Brum: Airport and Other Stories

On a personal level, I actually like the closing credits of Brum best, featuring an exaggerated dancing flourish by a group of coolly-coordinated kids and wacky service-worker-uniform-clad adults shaking their groove thangs while admiring the passing, self-propelled, jalopy-styled, Power Wheels-type vehicle superhero known as Brum--but for the target demographic, the stories themselves in this live-action TLC-aired British kids series offer an appealing alternative for the Pokéguys/Yu-Gi-Dude set. In this five-episode compilation, zany music, over-the-top characters, and occasional interjections from a child's voice on the soundtrack are used with a simple framing device: in each story, Brum slips away from his owner's garage, heads off to Big Town to see who needs assistance, then scoots back home when his job is done. Whether straightening out a simple mishap (Brum wrangles a mischievous pup named Scruffy who, among other feats, drags a sleeping homeless person into a bed store, in “Brum and the Naughty Dog”) or performing a daring exploit (Brum foils a crook's heist of museum valuables in “Brum and the King of Thieves”), the little car that could has no problem jumping stairs, bumping into criminals, even hurdling a hula-hoop! Also featuring “Brum and the Gymnast” and “Brum and the Pizzeria,” the shining highlight here is the titular “Brum and the Airport Adventure” in which our car Brum reclaims a celebrity's precious jewels after pursing a dastardly duo around an airport. Sprinkled amidst the wacky slapstick (pants falling down, baked goods in the face) are some pretty good problem-solving skills. DVD extras include games, featurettes, and DVD-ROM features. Recommended. [Note: also available at the same price is Brum: Stunt Bike Rescue and Other Stories.] Aud: P. (J. Williams)