Mack & Moxy: The Great Helpee Heroes

Mack & Moxy, which does more than just entertain with fluff, is designed to get children thinking about bigger picture concepts in the community and around the globe. An airy mountaintop lair serves as headquarters for live-action costumed blue moose-like Mack and pink fox-like Moxy, who are alerted by their robot when a distant “Great Helpee” creature is about to hatch. A guiding adult Admirable (here alternately played by Josh Duhamel, Kal Penn, and Eva LaRue) offers up advice and tips along the way, while a new young person trooper helper joins in when the friends are transported to HelpeeLand, after which the program shifts to animation. In each episode, the gang search for the Helpee egg before villain Shelfish Sheldon (voiced by Hank Azaria) gets there first, after which they deposit the orb in the “hatching tree,” return home with a happy Helpee, and recap the lesson of the day with live-action vignettes, a sing-along, and more information. The humanitarian-themed episodes focus on different causes: “A Friend Who Reads is a Friend Indeed” touts reading to little ones and promotes Save the Children; “Always Be Prepared” focuses on an emergency fire escape plan and the American Red Cross; “Feeding Rainbow” adds color to the life of a listless undernourished zebra and highlights Feeding America; and “A Ty-Grrrr's Tale” spotlights animal extinction and the World Wildlife Federation. Sporting the tagline “raising the next generation of great humanitarians,” this is highly recommended. Aud: P. (J. Williams-Wood)