Qubo: A Few of Gen Z's Nostalgia

"I just really gravitate towards a nostalgia for a time when things were simpler."

~Emmy Rossum

The Qubo Channel Logo

It's a breezy autumn day in a suburban neighbourhood in the foothills. The sun is shining with the last rays of warmth for the season, the light illuminating the trees in a brilliant glow of amber and gold. A mother strolls on the sidewalk as her three small children trudge through the leaves that litter the side of the road. They're on their way home from the bus stop, where the two older ones had gotten off from a long and tiring day at school.

After arriving at their warm, familiar home, they put their stuff away and have some dinner: Chef Boyardee ravioli. It was getting too dark and cold outside to play in the yard, so afterward, they settled in the living room in front of the TV to watch some kids' shows from the only channel they received a signal for: Qubo.

Doki (a show I hardly recall)

A while back, when I first started drafting this post, I, for whatever reason, had a deep dive into nostalgia. When you get older, you find yourself occasionally lost in moments where you long for the days when life was simpler. Back when I also had time to watch TV.

What Was Qubo?

For those of you who don't know, Qubo was an American channel that featured many animated shows (some were live-action) for children. It ran from 2007 to 2021, so mainly folks who are Gen Z are likely to have watched it, including me, my sisters, and two of my online friends. Several of the shows on there were Canadian, as they had several affiliations. There are several YouTube videos that explain in more detail what it was and how it came to its demise. In this post, my sisters and I decided on some of our favourite shows, to which I shared a few thoughts. It's only a small handful of the shows they aired, though, so here is a more complete list:

https://qubo.fandom.com/wiki/All_Shows

How Qubo Was a Part of My Childhood

While everyone else I knew watched PBS Kids, Disney Channel, Nickelodeon, or Cartoon Network, my sisters and I watched Qubo. We had cable, but we could only watch the channels our satellite dish received. I remember that some folks came to our door several times, promising that they'd make it possible for us to get PBS, but that never happened.

So Qubo it was! My sisters and I enjoyed the shows for the most part. It was rather unfortunate, though, that I became a bit of an "outcast" in my Elementary School class since no one knew the shows I watched, and I didn't know theirs.

I remember coming home from school around 4PM, getting to watch some Qubo after eating, and sometimes doing homework. We would watch the shows until 8 or 9PM when we had to go to bed.

But according to my mom, my sisters and I watched barely any TV compared to other kids. I remember that we often didn't watch on weekends because our dad passionately disliked animated kids' shows (especially Maisy Mouse, which I loved). My sisters and I went to one of our rooms or out to the yard to play, since we didn't want to watch the boring "grown-up" things.

Apart from Qubo, we also watched whatever we had on DVD (after our VHS Player went to its grave, that is). Qubo didn't have shows like Angelina Ballerina, Curious George, Thomas and Friends, and our favorite show, The Land Before Time. But we were also introduced to several German Children's Shows (Die Biene Maja, Pippi Langstrumpfe, & Heidi). We also watched some of the things my mom would put in, such as Star Trek: The Original Series and The Waltons.

That's what we had: DVDs and Qubo. But alas, just before we moved, Qubo was starting to tip downhill.

They started replacing several of the shows we had known for years with others. One of them was Sally Bollywood, which actually became a favourite of mine. But gradually, the new shows started getting worse. Around the time when Grossology and Ned's Newt were added, I quit watching Qubo, and so did my sisters.

At that point, we had moved to a new place where we could finally watch PBS Kids. But by then, I was already over 10 years old, and I didn't enjoy those shows much. I hate Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood with a passion, but I did somewhat enjoy Wild Kratts (which my mom thought was a terrible show). So PBS Kids was a bigger part of my youngest sister's childhood than it was mine. We watched the My Little Pony series and Horseland on YouTube together, but we quickly moved on to more adult series. Shows we watched instead included Keeping Up Appearances, The Vicar of Dibley, Star Trek (Voyager and DS9), The Big Bang Theory, and Little House on the Prairie. What a wild variety, am I right?

Nowadays, if I watch TV (I almost never do), it's usually Masterpiece shows, such as All Creatures Great and Small, Downton Abbey, and Miss Scarlet and the Duke, or other British crime shows and comedies, such as Shakespeare and Hathaway: Private Investigators. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has also caught my interest.

