Stream It Or Skip It: ‘The Great British Baking Show: Juniors’ Season 7 on Netflix, Where Younger, But Still Impressive, Bakers Try To Bake The Perfect Sponge

The Great British Baking Show: Juniors, also referred to in Britain as Junior Bake Off, has been running since 2011, and this week, its seventh season will begin airing on Netflix. The Juniors version features the same general formula as the adult Great British Baking Show, but the contestants are a bit less experienced. While that makes for messier bakes, what these pastries lack in polish are made up for with the bakers’ sheer enthusiasm.

THE GREAT BRITISH BAKING SHOW: JUNIORS: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: It’s a classic goofy, costume-y Bake-Off cold open: the host, Harry Hill, and one of the judges, Ravneet Gill, discuss the fact that Rav’s fellow judge, Liam Charles, is sick and unable to film this episode of the show. And just like that, a fireball glides through the sky and lands next to them. “I believe you’re a judge down!” this fiery superhero says as he lands. It’s Paul Hollywood!

The Gist: If you’re reading this review, there’s a good chance you’re already familiar with The Great British Baking Show and what it entails. A group of talented home bakers test their skills over weekly episodes that include a technical challenge set forth by one of the judges, a signature bake, and a showstopper challenge where they can get creative and do a big, detailed bake of some kind. The Junior Bake Off version of the show features 8 contestants who have to endure two out of three of those challenges, a technical and a showstopper. Also setting this version apart is that the kids have far less experience under their belts, so their bakes are often messier and less precise, which is made up for by the fact that they’re also more exuberant about pretty much everything.

At the beginning of the first episode, host Harry Hill tells the competitors that one of the usual judges on the show, Liam Charles (a contestant himself from season 8 of Bake-Off) has fallen ill and will be replaced this week by the iconic Bake-Off judge Paul Hollywood. The kids’ surprise is a delight to watch, they’re unrestrained in their excitement at meeting THE Paul Hollywood. Their first challenge, presented by judge Rav, is for the contestants to bake six piggy rolls, consisting of jelly-roll style sponges rolled into spirals with a strawberry mascarpone frosting inside and pink chocolate coating the tops, with marshmallow pig noses and pink ears sculpted on their heads.

True to its name, this is a very technical challenge for anyone, kid or adult alike, to pull off, and nearly every contestant struggles to make an airy cake that doesn’t crack or break when it’s rolled. While every young baker who fails at the rolling portion knows they messed up, they all present their final products without shame or frustration. There’s an un-self-consciousness to what they’re giving the judges; it may not be perfect, but it’s what we’re working with, what are ya gonna do? In the regular Bake-Off tent, as good-natured as it is, the contestants would likely be grumbling about their unsatisfactory work, but here the kids shrug off the flaws. (They also take bites out of their own work, something I’ve often wondered if Bake-Off contestants are allowed to do. When you’re a kid, the answer is yes, you’re allowed.)

For the showstopper (I failed to mention earlier, but in this season premiere episodes, it’s cake week), a cake commemorating the contestants’ proudest moment must be completed. One such proud moment was “the time I rescued a ball out of a fountain,” while another baker created a cake with the face of Tracey Turnblad on it to commemorate the time he starred in Hairspray. Just hearing about these proud moments is a joy to behold.

When it comes time to judge the showstoppers, even though many of the cakes appear rough around the edges, almost all of them taste great, according to the judges, and truthfully, these sponges really do look delicious. And even though one or two of them get some criticism, no one is sent home just yet. These juniors get one more attempt to show the judges what they’ve got before we start the elimination process. I bet the adult contestants wish they had the same advantage.

What Shows Will It Remind You Of? Pound for pound, Juniors is the exact formula of the original Bake-Off (or Baking Show, depending on where you live), from technicals to showstoppers, and this season feels even more like the grown-up version because Paul Hollywood is guest judging for the first episode, and his signature critiques (dry sponge, heavy fondant, etc.) are on full display.

Our Take: The entire GBBS franchise is feel-good television, kind-hearted and appropriate for the whole family. The thing about the Juniors version is that it allows younger viewers to imagine what it would be like to be on the show themselves. The contestants are precocious in a way most kids are not, able to decipher recipes and know what to do to achieve certain textures and decorations, which is impressive. But their talents, combined with their upbeat attitudes and willingness to help one another in spite of the competitive nature of the show, adds an extra level of warmth to the show.

We may not get the iconic bakes that the original show is responsible for, now will most of these kids become media personalities the way that some of their adult counterparts have, but we do get a satisfying, inspiring show starring kids whose talents are worthy of our attention.

Parting Shot: “I’ve just got to read the recipe, and keep calm and carry on,” says contestant Lola, who has been spared from elimination. But then again, so has everyone else: there are no eliminations on the first episode of The Great British Baking Show: Juniors each season, each baker lives to see at least one more challenge.

Sleeper Star: Joey is the baker to watch this season: even though he comes across a little cocky in the beginning, he’s crowned star baker after Paul Hollywood declares that his showstopper strawberry cake is better than most cakes he’s had in the big tent.

Most Pilot-y Line? “I don’t like that,” Paul Hollywood tells one contestant named Mia after tasting her lemon cake. She looks disappointed until he says, “I love it.” These contestants know what it means to receive high praise from Paul, and it’s charming to see him be so generous to the young bakers.

Our Call: STREAM IT! While there are loads of cooking shows that are appropriate for kids, like Nailed It!, Master Chef Junior, and Sugar Rush, none of them come close to that intangible, feel-good quality that The Great British Baking Show and it Juniors spinoff have.

Liz Kocan is a pop culture writer living in Massachusetts. Her biggest claim to fame is the time she won on the game show Chain Reaction.