Scott LeBrun Among the Peanuts seasonal specials, 'A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving' does seem to get somewhat lost in the shuffle. This may be because, overall, it's just not as memorable as 'A Charlie Brown Christmas' or 'It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown'.It's still quite delightful for any Peanuts fan, starting off on a classic note as Lucy once gain pulls the football away from our hero. Soon, the terminally wishy-washy Charlie Brown finds himself roped into preparing a Thanksgiving dinner for Peppermint Patty and her friends Marcie & Franklin. This, despite the fact that all he's capable of preparing is cold cereal and maybe toast. But Linus, Snoopy, and Woodstock all pitch in, and before long a feast of toast, jellybeans, pretzel sticks, and popcorn awaits the kids.Giving the special some gravitas is the ever level-headed Linus, who gently reminds us why this holiday exists in the first place.'A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving' definitely has its bonuses. The characters are all funny as usual, with Snoopy and Woodstock taking centre stage for a while. One priceless bit has Snoopy engaging in a battle with an uncooperative chair. That "Little Birdie" tune sung by Peanuts composer Vince Guaraldi is very amusing. And there's that classic hysterical bit of nonsense when an adult voice (Charlie Browns' grandmother) is represented by some squawking on a trumpet.Although lightweight compared to the Christmas and Halloween specials, this is still good, solid, charming entertainment that delivers some honest laughs and subtly stated sentiment.Seven out of 10.

Geeky Randy A Thanksgiving classic about Peppermint Patty inviting herself, Marcie and Franklin over for Thanksgiving, forcing Charlie Brown to recruit Linus, Snoopy and Woodstock to prepare a big holiday dinner. Tenth prime-time animated TV special based upon the popular comic strip PEANUTS. Won an Emmy Award in 1974. You can count on it to be aired every November on ABC, usually back-to-back with the first episode of THIS IS America, CHARLIE BROWN "The Mayflower Voyagers". Like a lot of childhood staples, this has sentimental value to those who grew up with it, but this segment is too brief and dated to really grip those who were introduced to it too late.**½ (out of four)

ExplorerDS6789 What better way to kick off the Thanksgiving season than with Charlie Brown and the Peanuts gang? So this special kicks off (literally) with Lucy once again enticing Charlie Brown to kick the football. He won't fall for it (also literally), until Lucy cites traditional values involved with kicking the pig skin, so CB runs at the ball, Lucy predictably pulls it away and Charlie falls on his back. The cheeky girl then admits tradition means very little to her. When Charlie Brown recovers, he gets back to worrying about the approaching Thanksgiving holiday, and Sally is upset because she hasn't even finished her Halloween candy yet. Wait, how did she get Halloween candy? Didn't she miss trick or treating to sit in a pumpkin patch with Linus? I guess we can count this as taking place in the following year. Anyway, it seems Charlie's family has their Thanksgiving Day plans all set, but disaster looms on the horizon. Doesn't it always? It began with a phone call out of the blue from Peppermint Patty. Now I know a lot of people assume she's a lesbian, but if that were the case, why does she have a crush on Charlie Brown? So anyway, she invites herself over for Thanksgiving at Chuck's, knowing he wouldn't mind. As if that weren't enough, Patty calls back a minute later to say her pal Marcie would be coming too. A trifecta occurs when Patty calls a third time and says Franklin, the only black kid in the entire Peanuts canon, would be coming too. Better do something quick before she invites the whole neighborhood!What a predicament Chuck's got himself into: three guests coming for dinner and he won't even be home. Fortunately he doesn't have to be at Grandma's until 4:30, so Linus suggests he have two dinners. Snoopy offers to help set up and cook, so he awakens his birdie pal Woodstock for assistance. They drag the ping pong table out of the garage and set up fold-out chairs, Snoopy constantly getting hurt in the process. Even getting into a fight with a chair that didn't like being kicked. Now that the table was all set, it's time to bring out the eats. How do you prepare a Thanksgiving dinner on short notice? Use what you've got. Improvise. So with toaster ovens a-blazing, they make a whole stack of toast, make three bowls of popcorn, jelly beans, pretzel sticks. Hey, whatever works. So Patty, Marcie and Franklin arrive promptly and they all sit out back, ready for their makeshift dinner. In lieu of a prayer, Linus tells the story of the first Thanksgiving, and then Snoopy serves up the eats. Since Peppermint Patty is more accustomed to the traditional Thanksgiving dinner (turkey, mashed potatoes, pumpkin pie), she naturally disproves of this flimsy meal and berates Charlie Brown for it. Marcie has to then remind the ungrateful brat that she invited herself and caused this whole mess in the first place. Patty realizes the error of her ways and sends Marcie in after Chuck to make the apology for her. Charlie Brown accepts her apology because he's a saint, and realizes it's now 4:00. Will he make it to Grandma's in time? He calls her to explain their predicament and Granny says, "bring'em along." So they all get in the family Truckster and head off, singing a round of "Over the river and through the woods to Grandmother's house we go." Except Chuck's grandmother lives in a condominium. With the humans gone, Snoopy and Woodstock partake in a traditional Thanksgiving dinner they apparently hoarded from the others. Happy Turkey Day!I'll say this: this is one Thanksgiving special that is NOT a turkey. Though maybe not as beloved as the Peanuts Christmas and Halloween specials, this one is still pretty darn good. It really captures the spirit of this holiday: having to have a big dinner prepared for guests who invite themselves. And while Lucy may not have been a stickler for tradition, Peppermint Patty sure was, belittling Charlie Brown's dinner of toast, popcorn and jellybeans. That reminds me of the Winnie the Pooh Thanksgiving special, as Pooh and friends have a dinner of honey, acorns, biscuits and ice cream, and Rabbit lectures them on what a "proper" Thanksgiving meal should be, so they spend the rest of the special tracking down such things. So anyway, this Thanksgiving, I definitely recommend this special. While this holiday may seem like a needless detour between Halloween and Christmas, there's really much more to it.

Woodyanders Scrappy and willful tomboy Peppermint Patty invites herself and several of her friends over for a Thanksgiving feast at Charlie Brown's house. Worried about being unable to provide a decent meal because of his lackluster cooking skills, Charlie Brown receives some much-needed help from the precocious Linus, the ever-exuberant Snoopy, and Snoopy's jolly pal Woodstock to whip up the best possible food for the grand occasion. Director Bill Melendez and Phil Roman, working from a very warm and witty script by Charles M. Schulz, expertly craft a sensationally breezy and snappy 25-minute cartoon romp that brims over with engaging characters (Linus in particular really shines as he explains the historical significance of Thanksgiving in fascinatingly thorough detail), deliciously dry humor, and a spot-on relevant message about the true meaning of Thanksgiving (it's all about friends and family instead of food). Hilarious highlights include Lucy van Pelt pulling the old football trick on hapless Charlie Brown for the umpteenth time, Snoopy's battle with a pesky uncooperative folding chair, Snoopy tossing plates of food at everybody, and Peppermint Patty blowing up at Charlie Brown at the unacceptable meal of junk food. Moreover, there's a cool jazz ditty called "Little Birdie" and a marvelously spirited music montage sequence depicting Snoopy and company preparing the food for the gala event. The whole thing ultimately culminates in a truly uplifting happy ending. The bright and colorful animation holds up pretty well. Vince Guaraldi's fabulously jaunty score further enhances the infectious merriment. Done with genuine heart and a certain sweet charm, this baby sizes up as a total treat that's essential annual viewing on Thanksgiving day.