My sisters and I found out about Qubo's demise only 2 or 3 years ago, when we decided to look up some of the shows to see how cringeworthy the character designs were (if you decide to look up Pearlie, be warned!). There are many shows I would probably dislike nowadays that I enjoyed at the time, and many I would likely still enjoy if I watched them again. Here are the ones that stood out to us the most.

Mine and My Sisters' Favourite Shows (Ranked)

#1 Babar

A story about a wholesome royal elephant family. It was taken off Qubo early, so I don't remember many details. But it somehow found a place in my nostalgic heart, especially with its memorable theme song.

#2 Jane and the Dragon

This show had a unique animation style that could throw some people off. But the story was intriguing, following this young girl who wanted to stray from societal norms and become a knight, rather than just a "lady-in-waiting." But come on, being a lady in waiting is boring! I don't blame her for going outside and befriending a dragon instead of waiting for a prince!
This show had a lot of potential, as Jane and Dragon often wondered whether there were other dragons out there. The show was sadly discontinued before they ever found out if there were. Perhaps... this has potential for continuation in a fan-fiction?

#3 Jakers! The Adventures of Piggly Winks

Each episode would start with a grandfather pig telling his grandchildren stories from his childhood. It took place in Ireland, and gave us a view of a life similar, yet different from our own in America. I remember an episode where one of the characters' American cousins came, and they got so confused by their accent and way of speaking. It was so amusing! Jakers also had a catchy theme song, which I can still play in my head to this day...

#4 Miss BG

My mom and I enjoyed watching this show before it got taken off the air. I identified with the main character (I sadly forgot her name) because she was the oldest child in the family, just as I was. She was just a normal kid learning about life, dealing with issues like jealousy and staying out of trouble. She was just very relatable. I remember asking my mom if she could make me a braided ponytail that stood up just like hers... alas, the differences ended when my hair couldn't do what hers could!

#5 Sally Bollywood

One of the newer shows they added, I absolutely loved that it was a mystery show. I attempted to re-watch the series not too long ago, but never finished. The stories were good, and I loved that the main character, Sally, was of Indian descent. My favourite episode? SBI Sees Double.

#6 Jacob Two-Two

Ah, a memorable show. And rather dark, now that I think back to it... I imagine it was full of hidden messages about the real world, which I was too young to notice or comprehend, but I enjoyed watching this random kid (apparently a middle schooler) go through many mishaps and adventures. I wonder if he ever got tired of it all...

#7 My Friend Rabbit

A wholesome show about friendship! Who couldn't love the rabbit, mouse, squirrel, and ducklings? Although, come to think of it, what are a crocodile, elephant, and rhino doing living in a deciduous forest? Who knows, but they were their friends as well, wherever they came from.

Other Honourable Mentions

The Magic Schoolbus

This was a show that also played elsewhere, I believe, and only ran on Qubo for a short while. But honestly, who couldn't love this crazy show? I believe my favourite character was the lizard.

The Mysteries of Alfred Hedgehog

I loved how this show genuinely taught me about the most peculiar natural phenomena, many of which I haven't forgotten to this day. There was the episode with those berries that foamed up in water, much like a bubble bath. And there was that episode with the sphere of lightning. These are all real things, just search them up! Perhaps this was a show only a true science kid could appreciate and enjoy, though. Alfred and his friends also introduced me to what a platypus is.

Marvin the Tap-Dancing Horse

This was Yokoshi's favourite show. I mainly liked it because one of the main characters was a horse (shocker, I know). I would cringe so hard to watch it now, though. A real horse could never bend their legs the way Marvin does... but I suppose that's what makes him special enough to be in the circus!

Timothy Goes to School

The characters were just so lovable. From Yoko, the gray tabby cat who was sweet and considerate, to Frank and Frank, the twin bulldogs who were just plain silly. I never liked the portrayal of their school, though, because it was "unrealistic" and nowhere near as fun as my real school. But I enjoyed the variety in characters and their dynamics, how they learned to get along despite their differences. An important lesson for nowadays, don't you think?

~ * ~

That just about sums it up! If you know any of these shows or have also watched Qubo, I'd love to talk more about it! Finding anyone who can relate is like finding a rare gem to me.

It's amazing how much a simple 15-20-minute episode can imprint on a young person's mind, much like the Qubo shows have for my sisters and me, and I'm sure several others who watched it. Whether you enjoyed it or not, it sure brings back some form of nostalgia, doesn't it?

Have any of you watched Qubo when you were a child?

What shows/channels bring back nostalgia for you?

"Nostalgia is: 'Hey, remember that other mall that used to be there?'"

~George Sanders