Nick Yearly Recap 1992: Arcades, Sketches, and Guts

Nickelodeon Yearly Recap 1992: Arcades, Sketches, and Guts

Nick Arcade

In the early 90s, Phil Moore hosted a video game themed show for Nickelodeon. Back then, video games were still seen a fad to certain group of people and they were barely escaping their arcade era (which the early years of gaming were arcade themed). Not too long after this show came out, video games went to the third dimension. But I am going off topic, we’re supposed to be covering a game show on Nick, not the history of gaming. Every episode has two teams of young contestants getting tested with two questions before the winning team get advanced to the gaming section of the show. Mikey’s World revolves on a boy named Mikey and you control as him in different situations, but you have to be on the lookout for any bad guys. Then towards the end of every episode, we are treated to a hybrid segment called The Video Zone where the winning contestant are teleported inside a video game and have 30 seconds to reach the goal. The winning prizes are what you typically see in other Nick game shows. Well, as a video game lover, I can say I love this game show and it's one of the best game shows Nick has ever produced. Phil Moore is a fantastic host and he's super passionate about the job. Casual viewers will just see this as a normal game show, but game lovers will see Nick Arcade as a one of a kind game show. You still have your usual quizzes, but once the question section is over, we are treated to a simulation of a game (one made for the show and one that is actually an arcade game). The arcade sequences are great, but I especially love the one towards the end of every episode where the winning team are teleported inside a game. It's just so cool to watch. There isn't much else to say about this show other than the fact you'll be recognizing a few games like a beta version of the 2nd Sonic game, where Nick star Melissa Joan Hart infamously failed at game for not being an experienced gamer. Though otherwise, younger gamers won't really know much of them, but it doesn't matter as long as you read gaming history articles. So yeah, this has been one of the first things I watched through Paramount+ when I joined and it's worth the hype. Some people want this show back on the air, but honestly, Nick has enough reboots as it is and I don't think arcades are relevant anymore unless you go to places that have them. But even if it were to happen, I'll be down to it. Maybe with newer technology it will make it cooler.

(10/10)

Roundhouse

Before All That and after the days of You Can’t Do That on TV reruns, there was another sketch show called Roundhouse that was part of the original SNICK lineup. It was pretty much identical to YCDTOTV, but modernized for the 90s and there’s a musical twist as well as an emphasis on pop culture references. The titular roundhouse provides the main setting for the show and it's where all the fun stuff happens, from telling jokes to singing and dancing. I got to be honest with you, I wasn't expecting much with a show like this. When I sat down and binged the first season, I asked myself, will this be worth watching since it's a product of its time? And when I did, I got mixed results. On the bright side, the pop culture references, while dated, kind of worked as they feel a bit less dated than the ones told in YCDTOTV (even though I preferred that show and its jokes more). And I could tell, the actors had a great time performing their lines. But on the other hand, when the jokes fail, they really failed and really show you how 90s it could be at times. But if I have to give out the biggest problem with the show is that it's a semi-musical. Am I supposed to be watching a musical or a sketch comedy? What  purposes do these songs serve other than to fill up the time? Most of them don't make sense to me and they sound as old-fashioned as they can be. I mean, when you look at the other sketch comedies, they did have some musical aspect, but they weren't the main focus, they were usually used at the end of an episode. These numbers feel like a chore to sit through and sometimes I just feel like I want to watch the show for the laughs and nothing else. I don't know why but that's just me. It's not the worst thing ever of its kind. Welcome Freshmen (which was a sketch comedy during its first two seasons) was more nihilistic than Roundhouse and at least I could enjoy some aspect more here, even if the flaws hold it back. For being one of SNICK's first shows, it's so forgettable and even I've forgotten much of the show and when I wrote this review, I was trying my best to remember what I saw. Overall, while not a bad show, it's not something I want to watch the entire run and I personally like YCDTOTV, All That, and especially The Amanda Show more. It says a lot when we haven't heard from the cast members of this show compared to the others (then again, Welcome Freshmen's cast are even more obscure than this show's cast) other than the fact one of them died at a young age.

(6/10)

Wild Side Show

(Skipping because I couldn’t find full episodes)

Nickelodeon GUTS

This is about the Nick game show, if the title makes it clear, not that new pop album that came out this year. After previously hosting a game show for Nickelodeon (Get the Picture), Mike O’Malley would become the host of GUTS. Moira Quick serves as the referee, reporting on the status of the contestants. Three young contestants compete against each other in four different athletic events. Instead of pop quizzes, this show has an athletic spin to it, and just like Marc Summers with What Would You Do being a departure from that format in Double Dare, the same thing apply to O’Malley (except that it’s more about sports rather than comedy). Except this time, O’Malley ended up being on a slightly better game show than the previous where as Summers’ second game show wasn’t as good as Double Dare. Both O'Malley and Moira did a great job as host and referee, and while I am not much of a sports myself, this is one of the few times I'm willing to watch something athletic. There isn’t much else to discuss about the show although it is one of the few game shows to pop up in a Nicktoon many years later with Sanjay and Craig. The writers took a rather interesting direction with it. All in all, for the Gen Z folks, I definitely recommend giving GUTS a watch if you want to experience how 90s it was.

(8/10)

Nick Yearly Recap 2022: Good Content, Bad Schedule

2022: Good Content, Bad Schedule

As we enter the third year of the 2020s, Nickelodeon has another good year under their belt, but there’s two hiccups down the road: a crappy live action show of The Fairly OddParents and the live feed becoming more and more of an afterthought now that their content are thriving on Paramount+ (which makes up most of their profit aside from Star Trek). So in shorter words, good content, bad schedule. Let’s get right to it.

