Timmy Time: Timmy Steals the Show

Created by Aardman Animations (of Wallace & Gromit and Shaun the Sheep fame), this stop-motion animated series follows the wordless escapades of young lamb Timmy and his preschool pals. While the creatures (including a pig, a duck, a cat, a dog, an owlet) and teachers (a heron and an owl) may not speak, they definitely communicate through distinctive sounds similar to the natural noises the corresponding animals make (i.e., “baa,” “mee-yew”). This five-episode set kicks off with the titular “Timmy Steals the Show,” in which Timmy gives up his magic wand trick to help out a friend during the talent show. Others include “Timmy's Picnic,” where a soccer (oops, football, seeing as this is a U.K. production) game is complicated by hedgehog pup Apricot's prickly spikes; “Timmy Brings a Smile”; “Timmy Can't Dance”; and the closing piece “Timmy Says Sorry,” which finds our football-obsessed tyke accidentally breaking a window and adorably crying in time out. Cute models, props, and sets nicely back the lesson-filled stories here. DVD extras include a theme song sing-along. Recommended. Aud: K, P. (J. Williams-Wood)