Peanuts - A Charlie Brown Celebration (DVD)

...to see the continuity. Reading Peanuts in comic strip form is rather like that. We see one point in the lives of he characters, and it makes a point, but only later do we see the recurring themes. This DVD is rather like that.

In a Charlie Brown Celebration, we see a week in the life of each character. Peppermint Patty gets tired of going to school, and takes advice from Snoopy and attends obedience school, mistaking it for a private ...
...time a TV special of Peanuts had been made with more than one story, and it laid the foundation for the TV series to come. The disc is multiregion, and is 60 minutes long. The DVD has no special features, but the transfer from video is crisp with unfaded colours and the sound is clear and unmuffled. As it was recorded before digital surround sound, it should be noted that you may need to turn your set up a bit to hear it at a volume you are comfortable ... more

One of the things that sticks out in my mind about childhood, is how episodic life seemed. Events stood out one from the other on there own. It was only later that I was able to see the continuity. Reading Peanuts in comic strip form is rather like that. We see one point in the lives of he characters, and it makes a point, but only later do we see the recurring themes. This DVD is rather like that.

In a Charlie Brown Celebration, we see a week in the life of each character. Peppermint Patty gets tired of going to school, and takes advice from Snoopy and attends obedience school, mistaking it for a private school. She discovers the truth, and gets angry enough to go round on Snoopy, who she thinks is disguised in a cat suit. Unfortunately for her, it is the neighbour's cat, World War 2, and Snoopy must save her from being mauled. Linus and Sally go on a school field trip, and Linus meets an old childhood love. he ends up on a rooftop with her and Sally, both girls fighting over him, and Snoopy has to bail him out as only he can. Sally also struggles to give a report in school and as usual, makes a mess of it. The gang play baseball and Marcie obsesses over baseball caps. Lucy thinks she has figured out a way to capture Schroeder undying affection with hilarious results. Charlie brown ends up in hospital, and poignantly, the gang all realise how much he really means to them. All these vignettes are incredibly funny, and give great insight into each character as well as the group dynamics as a whole.

First aired in 1982, this was the first time a TV special of Peanuts had been made with more than one story, and it laid the foundation for the TV series to come. The disc is multiregion, and is 60 minutes long. The DVD has no special features, but the transfer from video is crisp with unfaded colours and the sound is clear and unmuffled. As it was recorded before digital surround sound, it should be noted that you may need to turn your set up a bit to hear it at a volume you are comfortable with. This DVD cost me £3.97 at Asda.com, which has free delivery, and for the price, it is worth every penny and more in entertainment value.  

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