Reviews

I just learned that the ratings are terrible.

I guess I just love alternate-universe stories. I find it absolutely riveting ... I've watched the 3-hours-so-far 3 times now. I love stories in which every little detail is put there for a purpose (like "Back to the Future"). And, better yet, this is a mini-series with a pre-set length of only 12 episodes, and they're promising to tie everything up in the last one. That makes it even more exciting than "Lost" for me, which has to keep adding new loose ends as they tie up old ones.

I'll consider myself very lucky if they show all 12 episodes. If not, I've heard Bravo has already committed to re-running it ... so ... I'll feel lucky if they don't back out of that.

My view that this is a top-notch musical comes partly from the fact that in the 1960's we were a (reel-to-reel) tape recorder owning family, and I listened to this over and over again as a teenager as part of my Christmas mood playlist. It really has Broadway-caliber songs! (AND a film-caliber background score! Great instrumental versions of "Ringle Ringle" and "Winter Was Warm." I've always wished there were a soundtrack album!) What's more, the vocal acting is quite professional.

Then years later when I saw the thing again, I was shocked at how pitiful the animation is! There's no smooth movement at all, and facial expressions have about 1/100th the subtlety of the voice acting. So this production goes on my list of excellent soundtracks that I wish someone, someday, would take and RE-animate from scratch! (Without re-recording anything!) (Others I'd like to see re-animated include the animated "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown (1985) (TV)" and, believe it or not, Disney's "Little Mermaid, The (1989)" ...which has great animation, but not as great as its soundtrack.)

If you can get your hands on a copy of this out-of-print video, my best recommendation is to turn off the TV picture and play it as if it were a quality radio production...

I, too, have been longing forever (since VCRs appeared) for this musical to become available on video. The Sherman & Sherman (& Morley) songs are perfectly good, and the choreography is super, but what I remember best is the great, iconoclastically non-chalant Fairy Godmother character (Annette Crosbie). I put her among the greatest steal-the-show supporting characters of all time, right along with Nicol Williamson's Merlin in "Excalibur."