Finally, Special Features
George Buttner | Dayton, Ohio United States | 10/28/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
"When rating this DVD, I consider three factors:
1. Cover Art --- Very nice picture of Arthur and D.W., although the coloring is a little dark. The pictures throughout the DVD box and DVD menus are also pretty nice.
2. Story Selection --- I wouldn't say these stories are among the best of the "Arthur" series, but they're not too bad. In "D.W.'s Time Trouble," D.W. and Nadine go back in time to see what it would be like if D.W. were the older sibling. Some very amusing stuff here with the "baby store" and some touching moments with Arthur and D.W. Next, there's "To Tibble the Truth," in which the Tibbles learn that telling the truth is good, but you shouldn't be bluntly honest. This story uses Alberto and Vicita, two new characters introduced in more recent seasons of the show. Finally, "Waiting to Go" riffs off of the existential play "Waiting for Godot." Very interesting dynamic of Binky and Brain, two very unalike characters. Some intriguing discussion of relativity and other stuff that likely will go straight over the heads of most of the target audience.
3. Special Features --- Hmm, mmm. It's nice that "Arthur" DVDs now have special features, but most of this is just stuff transplanted from the official website. There's a read-along of "Arthur's Family Feud" that I know I've seen on the site before. I guess this fits in with the "getting along" theme. There are also parent tips from the site. Probably the best special feature is actually a cute show preview for "Connie the Cow." There are also previews for a few shows that used to be on the PBSKids "Bookworm Bunch." This is also the first one of the first "Arthur" DVDs to feature continuous play. One other thing of note is that the close-caption track has been removed and replaced by larger white subtitles without any blackground. I don't mind this, since they're easier to read and don't have any accuracy problems."