DVD Review: Alvin Chipmunks' Trick or Treason
Bagdasarian Productions, DIC Paramount Animated DVD
Sep 9, 2008
Now that last year's Alvin and the Chipmunks movie is a certified hit, Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and his partner Janice Karman are busily burrowing through their vaults, hunting for more stuff to keep the new wave of Chipmunk-mania going until the expected sequel hits theatres.
Enter Alvin and the Chipmunks: Trick or Treason, in which Bagdasarian takes several vaguely Halloween-themed episodes from the 1988 - 1994 TV show, and pops them onto home video.
Alvin and the Chipmunks' Trick or Treason: Halloween Episodes
All of the episodes in this DVD collection date from The Chipmunks series, after Bagdasarian moved animation duties from Ruby-Spears Productions to DIC in 1988. There are 5 episodes on this disc, which straddles the line between a kiddie kartoon show and The Monkees TV show from the mid-60's.
- In "Trick or Treason," Alvin wants to join The Monster Club, a group of "cool kids" with a vendetta against Pumpkinhead, a mysterious boy who lives nearby. However, when Theodore strikes up a friendship with the disfigured child, there's much strife within the Chipmunks. The Chipmunks sing the classic Halloween tune "Monster Mash."
- In "Babysitter Fright Night," David Seville leaves the Chipmunks in the hands of a sinister-looking babysitter, complete with a really bad German accent. Of course, things aren't what they seem.
- "Theodore's Life as a Dog" depicts Simon and Theodore paying Alvin back for all his pranks.
- "Nightmare on Seville Street" opens with The Chipmunks going to see a Nightmare on Elm Street knock-off. Naturally, the flick's too much for them and they fear the worst during a subsequent dark and stormy night.
- "No Chipmunk Is An Island" appears to be a last-minute inclusion on this disc, as it really doesn't go with all the others. Alvin, Simon and Theodore's constant bickering results in them demanding their own rooms. However, one night is enough for them to reconsider sleeping apart.
DVD Extras
Are you kidding? BWA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA!!!!
The Final Analysis
If there's one word to describe this DVD, it would be 'inoffensive.' The animation is decent enough, and the storylines earned some chuckles here and there. The episodes and music haven't aged well (they are, after all, anywhere between 15 to 20 years old) and many of the references - such as Geraldo Rivera or Nightmare on Elm Street - will fly right over kids' heads.
There's not much to dislike on this collection, but there's not a lot to like either. It would have received a 5/10 but, because neither Bagdasarian nor Paramount couldn't be bothered to add some DVD extras, Alvin and the Chipmunks: Trick or Treason gets a 4/10 instead.
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