Just in time for the Summer Olympics in London comes Team Umizoomi: Umigames. The trio are ready to get kids interested in the various sports that will dominate the TV screen in a few months. For those without kids and a need to leave the TV on Nick Jr., Team Umizoomi is addictive TV for preschoolers. They can’t resist the trio of tiny superheroes eager to help the kids of Umi City. They claim to be the tiniest superheroes in the world. Milli is all about patterns. Geo understands shapes. Bot insists you stare at his belly screen. All three of them have mighty math powers when it comes to being super helpers.
“Umi Sports Games” pits the trio against a bunch of robots in order to win the Umi Games Trophy. They do need the help of your kid to win big. What child wants to live with the trauma of being the reason Team Umizoomi didn’t achieve total victory? There’s a lot of math and shapes involved in the games so kids will learn. “Boardwalk Games” takes them down to the seaside to play at the arcade. Kids learn that they can use tickets to win toys. “Crazy Skates” has them track down a pair of red crazy skates that have been painted blue. Bot has to signal the Umi Alarm for himself. “Carnival” makes the trio find a stuffed bunny. Can they finish a case in such an exciting place as a carnival? Did a Carnie give it away when they couldn’t guess someone’s weight?
Team Umizoomi: Umigames proved addictive to my preschooler. A big warning is that the disc will automatically start after a few seconds on the main menu. It will never stop until you turn it off. Don’t set it and forget it. Otherwise it’s another fun way to present educational materials to preschoolers. The three characters make numbers, shapes and patterns even more of a game.
The video is 1.33:1 full frame. The transfer brings out the details in pattern power. The audio is Dolby Digital Stereo. It’s a simple mix so nothing will overwhelm your speakers. The levels are fine for when they break into song. The episodes are Closed Captioned.
No bonus features.
Team Umizoomi: Umigames lets kids understand that numbers and shapes are a big part of sporting events. This will also provide an educational distraction when you want to watch your favorite Olympic sport without the preschooler screaming for you to turn the channel.
Paramount and Nickelodeon present Team Umizoomi: Umigames. Starring: Milli, Geo and Bot. Boxset contents: 4 episodes on 1 DVDs. Released June 5, 2012. Available at Amazon.com.
