First official day of the semester was Wednesday the 12th. I am rebelling against the constraints of my extended-study-ness and taking a whopping three classes this semester. However, only one of those met last Wednesday. The other two are Monday-only classes, and they don't meet today because of MLK Jr. Day. So they don't actually meet until a week and a half into the semester, if you can believe that.
My first class of the semester was quite nice, however. It is the ONLY section of Intro to Social Work Practice offered this semester, so it is populated by EVERY first-year extended study student in the program. And I was pleasantly surprised to discover how many familiar faces there were. Apparently I was not actually the only extended study person in both of my classes last semester. We were all just quiet about it, since we all felt vaguely like second-class citizens.
This semester may force me to face realities of being in school that last semester didn't. Last semester I did not have to buy textbooks (all the readings were online) and the only final I had was a take-home that was really just a paper. This semester, I've already spent a hundred bucks on textbooks, and the finals are lying in wait in spring. I'm glad I got that one semester of reprieve!
Monday, January 17, 2011
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
I love Neil Patrick Harris.
I love Neil Patrick Harris. I love him as Doogie Howser. I love him as Barney Stinson. I love him as Dr. Horrible. I love him as the Fairy Shoeperson on Sesame Street. I love him reading Beverly Cleary's Henry Huggins books. I love him singing "Dream On" on Glee. And, like the eleven-year-old I spent the day with today, I love him as the evil Dr. Blowhole.
When I learned that Neil Patrick Harris and his partner (David Burtka, who is also quite a cutie) were going to be parents of twins, I squealed out loud. I squealed again when I learned that last week's People magazine had the first published pictures of the babies. I immediately searched the internet to see if said pictures were online. Only one was. But the reason I'm blogging about this is that the comments on the brief People website writeup shocked me. Apparently there are STILL people out there who think that it is an abomination for two people of the same sex to have children. Maybe I'm naive, but it honestly surprised me.
Maybe it surprised me that anyone could feel that way because I can't imagine any better circumstances to be born into than to be a twin born to Neil Patrick Harris. Those kids are going to have the best lullabies and bedtime stories that any kid ever had. They will never want for anything. They get to have play dates with Alyson Hannigan and Alexis Denisof's kids. And, most importantly, they have two dads who clearly love them and wanted them very much. Same sex couples don't accidentally get pregnant-- when they have kids, they are absolutely wanted kids. And that is an absolutely beautiful thing.
Plus, the mere fact that Neil Patrick Harris exists and is such a talented, beloved celebrity should remove any suspicion that God hates gay people. God has clearly blessed that man, and I, for one, thank Him for it. I think little Gideon and Harper will too.
And anyone who thinks that heterosexual parents don't have the potential to screw up their kids' lives needs a good hard dose of reality. Come to my workplace for a day.
When I learned that Neil Patrick Harris and his partner (David Burtka, who is also quite a cutie) were going to be parents of twins, I squealed out loud. I squealed again when I learned that last week's People magazine had the first published pictures of the babies. I immediately searched the internet to see if said pictures were online. Only one was. But the reason I'm blogging about this is that the comments on the brief People website writeup shocked me. Apparently there are STILL people out there who think that it is an abomination for two people of the same sex to have children. Maybe I'm naive, but it honestly surprised me.
Maybe it surprised me that anyone could feel that way because I can't imagine any better circumstances to be born into than to be a twin born to Neil Patrick Harris. Those kids are going to have the best lullabies and bedtime stories that any kid ever had. They will never want for anything. They get to have play dates with Alyson Hannigan and Alexis Denisof's kids. And, most importantly, they have two dads who clearly love them and wanted them very much. Same sex couples don't accidentally get pregnant-- when they have kids, they are absolutely wanted kids. And that is an absolutely beautiful thing.
Plus, the mere fact that Neil Patrick Harris exists and is such a talented, beloved celebrity should remove any suspicion that God hates gay people. God has clearly blessed that man, and I, for one, thank Him for it. I think little Gideon and Harper will too.
And anyone who thinks that heterosexual parents don't have the potential to screw up their kids' lives needs a good hard dose of reality. Come to my workplace for a day.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Christmas Vacation Installment #25: Christmas Eve On Sesame Street
Once again I tried to blog Muppet Family Christmas, but got too overwhelmed. It's hard when every single moment is a Crowning Moment of Awesome (TM). So, I'll do this one, which is almost as awesome. It is really from the good old days of Sesame Street-- 1978, before I was even born.
It begins with a quiet ice skating party. The Muppets are all in costume form (which is a little weird), and they're skating. Big Bird is having trouble, but a little girl helps him and he gets his footing. The other Muppets goof around, and then Oscar gets thrown down stairs. There's a long moment of Oscar's legs sticking out of his can, being thrown down stairs and through thin walls. I'm guessing that was fun to film (that is not sarcasm). And I guess that makes Oscar cranky, because he decides to plant worries in Big Bird's head about how Santa Claus gets down the skinny little chimneys on Sesame Street.
Song: "True Blue Miracle." Love this song, and all the visuals-- everyone on Sesame Street looks genuinely happy.
Bert is in the bathtub trying to think what to get Ernie for Christmas. He decides on a soapdish to keep Rubber Duckie in. Ernie decides to get Bert a cigar box for his paper clip collection.
Bob sings a song that makes me sleepy. And then we're at Hooper's Store, where Ernie trades his rubber duckie for a cigar box, and Bert trades his paper clip collection for a soapdish. Does this seem like a familiar story? Oh, yes, it does. It is not discussed why Bert and Ernie are broke.
Kermit is reporting on kids' ideas of how Santa gets down the chimney. My favorite is "Santa sneaks in with the other relatives at Thanksgiving and hides in the laundry until Christmas."
Cookie Monster is trying to write his letter to Santa (on Christmas Eve, what a procrastinator!), but he eats his pencil. Then he eats his typewriter.
Oscar sings a grouchy song called "I Hate Christmas," which includes the line, "I'll tell him where to put his toys!" Oh my... I don't see that one flying with today's Moral Guardian parents.
Bert and Ernie's again. They exchange gifts, and panic a bit over the gift's uselessness-- but Mr. Hooper knocks just in time with gifts for Ernie and Bert-- their rubber duckie and paper clips, of course. Aw. Thank you, Mr. Hooper, for brightening up a usually dark tale. They sing "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas."
Cookie Monster has decided to call Santa-- how does he have his phone number? Santa himself even answers-- no secretary or anything! Unfortunately, Cookie has already eaten the phone.
Cookie is talking to Gordon, who is sure Santa knows to bring cookies, but suggests Cookie might want to leave something for Santa. Cookie wants to leave Santa a necktie, which makes me laugh out loud, because Frank Oz has fantastic comic timing as Cookie Monster. Or maybe because the idea of leaving Santa a necktie is just fantastically silly.
Big Bird has gone to the roof to look for Santa. The rest of Sesame Street is in a panic looking for him. Maria yells at Oscar for starting all this. Poor Big Bird falls asleep and wakes up with icicles on his beak. So he decides to go down to Gordon and Susan's to warm up. Of course, Santa has already come to Gordon and Susan's apartment. Big Bird still wants answers, but Gordon tells him to just believe.
