Reviewer's Bias*
Loves: "Yo Gabba Gabba"
Likes: Jack Black, Noggin
Dislikes: Most kids shows
Hates: Creepy sad Muno

The Show
In most cases, if there's a kids show my little girl enjoys, it's going to bore me as kids shows, incredibly, are made to entertain kids whose brains work a bit differently. But there are the select few series that don't affect me like a pile of turkey on Thanksgiving. One of them is "Yo Gabba Gabba," created by Christian Jacobs (of excellent superhero band The Aquabats) and Scott Schwartz. A throwback to the live-action puppet-suit casts of shows like "New Zoo Revue," it's built around segments with DJ Lance Rock (Lance Robertson), an energetic guy dressed in all orange with thick black glasses, and his toy creatures, including flowery pink Foofa and bumpy, red, one-eyed Muno, who come to life when he places them in his "Gabba Land" diorama for playtime. These musical scenes, which normally "teach" a lesson, like eating your vegetables or not biting your friends, are mixed with animated segments and musical guests, normally with a celebrity visitor stopping by for a dancey dance segment (where they teach a simple move.) Admittedly some songs are the same with different words, which is a cardinal kids show sin, but since the rest of the show is so original, I'll somewhat overlook it.

This disc has four episodes, including one of the newest shows, a yet-to-air second-season entry titled "New Friends," which features Jack Black as a guest star. It breaks the usual format, as Jack is the first human to interact with the Gabba characters outside of a dancey dance segment, arriving in Gabba Land when his talking mini-bike runs out of gas. Here, the morale is about making new friends, which Jack does via songs and dance, unfortunately making it tough for him when it's time to head home. Black's goofball persona works well with the show's tone, as does his comedic seriousness and rock singing ability, the two of which combine in the finale, a moment that you will never forget, as Jack dons a matching DJ Lance Rock costume. Also introduced in this episode is the "Knock, Knock" joke segment, presented here by "30 Rock"'s Jack McBrayer and "Human Giant" star (as well as "30 Rock" alum) Paul Scheer. While little ones will enjoy the silly joke, seeing two of NBC's top pages perform it is a treat for grown-ups.

The other episodes, "Share," "Find," and "Greetings," have aired frequently on Nickelodeon's channels, and are a decent cross-section of the show, though the guest stars and musical performers (outside of kick-ass Japanese rock band Cornelius Group) are not of the caliber of the series' average guests, with one-hit wonder Sean Kingston barely edging out The Wolfgramms (kids decended from '80s family band The Jets) for the title of biggest name in this collection. That said, there's still the segments with '80s music legends Mark "Devo" Mothersbaugh (who draws nifty moving pictures) and Biz Markie (with lessons for the kids on how to beatbox.) Plus, you get not one, not two, but three adventures by Super Martian Robot Girl, the comic book-style animated segments designed by indie comics couple Evan Dorkin and Sarah Dyer. With the utterly unbelievable super power known as rational and logical thought, she calms the panicked masses and saves the day again and again. A bit more variety would have been nice for these storytime segments.

Though oddball segments like "Cool Tricks," with former Roots member Rahzel showing off his beatbox skills, and hip guests are a definite draw for the show when it comes to adults, it's the educational portions that are important to the kids watching, and they are just great, with unique and varied animation and some of the coolest, catchiest music you've heard since Schoolhouse Rock. I can't count how many times I've broken out "Please, Thank You" or the funky "Hello, Goodbye" during my day, while "Hey Come Out and Play" is simply a fun, bouncy jingle about enjoying childhood before it's gone. This is good stuff that picks up where Sesame Street ends.

The DVD
The one-disc release is packed in a standard keepcase, and features a static full-frame menu offering options to play all the episodes, select shows and check out previews. There are no audio options and no subtitles, though closed captioning is included.

The Quality
The full-frame transfers on these episodes look terrific, delivering the bright color and detail of the show brilliantly. There's a nice level of fine detail on display here, as the puppet costumes are nicely defined and the animation all looks great, with no dirt, damage or digital artifacts to be seen.

The Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtracks are solid, delivering the show's dialogue and songs very well, though there's nothing dynamic about the mix, which delivers the sound up front and dead center. That said, there's nothing incorrect about the presentation.

The Extras
Outside of the usual onslaught of Nick promos (which aren't listed on the package as an extra (an appreciated bit of marketing restraint)) there's nothing included on this DVD.

The Bottom Line
While straighter-laced parents might not see the entertainment value in this psychedelic kids show, the hip and eclectic mix of music and celebrity guests and effective, yet evenhanded life lessons make it easy to watch, an important feature, since your kids will certainly get hooked on this candy-colored good time. While the DVD looks and sounds good, the complete lack of extras is a big disappointment, so the only reason to pick this up is if you can't get it together to record the show off TV.

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*The Reviewer's Bias section is an attempt to help readers use the review to its best effect. By knowing where the reviewer's biases lie on the film's subject matter, one can read the review with the right mindset.