berto.
While not expressly scary, “Hide-and-Seek Champion” contains quite a bit of cartoon violence. In anger, Berto shakes and climbs on an “enchanted light post,” and at one point, he falls down a large tube, bumping into its walls on the way down. Berto also owns an alarm clock that punches him in the morning. Characters chase Carlo and Berto, throwing flaming volleyballs at them and ramming a giant truck into the bumper of their car.
Carlo enjoys breaking out his dance moves, and while they are generally innocuous, sometimes they include hip movement. A character encourages another to twerk. A few characters are seen without shirts, and some wear bathing suits. At one point, a character calls people “punks,” and we hear the phrase “rat patootie.” An owner of a junk store claims that one of her items has been cursed by ghosts.
Carlo can’t help but reminisce about the Island of Fun for No Reason, especially the guavito cookies he used to eat. So, Carlo sneaks away from Berto and Tatiana in search of the delicious sweet treats. Instead of finding his guavito cookies, Carlo gets caught in a parade celebrating the city’s ruler, King Blaus. When he sees the celebration, Carlo isn’t thinking about King Blaus. Instead, he remembers a similar parade on the Island of Fun for No Reason, where he and all his friends donned stinky hats. So Carlo grabs a dead fish and places it on his head.
While Carlo enjoys his stinky-hat parade, Berto is caught in traffic and experiences some (very relatable) road rage. People on bikes throw things at him, and in Berto’s anger, he roars, waves his arms and drives dangerously. At one point, bike riders fall down like dominos (although, miraculously, no one seems to be hurt).
King Blaus, who wanted all the attention on him during the parade, is enraged that Carlo stole his spotlight. King Blaus’ giant guns point at Carlo, and King Blaus threatens to blast him into oblivion via a cannon. Although Carlo never seems to be particularly afraid, King Blaus’ threats and the jeering crowd might be enough to frighten some viewers.
Characters break glass to loot a TV store, and someone says the word, “jeez.” Both King Blaus and Carlo perform dances involving hip and rear movement.
Creativity abounds here, but those artistic measures can’t blur the obvious issues that families are sure to discover.
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