We fade out with a song: "Keep Christmas With You." Oh, and Cookie Monster ate the tree.
Visuals: 4 out of 5
Spirit: 4 out of 5
Nostalgia: 4 out of 5
Humor: 4 out of 5
Music: 4 out of 5
Overall: 4 out of 5
Well, I guess that's my 25 Days of Christmas! Suck it, ABC Family. May post more (after all, Christmas isn't over until January 6th, and grad school doesn't start up again until the 12th), but I've met my quota. Oh, and I've also watched specials/movies/episodes that I didn't blog...
It begins with a quiet ice skating party. The Muppets are all in costume form (which is a little weird), and they're skating. Big Bird is having trouble, but a little girl helps him and he gets his footing. The other Muppets goof around, and then Oscar gets thrown down stairs. There's a long moment of Oscar's legs sticking out of his can, being thrown down stairs and through thin walls. I'm guessing that was fun to film (that is not sarcasm). And I guess that makes Oscar cranky, because he decides to plant worries in Big Bird's head about how Santa Claus gets down the skinny little chimneys on Sesame Street.
Song: "True Blue Miracle." Love this song, and all the visuals-- everyone on Sesame Street looks genuinely happy.
Bert is in the bathtub trying to think what to get Ernie for Christmas. He decides on a soapdish to keep Rubber Duckie in. Ernie decides to get Bert a cigar box for his paper clip collection.
Bob sings a song that makes me sleepy. And then we're at Hooper's Store, where Ernie trades his rubber duckie for a cigar box, and Bert trades his paper clip collection for a soapdish. Does this seem like a familiar story? Oh, yes, it does. It is not discussed why Bert and Ernie are broke.
Kermit is reporting on kids' ideas of how Santa gets down the chimney. My favorite is "Santa sneaks in with the other relatives at Thanksgiving and hides in the laundry until Christmas."
Cookie Monster is trying to write his letter to Santa (on Christmas Eve, what a procrastinator!), but he eats his pencil. Then he eats his typewriter.
Oscar sings a grouchy song called "I Hate Christmas," which includes the line, "I'll tell him where to put his toys!" Oh my... I don't see that one flying with today's Moral Guardian parents.
Bert and Ernie's again. They exchange gifts, and panic a bit over the gift's uselessness-- but Mr. Hooper knocks just in time with gifts for Ernie and Bert-- their rubber duckie and paper clips, of course. Aw. Thank you, Mr. Hooper, for brightening up a usually dark tale. They sing "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas."
Cookie Monster has decided to call Santa-- how does he have his phone number? Santa himself even answers-- no secretary or anything! Unfortunately, Cookie has already eaten the phone.
Cookie is talking to Gordon, who is sure Santa knows to bring cookies, but suggests Cookie might want to leave something for Santa. Cookie wants to leave Santa a necktie, which makes me laugh out loud, because Frank Oz has fantastic comic timing as Cookie Monster. Or maybe because the idea of leaving Santa a necktie is just fantastically silly.
Big Bird has gone to the roof to look for Santa. The rest of Sesame Street is in a panic looking for him. Maria yells at Oscar for starting all this. Poor Big Bird falls asleep and wakes up with icicles on his beak. So he decides to go down to Gordon and Susan's to warm up. Of course, Santa has already come to Gordon and Susan's apartment. Big Bird still wants answers, but Gordon tells him to just believe.
We fade out with a song: "Keep Christmas With You." Oh, and Cookie Monster ate the tree.
Visuals: 4 out of 5
Spirit: 4 out of 5
Nostalgia: 4 out of 5
Humor: 4 out of 5
Music: 4 out of 5
Overall: 4 out of 5
Well, I guess that's my 25 Days of Christmas! Suck it, ABC Family. May post more (after all, Christmas isn't over until January 6th, and grad school doesn't start up again until the 12th), but I've met my quota. Oh, and I've also watched specials/movies/episodes that I didn't blog...
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Christmas Vacation Installment #24: Scrooged
I had never seen this before, so Devon made me watch it. It's a 1988 retelling of A Christmas Carol.
Santa's workshop-- the elves have pointy hats like David the Gnome, and I'm confused as to why we're in Santa's workshop. They get attacked (it's not clear by who), so they bust out the firearms. Lee Majors shows up to protect them. This is, of course, a promo for a movie: The Night the Reindeer Died. Corrupt executive Frank Cross (Bill Murray) is not impressed. Next he sees the promo for the live televised production of A Christmas Carol that the station is airing on Christmas Eve. That seems like a terrible idea, but one that would probably draw in viewers.
He pronounces the promo sucky, and I kind of agree. He screams at his minions, and demands a violent, frightening promo. Minion with glasses doesn't understand why they would scare people. So Frank fires him, because he's Scrooge. Get it?
Frank is getting towels for everyone he knows for Christmas . Including his secretary and his brother. His secretary has a son, who can't speak.
A rotting corpse busts in on Frank. Frank shoots at him, but he's unaffected. He has a golf ball stuck in his head. It falls, and a mouse runs in and out of the hole it left. Ew. He's Frank's former boss, and the Marley figure. He tells Frank to expect the first ghost at noon. Daylight ghosts? Weird. Bill is thrown from the window, but wakes up in a chair. With a golf ball in his mouth. Ew again.
We see Secretary (Grace) at home with her kids, of which she has many. They don't have a Christmas tree because they can't afford one. I guess she's the Cratchit of this piece. Meanwhile, an old woman has died watching the violent promo, and Frank sees this as a good thing.
Love Interest (Claire) is in town. She won't let Frank staple antlers to a mouse. Seems reasonable to me. Grace brought her son to the studio. Frank yells at her, of course.
Business lunch-- eyeball in the water glass. Frank screams bloody murder, and everyone thinks he's insane. A gentleman across the restaurant appears to catch fire. Frank throws water on him, but he wasn't on fire at all. Frank hops a cab, and who should be driving it, but the Ghost of Christmas Past. It's on his license and everything! In the past, we see Frank as a four-year-old glued to the TV, receiving only veal for Christmas. Then we see him at a workplace Christmas party, rocking a mullet. Then he meets Claire when she hits him in the head with a door. Then, another Christmas with Claire. He gives her knives, she gives him the Kama Sutra. They're happy, but it's not to last. She dumps him, while he's dressed as a dog.
When he comes back to the present, Frank is watching Belle dump Ebenezer Scrooge in the dress rehearsal of the live show. Weird... they're just beating me upside the head with the parallels. This is a very different approach to retelling a story. Frank screams all the way to Claire's workplace-- a homeless shelter. The homeless people welcome him with open arms. Claire is also happy to see him, but when she won't stop working for him, he storms out.
The Ghost of Christmas Present looks like a combination of the Sugar Plum faerie and Glinda the Good Witch. And has a very annoying voice.
We see Grace's family celebrating. Ghost explains that the little boy hasn't spoken since he saw his father killed. Frank never even knew that anything happened to Grace's husband. Next, Frank's brother's house, where they are making merry. Frank's brother toasts to Frank-- interesting variant on the original.
