"Mickey's Christmas Carol" Christmas Special Review

Hi, I'm the Amateur Critic. I review just about anything.

It's the month of Christmas, and what could be better than gathering around the TV to see all the Christmas specials. From Rankin/Bass to the brand new Christmas movies always premiering every weekend on Hallmark Channel. Even Disney knows how to be a shoe-in in the Christmas season when it comes to movies and specials. Case in point: Mickey's Christmas Carol.

Now before we go any further, it's time for a backstory:
Once upon a time in 1843, Charles Dickens wrote a novella called A Christmas Carol, which was divided into five chapters known as "staves." This allowed readers to learn about the story's conflict, how and why the main character Ebenezer Scrooge acted the way he did in the begin, and... all that makes Scrooge a complex character, because part of him is consumed by greed, but then there's a side of him that wants to truly be happy- to be loved and cared for. Ever since the publication of this book, the story has become a widespread tradition, resulting in transitioning into theatrical plays and multiple movie adaptations.
Now, for the movie/TV show adaptations, some of them follow most of the original story; others tell the story out of order; others leave out stuff from the original; and others are combinations of the three categories mentioned. This Disney special tends to follow most of the original story, but left out of things.
So does this special fair up with the original Dickens story or what? Well, let's check it out.

Opening Scene:
The special starts with our main character Ebenezer Scrooge walking to his counting house... and is already being a jerk-off towards some homeless people.

-I gotta say: Scrooge McDuck plays a really good Scrooge for this adaptation.
Anyway, he stops in front of his counting house and remembers his deceased business partner Jacob Marley, who was known for swindling the poor and doing bad things out of greed.
-And Scrooge looks up to his guy? Well, looks like somebody needs to take some logic classes.

Counting House scene:

Scrooge walks inside, and we see Mickey Mouse as Bob Cratchit. We see that Cratchit is overworked but is underpaid, but he still puts up with Scrooge's moody demeanor.

And (get a load of this), Scrooge has Cratchit wash his laundry!
-(mimicking Scrooge) Oh, and while you're at it, work around the clock and spend less time with your family as possible... It's not like I'm giving you hell on purpose... No pressure.
And what does Scrooge do while Mickey is slaving away at his desk?

Writing about money... Touching money... and even hugging money.
-What a prick!
Then his nephew Fred (played by Donald Duck) comes in and invites Scrooge to dinner.

But Scrooge politely (sarcasm) refuses by... throwing Fred out of his counting house.

-Seriously, who throws people out of buildings? I mean, that's just rude. Well, the Scrooge from A Muppet Christmas Carol did the same thing to one of his workforce... so (sarcasm) yay!
We next see two more people come into the counting house.
-Now tell me if these look familiar.

That's right. They're the guys from the Disney video The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad. (I remember seeing that video when I was a kid.)
Anyway, the two guys are asking Scrooge for donations for the poor, but Scrooge refuses...
-Okay, wait. Everyone has apparently picked a bad day to ask Scrooge for anything, because he's kicking people out a few too many times. He should've installed a revolving door if he's gonna be doing all that kicking people out stuff!
-And plus, is it fair to say that during this scene, all I'm thinking about is the "Talk Is Cheap" sign on the wall?

Scrooge: "What is this world coming to, Cratchit?"
-I'd like to ask the same thing about people like you, Scrooge.
So as the day ends, Cratchit finishes his shift and goes home, leaving Scrooge to his greed and moodiness.

Outside:
Scrooge closes the counting house and walks home. When he arrives, he's greeted by his door knocker.

-No kidding. He's greeted by his door knocker.
Now fearful, Scrooge hurries to his bedroom, locking himself in tight. But that doesn't stop the supernatural intruder from coming in and... slipping on Scrooge's dropped cane.
It turns out that Jacob Marley is played by Goofy.
-Neat.
Marley intimidates Scrooge by telling him change his ways, lest he wants to suffer the same fate, which is roaming the earth, baring heavy chains and boxes...

-I really want to take this scene seriously, but all I'm thinking about is how part of the chains try to choke Scrooge like a noose. (sarcasm) Great way to emphasize the theme of death in a Disney video.
Marley tells Scrooge to look out for three spirits that'll visit him.

Bedtime scene:
As soon as Marley leaves, Scrooge goes to bed.
-Wow, it's like he never saw a ghost that happened to spook him at the door and then come into his house to scare him...
-In the original story, Marley leaves, and many other ghosts appear before Scrooge and wish that they could help him but can't because they lack the power to do so. Here, it's like: there's a ghost... good-bye! And don't forget to turn out the lights! It's that brief in this version!
And then we see the first of the three ghosts: it turns out that Jiminy Cricket from Pinocchio is the Ghost of Christmas Past; and already, Scrooge isn't taking him seriously...

-...just like I'm not taking this special seriously. It's the best of both worlds.
So Jiminy takes Scrooge to a place called Fezziwig's. Outside the window, Scrooge sees a party going out with people dancing and Fezziwig himself playing the violin.

-Okay, in the original version, Fezziwig was Scrooge's first boss from his youth. Here, he's the proud owner of a dance hall and playing a violin.
-And by the way, that's Mr. Toad from The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad. Okay, wait a minute... the guys from earlier...

