My Episode Review on The Mayflower Voyagers · 5:06pm Nov 26th, 2020
Happy Thanksgiving, my friends.
This is your top-of-the-line film, TV show, and episode reporter here with another review.
Today, for my 50th episode analysis, and the 8th and final installment of this year's "Thanksgiving Treat", I'm gonna give you guys my take of "The Mayflower Voyagers".
Here's the rundown of it:
On September 6, 1620, one hundred and two people from England board the Mayflower in order to start a new life in the New World, America. Among those passengers are Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Woodstock, Linus, Lucy, Sally, Peppermint Patty, Marcie, Pig Pen, and Schroeder.
However, several hardships afflict the colony during their travel across the sea and their time in the New World, and because of how life-threatening their situations are...it would take faith and a miracle from God to help them now.
I'm not gonna lie, I had originally intended on reviewing this Charlie Brown special last year not long after analyzing "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving". I was unable to because of how quickly time passed, so...I decided to save reviewing it for this year instead. It came on the very same disc as "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving", so finding a way to watch it was no problem at all.
I have so many fond memories of this short, really. From borrowing a copy from the library to watching it on the ABC channel right after "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" aired on television.
After finally watching it again to make my analysis of it, I really must say that "The Mayflower Voyagers"...is another phenomenal masterpiece of the Charlie Brown filmography.
For instance, the direction by Evert Brown, and the story by Charles M. Schulz and Lee Mendelson, were astonishing!
I love how the team was able to incorporate Charlie Brown and his friends in the history of the Mayflower colonists in a way that hardly felt out of place, and their presence throughout was great enough to develop interest in the actual history. I'd also like to add that I had fun with the humorous moments in the special, and whenever tragedy struck the colony or when it seemed like hope was lost..my heart felt like it was getting tugged. And when good things happened for the colony, my spirits soared high with elation.
The animation for the special was wonderful as well.
As with the previous Charlie Brown shorts, I deeply admire the amount of compassion, hard work, and commitment that the animators clearly put into working on this project and how they made everything look good with only a small budget to work with. However, it also felt like they were willing to go all-out in aiding Schulz and company in helping the world remember what Thanksgiving is all about and why America exists in the first place, and that's something I highly commend.
The music by Ed Bogas was magnificent, if I may add.
Bogas is definitely no Vince Guaraldi, but his score captured the heart and spirit originated by Guaraldi and helped the special be engaging to the ears. The melodies also fit perfectly with the time period the special takes place in, and they carried a sense that they really were made by colonials.
Finally, the characters were as awesome as ever.
Charlie Brown and company were as lovable and innocent as they've always been, and the depictions and portrayals of the adult characters were outstanding. Especially that of Squanto, whom Frank Welker did a phenomenal job portraying.
In the end, "The Mayflower Voyagers" is an absolute classic. It's not only one of the best specials in the Peanuts filmography, but it displays why Thanksgiving is such an important holiday and what it's about phenomenally. In a time where people seem to no longer understand the purpose and reason for Thanksgiving's existence, this special is something that I believe everyone should check out.
So, I rate "The Mayflower Voyagers" five out of five stars.
To Warner Bros.: As the studio in charge of releasing Charlie Brown installments on home video nowadays, I deeply urge you to please re-release the "This is America, Charlie Brown" DVD set as soon as possible. Watching "The Mayflower Voyagers" inspired me to watch the rest of the shorts in the miniseries, and I really would like to check them out to make reviews of each and every one of them. So, please re-release the miniseries soon.
To clarify on what I'm talking about in regards to America and the purpose of Thanksgiving...
America was made to be a free nation. A country where people can be free from government oppression and rule, and where people can think and act without being told by a higher power what they can and can't do. To think and do things themselves for that matter. It is particularly made to be a country where Christians can be free to worship Jesus and spread the gospel, and that was a big reason for why the pilgrims came to America in the first place. They came to live in America because of England's religious persecution and oppression.
Thanksgiving is a holiday about Jesus. It's the time when people can give thanks to him, and be thankful for the loved ones around them and what they have. It is also the holiday that celebrates the friendship between the pilgrims and indians when the Mayflower colony was staying in America.
I know this is coming from just one person, but I hope this would help others to remember and understand what kind of country America was made to be and what Thanksgiving is about more from my own words.
Today, I am deeply thankful for the Lord coming to my rescue long ago, as well as for being surrounded by loving family and friends.
What are you all thankful for?
5 out of 5 stars from me too!
Freedom of Religion for all faiths.
Blessed be, every single one of us
Happy Thanksgiving!
I'm thankful that I was able to turn a bunch of leftover ingredients into dessert for breakfast.
I liked this one. Our treatment of the natives may be drenched in blood, but the original Thanksgiving at least was a time of coming together to help each other. Thanksgiving is much more about the passing and the gathering of the harvest than religion I think.
Funny story there, actually... Many of those colonists were essentially religious outlaws, their beliefs illegal because they were deeply opposed to the Church of England. On the other hand, their ilk were also the kind of people who ended up forcing their own radical Puritan views on others back in England in due time.