The ghost hits Frank with a toaster. He sees a homeless man that he spoke to at the shelter, now frozen to death.
The actual live broadcast is starting. Frank freaks out at seeing the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, but it's just the costumed one for the show. The actual ghost is coming out of the monitors and looking terrifying when the guy who was fired at the beginning comes in with a shotgun-- but that's resolved rather quickly. The actual ghost is freaking creepy. It shows Grace's little boy as a teenager, locked in a mental institution, then Claire looking and acting like Cruella De Vil. Then we see Frank's funeral, with only his brother and sister-in-law in attendance. Somehow, Frank gets trapped in the coffin and is about to be cremated alive, when suddenly he's in the elevator and happy to be alive.
He makes amends with Fired Guy, then takes over the live show while Fired Guy uses the shotgun to make sure nobody stops him. Why, he asks, are you people watching TV on Christmas Eve? And he makes pleas for forgiveness. And really, babbles incoherently for quite a while-- it's an awkward scene. But when he's done babbling, Grace's little boy speaks-- to remind Frank to say "God bless us, every one." Aww...
We see all the Christmas ghosts partying, along with the homeless guy. Aw again!
Bill Murray ends the movie with more babbling, including randomly saying "Feed me, Seymour!" I definitely think he was improvising.
Visuals: 5 out of 5
Spirit: 4 out of 5
Nostalgia: 1 out of 5
Humor: 3 out of 5
Music: 0 out of 5
Overall: 3.5 out of 5
Santa's workshop-- the elves have pointy hats like David the Gnome, and I'm confused as to why we're in Santa's workshop. They get attacked (it's not clear by who), so they bust out the firearms. Lee Majors shows up to protect them. This is, of course, a promo for a movie: The Night the Reindeer Died. Corrupt executive Frank Cross (Bill Murray) is not impressed. Next he sees the promo for the live televised production of A Christmas Carol that the station is airing on Christmas Eve. That seems like a terrible idea, but one that would probably draw in viewers.
He pronounces the promo sucky, and I kind of agree. He screams at his minions, and demands a violent, frightening promo. Minion with glasses doesn't understand why they would scare people. So Frank fires him, because he's Scrooge. Get it?
Frank is getting towels for everyone he knows for Christmas . Including his secretary and his brother. His secretary has a son, who can't speak.
A rotting corpse busts in on Frank. Frank shoots at him, but he's unaffected. He has a golf ball stuck in his head. It falls, and a mouse runs in and out of the hole it left. Ew. He's Frank's former boss, and the Marley figure. He tells Frank to expect the first ghost at noon. Daylight ghosts? Weird. Bill is thrown from the window, but wakes up in a chair. With a golf ball in his mouth. Ew again.
We see Secretary (Grace) at home with her kids, of which she has many. They don't have a Christmas tree because they can't afford one. I guess she's the Cratchit of this piece. Meanwhile, an old woman has died watching the violent promo, and Frank sees this as a good thing.
Love Interest (Claire) is in town. She won't let Frank staple antlers to a mouse. Seems reasonable to me. Grace brought her son to the studio. Frank yells at her, of course.
Business lunch-- eyeball in the water glass. Frank screams bloody murder, and everyone thinks he's insane. A gentleman across the restaurant appears to catch fire. Frank throws water on him, but he wasn't on fire at all. Frank hops a cab, and who should be driving it, but the Ghost of Christmas Past. It's on his license and everything! In the past, we see Frank as a four-year-old glued to the TV, receiving only veal for Christmas. Then we see him at a workplace Christmas party, rocking a mullet. Then he meets Claire when she hits him in the head with a door. Then, another Christmas with Claire. He gives her knives, she gives him the Kama Sutra. They're happy, but it's not to last. She dumps him, while he's dressed as a dog.
When he comes back to the present, Frank is watching Belle dump Ebenezer Scrooge in the dress rehearsal of the live show. Weird... they're just beating me upside the head with the parallels. This is a very different approach to retelling a story. Frank screams all the way to Claire's workplace-- a homeless shelter. The homeless people welcome him with open arms. Claire is also happy to see him, but when she won't stop working for him, he storms out.
The Ghost of Christmas Present looks like a combination of the Sugar Plum faerie and Glinda the Good Witch. And has a very annoying voice.
We see Grace's family celebrating. Ghost explains that the little boy hasn't spoken since he saw his father killed. Frank never even knew that anything happened to Grace's husband. Next, Frank's brother's house, where they are making merry. Frank's brother toasts to Frank-- interesting variant on the original.
The ghost hits Frank with a toaster. He sees a homeless man that he spoke to at the shelter, now frozen to death.
The actual live broadcast is starting. Frank freaks out at seeing the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, but it's just the costumed one for the show. The actual ghost is coming out of the monitors and looking terrifying when the guy who was fired at the beginning comes in with a shotgun-- but that's resolved rather quickly. The actual ghost is freaking creepy. It shows Grace's little boy as a teenager, locked in a mental institution, then Claire looking and acting like Cruella De Vil. Then we see Frank's funeral, with only his brother and sister-in-law in attendance. Somehow, Frank gets trapped in the coffin and is about to be cremated alive, when suddenly he's in the elevator and happy to be alive.
He makes amends with Fired Guy, then takes over the live show while Fired Guy uses the shotgun to make sure nobody stops him. Why, he asks, are you people watching TV on Christmas Eve? And he makes pleas for forgiveness. And really, babbles incoherently for quite a while-- it's an awkward scene. But when he's done babbling, Grace's little boy speaks-- to remind Frank to say "God bless us, every one." Aww...
We see all the Christmas ghosts partying, along with the homeless guy. Aw again!
Bill Murray ends the movie with more babbling, including randomly saying "Feed me, Seymour!" I definitely think he was improvising.
Visuals: 5 out of 5
Spirit: 4 out of 5
Nostalgia: 1 out of 5
Humor: 3 out of 5
Music: 0 out of 5
Overall: 3.5 out of 5
Christmas Vacation Installment #23: Claymation Christmas
Okay, time for something lighthearted. One of the first Christmas specials I can remember watching. Two dinosaurs hosting segments that depict different Christmas songs-- and this special has permanently affected how I think of a lot of these songs.
A group of dogs stroll by the two dinos singing "Here we come a-waffling." The T-Rex in a tux (the straightman of the two dinos) tells them it's supposed to be "wassailing" but doesn't know what that means.
First song: "We Three Kings", in which each king gets his verse and the camels sing the chorus, jazzing it up considerably.
The non-t-rex dinosaur is still obsessing over waffles as it's time to introduce "Carol of the Bells," as performed by a bunch of living bells who ring by hitting themselves in the head with mallets, under the conduction of Quasimodo. I don't know why. One bell is not quite cooperating. He throws his mallet out for some reason, so Quasimodo ends the song by hitting him with a slingshot.
Commercial for My First Sony. Hi, old tape from the 80's.
Next up: "O Christmas Tree." But not before some ducks sing "Here we come a-waddling." This was very amusing when I was five, I swear! "O Christmas Tree" shows some kids decorating their tree, and one of their ornaments provides a glimpse into a family of gingerbread people, and their tree shows us Santa's workshop. Good Claymation effects in this one. Remember when there was no CGI? The workshop tree shows us Santa himself, and then we are back where we started.