Mr. Toad...

and some of the other characters in the dance hall...

It's like we've walked into a Disney universe... or is this a Disney Classics reunion? I don't know which. What, are we gonna run into Bambi and his animal friends next?
Okay, despite all the cameos, we see that the young Scrooge had a love interest named Isabelle, played by Daisy Duck.

-Another reference to the original: the love interest's real name was Belle. Here, her name is Isabelle. (Just thought I point that out).
Jiminy then shows Scrooge how the young Scrooge (cutting to ten years later) chose money over Isabelle.

Scrooge sees this mistake and begs the ghost to take him back home. Jiminy agrees, but warns that Scrooge was the one that brought this on himself.
-I agree.

Bedroom scene 2:
Scrooge is returned to his bedroom, where he's greeted by our next ghost...
-Oh, God. Don't tell me the Ghost of Christmas Present is played by Willie the Giant from Mickey and the Beanstalk!

So Willie takes Scrooge to Cratchit's home to watch Cratchit and his family have dinner.

We then see Cratchit's youngest son Tiny Tim and, just like in the original, the boy is ill and needs special care from his family.

-However, in the original, Tiny Tim's illness is specified; but here, it's never explained- they just show him with a crutch and that's it.
Cratchit and his family show that no matter the situation that they're in when it comes to finances, they're still happy that they have each other.

Scrooge starts to feel sorry for Mickey and his family, but finds himself by his lonesome after knowing the truth about Tiny Tim.
Just then, our final ghost comes to Scrooge, sending our main character to a gravesite.

-Now, this is totally disrespectful to the original version, because one: who even knows that Grim-Reaper-figures have lungs to damage? And two: in the original, the third ghost did NOT smoke. If you want to add effects to make this scene intense, fine. But why have this ghost smoke?
Scrooge asks for Tiny Tim. It is revealed that Tiny Tim died from his illness, leaving Mickey to leave his crutch on his tombstone.

-Here, it's obvious that this special is trying to convey actual human emotion. It just makes the story much more honest and relatable in real-life.

And then Scrooge comes across two gravediggers saying that the grave that they're digging for has no mourners or anybody that cares for the deceased person.
-In the original version, the third ghost showed Scrooge Tiny Tim's family grieve Tiny Tim's death, and then show him how the business associates, as well as a charwoman, a laundress, and a funeral director steal and sell Scrooge's stuff to a professional pickpocket. In this version, they skip all that, but throw in two characters that get only less than 30 seconds of camera time.
Scrooge sees the empty grave and then realizes that on the tombstone has his name on it.

It turns out that the third ghost is none other than Pete the Cat, as he throws Scrooge into the grave, which is literally spitting out fire.

-I guess the special wanted to emphasis Hell in the most convenient way possible.
So Scrooge begs to be let out, saying that he'll change.

Bedroom Scene 3:

Scrooge wakes up from his... dream. He sees that it's Christmas morning, and he is happy to be alive. So he dresses as fast as he could, not having second thoughts about his choice of wardrobe and heads out to share his happiness with the world.

Outside Scene 2:
Outside, he meets the two guys from the beginning and throws his money at them (in a happy way)...
-Okay, what's with people throwing things and characters in this movie?! Aren't there any respectful people in this movie?
Anyway, Scrooge gives a big donation to the gentlemen, and then goes on his merry way. He then runs into his nephew Fred, wanting to go to the Christmas dinner. Then, he goes to the toy shop to buy stuff for the Cratchit family.

Cratchit House:
Scrooge arrives at Cratchit's house. He pretends to have his usual moody demeanor on him and barges into the home...
-Yeah, this must really be a slow week for Scrooge.
Anyway, Scrooge presents the family with a bag of toys and a large turkey.

He also gives Cratchit a raise and makes him his new business partner. Mickey is grateful of Scrooge's generosity and for the promotion.

-That would be so cool to get a promotion on Christmas in one's lifetime. But this is obviously a work of fiction. So dream on.
Scrooge is happy for the family; and the special ends with Tiny Tim saying the famous line from the original story: "God bless us, every one!" and Scrooge sitting with Mickey's kids with kindness and compassion in his heart.

And that was Mickey's Christmas Carol. Since this was an adaptation to the Charles Dickens classic, does it hold up?
Well, some of the elements from the book worked in this adaptation, and other elements were left out for either the sake of the kid audience or for some other reason. But of all the adaptations for this story, this one was the one that I grew most familiar with, because (obviously) it's Disney- I grew up watching Disney, and usually Disney is creative in the writing and animation.
As far as how tolerable it is, I'd say that it's tolerable to some extent. I didn't show you half of the comedy relief that was forced in this special. In the long-run, some of the actions that the characters make in this special is just plain rude, especially for a Christmas special. I mean, what are we teaching kids, that it's okay to throw people out of buildings if they piss you off or to be just plain rude at Christmas time? I don't know.
But I will give the special credit for taking risks. The colors, the shadows, and the lighting were okay story-wise and animation-wise. If it wanted to emphasize things from the original story, then they did. But they did make some changes to the story a little, but the changes were tolerable.
All I can say is that I enjoy watching this special around Christmas time. Oh, by the way: since this is still the month of Christmas, be on the look-out for another special that I'll review soon.

