Voting Station

Where in Time is Carmen Sandiego?

Please vote to return to collections.

TV Series

The Resume

    (October 7, 1996-December 12, 1997)
    Born in United States
    Originally aired on PBS
    Hosted by Kevin Shinick
    Featuring Lynne Thigpen as The Chief
    Premise: Contestants try to capture the thief Carmen Sandiego by answering history questions
    Sequel series to Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?

Why Where in Time is Carmen Sandiego? might be annoying:

    It was just a rehashing of the 'World' series except set in time.
    The series was derived from its predecessor possibly due to the budget cuts in funding for PBS in the mid 90s, falling ratings from the previous series's final two seasons, and because of the constant changing geopolitical environment of the decade that forced producers to recreate new maps for the bonus round (particular in Europe and Asia).
    The live studio audience was replaced with pre-recorded audience sounds.
    The house band vocal group Rockapella from 'World' got replaced by a dance troupe named 'The Engine Crew.'
    Host Kevin Schinick only interacted with The Chief via video removing the witty and hilarious banter between Greg and The Chief that was a hallmark of the previous series.
    The bonus round of the game made contestants answer history questions via time portals. Often times, when the contestant answered iincorrectly, he or she had to manually open the gate via a pulley, pump, or other device.
    To make matters worse, contestants sometimes would run to the incorrect time portal gate despite The Engine Crew flashing airport lights to the actual one.
    Owen Taylor, who played Engine Crew Member number one, got replaced by Jaime Gustis in season two.
    Ratings for 'Time' fell even further than the lowest rated episodes of 'World,' and the show was quietly cancelled to make room for a remake of the 1970s PBS Kids series 'ZOOM.'

Why Where in Time is Carmen Sandiego? might not be annoying:

    The theme songs was composed by Rockapella singer Sean Altman.
    The show was taped at Kaufman Astoria Studios (the same facility where its predecessor series and fellow PBS children's series 'Sesame Street' were produced).
    Unlike the choppy animation for 'World,' 'Time' had cool CGI visual effects that got an upgrade in the second season.
    Kevin Shinick proved to be as witty and hammy as his predecessor, Greg Lee, as host especially in the second season.
    In the second season, Thigpen guest appeared as her 'World' incarnation of The Chief, giving viewers a humorous skit interacting between her 'Time' and 'World' counterparts.
    It was still entertaining and educational.
    The grand prize was a computer system and a 32 volume Encyclopedia Britannica.
    It won a Daytime Emmy Award in 1998.
    It featured one of Thigpen's final major roles before her death in 2003.

Credit: Birdienest81


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 3 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 11 Votes: 9.09% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 68 Votes: 64.71% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 6 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 115 Votes: 52.17% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 4 Votes: 0% Annoying