PBS (Sun., Sept. 2, 8 P.M. ET)
B+
A strong special from 3-2-1 Contact, the children's science show, examines the flora and fauna of the Costa Rican rain forest in all their teeming diversity. Then comes the yucky part: an explication of how imperiled this incomparably rich equatorial environment is by human development. Then comes the really yucky part: It's back to the forest for—city kids may want to leave the room at this point—a bug-trapping safari and later a lunch of iguana fricassee.
3-2-1 regular Stephanie Yu, 14, is a very capable host for this kids'-eye view, which includes cute puns, animation and games.
Okay, the same points could have been made in a more economical half-hour format, but let your child watch this persuasive program, and you're likely to have a mini-activist around the house.
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