Amazon.com
In the opening jingle, the oddball lyrics "Careful or you're speaking Spanglish, then your grade will cause you anguish" provide a glimpse into the premise of this production from the Standard Deviants. In this, their second trip to the "Salsa-riffic World of Spanish," the energetic young cast performs skits and unleashes some clever and elaborate computer graphics while providing a reliable review course in the Spanish language. Starting with what's billed as "Really Basic Stuff," the cast reviews practical matters such as how to count, talks about what time it is, and discusses the weather. Moving into more advanced material, there are pointers on grammar, with a focus on the rules of particular verbs. It should be noted that the curriculum has been approved by a panel of professors, but the cast members tend to present the material in a relaxed format, which often involves the use of costumes and some bad (and hopefully memorable) jokes. Each major portion of the program is followed by a quiz, which the student can either take or skip, and the entire DVD concludes with an exam titled "La Tormenta." This DVD isn't a substitute for classes in Spanish, but as review material the unorthodox presentation would be helpful to a student. --Robert J. McNamara