Cartoon Lost and Found

Cartoon Lost and Found
Nickelodeon
1989
Cartoon
VHS
C+

Adam West hosts this set of random clips of mostly 1960s cartoons, interspersed with not particularly funny live-action scenes, although I did smile at his claiming to have been the Professor on Gilligan's Island. Some of the cartoons are indeed obscure (I didn't know then and don't know now what they are), while others are part of pop culture, like Speed Racer.  And, yes, the Jay Ward shows George of the Jungle, Super Chicken, and Tom Slick are well represented.

On The Television: There's an Englishman in the House

On The Television: There's an Englishman in the House
Nickelodeon
1990
Parody
VHS
B-

A Mr. Belvedere parody, with a bluesy theme song.  Not as dead-on as My Five Dads, but the lead gives an enjoyably smarmy impersonation.

On the Television: My Five Dads

On the Television: My Five Dads
Nickelodeon
The Fall of 1989
Parody
VHS
B

Tim Conway, Jr. and George McGrath play TV critics and two of the "dads" of the reviewed show.  (McGrath gripes about the theme song which his other character sings.)  This is a parody of not just My Two Dads but also The Brady Bunch, with a melodramatic girl of about 12 and a wise and wisecracking maid.  And to some degree, it's a satire on family sitcoms in general.  A nice little gem that still holds up.  Director Gary Halvorson would go on to some episodes of Roseanne's final season.

TV's Perfect Moms

TV's Perfect Moms
Nickelodeon
1989
Documentary
VHS
B-

Again, I'm not really sure what genre to put this under, but I think it is closer to a documentary than anything else.  Hostess Kerns talks about growing up with the "perfect" moms of the past and how her character on Growing Pains deals with that legacy.  Henderson and Billingsley provide insight into what it was like to play such moms, including the effect this had on their real families.  At times this feels like a plug for the Nick at Night line-up-- Mr. Ed for instance makes the cut-- but it's pretty well put together and it is nice to see these shows, even if I'm not a big fan of most of them.

Note that Kerns refers to the '90s, which I think Who's the Boss? started doing in '88.  People were a lot more impatient for this decade to end than the '60s or '70s as I recall, although honestly I don't think any of us fathomed what the '90s would actually be like.

Maple Town: When Children Must Be Grown-Ups

Maple Town: When Children Must Be Grown-Ups
Nickelodeon
1988
Cartoon
VHS
C

A potentially interesting scenario-- with the children of Maple Town running things while the grown-ups are all away at a Friendship Conference in Cedar City-- is sidetracked by bratty Kirby Cat.  His back story is less interesting than that of Sybil, the delusional lady cat.

Maple Town: The Witch's Castle

Maple Town: The Witch's Castle
Nickelodeon
1988
Cartoon
VHS
B-

American viewers of either Tales of Little Women or Noozles will recognize some of the voice cast: Rebecca Forstadt, who does the voice of star Patty Rabbit, was Amy March, while Patty's father has the same voice actor as Sandy Brown's father.  And the High Dingy Doo actor is clearly playing the lion mayor here.  (There may be others I missed.)  This series is sort of rural Richard Scarry, with other characters such as comic villain Wilde Wolfe and Dr. Dog.  This episode is about a delusional old cat lady (or rather, lady cat) who lives in an otherwise abandoned castle.  It originally aired in Japan in '86 or '87 but made it to Nick's daytime lineup, with live action sequences featuring "Mrs. Maple," a couple years later.

Noozles: Memorable Days

Hiding no more

Noozles: Memorable Days
1988
Nickelodeon
Cartoon
VHS
C

Sandy misses the koalas now that they've gone back to KWL.  Most of the episode is a clip-show of reminiscences.  (The Wikipedia title is "How It All Began.")  It does end oddly, with the parents acting like they're trying to fix Sandy up with Mark, and then being happy that she bickers with him.  Oh, Blinky and Pinky look down from above, like ghosts.

I'm missing the twelfth episode "Journey to the Past"/"Going Back in Time," but that's been true ever since I recorded these.  So judging the series by 24 1/2 episodes out of 26, the distribution of C+s, B-s, and B's is pretty even, and this C doesn't prevent a B- average.  It was worth revisiting the series, which, despite some repetitiveness (especially with Frankie and Spike, and at times Osgood), retains its charm and weirdness.

