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You’ve Been Double-Dipping, Charlie Brown!

You’ve done it again, Charlie Brown. I have been very excited in the recent past with Warners’ release slate of the classic (and sometimes not-so-classic) Peanuts television specials. I had withstood the temptation to get the Paramount releases, as I felt they weren’t up to snuff quality-wise; so when Warners took over the rights and started releasing restored editions with between two and three specials per disc, I was first in line to snag them.

Unfortunately, just a short year after acquiring the specials, Warners already feels obligated to start double-dipping, much to the chagrin of collectors. Their new 2-disc set Peanuts: 1960s Collection is frustrating to a fair degree, though for no reason found in the actual specials themselves.

Collected on this 2-disc set are all six of the original Peanuts specials that aired in the 1960s. That means it includes the truly classic A Charlie Brown Christmas and It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown as well as four other lesser-known specials: Charlie Brown’s All-Stars, You’re in Love, Charlie Brown, He’s Your Dog, Charlie Brown, and It was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown.

The problem here is that the double-dipping leaves the collector with a dilemma. The regular line of Warners Peanuts releases each include (as previously stated) a bonus special or two on each release. So do we keep collecting those, as they include specials that haven’t been released in the newer chronological set, or do we go with the 1960s set, which also has specials not available otherwise?

I’m sorry, I’m just not happy knowing I’m being forced to have two copies of several of these cartoons taking up space on my shelf just so I can keep the odds and ends of both series.

Now, the cartoons themselves are great. Worthily restored (unlike the subpar Paramount issues, or the even worse prints they still insist on running during the holidays on TV), all of them are great shows, even the ones I’d never heard of. All-Stars is a breezy but fun bit about Charlie Brown trying to get his baseball team some uniforms but has to choose between his friends and the chance to advance his team.

A new documentary is included, focusing on Vince Guaraldi, the composer behind the famous Peanuts music. A bit more in-depth than some of the other more recent docs found on the “regular” line of Peanuts DVD releases, it’s interesting and informative.

Still, I’m not happy, at all. Warners, please, as a fan, I’m begging of you – pick one outlet or the other (or at least find a way to do both so that we don’t get stuck with bits and pieces on one and not the other) for these wonderful cartoons. Please.

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