Amateur Critic
Source: Mickey's Christmas Carol

All rights go to Disney.

Amateur Critic's Top 12 Villain Songs

Hi, I'm the Amateur Critic. I review just about anything.

Whenever I watch movies with musical numbers in them, I find myself looking forward to the villain songs. This may sound weird of me, but it's true. That's why I concocted my Top 12 Villain Songs. Believe me; I have so much to say about them.

12. "The Bunny Song" from Rack, Shack, and Benny
This may not seem like a legit villain song to you, but this song has many no-nos like: not eating healthy, being spoiled, and worship something good and sweet.
This was when Mr. Nezzer, the video's antagonist, pressures Rack, Shack, and Benny into bowing down to a huge bunny that he's constructing for the chocolate factory.

If you find this song catchy, don't sing it, because... you know, it's kinda disrespectful to your parents or whoever takes care of you. In fact, if you watch this on Youtube, you'll notice that some of the lyrics have changed some. The original lyrics were: "I don't love my mom or my dad..." and "I won't go to church, and I won't go to school..." But then Big Idea kinda regretted those lyrics, so they had to change those lyrics immediately, making a "redeemed" version of the song, but try as they might, they still kept getting letters from parents... which resulted in more editing.
-Geez! Who's bright idea was that?!
As much as I dislike this song, I still scored this song low on the countdown. Oh yeah, and Mr. Nezzer will come to his senses soon enough if you know the whole story, and what Biblical story it's based on. And, I'll give this song credit for being the number one song for the most editing.
-What would be the moral for this kind of situation? Never put negative in a catchy song. I know that this is Veggietales but... what happened, Big Idea?! I mean, very controversial!!!

11. "No More Toymakers" from Santa Claus is Coming to Town

I know this song came from a Christmas special, but it's definitely worth mentioning.
This is when the mayor Burgermeister sings about outlawing all toys from his town.
-First of all, this guy outlaws toys... all because one duck toy made him slip and fall. That's it! What a jerk!
I found this song funny as a kid. Now that I'm an adult, I still find it funny, but I understand it more. And another thing: this song is the total opposite of the "More Toymakers" song sung by the Kringles earlier in the special (in case you didn't know that).
Anyway, this villain song was hilarious, and it deserves the #11 spot in the countdown.

10. "Freeze" from The League of Incredible Vegetables

I know this movie is more than a year old now, but it's still worth mentioning.
This song was sung by the show's main villain, Dr. Flurry. This guy's plan was to take over Bumblyburg by (literally) freezing people in their own fears with his freeze ray called the Fear-Dar.
-If you saw the movie, then you'll recognize the symbolism.
I gotta say: this song was pretty catchy. Although the song was brief, and it didn't pass 2 minutes, it was okay.
-Note to self: do a review on The League of Incredible Vegetables.

9. "We Hate The Sun" from Rock-A-Doodle
Considered one of Don Bluth's movie-flops, this movie had this underrated villain simply known as the Grand Duke of Owls. During the movie, the Duke plays a huge organ and plots his evil plan in front of his henchmen, who are no more than his followers that'll believe anything that he says.

-Neat.
The only problem with this song is one, the song is too short; and two, the Duke's henchmen do most of the singing, instead of him.
-Dude, here's your shot at making your evil deeds sound more intimidating. So what's stopping you, Duke?
Anyways, the song was kinda catchy. In fact, I know most of the song by heart...
-I found myself mumming this song one time... Awkward!

8. "The Temptation Song" from LarryBoy and the Bad Apple

I found this song to be very symbolic... not in a good way.
The Bad Apple sings about how she'll take over Bumblyburg using her seductive charm and her manipulation. Oh, wait. I tell a lie: she sings about her plan through knock-knock jokes and referring to the story of the Three Little Pigs.
-Aren't you supposed to take this evil stuff seriously, Apple?
Anyway, this song deserved the #8 spot in the countdown. Not the perfect villain song in the world, but a clichéd song that anyone will "Okay" to.

7. "Porpoise Power Ballad" from The Return of the Revenge of Dr. Blowhole

Yeah, you can't help but get fascinated by hearing Neil Patrick Harris lend his singing voice to one of the most awesome but (sadly) underrated villains in cartoon history.
Dr. Blowhole, in this song, is getting control of a giant mutated iPod by singing. Yeah, so basically, if you're a great singer (like him), then the monster will choose you. Some people will say that it's a bonding moment for both the villain and the monster; others will say that it's in the villain's advantage and should've never happened.
Anyway, Dr. Blowhole plans to use the monster to his advantage... wait. That would be the other song "Brand New Plan"... which is coming up in this countdown (SPOILER ALERT). This song is where he succeeds in controlling the monster by... singing of his "love" for it, and possibly falling in love with it... (Makes sense to me.) For this song, Neil Patrick Harris just hits it out of the ballpark.