Next: "Angels We Have Heard on High"-- only, just the instrumentals of it, accompanying an interpretative ice ballet by two walruses. Cute but very random.
Some pigs come "a-wallowing." See, it's a running gag thing. The dinos introduce "Joy to the World," saying it was penned by a fifteen-year-old boy. This special is surprisingly educational. I always found the "Joy to the World" segment kind of boring, it's just painted images that move to the music, but it is impressive animation.
The T-Rex is getting very frustrated that no one will accept that "wassail" is the correct term. Time for a cameo from some famous claymation characters: the California Raisins. Singing "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer." While waiting for a cab, or something. One minute they're laughing and ribbing each other like a group of young musicians might be expected to, then they're singing "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer." The number ends with the raisins taking flight. Oooookkkk.
T-Rex is still having a meltdown. Finally, a group of elves show up singing the song correctly. They explain that wassailing means going around the neighborhood, singing Christmas carols, and receiving drinks. Everyone joins in to sing the song together, and sing it correctly. By the end of the special, the non-T-Rex dino has grown extraordinarily fat, which just seems unnecessary and dumb.
Some things from your childhood always stay good and fresh. This is not one of them. Some of the songs are good, but the dinos are stupid.
Visuals: 3 out of 5
Spirit: 3 out of 5
Nostalgia: 4 out of 5
Humor: 1 out of 5
Music: 4 out of 5
Overall: 3 out of 5
A group of dogs stroll by the two dinos singing "Here we come a-waffling." The T-Rex in a tux (the straightman of the two dinos) tells them it's supposed to be "wassailing" but doesn't know what that means.
First song: "We Three Kings", in which each king gets his verse and the camels sing the chorus, jazzing it up considerably.
The non-t-rex dinosaur is still obsessing over waffles as it's time to introduce "Carol of the Bells," as performed by a bunch of living bells who ring by hitting themselves in the head with mallets, under the conduction of Quasimodo. I don't know why. One bell is not quite cooperating. He throws his mallet out for some reason, so Quasimodo ends the song by hitting him with a slingshot.
Commercial for My First Sony. Hi, old tape from the 80's.
Next up: "O Christmas Tree." But not before some ducks sing "Here we come a-waddling." This was very amusing when I was five, I swear! "O Christmas Tree" shows some kids decorating their tree, and one of their ornaments provides a glimpse into a family of gingerbread people, and their tree shows us Santa's workshop. Good Claymation effects in this one. Remember when there was no CGI? The workshop tree shows us Santa himself, and then we are back where we started.
Next: "Angels We Have Heard on High"-- only, just the instrumentals of it, accompanying an interpretative ice ballet by two walruses. Cute but very random.
Some pigs come "a-wallowing." See, it's a running gag thing. The dinos introduce "Joy to the World," saying it was penned by a fifteen-year-old boy. This special is surprisingly educational. I always found the "Joy to the World" segment kind of boring, it's just painted images that move to the music, but it is impressive animation.
The T-Rex is getting very frustrated that no one will accept that "wassail" is the correct term. Time for a cameo from some famous claymation characters: the California Raisins. Singing "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer." While waiting for a cab, or something. One minute they're laughing and ribbing each other like a group of young musicians might be expected to, then they're singing "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer." The number ends with the raisins taking flight. Oooookkkk.
T-Rex is still having a meltdown. Finally, a group of elves show up singing the song correctly. They explain that wassailing means going around the neighborhood, singing Christmas carols, and receiving drinks. Everyone joins in to sing the song together, and sing it correctly. By the end of the special, the non-T-Rex dino has grown extraordinarily fat, which just seems unnecessary and dumb.
Some things from your childhood always stay good and fresh. This is not one of them. Some of the songs are good, but the dinos are stupid.
Visuals: 3 out of 5
Spirit: 3 out of 5
Nostalgia: 4 out of 5
Humor: 1 out of 5
Music: 4 out of 5
Overall: 3 out of 5
Christmas Vacation Installment #22: My So-Called Life "So-Called Angels"
In case anyone didn't know, My So-Called Life was the best show that ever was (yes, even better than Buffy, because Buffy took a lot from it, by Joss Whedon's admission) and was sadly ripped away before its time. But, it knew the force, that one, because once struck down, it became more powerful than anyone could imagine.
And when My So-Called Life did a Christmas episode, it wasn't a fancy, sparkly lighthearted affair-- it was a realistic, socially relevant, heartbreaking hour of TV.
We begin by hearing the prayers of what sound like lost souls, or lost children, very unusual for this show. And then we see Rickie, the gay male teen character, alone and sobbing on the street. A young girl (played by Juliana Hatfield) watches him from afar with a guitar, strumming out "Silent Night", then we cut to our main protagonist, Angela Chase, playing the same song on the piano, while her family bustles about talking about politics of gifts and cards. Angela's jealous little sister Danielle comments on Angela's new warm boots, and then, apropos of nothing, Angela makes her parents very uncomfortable by asking why the family never goes to church and if that means they do or do not believe in God. Her parents hem and haw for a few minutes, and then Danielle shuts them all up by saying "Do we have to keep talking about religion? It's Christmas!" Hee.
At school, Angela is troubled by Rickie's bruised up face. Rayanne shrugs it off, saying Rickie has a tendency to get beat up and doesn't love talking about it. I never realized when I was younger that that meant Rickie was routinely being beaten up for being gay. I'm not sure what I thought instead. I comprehended that Rickie was shunned by his family for that reason, and I guess I just thought that he spent a lot of time outside as a result, and stuff happened.
Sharon Cherski is stressed. Brian Krakow is bummed out. In the next scene, the Chase parents are discussing that Brian's parents went on a cruise and left Brian at home. Patty is appalled that they left him over Christmas, even though they're Jewish. Then she says that what she wants for Christmas is for the family to go to church. I guess Angela's questions got to her.
Rickie shows up outside the Chases' house, claiming that he went from Rayanne's to Brian's to there. And he's starving. Claims that eating lunch slipped his mind. Angela knows something's up. When her parents come home and question what's going on, Angela tells him that she doesn't think he has anywhere to go. They don't think it's their place to interfere. He overhears them, and slips out the back door. Not cool, Chase parents.
Rickie runs into Jordan Catalano, who knows a place Rickie can crash, and then reveals, without even asking what's up with the bruise, "My old man used to knock me around too." Rickie offers to light a candle for Jordan on Christmas Eve. Jordan doesn't see the point. We see Juliana Hatfield watching again. Her character is never given a name.
The Chase parents are talking in their bedroom while It's a Wonderful Life plays silently in the background. They wonder if they were wrong. Graham makes the excellent point that they would have reacted very differently if Brian Krakow (who has been their neighbor since he was five) had come into their home with that bruise on his face, and should that make a difference? Patty answers very truthfully: "Maybe not. But it does."
