El Chavo may very well be one of the most well known Spanish-speaking characters (alongside Mafalda) in Latin America, Spain and the Caribbean.  In the U.S. he is equally as popular among immigrant communities and children of immigrants like myself.

To be honest I haven’t seen the show since I was kid, but receiving these toys in the mail brought back many memories.  My three year old was thrilled to put the little “títeres” (or puppets) on her fingers and pretend the characters of El Chavo, Popis, Don Ramon, Quico, and Ñoño were all talking with one another.

I think what made reviewing this product extra special was that these characters are unique to Mexico, where my parents are from. In other words, many of the books or characters that my daughter is exposed to are literal translations or interpretations of English-speaking (British or U.S.) stories. The characters and stories of El Chavo del 8 come from a community I identify with and one that helps make me (& my family) bicultural.

I think the creators of El Chavo Toys are very aware of their bilingual and bicultural audience in North America. I hope you enjoy interacting with the characters from El Chavo along with passing on their stories with the next generation: our bilingual children.

The Giveaway!

We’re giving away one grand prize pack to one winner (1 plush, 1 hat, 1 figure, 1 finger puppet, 1 talking Chavo) and one smaller prize pack (1 plush & 1 hat) to TWO winners. All you have to do is leave us a comment sharing your fondest memory of El Chavo or share your favorite ‘El Chavo’ saying with us! Then, enter the Rafflecopter below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If there’s one character that can unite all Latinos bajo la misma bandera it would be El Chavo. Generations of Latinos both in the U.S. and across Latin America have grown up watching “El Chavo del 8″ y sus amigos de la vecindad for the past 42 years. Many of us can repeat favorite phrases and have our favorite characters. (Mine is Doña Florinda! Yours?)

In fact, re-runs of “El Chavo del 8” (1971-1992) are watched worldwide in over 90 countries, including Latin America, Brazil, Spain, and of course, the United States. In the U.S., “El Chavo” airs Monday through Friday at 5 p.m. ET/PT on UniMás and Monday through Saturday at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Galavisión. The animated series of this beloved character, “El Chavo Animado” airs on Univision at 4 p.m. ET/PT, bringing the nostalgia and popularity of the original series to our bilingual kids.

And now – ¡finalmente! – we will be able to find El Chavo toys in major retailers (like Walmart and Amazon) across the United States. ¡Sí! Starting mid-August, JAKKS Pacific, along with Televisa and Univision, will be distributing a line of toys, home goods, clothing, party supplies, accessories and more featuring El Chavo, Quico, La Chilindrina, Don Ramón and other beloved characters de la vecindad del Chavo!

Here are just some of the products we’re looking forward to check out:

Visit http://www.elchavotoys.com for more information on the product line and a videos of “El Chavo Animado”

Share: Are you excited to try these out? Would you like us to have some giveaways for you to win product?