6. "He's Dr. Blowhole" from The Penguin Who Loved Me
This is another Dr. Blowhole song worth mentioning... although the song doesn't go past 30 seconds. Liz Gillies (who you may know from Victorious) sings this song at the beginning of the show. Is it me, or would this technically be the anthem for this dolphin supervillain. If so, then the song should've been longer.

If you haven't seen or heard this song, then you should. You'll be amazed by what the song has to offer for Dr. Blowhole. But as for the show itself, don't expect much from what this song advertises (read my review on The Penguin Who Loved Me if you don't know).

5. "Secret of Survival" from Wind in the Willows

I heard about this song from watching Nostalgia Critic's Top 11 Villain Songs. So I found it in my interest to look it up on Youtube. And boy, was I hooked. However, I found that Nostalgia Critic was right about the song being too brief. (Geez! Why are so many of the songs in this countdown so brief, let alone that Dr. Blowhole theme song that took the #6 spot?!)
Anyway, in this song, a group of weasels sing about how scary the world can be if explored by a goodie-two shoed person like Mr. Toad. Yeah, nothing offset a person's naïve personality like showing them to a lot of scary things and evil, in general. The song is fast-paced; the mood may seem humorous at some points, but it gets more threatening towards the end.
To be honest, this song was so bad-ass, that I'm still humming the tune to this day. (Is that a bad thing? Probably so, because it's a villain song...)

4. "Don't Fall In Love" from Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas
(Now, I couldn't find any decent-enough pics for this one, but this is still worth checking out.)
This has got to be one of the most diabolical things ever in a Disney movie: flat-out promoting hate and solitude.
Here we have Forte, the evil pipe organ, trying to get Beast to not fall in love with Belle, because one, it'll trigger so many emotions; and two, it's such a waste of time. (sarcasm) Wow, what a great lesson for kids. I guess Forte should get an award for being a good love counselor. (Yeah right!)
By the way, Forte is voiced by Tim Curry... I have a feeling that Tim Curry is gonna show up again in this countdown (ANOTHER SPOILER ALERT). Yeah, I was going to put Forte as one of my "Top 10 Most Underrated Villains," but he didn't cross my mind at the time.
I gotta say, though, that this song goes to show that people can be flat-out sadist and emo. I mean, the visuals for this song is shocking, yet the song itself is still offensive to people that want to fall in love.

3. "Eggs" from Land Before Time 2: The Great Valley Adventure
Okay, where do I begin with this one?:

First of all: listen to the lyrics in this song, and tell me that those would be what a long-term addict would say. Here we have Ozzie, the main villain (excluding his tag-along brother Strut), describing his egg fetish in many ways possible- even describing it with his five senses!!! Seriously, somebody must have been high on whatever illegal substance to come up with this Fuck-A-Saurus!
Second: Jeff Bennett, the guy that provided the voice of Ozzie, is the same guy that played Kowalski from Penguins of Madagascar... Mr. Smee from Jake and the Neverland Pirates... Johnny Bravo from Johnny Bravo... he just gets a free card for almost every kids' show, doesn't he? That's really questionable when playing a crazy-and-addict dinosaur. And besides, we'll know what Ozzie is like as a sober dinosaur...

And lastly: this song was an addiction in itself. I'll admit that I've listened to this song a million times, and sadly... it's gonna stay with me (not in a good way). Trust me; it'll never go away!!! The first time I heard this song, I had to go through hours and hours of mental recovery because it was so despicable and diabolical that I couldn't get myself to think straight for a while. It was that diabolical!!!

2. "Brand New Plan" from The Return of the Revenge of Dr. Blowhole

I told you Dr. Blowhole would show up again in the countdown. Not bad for a runner-up.
I found this song very unique, because it actually goes into Dr. Blowhole's psyche. Here, he sees that the "game" against the Penguins is changing, and that he should start from scratch on his evil plot. So he decides to ditch his old plan and create a new one. (Makes sense to me.)
The visuals to go with this song is just unbelievably bad-ass. The song was in your face metaphorically and literally.
There are the shadows, the green lighting, the virtual-like-video-game-looking background,

and (obviously) Neil Patrick Harris hitting the song out of the ballpark.

I'm mean, seriously! He's THAT awesome!

No other villain song can top that (well, except for the song that's #1 in this countdown).

1. "Don't Make Me Laugh" from The Pebble and the Penguin

Yeah, I told you Tim Curry would pop up again on this countdown. That's right! A song about domestic violence gets the #1 spot on the countdown. Why?
First of all: listen to the song's lyrics, and tell me that that's being abusive towards the woman. 

Here we have the villain Drake wanting the girl Marina to marry him instead of the movie's hero. He says that if she doesn't choose him, then she's just good as dead. (sarcasm) How's that for a romantic gesture?
Second: look at the choreography to go with this song.
It's like Drake is hurting Marina at one point, but then tries to be romantic by dancing so graceful, but then it's back to being so rough on her! 

WTF!
Lastly: the colors in this musical number change. That's right: the colors of the characters and the scenery change over and over. Gee, that reminds me of the color-changing visuals of "The Rumor Weed Song" from LarryBoy and the Rumor Weed. 

But then again, The Pebble and the Penguin came out years before LarryBoy and the Rumor Weed did. (Yeah, never let Don Bluth influence a Veggietales video in any way.)

