Archives for October 21, 2025

The Chosen Adventures is a 14-episode animated series following nine-year-old Abby and her best friend Joshua as they navigate life in the ancient city of Capernaum. When the children encounter a wise craftsman and teacher, Jesus of Nazareth, he changes the way they see the world. And did we mention that she has a talking sheep?

KIDS FIRST! Film Critic Braedyn M. comments, “The Chosen Adventures is one of the most adorable series I have ever watched with a charming and unique animation style, characters that are full of humor, and lessons that even adults can learn from. They all add up to make an absolutely wonderful show.” Ari C. adds, “I like The Chosen Adventures. It has great graphics, amazing voice actors, and it teaches valuable faith-based lessons. I also like its fun and wacky nature.” See their full reviews and talent interviews below.

The Chosen Adventures
By Braedyn M., KIDS FIRST! Film Critic, age 16

The Chosen Adventures is one of the most adorable series I have ever watched with a charming and unique animation style, characters that are full of humor, and lessons that even adults can learn from. They all add up to make an absolutely wonderful show.

Abby (Romy Fay) is a big-hearted nine-year-old girl, and a very curious one at that. Everywhere she goes in the town of Capernaum, she asks questions, lots of questions, sometimes more than her Abba, Eli (Danny Nucci), and her Eema, Hannah (Zehra Fazal) can answer.  This is when she and her best friend, Joshua (Jude Zarzuar) meet Jesus of Nazareth (Jonathan Roumie) who helps them with all of their questions, and gives them answers that help them understand the true meaning of life.

I really enjoyed the style of animation in this series.  It has sort of a clay-like look to it, with the scenery and characters faithfully crafted to match the setting of an ancient middle eastern fishing village.  Important individuals like Abby and Joshua are easy to spot in a crowd, thanks to unique outfits and traits, and this helps make the story easy to follow.  However, sometimes the characters are a bit difficult to understand when they are speaking. My favorite scene is when Abby returns home from the most terrible day, and is wondering why God would give her a day in which nearly everything has gone wrong. While her Eema teaches her that, even though we might not understand all things, we should still trust God because He does know, a bird named Pigeon (Yvonne Orji) shares the good things that came from Abby’s misfortunes, even though Abby didn’t see them at the time. Speaking of Pigeon, my favorite character is her best friend, Sheep (Paul Walter Hauser). Honestly, the best word to describe Sheep is… satirical. Despite his big, soft, and fluffy physical appearance, his words are often razor sharp. Yes, he does love Abby and her family very much, but he is never without a comment, remark, or some other form of general sarcasm that keeps everyone laughing, and reminds them to not take life too seriously.  

The series’ message is that, in every situation, there is something you can learn.  Abby and Joshua go on many adventures and often end up in very surprising situations.  But in all they do, Jesus teaches them some valuable life lessons, ones that will be cherished and remembered for years to come. 

I give The Chosen Adventures 4.5 out of 5 stars and recommend it for ages 8 to 12.  It releases on Prime Video on October 17, 2025.

The Chosen Adventures                                                                                                                                                  By Ari C., KIDS FIRST Film Critics, age 13

I like The Chosen Adventures. It has great graphics, amazing voice actors, and it teaches valuable faith-based lessons. I also like its fun and wacky nature.

This incredible show, based on the award-winning series The Chosen, follows a young girl named Abby (Romy Fay), her friend Joshua (Jude Zarzaur), her talking pet sheep, Sheep (Paul Walter Hauser), and her pet pigeon, Pigeon (Yvonne Orji), as they undertake a bunch of wacky adventures and make new friends like Hilarious (Banks Pierce)  Abby has a lot of questions and no one to answer them, until she and Joshua come across a pre-mortem Jesus (Jonathan Roumie) who gives them new insight on life.

The animation, supervised by Denis Couchon, really makes this show. The details of the faces and the characters’ movements are wonderful. Lots of details are put into the nature and animal shots, which make them look very real. I love how every now and then we see a huge splash of color. This series teaches some faith-based lessons like the love of God and even non-faith-based lessons like friendship.  The show takes us through fun adventures that I found enjoyable and think other kids will also. It definitely has a wacky feeling to it – showing stories not only from a human perspective, but also the animals’ perspective, such as from Sheep and Pigeon. The interactions between Sheep and Pigeon add a hilarious feeling to the show. Romy Fay voices Abby perfectly; it’s almost as if she and Abby are literally the same person. Jonathan Roumie plays Jesus perfectly just as he did in The Chosen.  My favorite part is when Joshua overcomes his fear of heights and climbs a ladder – it is very heartwarming. While everyone in the show does not understand Sheep, the viewers and other animals can.

This series has many important lessons including the power of friendship and a reminder that miracles happen all around you.

I give The Chosen Adventures 5 out of 5 stars and recommend it for ages 5 to 12. It releases on Prime Video on October 17, 2025.

Tron: Ares follows a highly sophisticated security AI program named Ares who is sent from the digital world into the real world on a mission to find the “Permanence Code.” This code could allow digital programs and constructs to become permanent in reality, ending the 29-minute limit currently imposed by technology from rival companies, Dillinger Systems and ENCOM. After Ares questions his orders and goes rogue to help a human, a conflict ensues with his original creator, Julian Dillinger, and his lieutenant, Athena, who wants to use the code for military purposes.

KIDS FIRST! Film Critic Rayce S. comments, “Tron: Ares delivers dazzling visual effects and clever nods to its predecessors but struggles to land its emotional core… It has its strengths — the CGI and visual effects are top-tier, immersing viewers in a sleek futuristic world. Jeff Bridges (Kevin Flynn) makes a late appearance, bringing grounded energy that elevates the scenes he is in.” See his full review below.

Tron: Ares
By Rayce S., KIDS FIRST! Film Critic, age 16

Tron: Ares delivers dazzling visual effects and clever nods to its predecessors but struggles to land its emotional core.

The storyline follows Ares a highly advanced program, sent from the digital realm on a very important mission into the physical world as he tries to understand human emotion.

Tron: Ares has its strengths — the CGI and visual effects are top-tier, immersing viewers in a sleek futuristic world. Jeff Bridges (Kevin Flynn) makes a late appearance, bringing grounded energy that elevates the scenes he is in. Jared Leto’s portrayal of Ares adds intrigue, especially as he wrestles with the film’s central theme — what it means to be human. There are also a few well-placed comedic moments that earn genuine laughs without trying too hard. The film’s biggest flaw lies in its characters. Despite the attempts to build emotional stakes, most of the cast of characters feel underdeveloped. They lack depth which makes it hard to connect emotionally to them.  Even in moments meant to evoke sadness or triumph, the emotional impact doesn’t land. The pacing also fails at the end. The story builds intriguing concepts and ideas, but the ending feels rushed and unresolved. The movie is not bad but it’s not great either. It’s worth watching for fans of the franchise or those drawn to high concept sci-fi but don’t expect it to be a deeply moving experience.

The theme of this movie is about understanding what makes a being human and this is mainly portrayed by Ares as he navigates his purpose. The film has stylized sci-fi combat and mild to moderate profanity.

I give Tron: Ares 2.5 out of 5 stars and I recommend it for ages 12 to 18, plus adults. This film releases in theaters on October 10, 2025.