Series / It's a Big Big World

It's a Big Big World, don't you agree? Big enough for you and me!

It's a big world, it's a big big world!
It's a big world, it's a big big world!
It's a big world, it's a big big world!
It's a big world, it's a big big world!
It's a big big world, don't you agree?
Big enough for you and me!
I'm a big old sloth; I may be slow,
But see my friends swing high and low!
Come to the big world, it's a big, big, world!
Come to the big world, such a big, big world!
It's a big world, it's a big big world!
It's a big world, it's a big big world!
Find your treehouse, the tree's so tall,
It's a big world after all!

It's a Big Big World is an American children's television show that premiered on PBS Kids on January 2, 2006. The show was originally part of Miss Lori and Hooper's schedule block beginning September of that year, but it was removed from that block on September 3, 2007, and ran for two-and-a-half more years before being dropped entirely by PBS in the spring of 2010. It was created by Mitchell Kriegman, the creator of Bear in the Big Blue House, and featured some similar ideas and themes. Basically, it was Bear in the Big Blue House IN THE JUNGLE!

The show revolves around a group of animals living in "The World Tree" in the rainforest along the Amazon River with the Pico da Neblina mountain background. The main character and host is Snook the sloth.

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This series provides examples of:

• Accidental Tickle Torture: In "My Friend Will Bee Right Back," Snook laughs uncontrollably when a tickly bee gets into his fur. He is a very ticklish sloth!
• Aerith and Bob: The only residents of the World Tree with normal names are Madge, Bob, and Winslow.
• Affectionate Gesture to the Head: In "Not Found Here," Burdette headpats Snook after he compliments her beauty.
• Animal Stereotypes: Played with—Snook has the sleepy, slow-moving demeanor typical of a sloth, but is depicted as an easygoing Nice Guy rather than a Lazy Bum.
• Argument of Contradictions: In "Not Found Here," Smooch and Winslow beg Snook for his help. Winslow says that their problem is serious, Smooch counters that it's 'not that serious,' and then they go back and forth for a bit.
• Breaking the Fourth Wall: Snook talks to the viewers, and is surprised to learn that they don't sleep in trees.
• Brother–Sister Team: Smooch and Winslow, the common marmoset twins.
• Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Madge disappears from the show after Season 1. So do Ick the catfish, Wartz the red-eyed tree frog, and Oko the brown howler monkey. Weirdly enough, while Madge and Ick's lines were redubbed for Snook and Riona, Wartz can still be seen singing his lines in the theme song for Season 2.
• Compressed Vice: Madge in “Take Care Of Yourself” she starts the episode doing her daily exercises, fair enough, but in the middle of a squat of all things she pauses to address the viewer and finds she can’t rise back into a standing position. Luckily Burdette gives her a little lift and the two discuss safe exercise techniques, and fortunately Madge is able to finish her exercises after resting up.
• Control Freak: Burdette. She sometimes seems like a controlling older sister, who thinks she knows more than everyone around her.
• Cool Old Lady: Madge. She's the oldest and wisest creature in the World Tree, and the one everyone comes to when they have a problem to solve. She traveled all over the world and shares her experiences with everyone.
• Cousin Oliver: Riona, Snook's niece, joins the cast in Season 2 as a Token Mini-Moe and the co-host of the show. This came at the cost of Madge, Wartz, and Ick being removed.
• Crowd Song: In season 1, the first story was followed by a song, "Curve of the World", sung by all the characters. In Season 2, this song was removed.
• A Dog Named "Dog": Downplayed. Oko's fly friend is named Tsetse, which is a species of fly.
• Edutainment Show: The show teaches children about discovery, geography, nature, music, taking care of the environment, and friendship.
• Establishing Character Moment: "Not Found Here" establishes all of the core cast (discounting the Stock Footage "Wake Up" song):
  • Snook is first shown sleeping before falling off his branch, then giving a warm greeting to the viewers, showcasing his slovenly, clumsy yet warm-hearted nature.
  • Smooch and Winslow pounce on Snook when they first appear.
  • Burdette establishes herself as a know-it-all when she says that quartz is a type of rock (she misheard 'Wartz' as 'quartz'). When Snook explains the problem to Burdette, she boasts that checking with her is always a good idea.
  • Bob assumes that Wartz is an ant, showing his obsession with ants.
  • Oko is first shown doing tai-chi, showing how old and wise he is.
  • Ick startles Snook, and then trolls the gang by wanting them to do an 'informal survey' on the water hole.
  • Madge is first shown educating Wartz on what metamorphosis is.
  • When we are properly introduced to Wartz, he is shown to be excitable yet insecure. He asks Smooch and Winslow if they still like him even after he changed into a frog.
• Expy: Oko is an old, wise monkey, much like Rafiki from The Lion King (1994).
