Honestly, if you grew up in the late 90s, you probably have a core memory of a giant asparagus wearing a Roman helmet and a group of French peas taunting him from the top of a cardboard wall. It sounds like a fever dream. But for millions of kids, VeggieTales Josh and the Big Wall was the definitive retelling of the biblical story of Jericho. It wasn’t just a Sunday school lesson; it was a bizarre, creative, and surprisingly funny piece of animation that defined an era of Christian media.
Released in 1997, this was Big Idea Productions at the height of its creative powers. Phil Vischer and Mike Nawrocki were hitting their stride. They took the Book of Joshua—a story that, let's be real, is actually pretty violent in the original text—and turned it into a lesson about "doing things God's way." They did this by replacing swords with slushies and ancient Canaanites with sarcastic Frenchmen. It worked.
What Actually Happens in VeggieTales Josh and the Big Wall?
The story kicks off with the Israelites (portrayed by a bunch of weary-looking pickles and peas) wandering in the desert. They’ve been there for forty years. They’re tired. They just want to get to the Promised Land. Junior Asparagus plays Joshua—or "Josh"—the new leader who has to fill the big shoes of Moses.
The obstacle is Jericho.
In this version, Jericho is a city surrounded by a massive wall, guarded by the iconic French Peas (Jean-Claude and Philippe). These guys are arguably the best part of the entire episode. Instead of raining down arrows, they rain down giant slushies and insults. It’s a classic Monty Python and the Holy Grail homage that likely flew over the heads of the toddlers watching, but kept the parents from losing their minds.
Josh gets his instructions from "The Captain of the Lord's Host," who happens to be a very tall, very shiny cucumber. The plan is weird: walk around the city once a day for six days, then seven times on the seventh day. No fighting. Just walking and trumpet blowing. The Israelites are skeptical. Wouldn’t it be easier to use a battering ram? Maybe a ladder? But Josh insists they follow the "directions," which is the central theme of the whole half-hour.
👉 See also: Is Heroes and Villains Legit? What You Need to Know Before Buying
The Slushie Factor and 90s Animation
Technically speaking, VeggieTales Josh and the Big Wall was a massive undertaking for 1997. If you look at the animation now, it’s charmingly clunky. The textures are flat. The lighting is basic. But back then? Rendering those slushie splashes was a big deal for a small studio in Chicago.
The creators had a strict rule: no hands, no feet, and no hair. This forced them to get incredibly creative with how characters interacted with the world. How does a pea throw a slushie? With a catapult, obviously. How does an asparagus lead an army? Through sheer charisma and a very sturdy helmet. This episode perfected the "Veggie" formula of mixing high-stakes biblical drama with low-stakes domestic comedy.
The Music That Lived Rent-Free in Our Heads
You can’t talk about this episode without the songs. Big Idea was essentially a music studio that happened to make cartoons. "The Joshua Song" is a catchy, repetitive march that drills the lesson into your brain.
"Keep walking, but keep your mouth shut!"
It’s simple. It’s effective. But the real star is the Silly Song. In VeggieTales Josh and the Big Wall, we got "The Song of the Cebu." This is widely considered one of the top three Silly Songs of all time. It’s a slide-projector-fueled nightmare-scape about a boy and his three cebus (Cebu! Achy! And... another one).
✨ Don't miss: Jack Blocker American Idol Journey: What Most People Get Wrong
Archibald Asparagus trying to maintain dignity while Larry the Cucumber sings about a "sad cebu" catching a cold is peak comedy. It has nothing to do with the walls of Jericho. It doesn't matter. It’s the kind of absurdist humor that gave VeggieTales its crossover appeal.
The Controversy: Why the French Peas Mattered
There’s a nuance here that most people miss. Using the French Peas as the "villains" was a brilliant move for several reasons. First, they weren't scary. In a show for preschoolers, you can't have terrifying enemies. Making them snarky, elitist, and obsessed with frozen treats made them the perfect foil for the earnest Israelites.
Secondly, it established a recurring trope. The French Peas became the go-to antagonists for the series. They represented the "world"—the people who mock those trying to follow a specific moral or spiritual path. In VeggieTales Josh and the Big Wall, their taunts are actually the biggest obstacle Josh faces. It’s not the wall itself; it’s the fear of looking stupid while walking around it.
Lessons That Actually Stick
Most kids' shows are preachy. VeggieTales was preachy too, but it was honest about the struggle. Josh doesn't just confidently march around the wall. He has to deal with a disgruntled crowd of pickles who think he’s lost his mind.
The takeaway isn't just "obey." It’s "trust the process even when the process looks ridiculous." In the context of 1997, this was a message for families navigating a rapidly changing culture. Today, it’s a nostalgic reminder of a time when "doing things God's way" could be explained through the lens of a blue raspberry slushie.
🔗 Read more: Why American Beauty by the Grateful Dead is Still the Gold Standard of Americana
Why It Still Ranks in the "Veggie" Canon
If you rank every VeggieTales episode, this one usually sits in the top five. Why?
- Iconic Antagonists: The debut of the French Peas in a major role.
- The Silly Song: "Song of the Cebu" is a masterpiece of comedic timing.
- Visual Gags: The wall falling down is genuinely satisfying animation for its time.
- Script Quality: The dialogue is snappy. It doesn't talk down to kids.
The legacy of VeggieTales Josh and the Big Wall is found in its weirdness. It didn't try to be a Hollywood epic. It was a story about vegetables in a desert, and it leaned into that absurdity with everything it had.
How to Revisit the Story Today
If you’re looking to rewatch this or show it to a new generation, keep a few things in mind. The "directions" theme is universal. Whether you’re a religious person or just someone trying to follow a complicated IKEA manual, the frustration of "the long way" is real.
- Look for the 25th Anniversary editions. They have cleaned-up audio that makes the musical numbers pop.
- Pay attention to the background characters. The "Israelite" extras often have some of the funniest one-liners.
- Don't skip the counter-top intro. Bob and Larry's banter sets the stage for the moral lesson in a way that modern reboots often fail to capture.
Ultimately, VeggieTales Josh and the Big Wall remains a cultural touchstone because it was brave enough to be silly while tackling something serious. It taught us that walls come down not through force, but through persistence—and maybe a few catchy tunes.
If you're hunting for this specific episode, it's widely available on streaming platforms like Yippee TV or the official VeggieTales YouTube channel. Watching it through a modern lens, you’ll likely find that the jokes for adults land even better now than they did when you were six. The French Peas’ insults are particularly sharp, reflecting a level of wit that helped the show transcend its "Christian cartoon" label and become a legitimate piece of animation history.
Don't expect 4K realism. Expect a lot of primary colors and a very high-pitched Bob the Tomato. But more than that, expect a story that, despite being almost 30 years old, still feels remarkably cohesive. It's a reminder that good storytelling doesn't need a massive budget; it just needs a giant asparagus and a very clear set of directions.
To get the most out of a rewatch, try comparing the "slushie" scenes to the original biblical account in the Book of Joshua. You'll notice how the writers cleverly adapted the concept of "spiritual warfare" into something digestible for children without losing the core message of the source material. It's a masterclass in adaptation.