Bindi: The Jungle Girl-Episodes 1-4 (2007)

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General		Extras
Category	Childrens	Main Menu Audio
Rating
Year Of Production	2007
Running Time	89:48
RSDL / Flipper	No/No	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	John Stainton
Studio Distributor	Roadshow Home Entertainment	Starring	Bindi Irwin Steve Irwin Terri Irwin Robert Irwin
Case	Amaray-Transparent
RPI	?	Music	Mark McDuff

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 2.0 (256Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.78:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	Varies	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	English	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	Yes

    My four-year-old daughter loves Bindi Irwin's TV series; it's a great mixture of animal facts and footage captured in the wild. Bindi presents the show from her tree-house, where she lives with her pets which include a Koala and a Cockatoo. In the first episode, Bindi gives us a quick tour and introduces us to all of her pets. "Look, here's my pet black-headed python that I sleep with...", and so-on. Along with her baby brother Bob, it must get pretty crowded in there.

    Bindi's show includes a lively mix of international and Australian wildlife, as well as musical interludes and dancing with her all-singing, all-dancing troupe of Crocmen. Steve Irwin features prominently in both stock footage and in the studio with his daughter now and then. There is some focus on endangered species, but the show also includes common species too.

    Not long ago, I heard a fellow parent describe Bindi as "an obnoxious know-it-all", but I disagree. I think at Bindi's age, all kids have a whiney, "my dad says" kind-of attitude. Besides, the broad range of info offered here for kids far out-weighs any such shortcomings. Bindi also seems to have inherited some of her mother's American twang, which can be a bit surprising to begin with.

    This DVD is essentially a compilation of the first four episodes of the series, each running for just over twenty minutes.

• Not Many Left - We see a panda get treatment for a toothache, and Bindi shows us Wombats living in the wild.
• Elephants at Work - Steve Irwin shows us around a Sri Lankan Elephant orphanage, while Steve's offsider, Wes, takes us to an Elephant temple in Thailand for some Elephant combat training.
• American Beauties - This episode focuses on American landmarks and wildlife, such as the Alligator, the Bald Eagle and the Bison.
• Cat Tracks - Looks at the big cats kept in Australia Zoo, as well as some that can be found in the wild.

    This is a fantastic nature series for kids of primary-school age.

Video

    This video transfer is on a par with your average standard definition digital broadcast. The image is presented in an 1.78:1 aspect, with 16x9 enhancement. Some of the archive footage of Steve Irwin is of a 1.33:1 aspect, and this is presented with colourful pillar boxing to fill the widescreen aspect.

    The video is quite soft, particularly so on a big screen, with no major issues to report. Detail is as good as you would expect from an SD transfer. Colours are nice and bright, with not a single blemish to be seen.

    MPEG compression is generally well controlled, with no dire blocking visible on a big screen. Mild haloing can be seen on foreground objects, but on a smaller display that will be much less of an issue. Some persistent compression grain can be seen on occasion.

    Optional English subtitles are provided, and seem to be accurate.

This disc is single-layered (DVD5 format).

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    There's only one audio option; Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo, encoded at 256Kb/s.

    Vocals are always clear and distinct, while the musical passages are nice and bright. There are no sync issues.

    The soundtrack is a decent stereo mix, active and involving, with great use of the stereo soundfield.

    The subwoofer and surround channels are not supported.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Menu

    The transfer is good.

    There are no extras.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall