The Rankin/Bass Original Christmas Specials Collection is a wonderful set that will be sure to bring holiday joy to the entire family. Though not all of the shorts in this set got graphical improvements, most are as enjoyable and wonderous to adults are they are to children. Cricket on the Hearth is not as good as the rest due to a more depressing and dark story but does not completely detract from the set as a whole.
It’s that time of year again! As the year begins to wind down, friends and family come together to spend time with one another. As we round out the year, we all celebrate the holiday season in our own way. For many, celebration included Christmas Specials on the TV.
I remember growing up on the four of the five specials in The Original Christmas Specials Collection. The Rankin/Bass specials made it feel like Christmas was here. Like many others, my family would gather around the television and watch the specials. Many people are familiar with the majority of the specials on this set, which includes:
• Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
• Frosty the Snowman
• Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town
• The Little Dummer Boy
• Cricket on the Hearth
The only special that I was not away of was Cricket on the Hearth. Based on a story by Charles Dickens, Cricket on the Hearth tells the story of a toymaker who comes across a cricket – Cricket Crocket – who he takes in with the hope that Cricket Crocket will bring luck to his family. This is not the case to start, but, like the other specials in this collection, all ends well.
Cricket on the Hearth was not nearly as good as the other specials in the collection. The story is depressing and the whole short has some dark tones to it. *SPOLIER* For example, there is a scene where a boat captain shoots and kills three animals off screen; they were villanous creatures, but there are better ways of removing them from the story.
The other shorts in the collection are much better than Cricket on the Hearth and I couldn’t help but sing along with them while watching. There is so much nostalgia that comes with them, that I may be a little biased. However, with specials that have been around for so long, it is hard to not have memories associated with them.
As well at the shorts, there are some interesting special features that bring light to the story of Rankin/Bass. One of the biggest things that caught me off guard was that the stop-motion shorts like Rudolph were actually animated in Japan to cut costs.
The special features span across three of the discs and are distributed as such:
• On the Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer disc –
ºThe Animagic World of Rankin/Bass
ºRestoring the Puppets of Rudolph
ºReimagining Rudolph in 4D
ºRudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Attraction Film
ºT.E.A.M. Rudolph and the Reindeer Games
• On the Frosty the Snowman disc –
ºThe Animagic World of Rankin/Bass
ºOriginal Pencil Test
ºCommentary by Animation Historian Mark Evanier
• On the Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town disc –
ºThe Animagic World of Rankin/Bass
ºCommentary by Animation Historian Greg Ehrbar
Whether you are watching these shorts for the first time, sitting with your family to watch them as part of tradtion, or even showing your kids them for the first time, you will enjoy most of the specials on the set. The quality on the first three shorts has improved and the Blu-Ray comes with clean, crisp audio.
This set is a must-have for those who grew up with the Rankin/Bass shorts and will certainly delight.
