Film: 
DVD:
Written by Mike Harding & Brian Trueman
Directed by Brian Cosgrove
Starring David Jason, Terry Scott, Edward Kelsey, Brian Trueman
Features:
- Theme song karaoke
- Character descriptions
Released by: A&E Home Video.
Region: 1
Rating: NR
Anamorphic: N/A; appears in its original 1.33:1 aspect ratio
My Advice: For fans.
[ad#longpost]When the world is in danger, there’s only one mouse who can take on all odds and win the day: and that’s Danger Mouse (Jason). With his trusty sidekick Penfold (Scott), he’s ready to be dispatched by Colonel K (Kelsey) anywhere that’s necessary in order to thwart the nefarious schemes of that evil type, Baron Silas Greenback (also Kelsey).
This show’s run here stateside on Nickelodeon won it a respectable following, though I just never watched the channel as a kid, so I missed out on all that. It’s easy to see why this could win so many young admirers: the stories are wacky and surreal, filled with simple animation and goofball antics. All you need for a good example is check out the scene where Danger Mouse and Penfold are given whatfor by a funny bone while shrunken down to microscopic (though still visible to naked eye) size and inside Colonel K’s body.
Unfortunately, I must be outside the normal age range that can get into this, because while some of the Brit humor is nice, it’s ultimately too kiddie for my personal tastes. Not a dig against the show itself, it’s just not my thing. Part of that is a casualty of the way the show’s laid out: the chapters of each adventure are snippets as opposed to a thirty minute block, and each one starts off with a squashed synopsis of the chapters that have come before. Thus, five chapters in, I found myself sick to damn death of having the story rehashed over and over again. Not to mention the fact you get the closing credits each time as well. The cute theme song grates very quickly like this. What would have been nice is an option to let me watch the story all the way through without the rehash, to make all the shows in a storyline seamless.
The only real feature on here is the karaoke of the theme song, which, as I’ve said, after watching through the episodes in this format, you’ve fast forwarded through it so often that it’s obviously only the hardcore who will enjoy this. The set is obviously for those aforementioned folks, since a nice featurette regarding the context for the show would have been nice. Even one of those fluff pieces where they get some talking heads to go over why the show was a cool part of their childhood would have been something. But alas.
Again, I’m sure if I had watched the thing as a younger creature I probably would be in a better place to enjoy it now. Fans, the target of this set, will appreciate this and will find it worth owning.
