Courtesy: Shout! Kids/Shout! Factory
Valentine’s Day is right around the corner yet again. For many that means the annual barrage of candy, flowers, and cards. For children, it means the annual “holiday” parties if they still have them. Regardless of whether or not schools still hold the parties in question, Shout! Factory Kids has a new DVD on the way next Tuesday that the whole family will *ahem* love to watch together to celebrate the big day. Pound Puppies: Puppy Love will be released next Tuesday, February 3rd on DVD. The compilation, the sixth from the hit Discovery Family series, offers plenty for audiences to enjoy beginning with the writing behind the episodes. The Pound Puppies face some of their biggest challenges in this compilation. From having to get the most puppies adopted ever in one episode to facing off against a megalomaniacal dog catcher voiced by Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory) and having to navigate a nasty dispute between two neighbors in order to unite a puppy with its perfect child, the writing in each episode is more than enough reason for audiences to pick up this collection. As if those challenges aren’t enough, love is also in the air for Niblet and Lucky. Twice over, Lucky and Cookie have to admit their feelings for one another. And in another episode, Niblet has to face a big decision when he meets a female sheep dog. Collectively, the writing in the episodes culled for this DVD more than makes it worth adding to any family’s home library. As impressive as the writing is, the work of the voice actors adds even more enjoyment to the presentation. This includes the extensive list of guest stars that make appearances. Last worth noting of this new compilation that makes it so enjoyable is its bonus printable valentine. The DVD’s box art is used for the dual-sided card. And audiences need only have Adobe Reader to open the card and print it out. After printing it out, young audiences can give the card to their favorite pet or to their own parents or even a friend. Regardless of who receives the bonus printable card, it proves to be one more reason for any family to add Pound Puppies: Puppy Love to their own home library. Together with the work of the voice actors and of the show’s writers, it proves to be another great new release from Shout! Factory Kids.
Shout! Factory Kids’ latest collection of episodes from the hit Discovery Family series Pound Puppies is a welcome addition to any family’s home library. This is the case whether on Valentine’s Day or any time of the year. The central reason for its enjoyment is the writing behind its episodes. The episodes culled for this compilation see the Pound Puppies face some of their biggest challenges yet. The simply titled episode “The General” presents just one of those challenges. This episode sees the Pound Puppies facing the massive challenge of getting some sixty-seven puppies adopted. Of course it just so happens that McLeish is forced to hold an adoption fair by the mayor. Even with the perfect opportunity there, things don’t exactly go fully as planned when Cookie decides to start acting like The General. The central story is enjoyable within itself because of the challenge facing the Pound Puppies. The underlying message sent to young viewers about being proud of who they are makes the episode even more enjoyable. It is a message that viewers of all ages will appreciate.
In another episode, “McLeish Unleashed,” the Pound Puppies have and equally big challenge as they have to face off against the megalomaniacal Milton Feltwaddle (Jim Parsons—The Big Bang Theory) and get McLeish back as the head of Shelter 17. Milton takes over Shelter 17 when McLeish is promoted to a management position in the city’s wastewater management department. Any viewer familiar with the classic sitcom Hogan’s Heroes will love the direct tribute to that series as Feltwaddle turns Shelter 17 into a virtual concentration camp. It the most direct throwback to Hogan’s Heroes yet with Feltwaddle even donning a military uniform, looking almost like Colonel Klink. Of course the Pound Puppies end up defeating Feltwaddle. The catch is that they have to rely on some unlikely help. Fellow veteran voice actor Frank Welker makes an appearance, too albeit in a bit role. Even in a bit role, Welker shows such expertise and respect for his cast mates. Of course that will be discussed at more length later. Whether for the direct throwback to Hogan’s Heroes or for the story itself, it proves to be one more great addition to the compilation, showing even more its value in any family’s home library.
One more major challenge that the Pound Puppies face comes in the form of “Rebound’s First Symphony.” Veteran Actress Betty White joins comedienne Margaret Cho and veteran voice actresses Cree Summer (Clifford The Big Red Dog, Codename: Kids Next Door, Tiny Toon Adventures) and Grey DeLisle (Clifford The Big Red Dog, Curious George, The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy) in this episode that sees the Pound Puppies trying to unite a musically gifted puppy named Yo Yo with a girl named Sumalee. Sumalee is a gifted violinist. But pressure from her mom is making her not enjoy playing her violin. What’s worse, Agatha’s (Betty White—Hot in Cleveland, The Golden Girls) dog Rebound (Brooke Goldner—Pound Puppies, Littlest Pet Shop) enjoys Sumalee’s playing, too. Her love for Sumalee’s talents is so much that it leads to a growing fight between Agatha and Sumalee’s mother Mrs. Wattana (Margaret Cho). The fight in question doesn’t make the Pound Puppies mission to unite Sumalee and Yo Yo any easier. But they do bring them together. The fight between Agatha and Mrs. Wattana is pretty funny in itself. It will have audiences of all ages laughing. And the story that sees the Pound Puppies’ mounting challenge makes this episode even more enjoyable. The secondary message about the pressure placed on young people is something to which so many viewers will be able to relate. It makes the episode even more welcome an addition to this compilation, thus making even more reason for any family to add the DVD to their home library.