For what it is, "Don't Make Me Laugh" was the most diabolical and insane song in this countdown. In fact, most of these songs were, because they focus on the wants and desires of the villains, while offering nothing in return for the good guys. And if they do offer stuff to the good guys, then the good guys will most likely not like what they're being offered.
Just a recap, folks: the most controversial song in this countdown scores the lowest; three songs about hate make the list; and the #1 song is a song is domestic violence in itself.
And that was my Top 12 Villain Songs! I hoped you enjoyed reading what I had to say about these songs and... pray to God that some of these don't stay with you in a bad way.

Amateur Critic
Sources:
Veggietales
Santa Claus Is Coming To Town
Rock-A-Doodle
Penguins of Madagascar
Wind In The Willows
Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas
Land Before Time 2: The Great Valley Adventure
The Pebble and the Penguin

All rights go to Big Idea, Rankin/Bass, Don Bluth, DreamWorks Animation, Disney, and Universal Studios Home Video.

"The Penguin Who Loved Me" (Penguins of Madagascar) TV Special Review

Hi, I'm the Amateur Critic. I review just about anything.

Say, have you ever wanted to see Neil Patrick Harris, Ty Burrell, and that... chick from Ally McBeal and Brothers and Sisters guest star in a kids' TV show? Um, I don't know. But this is the Penguins of Madagascar special “The Penguin Who Loved Me.”

Too bad this special didn't air on Nickelodeon as it should have in the United States. If you were a die-hard fan like me that waited for Dr. Blowhole’s comeback, then you got gypped. Know why? As I said, this special never aired on Nickelodeon, but it did in other countries.

As for the TV special itself, it was kind-of clichéd, because of the situation that the characters are in. Plus, it's corny. But the obviously bad thing about this special is that it's only half an hour long. Why couldn't it be longer like The Return of the Revenge of Dr. Blowhole?

Maybe this is the biggest comeback in Dr. Blowhole history... So, tell me. How does this special begin?

 

Title Sequence:

The show starts with a strange opening. We see bubbles. We see King Julien and Mort swimming in purplish ocean(?) And then we see silhouette versions of Dr. Blowhole (I guess)…

We hear a song dedicated to Dr. Blowhole.

-Gee, I wonder who the show got to sing this villain-based song? I'm gonna say... Adele(?)
Liz Gilles

That mean-looking girl from that Nickelodeon show Victorious? (Like I care…)
-Plus, what pisses me off is that the song doesn't go past 30 seconds! It’s a good tune, you know! They should've made this song longer, but then again, the credits are rolling in this opening... but that makes no difference! The song should've been longer!

-The show makes Dr. Blowhole look so satanic!

Are they high? He looks bad ass! You might as well play "Night on Bald Mountain" from Disney's Fantasia while you're at it!

Opening Scene:

 

The show finally starts with Kowalski testing a pair of anti-gravity boots, which are, obviously, a failed experiment. And then we get our next "failed experiment": a platypus named Parker, voiced by Ty Burrell, who you may know from Modern Family.

-I just gotta say: Hi, Perry the Platypus! Who would've known your image would be ripped off here? I'm not kidding! It's friggin' Perry! Just ditch the hat, then change the skin color, and... there you have it! Plus, besides the physical similarities, there are also the character similarities.
1. Both Perry and Parker are bad-ass fighters.
2. Both Perry and Parker go undercover.
3. Both Perry and Parker work for somebody.

I mean, seriously. This show isn't even trying!

Anyway, Parker stops by the penguin habitat and tells Kowalski something that makes the penguin run back into the Penguin HQ, grab all his stuff, and leave quicker than he entered.

Team Penguin sees Kowalski's strange behavior. Skipper guesses that he’s still crying over his ex-girlfriend Doris. How does he know this?

He has surveillance footage on his men.

-(sarcasm) Oh, well, Dr. Blowhole wouldn't do the same thing. Why? Why?

Harbor Scene:

Kowalski and Parker arrive at the harbor. Kowalski is anxious to meet Doris, because he, apparently, hasn't seen her in a while.

We finally see Doris the Dolphin, played by Calista Flockhart, who you may remember from Ally McBeal and Brothers and Sisters. (Check your grandparents for local listings.)

We see Doris in her dolphin beauty, but then that idea is thrown away when she tells Kowalski that she and Parker are dating. This triggers more of Kowalski’s miserable.

-What’s next? Doris is pregnant with Parker’s baby? (No wait. That can never happen.)

            Kowalski doesn’t think that Doris’ relationship with Parker would ever work.

Kowalski: “It’ll never work, Doris! Is he bird? Is he mammal? If he can’t commit to a species, how can he commit to you?!”

-Aww, come on, Kowalski! You’re trying to get back with Doris, not try and be her dad. There’s a difference between boyfriend and father.

But then the other Penguins ride over to the harbor in their Penguin car.

 

-How were they able to drive that fast during New York rush hour?

The Penguins are about to attack Doris and Parker, but Kowalski stops them... even though he's still depressed and everything.

Parker finally reveals to the penguins that Doris needs help.

