More Snoopy From The Vault

In a few weeks we'll be treated to more goodies from the Peanuts television specials library. Set to release April 7, is Snoopy's Reunion a 1991 special that isn't quite up to par with the majority of the cartoons Charles Schultz worked on. First of all, it's one of only two Peanuts specials to not include Charlie Brown's name in the title. Second, this animated special drops the sophisticated dialogue found in previous shows and concentrates on the cuteness factor. Snoopy returns to the puppy mill where he was adopted from and is reunited with his sister and brothers. Kids are sure to enjoy it...I know mine will as they love anything filled with puppies.

But I did say this DVD is a treat...also included on this disc one of my favorite Peanuts specials: the 1984 time capsule It's Flashbeagle, Charlie Brown. For those of you who don't remember (or know what I'm talking about) a few years after the very sexual film Flashdance was a hit at the box office, CBS aired this Charlie Brown and Snoopy take on the box office hit. It's totally dated, and kind of stands out from all the other Charlie Brown cartoons, but it's a good one! There's some really good songs in it. (In fact, somewhere around here I have the soundtrack on cassette tape!) There's even a breakdancing scene which of course features Franklin - the only black member of the Peanuts gang. When Snoopy takes the spotlight and performs a dance similar to the one in Flashdance, the film makers even went to the trouble of hiring and filming Marine Jahan, the dance double for Jennifer Beals, to use as reference footage while animating Snoopy. Flashbeagle is certainly an odd and off-beat choice to release so early on in the roll out of Peanuts titles, but I'll be glad to replace my beat up ol' VHS copy with a shinny new DVD.

I also found out that come July 7, Warner Bros. is putting out Peanuts 1960's Collection. This will be a 2-disc set that serves up the first six of the Charlie Brown specials, which happen to span the years 1965 - 1969. The shows included in this set are:

• A Charlie Brown Christmas
• Charlie' Brown's All-Stars
• It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
• You're In Love, Charlie Brown
• He's Your Dog, Charlie Brown
• It Was A Short Summer, Charlie Brown.

The first four of these cartoons have been released to DVD before, although they will feature better picture and sound than their initial digital releases. The last two listed are new to DVD, and two of the titles from the whole Peanuts library that I've been most looking forward to seeing again. Hopefully, the price of this set won't be too high to justify rebuying four of the shows.