Warped!

It only had 13 episodes, but I reviewed the whole thing here: https://felixsaenzreviews.blogspot.com/2022/10/its-warped-review.html?m=1

It was easily my favorite Nick show to come out of 2022, as you can tell.

(9/10)

The Tiny Chef Show

The second collaboration between Imagine Kids, this show follows Tiny Chef hosting a show as prepares to cook various of plant based foods. During the climax, he struggles to make a food and gets interviewed with a celebrity (such as Tabitha Brown, Josh Dela Cruz, Kristen Bell, etc.). He is accompanied by his friends, Olly, Henry, and Ruby, who helps him succeed at cooking. Every segment has an educational segment on the episode’s food. Well, judging from what I described, it’s another laid-back Nick Jr show that will obviously be cancelled after a season or two because it’s not hectic like Paw Patrol and Blaze and the Monster Machines. But if you’re a show of these type of shows, enjoy them as much as you can because they will be gone before you know it. And from the first season I watched on Paramount+, I had a blast. Not only it is cozy as heck, but it is also educational for the young ones who want to cook food. And as a food lover, it sure gonna make hungry thinking about the food Tiny makes.

(9/10)

Big Nate

I wanted to do a separate review for the show, but I realized there isn’t much to talk about every episode. It is the first time Lincoln Pierce’s comic book series got adapted to a television series, and as someone who read very little of them while passing by the library store at the local mall, I can see the appeal. Big Nate, just like The Peanuts Movie, really translate well from comics to 3D animation. I know people have grown wary of computer animation, but please believe me when you take a look at this show. It’s so uniquely animated that I thought I was watching something theatrical. Speaking of big budgets, I’m surprised to see the show playing a good amount of licensed music. I guess being on a streaming service takes more risks in addition making more PG rated jokes. Yes, they have some of them, which is reminiscent of 90s Nicktoons. Who knew how different this show would be if it was on cable as originally intended? Nate Wright himself is a portrayed as a troublemaker, but he’s more toned down here. His sister Ellen is voiced by the girl who played twins on a Disney Channel sitcom (despite being a Nickelodeon production).

Transformers EarthSpark

Separate review coming soon:

(8/10)

Face’s Music Party

Remember that face who took up the entire screen when you were watching Nick Jr as a child? Well, many years later, he is back with a brand new show for today’s generation of preschoolers. This series revolves on Face functioning as a video jockey, playing various of pop songs and nursery rhymes, all matching the themes of an episode. For example, in the first episode, Friendship/Bugs, they played songs that had to do with friends and insects (such as Together by Sia, The Ants Go Marching). They even get permission to play actual music videos, if they don’t provide actual animation or a rerecording the music video with kids. All of the remixed nursery rhymes are accompanied by animation. All of music box segments are live action segments featuring kids recording music. Every episode ends with a dance party segment. Sometimes, there will be music videos from Nick Jr shows, and I was really surprised seeing Backyardigans in the show considering it ended many years ago. I’ll be honest with you - when I first heard about this show, I didn’t expect much with it. Nick have been too much on a nostalgia trip lately that I feel tired from all the stuff that were being brought back for sake of it, but I ended watching the whole season on Paramount+ and ended up enjoying more than I expected. Just like a lot a majority of modern Nick shows, it’s very comfy and serves as background noise if there’s nothing interesting to watch. Face makes his long awaited return with a brand new voice - Cedric L Williams (as Chris Phillips is better known as the Nick Jr announcer nowadays, something he’s been doing for the brand for nearly 3 decades now), and he does a great job as the role. The live action/animation hybrid is utilized well just like in Blue’s Clues as you have Face interacting with actual children. The musical sequences are a good watch, although it gets points off for playing a few lame songs (but they don’t have a choice since some of them have to match the theme of an episode). Overall, it’s a decent addition to the Nick Jr block, but I doubt they’ll ever renew it because of their Paw Patrol addition lately. 

(7/10)

Monster High

Monster High has been around since 2010, and went through a couple reboots. This is just the second reboot, making it the third generation. G1 lasted about 6 years and spawned a bunch of media. But G2 was short lived and fans hardly remember about it. So the franchise took a break for a little while until Mattel and Nickelodeon team up to produce the next generation. G3 focuses more on Clawdeen as opposed to Frankie in G1 and Draculaura in G2. And before anyone asks, this is mostly focused on the animated series, but I suppose I will get my honest opinions on the live action adaptation out of the way. They are on the same level of quality as the Zombies movies on Disney Channel. They were only made just so the costume department can make the corniest wardrobe ever. And not to mention, to cash in the musical aspect that Kenny Ortega popularized with High School Musical and later Descendants. In shorter words, they simply suck and I don’t know why Nick prioritize them more than the cartoon, but that’s Hollywood for you. They always favor cheap drivel. The show’s premise is basically the same as the other media they done (monsters living their daily lives at a high school), except with a big emphasis on Clawdeen’s life and of course, some great representation done by Maya Lichian. And while I never had time to keep up with the show’s premieres, I have to say, this is the best piece of Monster High media ever produced, period. Yes, even better than the movies they made previously, which were alright, but they suffered from being cliched teen movies.

(8/10)

The Really Loud House

Hadn’t seen it yet, will do a separate review of live action Loud House content.

The Fairly OddParents: Fairly Odder

A separate review of the show can be found here: https://felixsaenzreviews.blogspot.com/2022/05/fairly-odder-is-waste-of-everyone’s-time.html?m=1

Easily the worst Nick show of 2022 by a margin.

(2/10)