Guess with Jess
Encyclopedia
Guess with Jess is a British and Canadian television series featuring Jess the Cat. It follows Jess's adventures with his friends on Greendale Farm, and how they always try to solve each other's problems with a Big Question, which is answered by "asking, testing, find a way". The series is a enquiry-based learning show aimed at two to four year olds. Jess and his friends search for the answers to science and nature-led questions, allowing children to learn about the world around them.
To date, the series isn't entirely available on DVD to purchase in the UK and Europe, but a Five DVD Set is available elsewhere which covers all 52 episodes, or 'Big Questions'. This is a similar situation to another very successful environment based animation 'Dirtgirlworld', which carries a full license in the country of origin Australia, to produce a full set of DVDs, but cannot be sold in the UK or Europe, only one DVD being licensed to date.
Plot
In each episode, Jess comes along a question ("big question") at the beginning of the episode, and with the help of the audience and his friends (through "asking, testing, find a way"), the characters find out the answer. This enables youngsters to learn more about the world around them.Characters
- Jess – a black and white catCatThe cat , also known as the domestic cat or housecat to distinguish it from other felids and felines, is a small, usually furry, domesticated, carnivorous mammal that is valued by humans for its companionship and for its ability to hunt vermin and household pests...
, from the BBC series Postman Pat. He is also the main protagonist. Originally, in the 'Postman Pat' series, this character was female. - Willow – a brown and white ponyPonyA pony is a small horse . Depending on context, a pony may be a horse that is under an approximate or exact height at the withers, or a small horse with a specific conformation and temperament. There are many different breeds...
wearing a sunhat. The largest of all the characters, she acts as a wise mother figure to Jess. Willow shares the stable with the puppies, Joey and Jinx - Mimi – a pink and white rabbitRabbitRabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world...
. She live in her hutch and enjoys all things arts and crafts. - Baa – a sheep with a blue wooly hat and a blue and white scarf. He always hangs out with Billie, who both live up in buttercup meadow. Baa tends to be afraid of more things than the others and particularly hates getting wet because the water stays in his wool a long time, making him cold and miserable and also makes his wool heavy.
- Billie – a fieldmouse. She is often seen with Baa and rides around on his hat, since Baa can get places faster than she can. She carries a magnifying glass and a set of binoculars so she can investigate the "big question" further.
- Horace – a frogFrogFrogs are amphibians in the order Anura , formerly referred to as Salientia . Most frogs are characterized by a short body, webbed digits , protruding eyes and the absence of a tail...
who wears large glasses and lives at the pond. He loves making music and instruments out of natural found objects. - Joey and Jinx – two twin brother and sister puppies. Joey (the boy) wears a blue collar with a bone shaped dog tag and Jinx (Joey's sister) wears a pink collar with a flower shaped dog tag and a flower in her hair. They both love to run about the farm, rolling about in the mud and jumping over puddles.
- A host of minor characters - such as Sammy Snail, Brown Bird, etc
Comments
A very well made and devised CGI animation. A lot of thought has gone into the entertaining and positive message the program aims to deliver, in a creative and educational way. The program begins right from the start with a positive theme - the opening song beginning 'Wake Up, the Sun is shining, and it's time to start the day...' midst a gloriously picturesque image of the farm bathed in golden rays of sunshine, amongst the fields of sunflowers where Jess is able to run freely and without care or worry, and who's only aim is to provide an answer to the things he discovers on life's way. The program is never allowed to close without a successful outcome to the 'Big Question', and is never beyond the potential experiences of most of it's young audience. The educational content is both gentle and entertaining, with the audience invited to interact by answering questions in the form of multiple choice questions through the use of flash cards - the correct answer always being very clear and definite. The children will warm quickly to all the characters, with each displaying a different quality to their nature, and again, characterisation is without any ambiguity, to suit a young audience. Adults watching as well will have no trouble in being entertained as much as the children - small details going on in the background which can be quite amusing, but which might well pass over a young viewer.To date, the series isn't entirely available on DVD to purchase in the UK and Europe, but a Five DVD Set is available elsewhere which covers all 52 episodes, or 'Big Questions'. This is a similar situation to another very successful environment based animation 'Dirtgirlworld', which carries a full license in the country of origin Australia, to produce a full set of DVDs, but cannot be sold in the UK or Europe, only one DVD being licensed to date.