A parent’s biggest nightmare is a rainy day when the kids are stuck inside. Sure there’s tons of fun crafts and projects you can share with the kids. You can read them all your favorite childhood stories. But after two hours of being a perfect parent, you yearn for the sweet narcotic treat known as preschool oriented TV. What’s wrong with a kid zoning out for a couple minutes or even hours in front of the TV? Their silence is your sanity. But you should at least provide programming that reflect the weather outside. Max & Ruby: Rainy Day Play! reminds the wee ones why they can’t spend the day jumping in puddles.
Max & Ruby is about a little rabbit girl and her even smaller brother. They appear to be latch key kids since there’s no parents. Although judging from the house, mom must be out browsing Restoration Hardware. Ruby is the proper kind of know-it-all big sister to her brother. He’s still learning words. Although he likes to repeat a single word to himself like Brick on The Middle. He’s a bit of a brute, but she isn’t too rude to him since they are siblings. The two learn from each other since there’s an absence of parental guidance. Each episode is split into three shows. This bite-size approach is good for kids who don’t have the patience to sit through three hour Soviet epics.
The action is simple and sedate. It plays like a nice pre-schooler’s picture book. “Ruby Writes a Story” explains what it takes a kid to become a writer. “Bunny Cakes” is about food. “Home Tweet Home” is a confusing title since neither Max or Ruby gets a Twitter account. Ruby builds a bird house with a friend. “Max’s Mudpie” reminds kids that the price of being coated in muck is a bath with soap. That’s a horror story bound to frighten any youngsters on a stormy day. Max & Ruby: Rainy Day Play! is a quiet cure for juvenile cabin fever.
The Episodes
“Ruby Writes a Story,” “Max’s Dominoes,” “Grandma’s Attic,” “Bunny Cakes,” “Bunny Party,” “Bunny Money,” “Ruby’s Safari,” “Max’s Mud Bath,” “Max’s Lost Lizard,” “Ruby’s Rainbow,” “Home Tweet Home” and “Max’s Mudpie.”
The video is 1.33:1 full frame. The transfers bring out the detail in the animation. Things around the Bunny’s house look sharp. The audio is Dolby Digital 2.0. Most of the soundtrack is dominated by Ruby’s voice.
None.
Max & Ruby: Rainy Day Play! entertainment for small kids who like talking rabbits. There’s no sly humor snuck into the story for adults watching along. The episodes play like a cute pre-schooler’s picture book. This is an easy way to restore a moment of sanity during your own rainy day crisis with the kids.
Paramount Home Entertainment presents Max & Ruby: Rainy Day Play! Starring: Max and Ruby. Boxset Contents: 12 episodes on 1 DVDs. Released on DVD: April 12, 2011.
