Puppet History is a show that comes from YouTube, specifically a channel called Watcher. Watcher is run by Steven Lim, Ryan Bergara, and Shane Madej, and Puppet History is hosted by Madej and Bergara, who are also well known for being hosts in the show Buzzfeed Unsolved. Madej plays “The Professor”, puppeteering a fuzzy, blue puppet that teaches Bergara, a rebellious and sarcastic student (basically playing himself), and a special guest that’s different each episode about an interesting event in history. Other than the Professor’s lesson, the show is completely unscripted, and complete with audience interactions, puppet reenactments, animations, and whimsical songs at the end of each episode. The historical events covered vary wildly, from the story of how extreme and prolonged stress culminated in groups of people dancing non-stop until they died from exhaustion, the story of a woman that miraculously survived two separate boat sinkings, one of which was the Titanic, and my personal favorite, the story of how poor planning and laziness somehow led to a 15-foot high flash flood of sticky molasses moving at 35 miles per hour to destroy a portion of Boston. The third and latest season began on Friday, March 12, 2021, and the season finale uploaded on Friday, April 23, 2021.

You might be thinking that so far, the show sounds like a family-friendly and educational experience, perfect for a classroom. Well, you would be wrong. What I have described so far are the surface-level elements of the show, but the rest is very different. The actual content of this show is not for young children – the hosts curse, have inappropriate humor, and talk about dark topics. In addition, the show is not as educational as you’d think, it focuses more on the absurdity of the historical situations, and the guests’ humorous reactions. The kid show exterior is in complete contrast with the actual content of the show, but, somehow, it works. The show is extremely entertaining and funny, and this can be attributed to the people on it – Madej, Bergara, and the guests they bring in are all comedians, and they consistently have great chemistry. Every guest brings their own unique humor to the table, and they bounce off of the often exaggerated character of The Professor (Madej) and the sarcastic nature of Bergara very well.

All in all, the show is very entertaining, so anyone looking for a good laugh would certainly enjoy it. However, if you are looking for something educational and/or family friendly, the branding is quite misleading, and could make you think the show is something that it is not. This may have been intentional, to break the expectations of the audience, but it still might surprise the viewer. Whether that is a pleasant or unwanted surprise is ultimately up to the viewer. I give the show a 4 out of 5, for being one of the most entertaining shows I have ever watched.