After watching old episodes a few at a time each day from the beginning, and after a long period of lurking on this forum, I've decided to give some of my thoughts and observations looking back on them.
In "Arthur Goes to Camp", one thing I remember from the book that was left out of the show is Francine calling Arthur four-eyes after missing the target in the archery contest ("Hey four-eyes! Need new glasses?"). Makes sense from a character development perspective ever since he called her out on it in "Locked in the Library", even though continuity was all over the place in those early episodes.
I really do think the writers dropped the ball on not exploring Arthur's relatives more ever since they were prominently featured in "Arthur's Cousin Catastrophe". Cousin Mo in particular, maybe even proto-hipster Uncle Sean. If the writers were to focus on characters other than Arthur, why not them instead of friends of friends of siblings?
And how 'bout that disgusting concoction known as "Chef's Surprise" from "Arthur's Family Vacation"? David and Jane should have known better than to have ordered a dish with "surprise" in the name just as they should have known better than to surprise their kids with giant red bugs later on. I like to think it tasted much better than it looked, which was the
real surprise.
And as much of a nasty character as D.W. can be, she can have a pretty sharp wit and great comedic timing, which can be seen in "Arthur's New Puppy".
Jane: (after seeing the mess Pal made last night) You'll need this. (gives Arthur a small shovel)
D.W.: No, you'll need
this! (shows him a giant pooper scooper)
And who else used
Kid Works 2 when they were in school as some of those schoolkids did in at least one of those "A Word From Us Kids" segments? The distinctive sound the pencil made was a dead giveaway!