Peanuts Ultimate TV Specials Collection: A Wonderful Collection of the Gang's Most Classic Outings (DVD)

The Specials:

75 years ago, cartoonist Charles M. Schulz introduced us to the "Peanuts" gang, which featured Charlie Brown and his eclectic group of friends, including his loyal & adventurous dog Snoopy, the bossy but sometimes wise Lucy, his inquisitive sister Sally, and his security blanket-carrying buddy Linus. Like millions of others, I grew up reading the strips every week, and naturally caught the big TV specials whenever they would air, such as "A Charlie Brown Christmas," "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown," and "It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown," specials that have always been seen as classics and celebrated over the decades right alongside Schulz's incredible comic.

To celebrate the incredible milestone of the beloved strip, Warner Bros. has collected 40 of the gang's incredible TV outings and compiled them into one set for fans to own, not only including the well-known specials mentioned above, but also a multitude that many likely won't be familiar with, so lets delve right into this comprehensive collection and see if it's worth it for all the Peanuts enthusiasts out there.

It's rather difficult to sum up "Peanuts" as a whole, but in an effort to do so, I suppose one could simply say that it's the ordinary activities of Charlie Brown and his friends. They do regular things, such as attending school, celebrating Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Easter, going trick-or-treating, playing sports, and there are even some adventures thrown in thanks to the wild imagination of Snoopy the dog, who most famously loves to pretend to be a pilot. This intriguing group of characters may have just been going through everyday things, but it was through its ordinariness that Schulz made them so relatable & lovable, thus creating something that not only grabbed readers' attention, but also started to do the same with TV audiences in the mid-'60s as well.

As this is a rather comprehensive set, we'll only be looking at a select few of these specials, with a particular focus on the most famous of them. This actually brings up the interesting point that this mostly includes the specials that revolve around holidays, starting with what is probably the most well-known outing of the lot, "A Charlie Brown Christmas." This first special, which aired in 1965, focuses on Charlie Brown's frustration with the holiday and his attempt to direct his school's Christmas play. It's a sweet tale that has him trying to figure out what Christmas is all about, while trying to be a loyal friend by helping the gang with their production, culminating with them coming together to celebrate in what ends up being a very touching moment for this special group of friends.

"It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" first aired in 1966, and has most of the gang going out trick-or-treating, while Linus waits in a pumpkin patch with Charlie Brown's sister Sally for the coming of the Great Pumpkin, who he believes is a Santa-like figure that delivers toys. Meanwhile, while most of his friends receive lots of candy, Charlie Brown continuously receives rocks, though he remains thrilled that he got invited to Violet's Halloween party. It's an amusing outing that puts Linus' strong child-like beliefs to the test, while once again having the titular young man trying to enjoy a holiday with his friends. Just like the previous one, it's a simple tale, but it remains just as memorable thanks to the lovable characters.

Next we come to "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" from 1973, which finds Charlie Brown in a tight spot when his friend Peppermint Patty invites herself and several others over for Thanksgiving dinner. He enlists the help of Linus, Snoopy, and Woodstock (Snoopy's bird friend) to prepare whatever meal they can for their friends, settling on toast, pretzels, popcorn, and other random tidbits. This leads to great dissatisfaction from Patty, who initially berates Charlie Brown, but comes to realize that she was wrong to do so. It's another wonderful outing that proves his unwavering loyalty to his friends, while showing us the great strength of the friendship between these kids.

Finally, let's take a look at "It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown" from 1974, a special that puts Linus' beliefs to the test once more. While Peppermint Patty goes about trying to teach her friend Marcie about Easter and coloring eggs, an endeavor that goes terribly wrong several times, Linus tries to tell everyone that the "Easter Beagle" takes care of such things and delivers eggs to all the children. Meanwhile, Lucy is determined to win an Easter egg hunt, so she rigs one by hiding the eggs herself, not realizing that Snoopy is collecting them along the way. By doing so, Snoopy is able to fulfill Linus' hopes and bring joy to almost everyone. It's another marvelous lesson about friendship, patience, and staying true to one's beliefs, making it easy to see why it has remained a classic with the previously mentioned others.

Of course, there are many, many others, including specials that have them celebrating Valentine's Day, Arbor Day, and New Year's, riding motorcycles, skating, playing baseball, and more, but suffice it to say that this is a marvelous collection of the gang's various activities. With 40 specials, totaling about 18 hours, Peanuts fans will no doubt be absolutely thrilled to have so many of their outings combined into one set, giving them the opportunity to revisit these classics whenever they like, ultimately making this an easily-recommendable release for them or anyone simply looking to discover a collection of sweet & lovely animated tales that continue to entertain decades later.

Video/Audio:

The "Peanuts Ultimate TV Specials Collection" comes to DVD in 1.33.1 transfers (except the last one, which is 1.85:1) of excellent quality. For being on DVD, the picture is surprisingly sharp & clear, highlighting the fantastic animation from across the decades. Likewise, the 5.1 Dolby Digital audio tracks are marvelous, giving you all of the dialogue and music in outstanding quality. Overall, Warner Bros. has done a wonderful job in both departments for this incredible set.

Special Features:

None.

Conclusion:

The "Peanuts Ultimate TV Specials Collection" is a wonderful set of some of the gang's most classic outings, featuring many that have them simply trying to celebrate holidays or play sports, and typically including important lessons on friendship, caring for one another, and staying true to what you believe, ultimately making this collection a must-own for Peanuts fans or anyone looking to discover a rather sweet set of entertaining animated tales.

Score: 4/5

Available on DVD starting today.

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