Customer Reviews

Postcards from Buster - Buster's Outdoor Journeys

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"Outdoor Journeys" --- a must buy for fans of the show because it contains an episode of the program not aired on many PBS stations --- "Sugartime!" Why is this so bad? What's so awful about this episode? Well --- it includes a visit to the home of some kids who have two Moms. Ooh, scary! Best run away from home right now kids --- these women's evil, corrupt lifestyle is going to *destroy* you.

Actually, they spend all of about two minutes on this topic. Buster comments on how he thinks it's neat that these kids have two Moms --- "wow, that's a lot of Moms" and that's it. No mention is even made of them being lesbians and a lot of the little kids watching might not even notice or care unless it's brought up to them.

Note that because of this episode, there are a couple things different about this DVD from the other "Postcards" DVD releases. All episodes except "Sugartime!" are preceded by a notice that funding was provided by a Ready to Learn No Child Left Behind grant. "Sugartime!" does not contain this notice because the funding was unwisely pulled. Also, the episodes do not play continuously when selected individually.

Now onto a more detailed DVD review.

There are also three other episodes "Meet Me at the Fair" (Knox, IN), "The Giant Pumpkins" (Mt. Hood, OR) and "Bayou, By Me." (Sidell, LA) These are all great episodes and feature Buster learning some important things --- not to lie to his parents for one. What's really cool is that these feature some interesting trivia and things --- you can actually learn more about these real giant pumpkins by searching around online.

DVD special features are the same as other "Postcards" releases --- an outline of the series for Parents and Educators and Drawing with Marc Brown. Wisely, I think, they chose not to include any special commentary or specials about the "Sugartime!" episode.

Reviews have apparently been overbalanced by people who are threatened by the idea of Buster meeting kids whose parents are lesbians. <shakes head>

Below is an excerpt from an article in a Tucson paper that clears the air a bit:

In the episode that upset U.S. Education Secretary Margaret Spellings, Buster learns how to make maple syrup in Vermont with some real children and their parents, who are all women. One little girl refers to her mother and stepmother.
"That's a lot of moms!" Buster remarks in the episode titled, "Sugarland!" Nothing more is said about the families.

my kids are 6 and 8 and they enjoyed this... they only watched it once but its nice that there all diffrent kids of famillies in this including a two mommy household. nice dvd

My 4-year old daughter, who loves "Arthur," picked this out at a flea market recently. We'd read a couple of the internationally-themed Buster books from the library but were not familiar with the show.

This DVD is superb... it is by far the most educational children's DVD we own, and it became her favorite right away. It is especially nice for introducing city kids to more rural lifestyles.

I was so offended by the "Sugartime" episode. I'm too lazy to research what sort of programming I expose my children to. Normally they get a steady media diet of hetro-sex and violence, but the over-the-top lesbianism depicted in this award-winning PBS program is just shameful. Buster's comment "Wow, that's a lot of moms!" will clearly lead my child towards not only acceptance of the lifestyle choices of others, but may lead her toward lesbianism, polygamy and/or beastiality - after all, Buster is a BUNNY, isn't he?

It's so hard to raise our children in a bubble these days, but with strict vigilance and semi-coherent tirades directed against that bastion of evil liberalism, PBS, maybe, just maybe, we can raise our children in isolation and ignorance of others who are different from ourselves.

I'm confident that you are no more than a .05 second Google search away from more inappropriate content than this DVD provides. If this is the only exposure your children have to homosexuality - and here it is portrayed in as wholesome a manner imagineable - and it is still intolerable to you, then I fear for the futures of your own children.