I'm 28 now, so I was 12-13-ish when they came out. I remember recording the episodes carefully onto VHS (new, blank tapes, no less!) and being distraught when we missed one. I was more excited about Young Indy being released on DVD than the 4th movie coming out. And yes, they are just as fun as I remember!

The only disappointing thing was that the episode intros and conclusions with a crochety 93-year-old Indy were removed to better form the shows into a coherent series, because they were funny.

And he might not have quite the same acting chops, but Sean Patrick Flanery is totally better-looking than River Phoenix. No question in my mind.

I also loved this show as a kid and remember being incredibly dissapointed when I missed an episode.

As to it's actual educational value, I'd consider it better than a good chunk of the stuff that's touted as "educational" on TV nowadays, despite the inaccuracies.

I can remember, after watching a couple episodes, actually cracking open the encyclopedia to find out more about T.E. Lawrence and then trying to track down a copy of "The Seven Pillars of Wisdom" at the school library. Any TV show that can get a kid to do that can't be all bad.