Alpha to the Omega: V is for…VeggieTales
Alpha to the Omega
Samuel Chong
V is for…VeggieTales
“Daniel then said to the guard… ‘Please test your servants for ten days: Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink.’” (Daniel 1:11-12)
What is VeggieTales
VeggieTales is an American Christian cartoon series featuring fruit and vegetable characters retelling Christian stories from the Bible, with the overall aim of conveying Christian moral themes and teaching Biblical values and lessons for a child-based audience. Since its inception in 1993, the series has grown to become the most successful Christian children’s franchise of all time, spanning CD episodes, movies, books, stage productions, and video games.
The Seeds of VeggieTales
VeggieTales was created by Phil Vischer and Mike Nawrocki through the production company Big Idea Entertainment. Due to the technological limitations of the time, Vischer opted to avoid the technical hurdle of designing characters with arms, legs, hair and clothes. While the initial animation model was a candy bar, Vischer’s wife suggested designing characters based on fruits and vegetables to promote healthier eating habits. The show was first released in December 1993 in the direct-to-video market.
A Cornucopia of Characters
Vischer and Nawrocki, together with some friends voice the VeggieTales cast of over 50 characters. Prominent recurring ones include:
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Bob the Tomato. A friendly but slightly high-strung tomato and host of the show. Alongside his best friend Larry the Cucumber, the pair introduce and wrap-up almost every episode and respond to viewer mail. Bob plays the “straight man” character and often serves as the narrator of the teleplays. |
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Larry the Cucumber. A silly cucumber, Bob the Tomato’s best friend and co-host of the show. Larry has a quirky, child-like personality to complement the more mature Bob. Sometimes, Larry faces similar struggles to the kids who send in fan mail and ends up learning the episode’s lesson alongside the viewer. |
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Junior Asparagus. A courteous little asparagus and co-star of the show. Junior is effectively a five-year-old boy who is generally good-hearted but can let his curiosity get him into trouble. His trademark is a yellow baseball cap. Junior plays a lead role in several episodes. |
 “Allow us to introduce ourselves” |
The Scallions. A trio of devious scallions who often serve as show antagonists (e.g. the administrators/satraps against Daniel), having appeared as bandits, swindlers, dishonest salesmen etc. They have no names but are distinguished by their appearances. |
Moral tales and off-beat humour – A typical VeggieTales Episode
Each VeggieTales episode generally starts by presenting a moral issue in the opening countertop sequence, either through a viewer question or an issue brought up by Bob or Larry. Usually this is followed by one or more short segments that address the issue, either through the retelling of a Bible story, a fictional story, or combining both – retelling Bible stories in a different fictional setting. These teleplays (often featuring musical numbers) are performed by the various vegetables and fruits that live together on the kitchen countertop. Examples include:
| Episode | Moral Issue | Story |
| “Are You My Neighbor?”
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Loving your enemies | Adaptation of the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37), within a “Tale of Two (warring) Cities”. The kind act from a supposed enemy eventually ends the inter-city conflict. |
| “Josh and the Big Wall!”
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Doing things God’s way instead of our way, even when it doesn’t make sense | Adaptation of the Battle of Jericho (Joshua 6), just that the defenders of Jericho use slushies. Despite some wanting to destroy Jericho with a giant rocket and others wanting to go back to Egypt, the Israelites continue with God’s plan and emerge victorious. |
| “Madame Blueberry”
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Materialism vs Being grateful with what God gives you | Fictional story of a rich lady who buys more and more material possessions but ends up losing everything. She eventually realises the importance of contentment and being thankful for what she has. |
Silly Songs with Larry
A highlight of the show for children is the middle segment – Silly Songs with Larry – the part of the show where Larry comes out and sings a silly song. Bearing no relation to the episode’s topic whatsoever, Silly Songs presents lighthearted musical and comedic entertainment for kids, although they often include (clean) jokes/references that only adults understand (e.g. slamming the door on the taxman).
| Silly Song | Theme |
| The Song of the Cebu | Larry sings about a boy and his three “Cebu” (cow-like animals) in a canoe, who must navigate both natural hazards and the Cebus’ colourful personalities. |
| His Cheeseburger | A special edition sung by Mr Lunt (a gourd) instead of Larry, declaring a passionate love for a cheeseburger. |
| The Pirates Who Don’t Do Anything | Three pirates sing about the things they have never done (which includes “going to Boston in the Fall”). The last pirate (Larry) has apparently never done many ridiculous, non-piratey things. |
At the end of each episode, Bob and Larry talk about what was learnt (triggering a short song that increasingly annoys Bob) before reading a relevant Bible verse from Qwerty, a desktop computer. The pair then say the programme’s signature sign-off: “Remember kids, God made you special, and He loves you very much” – reassuring viewers about their Creator.
Award Winning Vegetables
VeggieTales has been nominated for several awards, including three Emmys. As of 2019, the franchise had sold 75 million videos (VHS, DVD, Blu-Ray), 16 million books, 7 million music albums, and 235 million music streams.
The show enjoys a cult-following among Evangelical Christian young adults, probably due to them having watched it as children. Creator Phil Vischer would claim that “one-third of American homes owned a VeggieTales video by the year 2000”.
Going Vegetarian?
VeggieTales was a Christian cultural icon at the turn of the millennium. Like Fred Rogers (Mr Rogers) before it, VeggieTales was a ministry that spoke directly to home audiences in America and abroad. A generation of children grew up learning from VeggieTales (including the author, who has memorised many musical numbers and silly songs). Like Daniel and his three friends who remained faithful to God on a diet of vegetables and water (Daniel 1:11-20), perhaps children and adults alike can grow spiritually on a diet of VeggieTales.
All information and pictures taken from the respective Wikipedia articles unless otherwise stated.
| Author’s Recommendation
Like Mr Roger’s Neighborhood, the author also recommends parents to show episodes of VeggieTales to young children, to help them learn godly values applicable to everyday dilemmas. Episodes can be found on YouTube. Furthermore, the series is notable for its colourful 3D animation, musical numbers, and most of all, wit and humour. In the author’s opinion, while children often get a good laugh out of the show, they also walk away imbibing the show’s lessons and values. |
Further Reading
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