It's My Screen Time Too

We depart from our regular format to bring you our takes on the new family movies premiering on streamers and in theaters during the holiday season. What deserves our screen time as 2023 comes to a close? We have plenty of options, from the newest Disney animated musical to a family body swap comedy to Adam Sandler’s latest silly voice. In Screen Time in the News, we discuss an article that asks why none of the newer holiday films feel like they’ll truly become classics like Elf and Love Actually.

Contact us and subscribe to our newsletter at www.myscreentimetoo.com

Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter or by email at [email protected]

Harriet the Spy, the novel beloved by generations of young readers, has been adapted into a multi-season animated series on Apple TV+. We discuss whether Harriet’s antics are appealing when spread over twenty episodes, whether today’s parents are comfortable with their kids admiring a character who spies on others, free range parenting, and more. In Screen Time in the News, we confront our fears about AI being used in PBS’s upcoming interactive show Lyla in the Loop.

Contact us and subscribe to our newsletter at www.myscreentimetoo.com

Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter or by email at [email protected]

We review Spy Kids: Armageddon, the fifth and latest installment in the Spy Kids franchise. Does the soft reboot on Netflix feel fresh or is Spy Kids better left an artifact of the aughts? In Screen Time in the News, we’re just not ready to give up on spooky season, so we discuss a MovieWeb article extolling the 90s banner days of horror for kids.

Contact us and subscribe to our newsletter at www.myscreentimetoo.com

Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter or by email at [email protected]

Star-studded casts have propelled previous movies based on Disney theme park rides to success (Jack Sparrow ring any bells?). In our review of Disney’s second attempt at a Haunted Mansion movie, we consider whether kids even care that the cast includes heavy hitters like Lakeith Stanfield and Jamie Lee Curtis as well as whether the grim grinning ghosts in this new PG-13 Haunted Mansion are too scary for kids. In ScreenTime in the News, we bemoan the state of the magazine industry while discussing a Good Housekeeping article about the benefits of scaring our kids.

Contact us and subscribe to our newsletter at www.myscreentimetoo.com

Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter or by email at [email protected]

We check in with Apple to see how they’re handling the Peanuts legacy with a review of Snoopy Presents: One-of-a-Kind Marcie. Does it have the charm and weight of the Peanuts specials we remember from our childhoods? In Screen Time in the News, we discuss the state of the family film in theaters.

Contact us and subscribe to our newsletter at www.myscreentimetoo.com

Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter or by email at [email protected]

In our latest review, we try our best to follow the plot of the overstuffed animated adventure The Monkey King on Netflix. In Screen Time in the News, we discuss the evergreen newsworthiness of parents expressing befuddlement at their kids’ tastes in media by way of a Wall Street Journal article about popular Youtube channels.

Contact us and subscribe to our newsletter at www.myscreentimetoo.com

Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter or by email at [email protected]

We debut a new segment called One For Me, One For You in which we pair YouTube channels beloved by our kids with ones we think have a greater appeal for parents. This week’s theme is animals, and we review Hammy and Olivia and Nat Geo Kids. We discuss a Wired article about YouTube as the future of kids TV, and Katie has an update about her kids and the music of Parry Gripp, a musician we first discussed way back in episode 90 in our review of Emily’s Wonder Lab.

Contact us and subscribe to our newsletter at www.myscreentimetoo.com

Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter or by email at [email protected]

We didn’t expect to have quite so many complicated feelings about the new Apple TV+ preschool show Frog and Toad. Find out whether we thought the Frog and Toad stories, originally penned in the 1970s, made a successful transition to the small screen. In Screen Time in the News, we discuss PBS Kids’ expansion efforts into streaming, gaming, and podcasts.

Contact us and subscribe to our newsletter at www.myscreentimetoo.com

Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter or by email at [email protected]

We observe our annual summertime tradition of covering a made-for-streaming Disney live action musical with our review of World’s Best. Utkarsh Ambudkar’s tale of a math-loving tween exploring his dead dad’s love of rap had us considering some weighty questions about the legacies we leave our children, but it also had us bobbing our heads to some seriously catchy tunes. Find out whether you should factor this one into your family movie night schedule.

Contact us and subscribe to our newsletter at www.myscreentimetoo.com

Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter or by email at [email protected]

We’re joined once again by Julia Washington of Pop Culture Makes Me Jealous for our review of Barbie. We discuss PG-13 movies, when and why we feel comfortable sharing them with our kids, and whether Barbie can be enjoyed by the whole family. We represent a full range of Barbie fandoms - from superfans to casual observers - and cover everything from the appeal of midcentury dream house architecture to the importance of Alan to dream ballets to what actors could best represent aging Barbie and Ken.

Contact us and subscribe to our newsletter at www.myscreentimetoo.com

Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter or by email at [email protected]