Noozles: The Great Phenomenon [fragment]

Noozles: The Great Phenomenon [fragment]
1988
Nickelodeon
Cartoon
VHS
B

I'm missing almost half this episode, so the recording starts with the High Dingy Doo visiting the Browns.  The various pieces of the central mystery come together, and the koalas go home, after Blinky saves their world and ours.  The Wikipedia title is Ayers Rock, because that's where the great phenomenon takes place.

Noozles: I'm the Lead

A more dangerous episode

Noozles: I'm the Lead
1988
Nickelodeon
Cartoon
VHS
B-

The title on Wikipedia is "Play Acting," and the "plot," such as it is, of the episode is Pinky and Sandy reading stories about koalas and then deciding to act one out, with Blinky, but everyone ends up arguing.  An odd choice for the episode before the one where the central mystery of the series is explained.  Note that while there is some fear of Sandy as a human in KWL, she does not have to flee from the Eucalyptus Patrol or anyone.

Noozles: SOS?

Frankie

Noozles: SOS?
1988
Nickelodeon
Cartoon
VHS
C+

This is one of those episodes that sounds kinkier than it is, with Pinky tied up on a hotel bed as an old man takes a shower.  The Wikipedia title is "The Magic Show," and she befriends the elderly magician.  Meanwhile the tedious thieves, Spike and Frankie, have somehow returned to Earth and they want to kidnap Pinky.

Noozles: Propose

Don't ask me who Fuzzy was.

Noozles: Propose
1988
Nickelodeon
Cartoon
VHS
B

The Wikipedia title is "Traveling Back in Time," but both titles apply to this Back-to-the-Future-ish episode where Sandy and the koalas go back to when Kelly was at the university and Alex was afraid to tell her his feelings before he left on an expedition to China.  Alex and Kelly, as suggested in an earlier episode, have known each other since childhood, but now she's seeing Paul, a vain aspiring actor.  The trio have to make sure the right man proposes, although Kelly claims at one point that she doesn't want to marry anyone.  Yet when Pinky tries to talk her into marrying Paul, she realizes, in rhyme no less, that she wants to marry Alex.  Oh, and Sandy is Clark-Kently disguised in glasses and a Beatles cap.

Noozles: Run Away from Home

Noozles: Run Away from Home
1988
Nickelodeon
Cartoon
VHS
C+

Wikipedia is clearer, with "Sandy Runs Away from Home," and it's one of the more forgettable episodes, except for the giant Osgood at the amusement park.  I suppose I could say something about backlash and Sandy resenting her mother's job, but Alex's job interferes with family time much more than Kelly's.

Noozles: The Philosopher's Stone

Noozles: The Philosopher's Stone
1988
Nickelodeon
Cartoon
VHS
B-

The Wikipedia title is, no, not "The Sorcerer's Stone," but "The Magical Vacations."  Alex is supposed to return home but goes to Africa in search of the Wiseman's Stone.  His mother travels all the way there (without magic as far as I know) to guilt-trip him into coming home to "the greatest treasures any man could want," his wife and daughter.  But he's distracted, so she has Blinky use his magic to zap Alex back to Africa to check out the stone that Lionel has found.  Without using any equipment, just by holding the stone in his hands, Alex decides it's authentic.  Grandma reveals to the audience that she has an identical stone in the attic, which will be important later on.

Noozles: Fun Holiday

I couldn't find Mike Preston, so
here's Sandy's award-winning picture.

Noozles: Fun Holiday
1988
Nickelodeon
Cartoon
VHS
B-

The Wikipedia title is "Star Struck," which is what Sandy is about Mike Preston, a boy celebrity about her age or a little older.  They spend an innocent night in a cabin together.  Kelly takes pictures of them frolicking the next morning, but gives the pics to Sandy rather than use them in a story.

