''Alma's Way'' is an animated children's television series from Fred Rogers Productions created and executive produced by former ''

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000) a ...

'' actress

Sonia Manzano Sonia Manzano (born 1950) is an American actress, screenwriter, author, singer and songwriter. She is best known for playing Maria on ''Sesame Street'' from 1971 to 2015. She received a Lifetime Achievement Daytime Emmy Award in 2016. Her memo ...

and animated by Canadian animation studio Pipeline Studios. It premiered on

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

and

PBS Kids PBS Kids is the brand for most of the children's programming aired by the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) in the United States. Some public television children's programs are not produced by PBS member stations or transmitted by PBS. Instead, ...

on October 4, 2021. The show is set in

The Bronx, New York The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New York ...

and revolves around Alma, a six-year-old Puerto Rican girl, as she ventures out into her

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

neighborhood to demonstrate decision making and social awareness skills. The title's meaning refers to Alma's ability of thinking things through, to help her solve problems within each episode. Starting from the show's premiere, television airings are followed up by ''Jelly, Ben and Pogo'', which are shorts that focus on

Filipino culture The culture of the Philippines is characterized by cultural diversity. Although the multiple ethnic groups of the Philippine archipelago have only recently established a shared Filipino national identity, their cultures were all shaped by the ...

. On November 1, 2022, it was replaced by ''Molly of Denali: The Big Gathering'', which are shorts based on

Molly of Denali ''Molly of Denali'' (stylized as ''MOLLY of DENALI'') is an animated children's television series produced by Atomic Cartoons in association with WGBH Kids, created by Dorothea Gillim and Kathy Waugh for PBS Kids and CBC Kids.

. On December 26, 2022, television airings are also followed up by City Island, which are shorts regarding sentient objects, homes, and vehicles. On August 2, 2022, it was announced the series was renewed for a second season which will air in fall 2023.

Plot

Alma Rivera is a six-year old young girl who lives in the Bronx with her family and friends. She faces lots of problems every day, and always stops, listens, looks, thinks, and explains to help her solve everyday problems.

Cast and characters

The Rivera family

* Alma Rivera - (voiced by Summer Rose Castillo), a curious 6-year-old girl who likes solving problems. Her favorite

baseball team Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding te ...

is the Sweat Sox. She has brown eyes, light-brown-skin, and possesses brown hair in a curly

ponytail A ponytail is a hairstyle in which some, most or all of the hair on the head is pulled away from the face, gathered and secured at the back of the head with a hair tie, clip, or other similar accessory and allowed to hang freely from that point ...

, wears two golden earrings, a blue jean vest over a pink t-shirt, lavender leggings under a dark-blue skirt, and light-brown boots. Has a dog named Chacho, who sometimes serve as the main antagonist. * Junior Rivera (voiced by Neo Vela), Alma's 5-year-old younger brother who loves

dinosaurs Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is t ...

and to dance. His favorite singer is Elyssa B, and his favorite baseball team is the City Seagulls. He has short brown hair, light-brown skin, and wears a blue and yellow t-shirt, grey pants, and orange sneakers. * Lulú "Mami" Rivera (voiced by Annie Henk), Alma and Junior's mother, and Ruben's wife. She is a musician and music teacher. She is a great cook, but isn't good at making

mofongo Mofongo () is a Puerto Rican dish with plantains as its main ingredient. Plantains are picked green, cut into pieces and typically fried but can be boiled or roasted, then mashed with salt, garlic, broth, and olive oil in a wooden pilón (mortar ...

. Her favorite singer is Elyssa B. * Ruben "Papi" Rivera (voiced by Jesús E. Martinez), Alma and Junior's father, and Lulú's husband. He is a

veterinarian A veterinarian (vet), also known as a veterinary surgeon or veterinary physician, is a medical professional who practices veterinary medicine. They manage a wide range of health conditions and injuries in non-human animals. Along with this, vet ...

, and hosts his own show called ''Ruben to the Rescue''. His favorite baseball team is the City Seagulls. * Abuelo Rivera (voiced by Danny Bolero), Lulú and Gloria's father, and Alma, Junior and Eddie's maternal grandfather.

Supporting

* Eddie Mambo (voiced by Jacob Crespo), Alma's next door neighbor and cousin. He is a gifted musician who plays drums, guitar and horn. * Uncle Nestor (voiced by Marco Antonio Rodriguez), Alma's uncle and Eddie's father. He is a playwright and musical director of a Bomba ensemble. * Tía Gloria (voiced by Sharon Montero), Alma's aunt and Eddie's mother. She is a

New York City Transit Authority The New York City Transit Authority (also known as NYCTA, the TA, or simply Transit, and branded as MTA New York City Transit) is a public-benefit corporation in the U.S. state of New York that operates public transportation in New York City. P ...

Train Conductor. * André King (voiced by Niason DaCosta), Alma's friend. He is great at drawing and sketching. * Rafia Huda (voiced by Naysa Nishash Shokeen), Alma and André's Bangladeshi friend. She loves to play sports. * Lucas Reed (voiced by Julian Lerner), Alma, André and Rafia's friend. He is a gifted singer. * Becka (voiced by Emily Isabel), a keyboard player and of Jewish descent. * Safina Huda (voiced by Jenna Qureshi), Rafia's older sister. She volunteers at Ruben's pet clinic. * Owen Reed (voiced by Andy Talen), Lucas's father. * Anik Huda (voiced by Ratnesh Dubey), Rafia and Safina's father. He owns a small grocery store. * Nea King (voiced by Justine J. Hall), André's mother. She owns a bookstore. * Frankie Four Feet (voiced by Victor Cruz), owner of the Bronx Community Center. * Granny Isa (voiced by

), Alma's maternal grandmother who travels the world.

''Jelly, Ben and Pogo''

* Jelly (voiced by Vanille Velasquez), an optimistic Filipino-American girl. She seems to role as the leader of the group. * Ben (voiced by Jalysa Leva), Jelly's little brother who serves as the smallest and youngest of the trio. * Pogo (voiced by Christina Sivrich), a green quadrupedal Scottish Loch-Ness Monster-like sea creature.

Episodes

Reception

Adiba Nelson of ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' wrote, "Afro-Latino children finally have characters they can relate to."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Alma's Way 2020s American children's television series 2020s American animated television series 2020s Canadian children's television series 2020s Canadian animated television series 2021 American television series debuts 2021 Canadian television series debuts 2020s preschool education television series American children's animated television series American preschool education television series Canadian children's animated television series Canadian preschool education television series Animated preschool education television series Hispanic and Latino American television English-language education television programming Spanish-language education television programming Fred Rogers PBS original programming PBS Kids shows Animated television series about children Animated television series about siblings Animated television series about families Disability in television Television shows set in the Bronx Television series impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic