Search - BOZ. Thank You God for Friends and Helpers (discovering God's World Together) on DVD

Janine E. from COVENTRY, CT
Reviewed on 3/14/2013...

My 5 & 4 year old have been watching these for a couple of years now and the videos continue to hold their interest. These are safe, wholesome, family-friendly entertainment for preschoolers and early elementary age kids. The videos all feature the same family -- mom, dad, brother Drew and sister Gracie and, of course, Boz the big green bear that lives in a tree in their yard. Boz definitely has a little bit of a "Barney" feel to him, but that's to be expected since these videos were created by the same folks that created Barney. As an adult, I don't find Boz to be an annoying character the way Barney is though. The animation on these is digital, so the characters have a slightly robotic look to them -- IMO.

There are songs mixed in throughout the episodes, and wholesome messages about how to treat others with kindness and respect. These ARE geared toward Christians, though I think they could really be fine for anyone who believes in God. They do not talk about Jesus, but they do talk about God. In just about every episode, the family says grace before they eat dinner and at the end of each episode the kids say their prayers in bed. My kids actually now say this prayer each night before bed. It's very cute and easy to remember: "Thank you, God, as this day ends for my family and my friends. Taking time to sit and pray, Thank you God for this great day." Then the kids add in their own piece about what they are thankful for for that day. I like how they model this for kids. I feel it is done very appropriately and is not shoving religion down your throat.

Overall, although these are marketed toward Christians, I feel they are really suitable for anyone of faith -- whether you're Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Unitarian, etc. As long as you're comfortable with discussions about "God" you would probably find these videos to your liking.

Cute Sayings instead of Scripture

Laura R. Meintjes | McKinney, TX USA | 07/06/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"All of these reviews are true. However, if you are looking for a good christian video with some Biblical content, you won't find it here. Rather than referring to God's Word as a tool to live your life, Boz relies on cute sayings like "make lemonade when life hands you lemons". It is a ton better than most cartoons out there, but it drops the ball when it comes to the opportunity to spread the Gospel."

Great Series

Donovan Adams | Dallas, TX USA | 11/27/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"My wife found out about Boz at her local MOPS group and after our first DVD, we were hooked. Our son at only 18 months just loved it and always asks for it. Now at 2, it's still his favorite. We now have every Boz DVD made and key an eye out for the new ones.

As parents, we really like the values portrayed (concepts of friends, family, forgiveness, honesty, sharing, etc.) in a fun and clear way that's enjoyable for pre-schoolers across a wider age group.

We have all of the Disney movies that you can imagine, but many of them are still too scarey for younger viewers. You don't realize how bad they all started off until you think about your 2 year old watching them (typical theme of overcoming adversity starts with someone killing the mother, ala Bambi or Fox & Hound, or the kitten or puppies getting tossed in a sack out of a moving car, etc). While G rated, the concepts are still a bit much for younger viewers, so it will be a while before we move up to Disney movies.

So for now, we are estatic about the entire Boz series of DVDs and highly recommend them.

Caveat - these are Christian based videos. No specific denomination are ever mentioned. No church scenes and no mention of attending any kind of services, but there is a prayer in every episode (in a family setting while tucking the kids in for bed or at dinner) and blatant use of the G-o-d word. While the values taught still transcend specific religious beliefs, if you are offended by religious messages and prayer, these will not be for you.
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