NOODLE BEAR

When Bear can’t find the oodles of noodles he craves, he says toodles to the forest.

When Fox invites Bear to her spring party and he doesn’t come, she investigates. She discovers that Bear didn’t hibernate but, instead, watched the popular TV game show Noodle Knockout and gorged on noodles. Now he’s obsessed with them and spurns forest-animal delicacies. Eventually Bear ventures to the city, hoping to become a contestant on the show. As luck would have it, he makes the cut and is ultimately crowned “Grand Noodle Champion.” Now a celebrity, Bear hosts his own cooking show with all the noodles he wants. He should be happy, right? As stories like this go, though, Bear realizes he misses the forest, his cave, and, especially, his BFF, Fox. He returns home and is heartily welcomed by his friends…albeit sans noodles. Unsurprisingly, Bear has returned with a generous supply for everyone. This Australian import aims at being a fresh take on the leaving-one’s-comfort-zone-before-finally-understanding-where-one-genuinely-belongs genre, but its premise, though mildly amusing, is weak and unconvincing. The extent to which youngsters will understand the concept or conventions of game or cooking shows will vary, though Bear’s passion for noodles should resonate. The lively cartoon illustrations are child appealing and feature assorted animal characters.

A slight offering focusing on the familiar be-careful-what-you-wish-for trope.