Noozles: Glass Slippers

Noozles: Glass Slippers
1988
Nickelodeon
Cartoon
VHS
B

The Wikipedia title is "Cinderella Sandy," and Sandy wants the lead role in the school play Cinderella.  Her rival is Olivia, while Mark is "the handsome prince."  Mr. Malisse is incredibly indecisive this episode and asks the girls to come back the next day with their theories of what kind of person Cinderella was.  Pinky, in exchange for Sandy letting Blinky go home, offers to introduce Sandy to Cinderella.  Jealousy and competition get to Sandy, so she agrees.

I don't have the exact quotes here, but it's something like
BLINKY: Don't I have anything to say?  Doesn't anyone want to know what I think?
PINKY: Not really, but I have the feeling you're going to tell us anyhow, so go ahead.
Delivered in the usual rushed fashion of course.

The three of them go back in time (and space?) to meet Cinderella, with Pinky filling in for the fairy godmother.  Sandy gets the part, but it turns out, as we learn in another run-on sentence line, Pinky borrowed the slippers and other items from the KoalaWalla Land Museum and now she's being punished, so Blinky can't go home until Pinky finds the other glass slipper.  This isn't quite a B+ but it is possibly my favorite episode in the series.

Noozles: Ring of Friendship

Sandy's grandmother

Noozles: Ring of Friendship
1988
Nickelodeon
Cartoon
VHS
B-

Questionable behavior, from emotional blackmail to shoving an old lady to the floor, is somewhat balanced by memorable visuals (especially the air show, and the apples hitting the bubble) and wisdom from the High Dingy Doo.  The Wikipedia title is "Commander Blinky," since that's Pinky's ambition for Blinky.

Noozles: Mystery Mystery Mystery

Sorry, that's the Crystal Palace

Noozles: Mystery Mystery Mystery
1988
Nickelodeon
Cartoon
VHS
B

Or as Wikipedia puts it, "The Mysterious Message."  Sandy's father, Alex, with his colleague Lionel, is investigating his own father's mysterious disappearance 38 years before, at Ayers Rock.  He goes into a cave and disappears, reappearing in KoalaWalla Land.  Sandy and the koalas find out and go after him.  The thread about the mysterious links between Benjamin Brown and the HDD is thickened here, with Alex discovering his father in the Crystal Place.  We also see that Alex's kindness helps save him as much as his daughter's bravery.

Noozles: Back to the Hidden Dimension!

Visiting the hidden dimension, again

Noozles: Back to the Hidden Dimension!
1988
Nickelodeon
Cartoon
VHS
B

The Wikipedia title is just "Koalawalla Land," and in this episode Kelly goes to visit Alex in Australia, just as he's waking up from a strange dream about KWL, where he spoke to his father.  Sandy gets very curious, so she has the koalas take her back there so that she can visit the Crystal Place and speak to her grandfather.  He delivers a mysterious message, about learning from the "love and companionship" of KWL.  It seems like a bit of a police state to me, but whatevs.  The animation for the Crystal Place is the best artwork so far, so I'm grateful for the sci-fi element, even if it threatens to get repetitive.

Noozles: Run Great Thief

Spike

Noozles: Run Great Thief
1988
Nickelodeon
Cartoon
VHS
C+

Too much of this episode is spent on Spike and Frankie's attempts to steal Blinky, but the two thieves do end up captured by the KoalaWallan forces, and broadcast on EucalyptusVision.  The title on Wikipedia is "The Last Caper," suggesting they won't escape.

Noozles: The Land of Different-Space

Noozles: The Land of Different-Space
1988
Nickelodeon
Cartoon
VHS
B

Here at the midpoint, the series suddenly swerves from fantasy to sci-fi.  Sandy is curious about Blinky's parents and world.  Pinky hopes that if Blinky and Sandy go to KoalaWalla Land, Blinky will want to stay.  So, with Sandy wearing a koala mask, the three journey through space to this planet or set of planets or whatever the heck this Australian-ish realm is.  They meet the ruler, the High Dingy Doo, who says some mysterious things about an old human friend and Benjamin Brown, the same name as Sandy's grandfather who disappeared 38 years ago!  The various police/military forces chase Sandy and her friends, "in the name of the High Dingy Doo," yet HDD hides them and then sends them back to Earth.  (The Wikipedia title is "Humans Not Allowed," a law that the trio are aware they're breaking.)