Penguin HQ scene:

 

The Penguins learn that Doris needs help getting her brother out of captivity at a place called Seaville. Parker asks Kowalski to help on the navigation part. Kowalski, still jealous of Parker and Doris being together, agrees to help, but also vows to get him back for stealing her.

So Team Penguin decides to help out, impressing Doris, who's outside in their pool.

-This begs the question: Why would Doris, a dolphin, be outside the Penguin HQ? In The Return of the Revenge of Dr. Blowhole, Blowhole had no problem fitting into the HQ. But, I did grass.

While that's happening, King Julien is at his habitat, bored and jealous that the Penguins have a better water-based fancy than he does.

 

-That's it? Julien has 1-2 lines of dialogue in this special? Maurice and Mort don't say or do anything at all?
Oh, look! It is I, King Julien! I’m here doing absolutely nothing. I'm just… Sorry, I think the comic relief isn’t working. Eh, why am I here again? I'd rather be in the theme song again...

Going to Seaville:

So, our team of heroes, along with Doris and Parker, travel by ocean to Seaville... which is a knock-off of Coney Island.
Skipper: “Skipper’s Log: We run silent. We run deep… Right up to Seaville’s backdoor…”

-Come on! Don’t try to build up suspense with dramatic monologue! You’re called “The Penguin Who Loved Me”! No one’s gonnna take a so-called “love story” that seriously!

Once they get there, Kowalski tries to impress Doris how showing how smart he is, but Parker succeeds in being the only "decent" person in the group.

But before you can say "security," security guards spot them. But before you can say "Perry the Platypus," Parker takes out the guards with his pointed spikes on his feet. This makes Kowalski even more jealous, because he's trying so hard to impress Doris.

 

-Don't give up, Kowalski. You'll get what’s coming to you. (Not to give anything away here...)

Dolphin Theater scene:

The gang finally finds the dolphin exhibit where Doris' brother is held captive. The Penguins shed some light in this place, and guess who appears...

-Dr. Blowhole?! He's Doris' brother?! Wow! What a twist!

            It turns out that Blowhole doesn’t remember who he is. And, if you forgot what happened last time, Kowalski conveniently fills everybody in about the Mind-Jacker incident from the last time we saw Blowhole (refer to The Return of the Revenge of Dr. Blowhole). However, Doris doesn’t buy into Kowalski’s claim, insisting that the dolphin is her brother Francis.

-Francis? Really? That’s Dr. Blowhole’s real name in this series? I’ve always imagined that his first name was something like “Axel” or… maybe “Flippy,” because that was the name that he was giving near the end of The Return of the Revenge of Dr. Blowhole. But Francis? Really, guys? That doesn’t strike fear into people’s hearts.
-Plus, Doris is supposed to be Dr. Blowhole’s sister. Shouldn’t she be more involved with what he does in his spare time? I mean, where is that brother-sister relationship? Will we see any of that in this special?

            Anyway, Parker steps in and confirms both sides of the argument. Why? Because, my God… it turns out that Parker is one of Dr. Blowhole’s employers. He then attacks the penguins and even Doris, stealing Kowalski’s GPS and knocking all of them out unconscious.

 

-Don’t act like you didn’t see this coming…

Dr. Blowhole’s Volcano-Looking Lair:

Dr. Blowhole is returned to his lobster minions…
-Hi. How did Parker manage to get him there?

            Parker wants the lobsters to pay him for his job in bringing Blowhole back, but the lobsters tell him that only Blowhole could sign off on payments that were “ over 50 dollars.”

 

-A thug demanding pay? We must really be in a different show, because any moment, if these guys don’t pay Parker, then this is definitely going to turn into the movie Killing Them Softly.

            Plus, the other lobsters have other expenses and important matters to worry about, like…

 

One Lobster: “That energy cannon is a rental…”
-Then why not take it back to the store and get your money back?
Another Lobster: “What about my vacation request form?”
-Can't you postpone your request?
Third Lobster: “Don’t forget the snacks for the break room. The Cheezy-Bits are wicked stale.”

-Can’t you go buy some more?

            Anyway, the lobsters decide to get Blowhole’s mind “dejacked,” but the dolphin is too busy… being a dolphin.

-Oh, let him have his fun. It’s not like this special is making any sense anyway…

            The lobsters trying pushing buttons on Dr. Blowhole’s Segway, but they pull out other important stuff like: a toilet plunger, a mugufian-stick-or-cigarette-lighter-looking thing, a library card, confetti, and Chrome Claw… but no Mind-Jacker.

 

Dr. Blowhole: “Ooh! Go back to the confetti cannon! I could use that in my routine!”
-Uh… can we get the evil and theatrical Dr. Blowhole back?

Seaville Scene 2:

Meanwhile, our heroes are in Dr. Blowhole’s dolphin exhibit.
-Uh, aren’t we missing a scene here? Like, how did the group regain consciousness from Parker’s attack? But it’s like nothing happen to them, and they were just chilling as if nothing is wrong.

            Kowalski finds this the time to say to Doris an “I told you so” statement on the fact that Parker was apparently for her as a boyfriend... a bad pick for her.

