When I was little, I was practically raised on the old Disney Channel (and Nickelodeon!). I loved 'The Raccoons', 'Welcome to Pooh Corner', 'Donald Duck Presents', and of course, 'Under the Umbrella Tree'. It was a nice little show that had sometimes creepy puppets (the thought of those human puppets gives me chills), and it was on for several years (Disney Channel had a way of keeping shows on for many seasons).
'Under the Umbrella Tree' basically involved Holly and her three animal roommates, Iggy the iguana, Jacob the blue jay, and Gloria the gopher. Holly was an artist and the adult of the group, Iggy was somewhat rebellious, Jacob was your typical bird, and Gloria loved machinery like bulldozers. My favorite was Iggy because he was the funniest character on the show, and because that little bookshelf room of his was just too awesome for words (I remember trying to make my own bookshelf room even though I was already far too big for that!). Jacob was kind of annoying because he was so fussy sometimes, but I liked Gloria for being so strong-willed.
Oh man, I remember SO many episodes of this show. I don't know how I remember these old Disney Channel shows so darned well. I obviously have no life, huh? (little spoilers coming)
First, one of my favorite episodes was when Holly and Iggy did singing telegrams, and each one of their jobs turned into a disaster (they also had to wear funky costumes); then there was one where Gloria had to learn to save money so she could buy an inner tube (I could relate to this one because I always had trouble saving money when I was little. I'd spend it on the most useless junk!); one time Iggy got really fed up with being short, so he kept trying to make himself taller, but then realized that being short isn't so bad; in several episodes they did plays like 'The Shoemaker and the Elves', and an original story about a plain dinosaur inventing the bowtie so he'd have something that would stand out about him; another favorite of mine was when they painted a picture story on a long roll of paper (because I've been drawing practically all my life and I love doing stuff like this); speaking of drawing, another episode was about Iggy being jealous of Jacob and Gloria being good artists, so he submits an old drawing of Holly's to this drawing contest, only to realize that being honest feels much better than pretending to be something you're not...
Since I'm on a roll, here's a few more I remember: Jacob hated zucchini, but when it's the only thing in the house, he tastes it and realizes it's pretty good; then there was one where Iggy, Jacob, and Gloria got into a first aid kit and used up all the bandages and stuff when playing doctor; there was also an episode about Iggy, Jacob, and Gloria totally forgetting about chores and plans while playing video games all day; and Iggy had this country relative (don't remember his name) who came to visit a few times.
(Phew! I remember a lot more than those too, but if I wrote all the ones I remember this review would just be too long)
'Under the Umbrella Tree' was kind of campy, but it was a cute show for kids. I sure loved it. I hope it somehow comes back on the air.
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