• Extra-Long Episode: Most of the episodes are 11 minutes long, but the premiere episode, "Not Found Here," is around 30 minutes. "Curve of the World" still plays in the middle of the episode, though.
• Extreme Doormat: Wartz the red-eyed tree frog desperately wants the approval of others, so he goes along with what anyone says.
• Foreshadowing: At the start of "Not Found Here," Snook says hello to a frog he simply names 'Frog.' Eventually, this frog is revealed to be Wartz, the former tadpole that Smooch and Winslow befriended.
• Friendly Tickle Torture: In one "Snook on the Road" segment, the students at Wainscott School tickle Snook's feet.
• Friendship Song; "We'll Still Be Friends" is about how friendship lasts despite changes.
• Gentle Giant: Snook is the biggest resident of the World Tree and the gentlest.
• The Glomp: Smooch and Winslow do this to Snook in "Not Found Here."
• Identical Twin ID Tag: Smooch has a tuft of hair that stretches across her whole head line like a mane, while Winslow has two tufts that cover just his ears.
• Idiosyncratic Wipes: Palm fronds are shown during scene transitions.
• Intelligible Unintelligible: Tsetse speaks in a very fast and high-pitched tone that only Oko appears able to understand.
• Irony: Bob the tamandua, better known as anteaters, loves studying ants and doesn't understand why they're scared of him.
• Mellow Fellow: Snook is very relaxed most of the time.
• Metamorphosis: In "Not Found Here," Smooch and Winslow make friends with a tadpole named Wartz, but one day, he's gone. They eventually find out that he changed from a tadpole into a frog.
• Mischief-Making Monkey: Smooch and Winslow are playful, goofy prank-pulling monkeys. Smooch, the girl monkey, is always trying to figure out the mysteries of the world around her, and Winslow, the boy monkey, is the goofy creative thinker. With such different personalities, these two monkeys don't always see eye to eye, but their little disagreements frequently lead to great adventures.
• Ms. Vice Girl: Burdette is a bossy know-it-all, but she's a fiercely loyal friend and genuinely admires the rest of the World Tree.
• Nephewism: Snook has a niece named Riona.
• Nervous Wreck: Bob is very nervous and worries a lot.
• Non-Mammalian Hair: Madge has hair on her head despite being a reptile.
• Picky Eater: In "I Love Purple," Riona refuses to eat anything besides purple berries.
• Proud Beauty: Burdette knows that she's beautiful and flaunts it.
• Recap Episode: The show had an unfortunate tendency to recycle a lot of material.
• Security Blanket: In "Winslow's Gone Bananas," Winslow has a banana as a transitional object, and it drives everyone crazy when it starts to decay.
• Shown Their Work: Burdette the Quetzal Bird lacks the long train of feathers her species is famous for. This is because she is female and those feathers are only found on male quetzals.
• Sibling Rivalry: Smooch and Winslow sometimes argue with each other.
• Sleepyhead: Snook is prone to dozing off at a moment's notice.
• Sluggish Sloths: Snook the sloth doesn't move too slowly, but he is an even-tempered Mellow Fellow.
• Small Name, Big Ego: Burdette likes to brag about herself, making herself seem more important than she really is. Ick is also quite the braggart.
• Stock Animal Diet: Smooch and Winslow love bananas.
• Team Dad: Snook is this to all the residents of the tree.
• Third-Person Person: Oko uses his name in place of "I" and "me."
• Title, Please!: Episode titles aren't displayed on screen.
• Title Theme Tune: It's a big world, it's a big big world.
• Token Mini-Moe: Riona is the smallest and cutest of the World Tree members.
• Troll: Ick has a penchant for messing with people.
• Three Shorts:
  • Follows the unusual ABCAB format. The episodes (A) are packaged as 2 11-minute stories aired together. The B segment is a song - "Curve of the World" after the first story, and "Try to Touch the Sky" at the end. The "C" segment is an interstitial entitled "Snook on the Road", where Snook goes out into the real world and hangs out with children.
  • In the first season, it was ABABC, where "C" was a segment where Snook talks about different types of animals.
• Vine Swing: Oko swings on a vine in the first episode. He even does the Tarzan yell.
• What Happened to the Mouse?: Madge suddenly disappears from the show with no mention after the first season.
• Wise Old Turtle: Madge is a turtle who has lived for hundreds of years, and shares her knowledge with the residents of the World Tree.
• World Tree: The characters live in a tree in the Amazon Rainforest called The World Tree, which is symbolic of the beauty of Earth and the connection each creature has to each other.
• Wrap-Up Song: Every episode ends with the song "Try to Touch the Sky", as Snook sings to the audience that their time is through for now and will be waiting the next time they come to the World Tree.

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The world goes spinning round and round, it's true
We've had our time and now we're through
But you and I forever will be friends
We’ll try to touch the sky where clouds never end

And we'll search for wonder all around
And you'll find me hanging upside down
And you and I together in a big, big world
We’ll try to touch the sky in a big, big world

You have to go, I know it's time
So give me five...
This whole world is yours and mine.