Dinosaur Train

Dinosaur Train is an American/Canadian/Singaporean children's animated series created by Craig Bartlett, who also created Hey Arnold! and ''Ready Jet Go!. The series features a curious young Tyrannosaurus rex named Buddy who, together with his adopted Pteranodon'' family, takes the Dinosaur Train to explore his time period, and have adventures with all kinds of dinosaurs. It is produced by The Jim Henson Company in association with Media Development Authority, Sparky Animation, FableVision, and [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snee-Oosh,_Inc. Snee-Oosh, Inc.]

PBS Kids has ordered 11 more episodes, taking the total number of episodes to 100.

Plot
The world of Dinosaur Train is seen through the eyes of Buddy the Tyrannosaurus. In the show's main title song, we learn that Buddy was adopted by Mr. and Mrs. Pteranodon. He hatched at the same time as his Pteranodon siblings Tiny, Shiny, and Don. By traveling in the Dinosaur Train around the Mesozoic, supplied with all dinosaur facts by the train's Troodon Conductor, Buddy learns that he is a Tyrannosaurus. As an adopted kid in a mixed-species family, Buddy is curious about the differences between species and vows to learn about all the dinosaurs he can by riding the Dinosaur Train. The dinosaur species featured in the show are actual dinosaurs discovered by paleontologists.

Why It Rocks

 * 1) Very educational, as it teaches kids about various types of dinosaurs, and also sometimes teaches about nature.
 * 2) Pretty interesting storylines, and there is some continuity as well.
 * 3) The writing is very clever for preschool show standards, and there are some pop culture references. For example, there is an Elvis impersonator named King Cryolophasaurus.
 * 4) The CGI animation is colorful and well-done, even for 2009 standards, which is a good decision.
 * 5) The soundtrack, composed by Jim Lang, is awesome, including the theme song.
 * 6) Likable characters.
 * 7) Buddy ( orange ) is an optimistic kid who is very curious, kind, and open-minded.
 * 8) Tiny ( light green ) is fearless and also very curious.
 * 9) Shiny ( turquoise ) can be bossy at times, but she has a good heart.
 * 10) Don ( green ) can be dimwitted, but he makes for good comic relief.
 * 11) Mr. and Mrs. Pteranodon ( light green ) are loving parents.
 * 12) The idea of mixing trains with dinosaurs is pretty cool.
 * 13) Funny jokes, especially the banter between the Conductor and his arch-nemesis Thurston Troodon.
 * 14) Very relatable for kids, as it positively depicts an adoptive family.
 * 15) There are live-action segments in between the episodes featuring Dr. Scott Sampson, and they are pretty informative and can be entertaining at times.
 * 16) One episode actually had an autistic dinosaur, and the way they portrayed that character is an accurate depiction of autism.
 * 17) There is some minor romance in the show, (such as Buddy's parents, the Conductor and Erma Eoraptor,  and Shiny and Gilbert) and it can be cute.

Bad Qualities

 * 1) The voice acting for some of the characters isn't that good.
 * 2) Tiny introducing herself and her family to other dinosaurs they meet can get annoying after a while.
 * 3) John Eaglin (a contestant from the game show Wheel of Fortune) also voiced a dinosaur (uncredited) in the show's final season.