History Series / ThePuzzlePlace

* CatUpATree: Cat and a dog rather; Nuzzle and Sizzle once get stuck up a literal tree, and the second time on a gear in the puzzle place. The first time, the kids rescue them using a ladder; the second time they use a wrench to move the gear closer to the ground.

* BrokenAesop: In one episode they want to act out a story, and they find a fairy tale in a book where the accompanying illustration shows the main characters with light skin and blonde hair. Kiki, Leon, Skye, and Julie collectively decided that since only Ben & Jody look like that, those two are the only options to play the main characters. This makes them sad until they all decide to go find tales and myths from cultures that match their ethnicity. But it never mentioned that the parts didn't ''have'' to go to Ben & Jody and that it would be fine for any of the kids to play the Prince and Princess in a fairy tale. The Aesop came across looking more like a repudiation of the BlackVikings trope - telling kids that they should only ever act as someone of their own race on stage, and that people of color can't play leads in fairy tales of European origin.

* ThemeTuneRollCall

''The Puzzle Place'' is a PuppetShow for children that aired on Creator/PBSKids, and was produced by Lancit Media (the same company behind ''Series/ReadingRainbow'') and KCET UsefulNotes/LosAngeles. It ran for 75 episodes over 3 seasons that originally aired from January 16, 1995 to December 4, 1998 (the pilot episode aired on KCET and KLCS, on September 15, 1994), with reruns airing until March 31, 2000. Created in the wake of the 1992 UsefulNotes/LosAngeles riots, it features a group of children from differing racial and ethnic backgrounds who hang out together at the titular Puzzle Place, where they learn to work out their problems and disagreements in a peaceful, constructive manner.

* '''Skye Nakaiye:''' Apache from TheRez in UsefulNotes/{{Arizona}}.

'''Skye:''' WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid?

* GenderMisdirection: In-universe in "Yellow Belt". The boys don't know Jodi's karate instructor Grand Master Li is a woman, and contact "him" as confirmation that boys are better fighters than girls when they refuse to accept that Jodi beat Ben at karate more than once. They catch her in the middle of a sparring match and presume the male partner is Grand Master Li, only for the man to correct them and introduce her.

** In the episode "Butterfingers," all the kids tease Ben with the titular mocking nickname after he drops his baton in a relay race, but realize how hurtful they were being and apologize by the end. In the episode "Just Kidding," all the kids tease Skye with the nickname "Mr. Forgetful" after he forgets to bring the bat for a baseball game, and have to learn the same lesson over again. In all fairness, though, the latter episode explicitly references "Butterfingers," complete with a flashback.
** Three episodes also had anti-sexism, "girls can enjoy and succeed at the same things boys can" lessons: "Train Driving Kids," "Yellow Belt" and "Spooky!"

* '''Skye Nakaiye:''' Apache from TheRez in Arizona.

* GagHaircut: The episode "Ben's Bad Hair Day" subjects Ben to this when his brothers' attempt to give him dreadlocks like Leon's goes horribly wrong. He tries to hide it from his friends with a BrownBagMask at first, but the bag flies off when he [[SneezeOfDoom sneezes]], revealing the mess.

* '''Skye Nakaiye:''' Apache from TheRez.

* '''Jody Silver:''' Lithuanian Jewish from Cincinnati, {{UsefulNotes/Ohio}}.

* AesopAmnesia[=/=]RecycledScript:

* AdultFear:
** One episode has Leon planning to move into the Puzzle Place permanently and run away from home after his brother James breaks a lamp and their parents will be furious. His friends are horrified and try to convince him it's a bad idea, with Kiki relating a story about a girl who worries her parents by doing the same. In the end, he and James talk it out, and James is a CoolBigBro who ultimately agrees they'll tell their parents together.
** Nuzzle and Sizzle get stuck twice, once in a tree, and once on a high gear in the Puzzle Place. The kids are very worried about them; the first time, they use a ladder to rescue the two and the second time they twist a wrench around a broken knob to get them down.
** In "I Scream, You Scream," Jody comes to the Puzzle Place moping about how her dad didn't get her a strawberry ice-cream sundae. Skye at first thinks that's ridiculous until she explains further: her dad is dating a new girlfriend named Debbie, whom Jody doesn't know very well. After a baseball game where Jody was tagged out, they went to Debbie's favorite restaurant, which didn't have strawberry ice-cream. Jody is worried that it means her dad doesn't care about her anymore. Fortunately, her dad says that it's not the case at all, and he'll always love Jody.

* YouHaveToHaveJews: Jody's Jewishness is the focus of several episodes. The holiday special devotes considerable time to her teaching the other kids about Chanukah (and getting mortally offended when Ben innocently sticks her menorah on the Christmas tree), while another episode has her teach them about Passover, and in the episode where her pet cricket dies, her father teaches her about sitting Shiva.

