Rascals - Vol. 1

Rating:
Summary: Misadventures w/ Alfalfa, Spanky, Buckwheat, etc...
Review: I love watching this classic kids-tv series w/ my 2 kids (ages 8 and 6) - they are so engrossed in watching this DVD and are truly entertained by the little rascals' antics. This DVD comprises of 5 episodes: "Came the Brawn", "Official Officers", "Spook Spoofing", "Lazy Day", and "Mary, Queen of Tots." For such an economically priced DVD, I'm pleasantly surprised by this release (Brentwood) - even though it's in black & white, the picture quality is quite good - unlike other "cheap" classic titles that we also have. So if you're a fan of the Little Rascals & want to share your childhood with your own kids, this would make an excellent addition to your family entertainment library.

Rating:
Summary: Misadventures w/ Alfalfa, Spanky, Buckwheat, etc...
Review: I love watching this classic kids-tv series w/ my 2 kids (ages 8 and 6) - they are so engrossed in watching this DVD and are truly entertained by the little rascals' antics. This DVD comprises of 5 episodes: "Came the Brawn", "Official Officers", "Spook Spoofing", "Lazy Day", and "Mary, Queen of Tots." For such an economically priced DVD, I'm pleasantly surprised by this release (Brentwood) - even though it's in black & white, the picture quality is quite good - unlike other "cheap" classic titles that we also have. So if you're a fan of the Little Rascals & want to share your childhood with your own kids, this would make an excellent addition to your family entertainment library.

Rating:
Summary: Four early films and one classic with Spanky's Gang
Review: The most important thing you need to know about this DVD is that, despite the cover photo featuring Spanky, Alfalfa, Darla, Buckwheat, and their cohorts, only one of the five episodes features the most famous incarnation of Our Gang. Three of the five episodes are actually early silent films. Now at first this is a little disappointing. I grew up with the Little Rascals, but I have never been exposed to the earliest Our Gang comedies, yet it was actually quite a thrill to see these old silent classics. Official Officers (1925) is truly ancient, judging by its quality. The kids have nowhere to play, so they block the streets in order to play stickball. The neighborhood's ill-tempered cop soon puts an end to that, but his attitude costs him his job. The new cop is incredibly friendly, and he makes junior officers of all the kids. They take their job pretty seriously, except for Joe who only wants to eat free bananas, especially when the mean old fired cop shows up to give them grief. Spook Spoofing (1928) is a particularly funny silent film. Farina is as superstitious as they come, and the kids decide to play a trick on him; when he rubs his mumbo-jumbo charm on one of them, the victim falls down and plays dead. Farina has to haul the kid to the cemetery, where the other kids are waiting for him with all sorts of hijinks in mind to scare him to death. Lazy Day (1929) stars Farina once again, and the kid proves himself (yes, Farina is a boy) an expert on being lazy. All the kids take their baby brothers and sisters to a baby show in hopes of winning a lot of money, but Farina has quite a time trying to get there. This one does feature sound and is quite funny. Of course, the real highlight of this DVD is Came the Brawn (1938). Spanky has set up a fighting match between Wildcat Alfalfa and the Masked Marvel. Unfortunately for Alfalfa, who is out to impress Darla, the bully Butch takes the place of the Masked Marvel.

If you only want to see Spanky's gang, this DVD is probably not for you. If you are curious about the earliest silent days of the Our Gang comedies, though, this DVD is more than worthy of your attention. I have to admit that I had some serious technical problems with my DVD, although this is hopefully an isolated case. Mary Queen of Tots (1925), the third of the silent films included here, seemed to be very good, but I had to give up halfway through it because both of my DVD players refused to proceed any further. Rounding out the offerings on the DVD are a short history of Our Gang and short biographies of a precious few of the more famous players: Spanky, Alfalfa, Buckweat, Butch, Mickey, and Jackie Cooper. This can sometimes be depressing reading, especially the story of Alfalfa's surprisingly mean-spirited and short life. The biography of Robert Blake, who was then known as Michael Gubitosi, is a little out of date and does not reflect his current eligibility for the Our Gang Hall of Shame.