TV Special Review: Frosty's Winter Wonderland/'Twas the Night Before Christmas

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Two Christmas specials that will appeal to kids of all ages.

Cons: Frosty is a little slow

The Bottom Line: 

Two Christmas specials

Provide cheer on a dark night

Young kids will enjoy

Two Specials to Warm Your Winter Heart

Since I finally got Frosty the Snowman this year, I was only missing one special I used to watch as a kid.  So when I found the bundle Frosty's Winter Wonderland/Twas the Night Before Christmas at a cheap price, I didn't hesitate to pick them up.

If you want the true Frosty sequel, look no further than Frosty's Winter Wonderland.  This half hour special was created in 1976, 7 years after the original aired.  Jackie Vernon returns as the magic snowman who comes to life.  While none of the kids have names this time around, they do look similar to the ones from the first special.

The story this time finds Frosty back from the North Pole for another winter of fun.  However, every night when the kids go back to their homes for the evening, he gets very lonely.  So the kids decide to create a wife for him.  Crystal (Shelley Winters) is brought to life, but their happiness might be short lived.  Jack Frost (Paul Frees) is very jealous of how much the kids love Frosty.  Will he conspire to ruin their happiness?

Watching this as an adult, I see how little story this one has.  But there is still something charming about it.  I was smiling through most of it as I watched it last night.  The kids don't really drive any of the story, instead its focus is Frosty, Crystal, and Jack Frost.  There is a fun bit with Parson Brown.  Yes, in addition to "Frosty the Snowman," we get the lesser known second verse of "Winter Wonderland" during the special.  Andy Griffith steps into the Narrator roll and does a great job with it.

I had never seen ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas before, but it's another half hour hand drawn animated special from the same company as Frosty.  It claims to be based on the famous poem, but that's a stretch.  The story revolves around a town that suddenly finds themselves in a horrid position.  All the letters to Santa are being return as rejected by the recipient.  While the humans, led by a clockmaker voiced by Joel Grey, try to build a clock to win back Santa's affection, the mice of the town find the real problem.  One of the mice has decided that Santa can't be real and wrote a letter the offended him.  Will they be able to convince Santa they do believe in him?

I was pleasantly surprised by this cartoon.  It features a decent story with two fun new songs.  The songs have a definite 70's feel to them, but since the special was originally released in 1974, that doesn't surprise me.  With the two story lines, the special actually moves forward rather quickly.  We do get the poem at the end, but it really could have been called anything.  This is definitely a special that will appeal to kids, and I'm sure it will become a regular in my Christmas special rotation.

The disc itself is only the two special; there are no extra features.  For the price I paid (about $7), I'm not complaining.  The picture and sound are fine.  They won't challenge your system, but they don't have to.

Neither of these specials are great entertainment, but they are fun light entertainment for the young and young at heart during Christmas.  I'm glad I picked up Frosty's Winter Wonderland/Twas the Night Before Christmas.