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Mission Magic is moderately magical
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I chose Mission: Magic as the second subject for my "Animation Friday" series because it is another DVD set that provides the complete series and because it is one of the more obscure items in my collection. I was surprised that it was released, and a friend who I told that I bought it responded that the studios will put anything on DVD.
This psychedelic-styled cartoon is best known for starring an animated version of rising star Rick Springfield, and I did not watch it when it ran on Saturday mornings in the 1973-1974 season. I got hooked on very fuzzy syndicated reruns on Channel 8 out of Portland, Maine, that ran before school when I was in the third grade.
In watching some of the series' 16 episodes on DVD, I enjoyed the nostalgic look of the bell bottoms and heavily psychedelic images. I also got a kick out of Rick Springfield's shoulder-length hair and the catchy pop songs that I believed that he wrote and sang. If this working class dog did not write them, I want to go along with the charade that he did and see no reason to change. I want to warn potential viewers of the strong risk that the theme song will embed itself into your brain.
The animation is predictably cheesy, and the plots are simply bizarre. However, the set is worth owning for the sake of having a childhood favorite or simply an example of psychedelic animation. If this does not appeal to you, I recognize that telling you that I love the show is probably moot.
I have far less kind words for the abysmal special features. An interview with the show's producer was very general and did not provide much of interest. An interview with his daughter, who was a voice actress on the show, did not even include any information about the specific characters that she voiced. I am slightly surprised that the set did not include an interview with Springfield or at least a segment on the music from the show.
A longer feature on the Filmation studio that produced this show and several others reminded me of a very bad version of the hilarious mockumentaries, such as "Best in Show" an "A Mighty Wind," that Christopher Guest and his collaborators produce. I watched approximately 10 minutes of this 30-minute train wreck and did not see one clip from The Archies series, Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids, or the other cartoons that this studio produced. Nor did I see an interview with any mildly recognizable name that was associated with these programs. I fast-forwarded through the rest of the feature and did not see any animation or recognizable face.
Please post any comments or questions that will not totally bum me out man to this entry or e-mail them to tvdvdguy@gmail.com. Have a groovy weekend and don't talk to strangers or accept any hallucinogenic substances from them man.
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