 

-You know, this wasn’t what I had in mind for a Penguins of Madagascar special involving Dr. Blowhole. I find this special not taking itself seriously. I can just see ABC doing a show about this situation with Kowalski and Doris on their Wednesday comedy line-up:
Enjoy our Comedy Wednesday line-up with a brand new show coming this Spring on ABC…
Meet Kowalski and Parker. One’s a bumbling genius with a crush on the girl next door, and the other is the girl’s current boyfriend who has all the right moves. What could be better than Kowalski trying so hard to get back with his ex, who’s now with his rival? And what’s better than throwing in a psychotic twist, leading to an evil mad scientist dolphin getting his memories back and plotting to destroy the world? Don’t miss the new hit comedy: Desperate Penguin. Coming this Spring on ABC. The Fun Starts Here.

            The Penguins and Doris decide to escape Seaville.

So they jump through the Ring of Fire trick, hitting a kid (ha ha), and unbelievably escaping. While that’s going on, we finally see Manfredi and Johnson…

 

-Yeah, the two penguins that Skipper wouldn’t shut up about in the entire series.

            But the gang doesn’t see Manfredi and Johnson, and they swim to Blowhole’s lair.

-How do they get there without Kowalski’s GPS thing?

Blowhole’s Lair Scene:

The lobsters show Dr. Blowhole a slide show with pictures of him planning “Project: Bad Tidings,” only to see that Blowhole isn’t remembering any of it.

-I swear to you that in one of the pictures in the slide show, Blowhole is wearing a tie! My guess is that he stole it from the Nostalgia Critic!
-Plus, that Cancuin pic is hilarious!

With Dr. Blowhole wearing a head band that makes it look like an arrow was shot through his head, and one of the lobster minions wearing a coconut bra…

Dr. Blowhole: “…Seaville’s 2^nd-most popular performer…”
-Who’s in 1^st place, Shamu?

Parker loses his patience and threatens the lobsters to pay him already. But the Penguins and Doris arrive to put Parker in his place… in fact, put everyone in their place, including Blowhole, who has virtually done nothing yet but do flip tricks, frolic in the water, and being an awkward loony.

Kowalski decides to fight Parker, while Skipper fights Blowhole, and the other penguins fight the lobsters.

 

Everything’s doing okay, until Doris decides to join in, by hopping onto a Segway.

Clearly, she’s already doing a bang of destruction, as she runs over people, accidentally sets off the laser guns, and accidentally turning on the Mind-Jacker, wiping out everyone’s memories, including the Penguins.’ Then Kowalski’s mind gets “jacked,” and it isn’t long before Parker kicks Doris off the Segway…

 

-Geez! No matter what scene Doris is in, she’s always getting hurt physically and verbally. Parker is a bunghole!

            Then Parker “dejacks” Dr. Blowhole’s mind, and Blowhole finally gets his memory back.

Dr. Blowhole: “Blowhole is back!”

-Yeah, nobody can argue that… (me, standing up) “Blowhole is back!”

            Parker is still waiting on his payment…

 

-Seriously, are we still on your Killing Them Softly attitude, Parker?

            Dr. Blowhole promises to pay up as soon as the Penguins are captured and done with. Doris, on the other hand, tries to get her brother to stop what he’s doing, but he kinda blows her off.

-Again, how can you not know what’s going on with your own siblings?

            Doris asks him about how be started being a “doctor,” and Dr. Blowhole’s response is:

Dr. Blowhole: “Internet courses through the teaching annex, thank you.”

-Yeah, he’s like, Fuck off, bitch. I’m a mad scientist.

            Anyway, now that everyone around him has their minds “dejacked,” Blowhole has them play a game that he likes to call, “Capture The Peng-you-ins.”

 

-Yeah, turn up the volume and look directly at the screen when you hear Dr. Blowhole say the “Capture The Peng-you-ins” line.

And there you’ll get… an Awkward-Face Moment (Just like I predicted in the LarryBoy and the Yodelnapper review)!

Captivity Scene:

Our Penguin heroes are captured, and…

-How much you wanna bet that this scene is like the captivity scene from Dr. Blowhole’s Revenge? You’d think Dr. Blowhole would have them caged up or tied up and hanging above a river of acid or something… but seriously, this bad guy is reusing his own torture devices to a tee. It’s like reusing a tissue hours after you blew your nose in it…

            Dr. Blowhole takes out his Mind-Jacker. Parker questions this, but Blowhole assures him that he’s doing the right thing:

Parker: “You’re restoring their minds?”
Dr. Blowhole: “Of course! What’s the point of dominating the world if your arch rivals don’t even know you did it?”

-(pause) Who says that?! It’s like saying, I’m gonna rob a bank, but I want the authorities to know that I’m the one robbing the place. But with Dr. Blowhole, everything he does with the Penguins is personal… but that’s still no excuse!

            So Dr. Blowhole restores the Penguins’ memories, and then introduces them to his project: Bad Tidings.

-I’m far too entranced of this special's not-so-great writing to make a joke about that.

            Apparently, Kowalski is already seeing how cliche Blowhole is, because he has guessed correctly on what Project: Bad Tidings is going to do: zap the moon out of its normal orbit, bring it closer to Earth to disrupt the tidal waves, and literally flood the world.

