Snoopy Collection

Listen to this post:

Ever since I could remember back in the 80s, besides the comic strip in the newspaper, I was surrounded by Charlie Brown and Snoopy cartoons, film, books, toys, games, memorabilia, and loved every bit of it. The four original theatrical films written by creator Charles Schulz are finally collected into one awesome, high-definition package simply called the Snoopy Collection. Fans and families young and old can enjoy these beloved movies preserved on Blu-ray again and again as they never lose their magic.

This collection starts off with 1969’s “A Boy Named Charlie Brown”, where Charlie Brown learns that while he’s not very good at sports he actually has a knack for spelling bees. After winning some of the local contests, he’s invited to the national spelling bee championship in New York that’s also being broadcast live on television. Does he have it in him to win? Or will the pressure be too much?

Then in 1972’s “Snoopy Come Home”, Snoopy is having a bad time thanks to multiple annoying things happening to him, which causes him to lash out at everyone as he gets fed up, which leads to him having a falling out with Charlie Brown. Soon Snoopy receives a letter from a girl named Lila who is hospitalized and wants him to come see her and keep her company. He gladly accepts and makes his way across the country to see her with his pal Woodstock (who makes his debut in this film). Meanwhile Charlie Brown and his friends band together to find Snoopy and bring him home.

“Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown” which was released in 1977 has Charlie Brown and the Peanuts gang going to summer camp and making the best of living in the rough. It doesn’t take long for a rival camp to come along and bully the gang to make their experience a bad one. Soon a river rafting race comes along and it’s a battle to see who’s the best, if they can all survive the wilderness dangers first.

Lastly there’s “Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don’t Come Back!!)” that was released in 1980 and has Charlie Brown and his friends traveling to France as foreign exchange students. Everyone is having a good time once they arrive, but Charlie Brown is trying to make sense of a letter from a mysterious girl there who invites him to a chateau, only to be mistreated by the girl’s angry uncle.

I’ll be honest and admit that I hadn’t seen some of these films in quite some time, but it was awesome how the memories came flooding back as I watched. All of them still hold up incredibly well after all these decades and make for the perfect movies to watch on family film night or anytime for that matter. They all look and sound great in high-definition as the visuals and audio have been cleaned up to be their best without losing any of their hand-drawn charm.

I also enjoyed how the films keep their original aspect ratios with A Boy Named Charlie Brown and Snoopy Come Home being presented 4:3 fullscreen, with Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown and Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don’t Come Back!!) being shown in 16:9 widescreen. Also the last two films are making their Blu-ray debuts in this release. So if you want them, this collection is the only way to own them for now.

There’s only one special feature, but it’s a great one called “Travels With Charlie: The Making of Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown”. Here we learn from people who worked with Charles Schulz (who affectionately call him by his nickname “Sparky”) about what made him write this film. It turns out he revisited a place in France decades after he had been there during World War II and that gave him the idea to bring the Peanuts gang there in a film. It’s a really well done documentary with a lot of awesome facts and behind the scenes anecdotes fans will love.

Lifelong fans and those new to the Peanuts gang will want to pick up the Snoopy Collection as it’s a must-have for anyone’s movie library. These films have never looked or sound better than they do here, and the amazing and fun characters and the adventures they go on will always hold up and having you saying “Good Grief”, what a collection!