Back at school. Angela still freaking out. Rayanne still telling her to chill out. Sharon still stressed. Brian still depressed. Sharon desperately wants him to volunteer on the help line with her Christmas Eve, and he won't do it. Because he actually needs help himself, and since he's generally a model of a functional teenager (good parents, good grades, liked by teachers), no one notices. Sharon has a meltdown in the girls' room, and to her surprise Rayanne actually listens (while peeing, but still listening), then she reveals to Sharon that she has holiday stress of her own and would rather not spend Christmas Eve with her mom and mom's obnoxious boyfriend. Sharon has a plan!
Angela is in the empty hallways when she hears a song. It's Juliana Hatfield, playing an original song, which if you had the soundtrack, you know is called "Make It Home." She and Angela talk. Juliana Hatfield complains about her feet being cold, because her shoes are worn through. Then she says "You're Angela, right? You're a friend of Rickie's? You don't have to worry. I've been looking out for him." Then the bell rings, and Juliana Hatfield disappears into the crowd. Angela searches for her in hopes of finding out where Rickie is. Instead she finds Jordan, who actually knows where Rickie is.
Rickie is, in fact, in an abandoned warehouse densely populated by homeless teens and runaways. A haunting echo of "Make It Home" plays as Angela searches amongst lit candles and makeshift sleeping areas. This all looks very different to a social worker in the making than it did to a middle class twelve-year-old. Yet it packed just as powerful of a punch then as it does now. Angela finds Juliana Hatfield, singing again, and says hi, but in response, JH silently leads her to the room where Rickie is sleeping. Rickie is not happy to see Angela. He refuses to leave with her, because he thinks her parents don't want him around. He shoos Angela away. He doesn't want help. And I cry, because that's exactly how it is with teen runaways.
Angela then finds JH sleeping, and leaves her own new, warm boots in place of JH's worn through ones. Then she arrives back home, where her family (plus Brian) have put up the tree. Angela kind of snots at Brian for being there, but then she lets down her guard and tells him all about Rickie and the abandoned warehouse. While her parents listen from the kitchen. Their next stop: Department of Children's Services. The man there asks them if Rickie is a runaway or a throwaway. Patty and Graham are shocked that the term "throwaway" exists. Patty looks over all the missing child posters on the wall. Juliana Hatfield's picture is among them. The man reminds them to keep their own daughter close.
I have to take a break. This is really getting to me.
Okay, I called my brother and left a message, combed my hair, took some pictures of the cats (one's sleeping on my suitcase, the other one the gift wrap station-- think they don't want us to leave?), used the bathroom, reheated some pasta, and got a ginger ale. Now the show must go on.
Patty returns to the Chase homestead to find Angela has set the table. Very nicely. For six. Her reason? She wants to bring Rickie and "that girl" over for Christmas Eve dinner. Patty tells her she is not allowed to go back to the warehouse. Angela is not pleased to learn her parents have gone to the authorities, which I suppose is a normal reaction, although her insistence that "We have to warn them" is obviously immature. Patty gets very upset when Angela says of the girl, "She could be me." A moment later, Patty describes the fight with Angela as "One of those fights where it doesn't even seem real, it seems like the fight is having you." When Graham relays that Danielle said Angela went out for a walk, Patty flies at the door.
Angela is at the warehouse looking for Rickie, and suddenly a flashlight is shining at her and she is told "Don't be scared. You're coming with us." When I was twelve, I didn't understand why she couldn't just tell them she had a home and was just looking for someone-- now I know they wouldn't believe her.
Patty goes out looking for Angela, leaving Graham behind in case Angela calls, along with Brian, and Danielle, who wonders why no one will tell her what's going on. I often feel that way in my family. 'Tis the cross we little sisters must bear: the cross of being left in the dark.
Brian calls the helpline. Rayanne answers. Brian calls himself "Steve" and ends up crying because he's lonely. Rayanne responds by pretending to be a phone sex operator. Yeah, okay, guess this episode needed some comic relief.
Angela calls home, apologizes, and tells her dad she's in a basement of a church. Random, but that's where "they" brought everyone from the warehouse. Graham tells Danielle and Brian, "we're going to church."
Patty is searching for Angela, and getting hysterical. She runs into Juliana Hatfield, and comments, "My daughter has boots just like those." JH replies, "I know, because I'm no different from her. I had a mom, clean sheets, all of that. Another toss of the dice, I could be in her shoes, she could be in mine." I never really thought about how that was literally true, that they were in each other's shoes. Patty says under her breath, "There but for the grace of God..." and then asks JH why she left home. JH says she had a fight with her mom, the kind where it seems like the fight is having you.
JH: What else do you want to know?
Patty: How did you die?
JH: I froze.
Patty looks heavenward and asks for God's help. JH is gone. I have always wondered how Patty knew she was looking at an angel. An angel sent not only to watch over Rickie, but to show the others that runaways were not horrible screwed up kids with unfixable problems, but regular kids whose circumstances just got messed up.
And that's the last dialogue in the episode, which is very powerful.
Patty walks into the church and sees Rickie lighting candles. She just goes to him, wordlessly, and takes his hand, and he collapses against her. As Angela enters the room and sees her mother and Rickie, a choir sings "I feel like going home." Angela runs to hug Rickie, and Patty breathes the biggest sigh of relief ever. Great acting by Bess Armstrong. Graham walks in with Brian and Danielle, and Patty looks thrilled to see him. Graham crosses himself before he sits, which is a nice character touch.
Brief montage, wherein we see Sharon and Rayanne laughing and eating at the helpline, Jordan lighting a candle in what looks like a loft, the Chases and company walking out of the church, and Juliana Hatfield watching from above. She turns, looks up, and then flies away, revealing her feathered wings. I wonder if her wings were hidden until now, or if she just earned them? Never thought of that before.
PSA for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and then credits.
Visuals: 4 out of 5
Spirit: 4 out of 5
Nostalgia: 4 out of 5
Humor: 2 out of 5
Music: 3 out of 5
Overall: 4 out of 5
And when My So-Called Life did a Christmas episode, it wasn't a fancy, sparkly lighthearted affair-- it was a realistic, socially relevant, heartbreaking hour of TV.
We begin by hearing the prayers of what sound like lost souls, or lost children, very unusual for this show. And then we see Rickie, the gay male teen character, alone and sobbing on the street. A young girl (played by Juliana Hatfield) watches him from afar with a guitar, strumming out "Silent Night", then we cut to our main protagonist, Angela Chase, playing the same song on the piano, while her family bustles about talking about politics of gifts and cards. Angela's jealous little sister Danielle comments on Angela's new warm boots, and then, apropos of nothing, Angela makes her parents very uncomfortable by asking why the family never goes to church and if that means they do or do not believe in God. Her parents hem and haw for a few minutes, and then Danielle shuts them all up by saying "Do we have to keep talking about religion? It's Christmas!" Hee.
At school, Angela is troubled by Rickie's bruised up face. Rayanne shrugs it off, saying Rickie has a tendency to get beat up and doesn't love talking about it. I never realized when I was younger that that meant Rickie was routinely being beaten up for being gay. I'm not sure what I thought instead. I comprehended that Rickie was shunned by his family for that reason, and I guess I just thought that he spent a lot of time outside as a result, and stuff happened.
