IT'S CHRISTMASTIME AGAIN, CHARLIE BROWN

The first sequel to the uber popular A Charlie Brown Christmas, It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown was released in 1992 and is completely unnecessary.

It's Christmastime again and the Peanuts gang is preparing for the usual holiday activities. Charlie Brown is selling wreaths so that he can buy a gift for Peggy Jean, Sally is getting trying to find the meaning of Christmas, and Peppermint Patty and Marcie are both getting ready for the school play.


It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown was released on CBS in 1993 (the last time a Charlie Brown special would debut on that network) and was hoped to be another hit like the first.

The plot is very loose and choppy due to this whole special just being an animated collection of various Christmas themed Peanuts strips. It doesn't have the same flow as the original nor does it have the same charm. It doesn't deal with the same kind of important themes that the original does which is what won over millions in the first place. In fact, Charlie Brown doesn't even have a big part in this special. Instead, Sally, Peppermint Patty and Marcie, some of the more modern characters from the strip, are showcased. Even Snoopy only really has one scene!


But enough about the story; let's touch on the animation, acting and music.

The thing I have liked the most about the Charlie Brown specials is that they have been consistent in style and quality. The animation has improved over the years but it hasn't lost the look and the techniques that make it distinct. A friend of mine who works for Bardel Entertainment told me that they have been hired to produce a new Charlie Brown special. This will be a drastic departure from the style since Bardel animates using the Adobe Flash computer program rather than pencil and paper.

Another consistent part of the Charlie Brown specials is the voice acting. Producer Bill Melendez has always insisted on actual children providing voices for his cartoons which gives the acting a very distinct flavour. Hopefully this tradition will remain with this upcoming Bardel special. I should note that the voice of Sally Brown is Jodie Sweetin who is best known for her role as Stephanie Tanner on Full House.


Fans of the Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack will recognize many of the Vince Guaraldi Trio songs in Christmastime Again. Vince Guaraldi died of a heart attack in 1975 and every television special made after his death used new music. It wasn't until 1992 and the production of Christmastime Again that the crew decided to resurrect his famous score. However, they remixed the tunes making them more rock and roll, which many feel is a bastardization of a masterpiece.

All in all, every part of this special adds up to a let down. This Christmas special is actually not that special at all. You can find it as a special feature on the Charlie Brown Christmas DVD.

THE CHRISTMAS ALIENS

In 2003, a new generation was introduced to the Heroes in a Half Shell! A brand new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series debuted on FOX and was an instant success. The show is still going strong having aired six seasons with seventh on its way this September!

Fans of the original series from 1987 reacted very negatively to this new version of the heroes they grew up with. Gone were the cartoony characters, goofy catchphrases and shallow storylines. This new version follows the original comicbooks far more carefully. The stories are darker and they follow a serial format rather than self contained episodes. The dialogue is better and the animation is far superior to the original.


During the show's third season, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles aired its Christmas Special. It follows Michelangelo as he saves a truckload of toys from some thugs who want to ruin Christmas for a group of orphans. And while Splinter, April and the others are setting up a nice Christmas dinner in their sewer home, Mike takes part in a high speed car chase to retrieve the stolen toys.

The Christmas Aliens is a retelling of an old Michelangelo one-shot comic book. The Christmas story follows very closely to the original, only straying with the "family dinner" scenes featuring characters from the show. Fans of the comics will be happy to see Klunk, a kitten that Michelangelo befriends, make his first appearance in the show in this episode.


While the episode is not overly 'Christmasy', the inclusion of the family dinner was a nice touch. It is great seeing all of the supporting heroes in one room eating together. Silver Sentry, Usagi Yojimbo, Angel and others sat down to eat alongside series regulars like Master Splinter, April O'Neil, Casey Jones and the Turtles.

The episode states that a real Christmas activity is not being together with friends, but being with those less fortunate than us. So the crew packs up dinner and goes off to spend Christmas with the orphans.


The Christmas Aliens was released on DVD before it aired as part of the shows third season and is still available for purchase.

A SCOOBY-DOO CHRISTMAS

Scooby-Doo has had new show every five or six years since its debut in 1969. And after a few lackluster incarnations of the series (13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo and A Pup Named Scooby-Doo) Warner Bros Animation, who now owns the rights to the Hanna-Barbera properties, created What's New, Scooby-Doo? in 2002.

This series took the characters back to their roots, solving mysteries as they traveled around the world. Casey Kassem returns once again to voice Shaggy, Frank Welker returns to voice Fred and does double duty by voicing Scooby-Doo too! Voice actor Grey DeLisle voices Daphne and Facts of Life actress Mindy Cohn provides a voice for Velma.


A Scooby-Doo Christmas was released during the first season of the show in 2002. Scooby and the gang are on their way to Daphne's uncle's condo for the holiday when they find that the bridge leading up to the cabin is gone. This forces them to spend the night in the small town of Winter Hollow.

They soon find out that this town doesn't celebrate Christmas because every year it is visited by the Headless Snowman (who actually has his head throughout the special) who destroys everything to do with the jolly holiday! The gang knows that the snowman can't be real so they set out to find who is behind the destruction!


The story, music and characters are exactly what made Scooby-Doo popular in 1969 and this series pays tribute to every little bit, even to the point of parody. But now, because of Warner Bros' larger budgets, the animation is much better than anything from the original series and you'll be able to hear some notable guest stars too! Listen for Mark Hamil (Star Wars), Kathy Kinney (Drew Carey Show), James Belushi (According to Jim)and Daryl Sabara (Spy Kids).

There is a tiny Christmas message buried at the end of the episode. It seems like the writers stuck it in there because it's a Christmas episode and there probably should be a message of some sort. It just seems so contrived.


You can see for your self on DVD here or here.