The challenges faced by the Pound Puppies in their latest group of adventures make for more than their share of reason for audiences to check out Pound Puppies: Puppy Love. Being a Valentine’s Day-themed compilation, there are a couple episodes that see love in the air. Cookie and Lucky finally have to admit to their feelings for each other not once but twice in this collection in “The General” and “When Niblet Met Giblet.” The latter of the two episodes also sees Niblet falling for a female sheep dog named Giblet (Ashley Johnson—Ben 10: Omniverse, Teen Titans Go!, Ben 10: Ultimate Alien). This episode presents something of a bittersweet story Niblet ends up having to make a very difficult decision. As bittersweet as the story proves to be in the end, it still reminds viewers that love is possible. Cookie has to admit her feelings for Lucky in the prior of the pair when the General, who turns out to be a female dog, calls on the Pound Puppies. These two episodes in conjunction with the others already noted show once and for all just why the writing in the episodes more than makes Pound Puppies: Puppy Love worth adding to any family’s home library.
The work that went into the writing in each of this disc’s episodes is more than enough reason for audiences to make it the latest addition to their home libraries. As impressive as the writing proves to be, the work of the show’s voice cast is also worth noting. Whether it be the series’ main cast or the extensive list of guest actors enlisted for these episodes everyone involved in bring the episodes to life is well deserving of their applause. Jim Parsons’ portrayal of the megalomaniacal Milton Feltwaddle is hilarious. Any viewer that is familiar with Parsons’ portrayal of Sheldon Cooper on the Big Bang Theory will love seeing that same character style expressed in this setting. Parsons shows not once but twice in this set why he is one of the most respected comedic actors out there today in his role as Feltwaddle. Betty White’s Agatha is a recurring character in Pound Puppies. White’s work with famed comedienne Margaret Cho in “Rebound’s First Symphony” is just as entertaining. It’s obvious that White and Cho had fun working together on this episode as their characters’ conflict increases. There is something about the pair’s back and forth as the conflict escalates that shows how much fun the women had making the episode. It is just as obvious when Mrs. Wattana is forced to rely on Agatha in order to get her daughter. On another note, veteran voice actor Frank Welker appears in a bit role as a young girl’s father in “McLeish Unleashed.” Even in a bit role, he is still entertaining. He doesn’t try to ham up his few lines, instead letting his cast mates hold the spotlight. Considering that Welker (Curious George, Scooby-Doo Where Are You, The Real Ghostbusters) has spent most of his career voicing central roles, his control in this episode shows his professionalism. In turn, it makes it even greater to see and hear him at work in this setting. Lauren Tom (Futurama, Friends, The Joy Luck Club) makes an appearance in one episode, too. And it goes without saying that she is just as entertaining in her role. Her acting and that of the rest of the voice cast in these episodes adds to the episodes’ overall enjoyment. Together with the work of the show’s writers, both the writing and acting make for plenty of enjoyment in these episodes and even more proof of why this new DVD is a welcome addition to any family’s home library.
The work put in by the voice cast and the writers in the episodes culled for Pound Puppies: Puppy Love collectively makes for plenty of reason for any family to add this DVD to their home library. For all of the enjoyment that they garner, they still are not all that make it worth the purchase. The DVD’s bonus printable valentine rounds out the entire package. The double-sided card uses the DVD’s box art for its artwork. And the message that “you’re top dog, Valentine” will put a smile on anybody’s face whether it be another child or a parent. All a person needs to print out the valentine is Adobe Reader. It’s that easy. All a person has to do to get there is open the disc from “My Computer” and open it manually to get to the valentine. The valentine comes complete with specific folding instructions to make things even easier. Parents can help children fold the card once it’s printed out. Or if parents think their children are old enough, kids can print out the card and fold it themselves before giving it to a friend or to their parents. It’s the finishing touch on a DVD that even without it would still have been a great valentine from any parent to any child. The addition of the valentine just makes it that much more enjoyable. Together with the work of the show’s writers and the voice actors, it is the last part of the whole proving why any family will want to add the DVD to their home library this Valentine’s Day.
Whether for the work of the show’s writers or that of the voice cast, the work of both shine in their own way in every episode culled for Pound Puppies: Puppy Love. The addition of a bonus printable valentine adds an extra touch to the presentation in whole. It is an extra touch that will allow parents and their children to spent even more time together and could even bring them together emotionally too after the valentine is printed out and assembled. The combination of all of these elements makes Pound Puppies: Puppy Love yet another solid release from Shout! Factory Kids. They show without a bit of doubt why Pound Puppies: Puppy Love is one more welcome addition to any family’s home library. It will be available on DVD next Tuesday, February 3rd. It can be pre-ordered now direct from Shout! Factory’s online store at https://www.shoutfactory.com/kids/kids-animation/pound-puppies-puppy-love. More information on this and other titles from Shout! Factory Kids is available online at:
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