Three new videos demonstrate an interesting trend for childrens shows feature-length cartoons and live-action movies that debut on multiple non-theatrical platforms, meaning DVD and/or Blu-ray, along with various streaming sites.
Tom and Jerry: Spy Quest (Warner/DVD, 2015, four bonus episodes). The titular cat and mouse are the stars of this James Bond-ish spy spoof that teams them with another cartoon icon, Jonny Quest, along with Hadji and their dog Bandit. (And Droopy the dog has a cameo.) Tom and Jerry help Jonny rescue his scientist father, whos been kidnapped by evil Dr. Zin. The bonus features are two 2014 episodes of The Tom and Jerry Show, from the Cartoon Network cable channel, and two vintage Johnny Quest episodes, one each from the 1986 and 1964 series.
Curious George 3: Back to the Jungle (Universal/DVD/Digital, 2015, G, four sing-alongs). Following the 2006 Curious George theatrical film there was a 2010 sequel, Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey! And now comes this one, which has George on a space mission that crash lands in Africa. While George meets some new four-legged friends, the Man With the Yellow Hat sets out to find him. Angela Bassett and John Goodman are among the voice cast.
American Girl: Grace Stirs Up Success (Universal/Blu-ray/DVD/Digital/On Demand, 2015, featurettes). The American Girl of this entry in the live-action straight-to-video franchise is Grace, played by Olivia Rodrigo, with Virginia Madsen as her mother. Grace has a cupcake business with friends and isnt sure she wants to go to Paris to visit relatives, but once there she helps her uncle and cousin save a French pastry shop.
The Campbells: The Complete Series (Shout!/Timeless/itv/DVD, 1986-90, 12 discs, 100 episodes). This highly enjoyable series is as much a tutorial on early 19th-century Canadian history as it is a Western soap opera, with a capable cast and well-written scripts for its four-season run. The premise has a widowed Scottish doctor (Malcolm Stoddard) and his three children, along with a wealthy neighbor friend, heading to Canada after a series of circumstances instill a desire to leave their homeland for a fresh start.
When Calls the Heart: Heart and Soul (Shout!/DVD, 2015). This is the extended second episode of Season 2 of When Calls the Heart, a Hallmark cable channel frontier series about privileged schoolteacher Elizabeth (Erin Krakow) finding love with Mountie Jack (Daniel Lissing) in a 19th-century Canadian coal-mining town. During a separation, Elizabeth is courted by someone new and Jack must deal with a town full of con artists. Lori Loughlin co-stars.
Ripper Street: Season Three (BBC/DVD, 2014, three discs, eight episodes). Hard-edged, bloody, somewhat sleazy police procedural set in Victorian London in the Whitechapel area, home to Jack the Rippers nefarious activities. This season focuses on a train wreck that kills 55 people but is not quite the accident it seems to be. Matthew Macfadyen stars. (The BBC canceled this show after Season 2 but it was picked up by Amazon, which has also commissioned a fourth season to begin later this year.)
Workaholics: Season Five (Comedy Central/Paramount/Blu-ray/DVD, 2015, 13 episodes, deleted scenes, featurettes, bloopers). Hard-partying college dropouts work together at a telemarketing company where their behavior refuses to mature. (Be advised that these episodes are uncensored, retaining foul language that was bleeped and nudity that was blurred when shown on the Comedy Central cable channel.)
Tom and Jerry: Spy Quest (Warner/DVD, 2015, four bonus episodes). The titular cat and mouse are the stars of this James Bond-ish spy spoof that teams them with another cartoon icon, Jonny Quest, along with Hadji and their dog Bandit. (And Droopy the dog has a cameo.) Tom and Jerry help Jonny rescue his scientist father, whos been kidnapped by evil Dr. Zin. The bonus features are two 2014 episodes of The Tom and Jerry Show, from the Cartoon Network cable channel, and two vintage Johnny Quest episodes, one each from the 1986 and 1964 series.
Curious George 3: Back to the Jungle (Universal/DVD/Digital, 2015, G, four sing-alongs). Following the 2006 Curious George theatrical film there was a 2010 sequel, Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey! And now comes this one, which has George on a space mission that crash lands in Africa. While George meets some new four-legged friends, the Man With the Yellow Hat sets out to find him. Angela Bassett and John Goodman are among the voice cast.
American Girl: Grace Stirs Up Success (Universal/Blu-ray/DVD/Digital/On Demand, 2015, featurettes). The American Girl of this entry in the live-action straight-to-video franchise is Grace, played by Olivia Rodrigo, with Virginia Madsen as her mother. Grace has a cupcake business with friends and isnt sure she wants to go to Paris to visit relatives, but once there she helps her uncle and cousin save a French pastry shop.
The Campbells: The Complete Series (Shout!/Timeless/itv/DVD, 1986-90, 12 discs, 100 episodes). This highly enjoyable series is as much a tutorial on early 19th-century Canadian history as it is a Western soap opera, with a capable cast and well-written scripts for its four-season run. The premise has a widowed Scottish doctor (Malcolm Stoddard) and his three children, along with a wealthy neighbor friend, heading to Canada after a series of circumstances instill a desire to leave their homeland for a fresh start.
When Calls the Heart: Heart and Soul (Shout!/DVD, 2015). This is the extended second episode of Season 2 of When Calls the Heart, a Hallmark cable channel frontier series about privileged schoolteacher Elizabeth (Erin Krakow) finding love with Mountie Jack (Daniel Lissing) in a 19th-century Canadian coal-mining town. During a separation, Elizabeth is courted by someone new and Jack must deal with a town full of con artists. Lori Loughlin co-stars.
Ripper Street: Season Three (BBC/DVD, 2014, three discs, eight episodes). Hard-edged, bloody, somewhat sleazy police procedural set in Victorian London in the Whitechapel area, home to Jack the Rippers nefarious activities. This season focuses on a train wreck that kills 55 people but is not quite the accident it seems to be. Matthew Macfadyen stars. (The BBC canceled this show after Season 2 but it was picked up by Amazon, which has also commissioned a fourth season to begin later this year.)
Workaholics: Season Five (Comedy Central/Paramount/Blu-ray/DVD, 2015, 13 episodes, deleted scenes, featurettes, bloopers). Hard-partying college dropouts work together at a telemarketing company where their behavior refuses to mature. (Be advised that these episodes are uncensored, retaining foul language that was bleeped and nudity that was blurred when shown on the Comedy Central cable channel.)
