A Merry Fraggle Holiday
Despite being off the air for over twenty years, Fraggle Rock is more popular than ever. The Jim Henson Company is prepping a feature film for release in 2011, a massive DVD box set of all five seasons has sold over a million copies, and the show recently celebrated its 25th anniversary. There’s never been a better time to be a weird human/lizard creature living under the floorboards of a kindly old man and his adorable sheepdog.
For casual fans that don’t want to commit to the gigantic 96-episode box set, consider A Merry Fraggle Holiday. This compilation DVD includes three Christmas-themed episodes sure to bring peculiar puppet fun to your annual holiday routine.
The first two episodes come from the 1984-1985 third season. "The Bells of Fraggle Rock" finds protagonist Gobo lacking in holiday cheer. He doesn’t see the point in observing the annual Festival of the Bells, but his friends are depending on him to celebrate.
"The Grapes of Generosity" isn’t explicitly related to Christmas, but it does deal with charity and sharing, key themes of the season. In this episode, Gobo finds and eats mystical fruits with special powers, and suffers the consequences for keeping them to himself.
The final episode comes from the 1986 fourth season. "The Perfect Blue Rollie" has a similar plot to "Grapes of Generosity." Depressed town loner Boober discovers a rare stone, but runs into trouble when he won’t share it with his neighbors.
Each episode is a charming trip down memory lane. It’s a reminder of how appealing and positive children’s entertainment can be without violence or pop culture references. It proves that learning doesn’t have to be pedantic and that humor doesn’t have to come from child stars with budding music careers. Take that, Barney and Miley Cyrus.
The disc includes several extras, including "The Great Fraggle Freeze," an episode from the show’s failed 1987 Saturday morning cartoon spin-off. The traditionally animated offshoot was canceled after 13 episodes and isn’t on DVD, so hardcore fans should be pleased.
Other smaller extras include a sing-a-long moment with Emmet Otter and his jug band, as well as an amusing musical number that shows how Jim Henson basically came up with the concept of Toy Story a decade before that movie was made.
A charming trivia game exploring Christmas traditions around the world and a spot that ornament memory/concentration game round out the disc.
A Merry Fraggle Holiday will warm the heart of Henson fans both young and old.
