Elves and fairies and pigs - Oh my!

Have you caught up with "Ben and Holly's Little Kingdom" yet? It's a little series that's big on cuteness, from the creators of "Peppa Pig", and it's currently airing on Nick Jr and Five's morning Milkshake!, here in the UK (here's the official site).

Ben is an Elf, and Holly a fairy princess, and their kingdom is a magnificently microscopic world located... well.. we're not precisely sure where.. it's just "somewhere, hidden amongst thorny brambles" and everyone who lives there is very, very small. As small as the insects and butterflies that flit and skitter through the grass, as it happens. There's lots of obvious cuteness in the way those little folk interact with the critters, but better still, there's the everyday endeavours of the youngsters and their adult attendants, and in particular, two cult stars in the making in the shape of portly King Thistle and Nanny Plum, whose sparring and debating in and around Little Castle is a joy to behold.

 

 

It's a lovely, funny series, and it's no surprise to see that it has already collected a Children's BAFTA (Best Pre-school Animation, 2009). Producers Astley Baker Davies have completely embraced the notion of a microscopic realm, and what it means to live such a tiny royal life amongst the flora and fauna. It's like you're on your knees, peering into the grass. That makes it two from two from this talented triumvirate. "Peppa Pig" has been equally skilful in the way that it has tackled the notion of what it means to be a part of a modern family unit. Peppa and George are just like everyday regular kids about town with Mummy and Daddy, getting up to mischief, laughing and squabbling, and trying to get their young heads around all those grow-up everyday familial problems. It's chock-full of snorts and giggles and outbursts and sudden steams of tiny tears, just like real life. The flattened perspective of the character designs give both these shows an appealing childlike quality, which is heightened still further by all those jaunty, jumping walk cycles. You really do get the sense that the producers are thinking long and hard about each and every aspect of the production.

 

Art You Grew Up With have had lots of success with their ongoing range of "Peppa Pig" art prints, and now it's great to see "Ben and Holly's Little Kingdom" getting a run too. There are four signed limited-editions currently available and a more general but equally lovely, smaller edition (you can see them all here). Boy, choosing a favourite really is mighty tricky...

 

It's funny, over at Toonhound.com I constantly hear from disgruntled parents who are unimpressed by today's range of animated offerings for their children. They dismiss current productions as being loud and shouty and soul less. But they are both right and wrong in that regard. It is all too easy to look back at your television past through rose-tinted glasses. We had an awful lot of patronising dross on our screens, sandwiched between our favourite whimsical wonders. And the same holds true today. There are lots of shouty shows out there, and far too many of what I call "Cookie Cutter" series. You know the ones. The lead characters are simply transposed to a new environment. More often than not they'll share the same writers and even the same voice artistes. It's just plain lazy.

But "Peppa Pig" and "Ben and Holly's Little Kingdom" are two prime series that buck the system. Now, you'll notice I've deliberately not named any of these sinners, past and present.

That's with good reason, because another thing I quickly discovered at Toonhound is that everyone has an opinion, and what you may think is rubbish is another person's most favourite creation in the world. I'd have no hesitation in putting Peppa, George, Ben and Holly and their pals in to my own current "favourites" list.

But what do you think...?