Dora the Explorer is banned from our house. Be it the theme song, stuffed animals, or pretend play, none of it is allowed.

I went through too many years of the obsession every toddler and preschooler seems to have with this curious girl and her monkey.

When my daughter was about 3 or 4, she would announce hearing the theme song to Dora on the TV by screaming at the top of her lungs, “MOMMY! DORA IS ON!”

It was truly like a religious experience for my sweet young one.

She would sit, glued to the TV for the entire half-hour show. Every participation moment, she was on it! She would memorize the path Dora was to take during each show, and my daughter would remind Dora when prompted.

I Had To Go Through The Dora Obsession All Over Again?

It was cute and all, until my son came along. I was supposed to go through this obsession twice?

My then six-year-old daughter even jumped back on the Dora bandwagon, encouraging my son to participate in every episode. She would show him how to do motions along with the show, sing along with the songs, and yell when the show said it was appropriate (for the records, it’s NEVER appropriate).

He would jump up, and do a toddler dance of victory every single time the show’s theme song would start.

I have been woken up way too many times by Dora’s piercing, loud voice screeching, “Louder,” or, “Say sticky tape,” or something similar. I have had dreams that included songs about talking backpacks and treasure maps that dance.

Dora was on for a whopping 16 years. My kids were obsessed for about 8 of those years. That’s an awful lot of toddler yelling, Dora screeching, and songs that wormhole their way straight into the center of my brain.

Banned, I say!! She is a true four-letter word around these parts.

Along Came The Trailer For The Live-Action Dora Film.

I reluctantly watched the live action trailer when it came out earlier this week. I was intrigued. How was the Paramount movie studio going to turn this child, whom I loathed, into a lovable real-life, mini, toddler superhero.

They didn’t do that, that’s how.

I tried to go into it with an open mind. I didn’t want my previous experience with this child to cloud my current impression of her exploring ways.

I was immediately surprised. This was not the little girl with her annoying, screechy voice. They had aged her by about 8 years, and it was a pleasant surprise to this Dora, over-saturated mom.

This is not a flick aimed at little kids.

The trailer shows a Dora, played by Isabela Moner, who has grown along with her base demographic. She is in high school, moves to what appears to be a real world city, has parents (who happen to be explorers), flies on an airplane, and has to learn the ways of city life.

Of course, she shows herself to be a badass heroine, but who didn’t see that coming?

Many people are upset that this rendition shows a knife-wielding teenager. Come on now! These are the same parents who let their kids watch Harry Potter, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Spy Kids. There isn’t much difference here.

Your kids didn’t stay toddlers, why would you expect Dora to remain little?

No, this film is probably not for the young demographic, but it IS for the kids who grew up with her.

I love that her parents are shown in the film. Too many episodes of the original show a young girl traipsing off into the jungle, apparently without her parents knowing or caring. It never shows adults until the later episodes.

Another little gem in this film is the presence of Dora’s cousin, Diego, played by Jeffrey Wahlberg. Many know this character from the spinoff show Go Diego, Go. He, obviously is a teenage version of Diego, and I’m betting a soon-to-Be heartthrob of many a teenager.

So, do I still detest Dora? The show will still be banned from the walls of my home. This trailer for Dora and the Lost City of Gold, however, shows a promising film good for summer watching with the family.

We can’t wait!