Sharon Cherski is stressed. Brian Krakow is bummed out. In the next scene, the Chase parents are discussing that Brian's parents went on a cruise and left Brian at home. Patty is appalled that they left him over Christmas, even though they're Jewish. Then she says that what she wants for Christmas is for the family to go to church. I guess Angela's questions got to her.
Rickie shows up outside the Chases' house, claiming that he went from Rayanne's to Brian's to there. And he's starving. Claims that eating lunch slipped his mind. Angela knows something's up. When her parents come home and question what's going on, Angela tells him that she doesn't think he has anywhere to go. They don't think it's their place to interfere. He overhears them, and slips out the back door. Not cool, Chase parents.
Rickie runs into Jordan Catalano, who knows a place Rickie can crash, and then reveals, without even asking what's up with the bruise, "My old man used to knock me around too." Rickie offers to light a candle for Jordan on Christmas Eve. Jordan doesn't see the point. We see Juliana Hatfield watching again. Her character is never given a name.
The Chase parents are talking in their bedroom while It's a Wonderful Life plays silently in the background. They wonder if they were wrong. Graham makes the excellent point that they would have reacted very differently if Brian Krakow (who has been their neighbor since he was five) had come into their home with that bruise on his face, and should that make a difference? Patty answers very truthfully: "Maybe not. But it does."
Back at school. Angela still freaking out. Rayanne still telling her to chill out. Sharon still stressed. Brian still depressed. Sharon desperately wants him to volunteer on the help line with her Christmas Eve, and he won't do it. Because he actually needs help himself, and since he's generally a model of a functional teenager (good parents, good grades, liked by teachers), no one notices. Sharon has a meltdown in the girls' room, and to her surprise Rayanne actually listens (while peeing, but still listening), then she reveals to Sharon that she has holiday stress of her own and would rather not spend Christmas Eve with her mom and mom's obnoxious boyfriend. Sharon has a plan!
Angela is in the empty hallways when she hears a song. It's Juliana Hatfield, playing an original song, which if you had the soundtrack, you know is called "Make It Home." She and Angela talk. Juliana Hatfield complains about her feet being cold, because her shoes are worn through. Then she says "You're Angela, right? You're a friend of Rickie's? You don't have to worry. I've been looking out for him." Then the bell rings, and Juliana Hatfield disappears into the crowd. Angela searches for her in hopes of finding out where Rickie is. Instead she finds Jordan, who actually knows where Rickie is.
Rickie is, in fact, in an abandoned warehouse densely populated by homeless teens and runaways. A haunting echo of "Make It Home" plays as Angela searches amongst lit candles and makeshift sleeping areas. This all looks very different to a social worker in the making than it did to a middle class twelve-year-old. Yet it packed just as powerful of a punch then as it does now. Angela finds Juliana Hatfield, singing again, and says hi, but in response, JH silently leads her to the room where Rickie is sleeping. Rickie is not happy to see Angela. He refuses to leave with her, because he thinks her parents don't want him around. He shoos Angela away. He doesn't want help. And I cry, because that's exactly how it is with teen runaways.
Angela then finds JH sleeping, and leaves her own new, warm boots in place of JH's worn through ones. Then she arrives back home, where her family (plus Brian) have put up the tree. Angela kind of snots at Brian for being there, but then she lets down her guard and tells him all about Rickie and the abandoned warehouse. While her parents listen from the kitchen. Their next stop: Department of Children's Services. The man there asks them if Rickie is a runaway or a throwaway. Patty and Graham are shocked that the term "throwaway" exists. Patty looks over all the missing child posters on the wall. Juliana Hatfield's picture is among them. The man reminds them to keep their own daughter close.
I have to take a break. This is really getting to me.
Okay, I called my brother and left a message, combed my hair, took some pictures of the cats (one's sleeping on my suitcase, the other one the gift wrap station-- think they don't want us to leave?), used the bathroom, reheated some pasta, and got a ginger ale. Now the show must go on.
Patty returns to the Chase homestead to find Angela has set the table. Very nicely. For six. Her reason? She wants to bring Rickie and "that girl" over for Christmas Eve dinner. Patty tells her she is not allowed to go back to the warehouse. Angela is not pleased to learn her parents have gone to the authorities, which I suppose is a normal reaction, although her insistence that "We have to warn them" is obviously immature. Patty gets very upset when Angela says of the girl, "She could be me." A moment later, Patty describes the fight with Angela as "One of those fights where it doesn't even seem real, it seems like the fight is having you." When Graham relays that Danielle said Angela went out for a walk, Patty flies at the door.
Angela is at the warehouse looking for Rickie, and suddenly a flashlight is shining at her and she is told "Don't be scared. You're coming with us." When I was twelve, I didn't understand why she couldn't just tell them she had a home and was just looking for someone-- now I know they wouldn't believe her.
Patty goes out looking for Angela, leaving Graham behind in case Angela calls, along with Brian, and Danielle, who wonders why no one will tell her what's going on. I often feel that way in my family. 'Tis the cross we little sisters must bear: the cross of being left in the dark.
Brian calls the helpline. Rayanne answers. Brian calls himself "Steve" and ends up crying because he's lonely. Rayanne responds by pretending to be a phone sex operator. Yeah, okay, guess this episode needed some comic relief.
Angela calls home, apologizes, and tells her dad she's in a basement of a church. Random, but that's where "they" brought everyone from the warehouse. Graham tells Danielle and Brian, "we're going to church."
Patty is searching for Angela, and getting hysterical. She runs into Juliana Hatfield, and comments, "My daughter has boots just like those." JH replies, "I know, because I'm no different from her. I had a mom, clean sheets, all of that. Another toss of the dice, I could be in her shoes, she could be in mine." I never really thought about how that was literally true, that they were in each other's shoes. Patty says under her breath, "There but for the grace of God..." and then asks JH why she left home. JH says she had a fight with her mom, the kind where it seems like the fight is having you.
JH: What else do you want to know?
Patty: How did you die?
JH: I froze.
Patty looks heavenward and asks for God's help. JH is gone. I have always wondered how Patty knew she was looking at an angel. An angel sent not only to watch over Rickie, but to show the others that runaways were not horrible screwed up kids with unfixable problems, but regular kids whose circumstances just got messed up.
And that's the last dialogue in the episode, which is very powerful.
Patty walks into the church and sees Rickie lighting candles. She just goes to him, wordlessly, and takes his hand, and he collapses against her. As Angela enters the room and sees her mother and Rickie, a choir sings "I feel like going home." Angela runs to hug Rickie, and Patty breathes the biggest sigh of relief ever. Great acting by Bess Armstrong. Graham walks in with Brian and Danielle, and Patty looks thrilled to see him. Graham crosses himself before he sits, which is a nice character touch.
Brief montage, wherein we see Sharon and Rayanne laughing and eating at the helpline, Jordan lighting a candle in what looks like a loft, the Chases and company walking out of the church, and Juliana Hatfield watching from above. She turns, looks up, and then flies away, revealing her feathered wings. I wonder if her wings were hidden until now, or if she just earned them? Never thought of that before.
PSA for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and then credits.