!!This show provides examples of:

''The Puzzle Place'' is a PuppetShow for children that aired on Creator/PBSKids, and was produced by Lancit Media (the same company behind ''Series/ReadingRainbow'') and KCET UsefulNotes/LosAngeles. It ran for 75 episodes over 3 seasons that originally aired from January 16, 1995 to December 4, 1998 (the pilot episode aired on KCET and KLCS, on September 15, 1994), with reruns airing until March 31, 2000. Created in the wake of the 1992 UsefulNotes/LosAngeles riots, it features a group of children from differing racial and ethnic backgrounds who hang out together at the titular Puzzle Place, where they learn to work out their problems and disagreements in a peaceful, constructive manner. You can read more about it on Wiki/TheOtherWiki [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Puzzle_Place here.]]

The puppets were well done and the stories were quite {{Anvilicious}} but enjoyable even to teenage and adult viewers.

The puppets were well done and the stories were quite {{Anvilicious}} but enjoyable even to a teenage viewer.

''The Puzzle Place'' is a PuppetShow for children that aired on Creator/PBSKids, and was produced by Lancit Media (the same company behind ''Series/ReadingRainbow'') and KCET UsefulNotes/LosAngeles. It ran for 75 episodes over 3 seasons that originally aired from January 16, 1995 to December 4, 1998 (although a pilot episode aired on KCET and KLCS, the two Los Angeles PBS stations, on September 15, 1994), with reruns airing until March 31, 2000. Created in the wake of the 1992 UsefulNotes/LosAngeles riots, it features a group of children from differing racial and ethnic backgrounds who hang out together at the titular Puzzle Place, where they learn to work out their problems and disagreements in a peaceful, constructive manner. You can read more about it on Wiki/TheOtherWiki [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Puzzle_Place here.]]

''The Puzzle Place'' is a PuppetShow for children that aired on Creator/PBSKids, and was produced by Lancit Media (the same company behind ''Series/ReadingRainbow'') and KCET UsefulNotes/LosAngeles. It ran for 75 episodes over 3 seasons that originally aired from January 16, 1995 to December 4, 1998, with reruns airing until March 31, 2000. Created in the wake of the 1992 UsefulNotes/LosAngeles riots, it features a group of children from differing racial and ethnic backgrounds who hang out together at the titular Puzzle Place, where they learn to work out their problems and disagreements in a peaceful, constructive manner. You can read more about it on Wiki/TheOtherWiki [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Puzzle_Place here.]]

''The Puzzle Place'' was a PuppetShow for children that aired on Creator/PBSKids, and was produced by Lancit Media (the same company behind ''Series/ReadingRainbow'') and KCET UsefulNotes/LosAngeles. It ran for 75 episodes over 3 seasons that originally aired from January 16, 1995 to December 4, 1998, with reruns airing until March 31, 2000. Created in the wake of the 1992 UsefulNotes/LosAngeles riots, it features a group of children from differing racial and ethnic backgrounds who hang out together at the titular Puzzle Place, where they learn to work out their problems and disagreements in a peaceful, constructive manner. You can read more about it on Wiki/TheOtherWiki [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Puzzle_Place here.]]

* '''Kiki Flores:''' Mexican-American from [[EverythingIsBigInTexas San Antonio, Texas]].

* WhereTheHellisSpringfield: The Puzzle Place itself is described in one of the pilots as being "in a special place all its own," as somehow the main characters can access it despite living in different parts of the country.

* WheretheHellisSpringfield: The Puzzle Place itself is described in one of the pilots as being "in a special place all its own," as somehow the main characters can access it despite living in different parts of the country.

* {{Crossover}}: In "Mystery Fab Hat," Leon contacts "The Chief" (Lynn Thigpen) from ''Series/WhereInTheWorldIsCarmenSandiego''.

* NiceCharacterMeanActor: One episode had Julie and Kiki meet their idol, a self-proclaimed "cute" singer. They later find out she's incredibly mean underneath.

* SamusIsAGirl: In-universe. In "Yellow Belt" the viewers as well as Julie and Kiki know Jodi's karate instructor Grand Master Li is a woman, but the Ben, Leon, and Skye do not. So when they refuse to accept that Jodi is better at karate then Ben even after beating him more than once, they video call Grand Master Li, who was in the middle of helmeted-gear sparring match with a male partner, and mistakenly asks the partner if boys are better fighters than girls. The man answers by introducing Grand Master Li as she removes her helmet and her hair falls down.

[[/folder]]

* GoToSleepEnding: Happens at the end of the sleepover episode. The kids even [[BreakingTheFourthWall say goodnight to the audience]] before dozing off.

* GenderMisdirection: In-universe in ''Yellow Belt''. The boys don't know Jodi's karate instructor Grand Master Li is a woman, and contact "him" as confirmation that boys are better fighters than girls when they refuse to accept that Jodi beat Ben at karate more than once. They catch her in the middle of a sparring match and presume the male partner is Grand Master Li, only for the man to correct them and introduce her.