Dr. Blowhole: (in sarcasm) “Well, thank you, Professor Spoiler…”

-Oh, don’t mention it, Doc… I mean… oh. You meant Kowalski. I thought you were telling me…

            Then Doris, who’s now being kept inside a large fish tank, warns her brother about taking over the world… by not allowing him over for Thanksgiving.

 

-(mimicking Doris) And Mom will put you in timeout and have you think about what you’ve done…
-Wow, was having nothing to do with him for the rest of his life too hard for you to say? He’s a mad scientist supervillain! People like him need more than rehab to change!
-Also, can you see that Doris is in a friggin’ fish tank? Yeah, after all the shit she’s been through with the many relationships, the bad one with Parker (recently) attacking her and lying to her about stuff, and dealing with Kowalski’s jealousy… she gets thrown into the tank. (sarcasm) Great call on that, Blowhole!

            So Dr. Blowhole readies the laser cannon, but Kowalski messes with him, saying that the diabolical plan won’t work. Then the two have a little debate on this subject matter:

 

Dr. Blowhole: “Why don’t you think it’ll work?”
Kowalski: “Cavitation?”
Dr. Blowhole: “I accounted for cavitation.”
Kowalski: “And centripetal force?”
Dr. Blowhole: “I accounted for centripetal force.”
Kowalski: “Plus axes tilt?”
Dr. Blowhole: “I accounted for that too…”
-OMG, shut up! I mean, how the hell are we supposed to be invested in this special if all there is, is people debating about things left and right? It’s like watching a 24-hour channel of political debates:

Characters have love-relationship debate here

Characters have a debate on the identity of another character there

Bad guys debate about money and expenses in this scene

The protagonist and his love interest debate about having bad relationships in that scene

The bad guy and good guy debate against each other

Meeting adjourned.

Entertain us, movie! Add a song! Do something whimsical! Do something! Don’t bore us with flat-out debating!

            Anyway, Kowalski gets himself free by doing the most logical thing possible: push Dr. Blowhole hard with his tongue, wait for Blowhole to lose his balance, and press a button on the Segway to unchain himself and his penguin crew.

 

-Wow, that’s the clumsiest dolphin villain that I’ve ever seen. I mean, Dr. Blowhole could be standing there, and I can walk up to him and move him with one finger, and… Plop! He’ll lose his balance.

            Parker goes to fight back, but sees that he’s outnumbered.

            The Penguins then free Doris from the fish tank, and then throw Dr. Blowhole in there in her place.

 

-Yeah, Blowhole. Really think about what you’ve done… You're in timeout!

            The laser cannon is activated, but Rico blows it up with a bomb. The place then starts to get sucked towards the laser cannon now gone haywire.

            Parker tries to escape in the Penguins’ submarine, but Doris quickly stops him from going anywhere. Then Doris serves him with an I’m-breaking-up-with-you squirt of water from her blowhole.

            Our heroes escape, leaving Dr. Blowhole to meet his demise.

 

-Yeah, really think about what you’ve done… Gee, I didn’t know timeout-punishment logic can be useful in situations like this…

Final Scene:

 

Our heroes finally make it home. Kowalski and Doris kiss and make up.

Skipper, on the other hand, tells Private that he and the others haven’t seen the last of Dr. Blowhole…

-(mimicking Skipper) Gentlemen, don’t be surprised if horrible sequels come up.

            Our last scene takes us to Dr. Blowhole and Parker, who are floating on a plank.

 

Already, Parker is pissed off with Blowhole, because he hasn’t gotten his pay yet. Then the show ends with Blowhole trying to offer Parker some gift cards in place of the payment.

 

            And that was our Dr. Blowhole special from Penguins of Madagascar.

            Well, what can I say? It’s not what I had in mind for a Dr. Blowhole story. Nothing about this special seemed like a legit Dr. Blowhole story.

            The decisions that were made to go with the Dr. Blowhole saga just didn’t fit well with the mix. Some of the writing was awkward; the love-interest relationship between Kowalski and Doris wasn’t all that interesting (except when they kissed and made up); and it turns out that this special had very little of Dr. Blowhole’s scheming, let alone very little of him physically in this special.

            But I will say that the voice-acting wasn’t so bad. Calista Flockhart, Ty Burrell, and Neil Patrick Harris were great guest stars on this show.

            But in the long-run, it’s just false advertising. The special is entitled “The Penguin Who Loved Me”; I assume the show was trying to spoof a James Bond movie. But even the title itself didn’t fit with the storyline. If you’re going to spoof a James Bond movie and add love-interests in it, then here’s what I expect to see!

See? There's nothing wrong with amping up Dr. Blowhole's role in this special and making the whole thing an hour long! But for what it is, it's okay. If you wanna see it, check it out on Youtube or Vimeo.

Amateur Critic
Sources:
Penguins of Madagascar
Phineas and Ferb (that one pic)
LarryBoy and the Yodelnapper (the Awkward-Face Moment pic)

All rights go to DreamWorks Animation. That one pic from Disney. The other pic from Big Idea. The comment on imagining ABC doing a sitcom... that was a joke. ABC is the American Broadcasting Network,