Visuals: 4 out of 5
Spirit: 4 out of 5
Nostalgia: 4 out of 5
Humor: 2 out of 5
Music: 3 out of 5
Overall: 4 out of 5
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Christmas Vacation Installment #21: Olive, the Other Reindeer
This special, based on a children's book but having very little to do with the children's book except for the art style, debuted in 1999 and was a very pleasant surprise.
Olive is a cute little dog voiced by Drew Barrymore. She begins the special by singing: "I love Valentine's Day and the fourth of July, I'm a little bit sad when Halloween has gone by, I'm thankful Thanksgiving comes around in the fall, but I've always loved Christmas the best of them all. Every day's special, I'm not complaining, but I always am counting the days still remaining 'til Christmas."
Olive meets her soon-to-be-sidekick, a penguin named Martini, when he attempts to sell her a counterfeit Rolex and tells her a sob story about being fired from the zoo. She kindly covers for him when a police officer gets on his case. And we have established that in this universe, humans and animals easily converse. Animals are capable of human actions, and humans have no trouble accepting this fact.
Olive's owner, Tim, is grumpy and complains that Olive doesn't act like a regular dog. He also says "There is no Christmas this year," and Olive is appalled. While she and her pet flea are wrapping gifts, they hear on the radio that one of Santa's reindeer has been injured, and Santa may have to cancel his flight. See, also in this universe, Santa is most definitely real, and no one questions it. He even talks to the press. He tells the reporter that he may have to make do with all of the other reindeer, which Fido hears as "Olive, the Other Reindeer," leading to an ah-ha that maybe Olive is actually a reindeer, and that's why she doesn't act like a dog. Here begins Olive's quest to save Christmas. If they can't fly because of one reindeer with one bad leg, you'd think this would happen more often-- but that will be explained later.
Tim tries to apologize for taking his frustrations out on Olive, but Fido the flea mistranslates and thinks Tim is getting a new dog and replacing Olive.
Time to meet the villain. In a special about a dog, it makes perfect sense that the villain would be a mailman. He is bitter because his job gets so much harder at Christmas. The mailman is voiced by Dan Castellaneta, doing the exact same voice he does as Robot Devil on Futurama.
Olive sets off for the North Pole via bus, accompanied by Martini. The mailman tries to thwart them, but they escape. "Grab onto my tail!" "Quit wagging it!" Hee.
Tim is heartbroken over Olive's disappearance, and actually says "Where oh where can she be?" Hee again.
At Arctic Junction, Olive, Martini, and the bus driver (Richard Stands, who used to think the Pledge of Allegiance was about him), go into the diner to get some food. Richard orders the deep-fried candy canes, which sounds interesting. Olive orders a bone with dressing on the side, and Martini orders the small dead fish sampler. I want to see this diner's entire menu.
The mailman poses as a waitress to lure Olive outside on the pretense of Santa looking for her. Then he throws her in the mail truck. There she discovers a letter to Santa from a child, telling Santa to stay away. After noting the strangeness of that, she finds a package addressed To Olive from Deus Ex Machina. I was a senior in high school when this special premiered, and I still didn't understand that. It must have really confused small children. It contains a metal file. So Olive escapes. Alas, she missed the bus to the North Pole, and Richard Stands has to split or he'll lose his job. So Olive enters the bar next door to the diner. It is occupied by reindeer, elves, and the Easter Bunny, as well as some human patrons. And they all look scary. When Olive introduces herself and her mission, a man and a reindeer respond by sneering and throwing her around. The reindeer is voiced by MICHAEL FREAKING STIPE. Seriously. They are about to take her up to the roof to throw her off when Martini intervenes, and the reindeer tries to take Martini's briefcase. Olive is getting pissed, so she stands on the bar and gives a speech about how their behavior is not in the spirit of Christmas and "Santa doesn't just give you stuff because you ask. You have to deserve it." They see the error of their ways, prompting an awesome song from the Stipe!reindeer. I remember when this originally aired, it wasn't until he sang that my brother and I were like, "Wait, is that-- it couldn't be-- but it must be!" And it was.
He explains their predicament pretty well: "When you're this far North, with no sunlight, sometimes tempers fray. Life's hard enough, and now Santa's flight, it's been an awful day. Employment in these latitudes depends on Old Saint Nick. So forgive us if we all have attitudes-- we're up a frozen crick. But we're not so bad, we're really sweet and funny, we're not so bad, except for that bunny." Oh, I love it. Please watch the video, you'll be glad you did. After the song, the Stipe!reindeer introduces himself as Blitzen's cousin, Schnitzel-- flightless, unfortunately. Martini: It happens. The man, whose name is "Round John Virgin" drives Olive and Martini to the gates of the North Pole proper, where the security elf is all, no, no, no so Martini devises a ruse involving one of his counterfeit Rolex watches and shutting off the alarm to make it work. Which the security elf falls for. And Olive is in! She manages to find Santa (voiced by Ed Asner) alarmingly quickly, and learns that part of Santa's willingness to cancel his flight is that he's gotten a lot of mean letters from children this year. Olive tells him those letters actually came from the mean postman (evidenced by the lack of postmark), and once hearing this, Santa is very quick to accept Olive's offer to be a replacement reindeer. Aw.
Oh, but the mailman's reign of villainy is not over yet-- he's stolen Santa's bag of toys! While being hitched to the sleigh, Olive asks where Rudolph is, and is told Rudolph is just an urban legend. I LOVE THIS SPECIAL. Takeoff, and... she's doing it! She's flying! And it's televised! I want to live in this world. Everyone in the bar is cheering Olive on, and her pet flea is singing "Olive the other reindeer, you'll go down in history!" Aw again.
Meanwhile, the mailman is cackling to himself, as all villains do. He reveals that his bitterness is not just about seasonal job difficulties, but also that he's been on Santa's naughty list since childhood. When the bag mix-up is discovered at the first house, Olive is on it, sniffing out the mailman's scent. And when they take flight again, it's time for one of my favorite Christmas songs ever, that I can't understand why the radio doesn't play it.
My favorite lines are "If you've got the Christmas spirit, let nothing you dismay. You don't springs, or wings, or strings to fly on Christmas Day. So let Olive's tale remind you, on this Christmas Eve: it's all right there inside you, you just have to believe!" That, right there, is my whole philosophy on life, on Christmas, and on faith. Excuse me while I tear up like the sap that I am.
Martini goes on a mission of his own: delivering the mail. All right then. Olive sniffs the crew home, and they feast on cookies. You'd think Santa would have had enough cookies en route. Last year, my nieces left Santa a lemon poppyseed muffin and some dry Cheerios. It was cute. The staff and crew also get gifts from Santa, including a set of antlers for Olive. Comet downs his cappuccino in one gulp, then takes Olive home.
Martini is offered his old position at the zoo back, but turns it down and brings the mailman in as a substitute penguin. That probably makes the least sense of anything in this special.
Olive returns to Tim, much to his joy. And we end with a nice little montage wherein, among other things, Olive gets strap-on opposable thumbs and Martini gets a job at the post office. Oh, and Mrs. Claus covers a tuckered-out Santa with a blanket, which is cute.
Visuals: 4 out of 5
Spirit: 5 out of 5
Nostalgia: 4 out of 5
Humor: 5 out of 5
Music: 5 out of 5
Overall: 4.6 out of 5
Olive is a cute little dog voiced by Drew Barrymore. She begins the special by singing: "I love Valentine's Day and the fourth of July, I'm a little bit sad when Halloween has gone by, I'm thankful Thanksgiving comes around in the fall, but I've always loved Christmas the best of them all. Every day's special, I'm not complaining, but I always am counting the days still remaining 'til Christmas."
Olive meets her soon-to-be-sidekick, a penguin named Martini, when he attempts to sell her a counterfeit Rolex and tells her a sob story about being fired from the zoo. She kindly covers for him when a police officer gets on his case. And we have established that in this universe, humans and animals easily converse. Animals are capable of human actions, and humans have no trouble accepting this fact.
Olive's owner, Tim, is grumpy and complains that Olive doesn't act like a regular dog. He also says "There is no Christmas this year," and Olive is appalled. While she and her pet flea are wrapping gifts, they hear on the radio that one of Santa's reindeer has been injured, and Santa may have to cancel his flight. See, also in this universe, Santa is most definitely real, and no one questions it. He even talks to the press. He tells the reporter that he may have to make do with all of the other reindeer, which Fido hears as "Olive, the Other Reindeer," leading to an ah-ha that maybe Olive is actually a reindeer, and that's why she doesn't act like a dog. Here begins Olive's quest to save Christmas. If they can't fly because of one reindeer with one bad leg, you'd think this would happen more often-- but that will be explained later.
Tim tries to apologize for taking his frustrations out on Olive, but Fido the flea mistranslates and thinks Tim is getting a new dog and replacing Olive.
Time to meet the villain. In a special about a dog, it makes perfect sense that the villain would be a mailman. He is bitter because his job gets so much harder at Christmas. The mailman is voiced by Dan Castellaneta, doing the exact same voice he does as Robot Devil on Futurama.
Olive sets off for the North Pole via bus, accompanied by Martini. The mailman tries to thwart them, but they escape. "Grab onto my tail!" "Quit wagging it!" Hee.
Tim is heartbroken over Olive's disappearance, and actually says "Where oh where can she be?" Hee again.
At Arctic Junction, Olive, Martini, and the bus driver (Richard Stands, who used to think the Pledge of Allegiance was about him), go into the diner to get some food. Richard orders the deep-fried candy canes, which sounds interesting. Olive orders a bone with dressing on the side, and Martini orders the small dead fish sampler. I want to see this diner's entire menu.
The mailman poses as a waitress to lure Olive outside on the pretense of Santa looking for her. Then he throws her in the mail truck. There she discovers a letter to Santa from a child, telling Santa to stay away. After noting the strangeness of that, she finds a package addressed To Olive from Deus Ex Machina. I was a senior in high school when this special premiered, and I still didn't understand that. It must have really confused small children. It contains a metal file. So Olive escapes. Alas, she missed the bus to the North Pole, and Richard Stands has to split or he'll lose his job. So Olive enters the bar next door to the diner. It is occupied by reindeer, elves, and the Easter Bunny, as well as some human patrons. And they all look scary. When Olive introduces herself and her mission, a man and a reindeer respond by sneering and throwing her around. The reindeer is voiced by MICHAEL FREAKING STIPE. Seriously. They are about to take her up to the roof to throw her off when Martini intervenes, and the reindeer tries to take Martini's briefcase. Olive is getting pissed, so she stands on the bar and gives a speech about how their behavior is not in the spirit of Christmas and "Santa doesn't just give you stuff because you ask. You have to deserve it." They see the error of their ways, prompting an awesome song from the Stipe!reindeer. I remember when this originally aired, it wasn't until he sang that my brother and I were like, "Wait, is that-- it couldn't be-- but it must be!" And it was.
He explains their predicament pretty well: "When you're this far North, with no sunlight, sometimes tempers fray. Life's hard enough, and now Santa's flight, it's been an awful day. Employment in these latitudes depends on Old Saint Nick. So forgive us if we all have attitudes-- we're up a frozen crick. But we're not so bad, we're really sweet and funny, we're not so bad, except for that bunny." Oh, I love it. Please watch the video, you'll be glad you did. After the song, the Stipe!reindeer introduces himself as Blitzen's cousin, Schnitzel-- flightless, unfortunately. Martini: It happens. The man, whose name is "Round John Virgin" drives Olive and Martini to the gates of the North Pole proper, where the security elf is all, no, no, no so Martini devises a ruse involving one of his counterfeit Rolex watches and shutting off the alarm to make it work. Which the security elf falls for. And Olive is in! She manages to find Santa (voiced by Ed Asner) alarmingly quickly, and learns that part of Santa's willingness to cancel his flight is that he's gotten a lot of mean letters from children this year. Olive tells him those letters actually came from the mean postman (evidenced by the lack of postmark), and once hearing this, Santa is very quick to accept Olive's offer to be a replacement reindeer. Aw.
Oh, but the mailman's reign of villainy is not over yet-- he's stolen Santa's bag of toys! While being hitched to the sleigh, Olive asks where Rudolph is, and is told Rudolph is just an urban legend. I LOVE THIS SPECIAL. Takeoff, and... she's doing it! She's flying! And it's televised! I want to live in this world. Everyone in the bar is cheering Olive on, and her pet flea is singing "Olive the other reindeer, you'll go down in history!" Aw again.
Meanwhile, the mailman is cackling to himself, as all villains do. He reveals that his bitterness is not just about seasonal job difficulties, but also that he's been on Santa's naughty list since childhood. When the bag mix-up is discovered at the first house, Olive is on it, sniffing out the mailman's scent. And when they take flight again, it's time for one of my favorite Christmas songs ever, that I can't understand why the radio doesn't play it.
My favorite lines are "If you've got the Christmas spirit, let nothing you dismay. You don't springs, or wings, or strings to fly on Christmas Day. So let Olive's tale remind you, on this Christmas Eve: it's all right there inside you, you just have to believe!" That, right there, is my whole philosophy on life, on Christmas, and on faith. Excuse me while I tear up like the sap that I am.
Martini goes on a mission of his own: delivering the mail. All right then. Olive sniffs the crew home, and they feast on cookies. You'd think Santa would have had enough cookies en route. Last year, my nieces left Santa a lemon poppyseed muffin and some dry Cheerios. It was cute. The staff and crew also get gifts from Santa, including a set of antlers for Olive. Comet downs his cappuccino in one gulp, then takes Olive home.
Martini is offered his old position at the zoo back, but turns it down and brings the mailman in as a substitute penguin. That probably makes the least sense of anything in this special.
Olive returns to Tim, much to his joy. And we end with a nice little montage wherein, among other things, Olive gets strap-on opposable thumbs and Martini gets a job at the post office. Oh, and Mrs. Claus covers a tuckered-out Santa with a blanket, which is cute.
Visuals: 4 out of 5
Spirit: 5 out of 5
Nostalgia: 4 out of 5
Humor: 5 out of 5
Music: 5 out of 5
Overall: 4.6 out of 5
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