EPISODE TYPE: Fantasy Situation
(see Common Themes section for more on this category)
WHAT IS WINNIE THE POOH?: An anthro, furry, pooh bear
IS HE MACRO ORIGINALLY?: No
HOW DID HE BECOME MACRO?: Made big in a laboratory in a story being told
MACRO NAME: Frankenpooh
REVIEW OF EPISODE: Not one of my favorite episodes. This is an example of what I feel shouldn't be done in a good macro furry situation. A lot have disagreed with me here on this episode, feeling that a giant Winnie the Pooh no matter how it is done is good enough. But to me this episode is just so bad for so many reasons that I almost cringe every time I think about it. But here it is folks. More proof that I put up anything and everything as long as it fits the theme, even if they aren't one of my favorites it will get up here and given the fair treatment that every other episode around here gets.
This episode was originally only available on made-to-video basis and would later be shown on Toon Disney awhile back mixed in with the various episodes of the New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh that they showed. Mostly though if you wanted to see this you would really have to go out and buy it on tape. I bought it at the time it was first released before it was ever on cable, mostly because the cover had a giant Winnie the Pooh on it and I figured for the price it was at the time it came out, which was $9.99 it was worth taking a chance. I had no idea that this episode would be such a disaster as it turned out to be. The cartoon is made for a very young audience, and that's fine and good. There should be cartoons for every age group. But there have been other cartoons, even ones on this page that were made for the same group that this cartoon is focusing on and they were not nearly as bad as this one was. Disney has been known to do some of the best macro moments before and this is probably one of the worst they did.
First things first, the length of this episode is the real problem. It's made to video and its only about 6-7 minutes long, or so it seemed. I didn't time it exactly but the moments and story end very quickly. The tape did have other Halloween episodes on it to follow but you would think the first episode that the tape was advertising in the first place would be longer and more interesting then it turned out to be. Secondly the story never goes anywhere eventful. It was confusing, silly and down right dumb at points. The whole basis was a Piglet and Tigger enduced story and Piglet wants to tell some Fairy Tale story about nicey-nice stuff while Tigger wants big and scary monsters. After that then it's just random nonsense that is thrown at the poor viewers of this only to wind up with an equally bad and confusing ending dealing with a giant sized Winnie the Pooh who was no where to be found before hand sitting there saying "Oh Bother" as he realizes he took the story they were telling too seriously. It's more like "Why bother?" watching this unless you are just wanting to see a giant Winnie the Pooh. Which I suppose a lot do as this episode does seem to be loved by many out there.
Whether it was the annoying part where Rabbit is yelling "Monster!" while holding the "R" at the end of the word for what seemed like 30 seconds or the breaking the fourth wall moment of Winnie the Pooh growing so big that he hits the very film cell they are on on the film reel it is being shown on. It just had moments like that that ruined the whole situation and seemed to be full of time fillers rather then a fun story involving a giant Winnie on a craving for honey. The only really good moment is at the start when Tigger makes him really really big in this lab we are shown in the story and the first initial rampage moments. After that the story just becomes unwatchable. I'm just shocked that they couldn't make more of this then what they did. Kids can handle a giant Winnie the Pooh lifting a roof and looking for honey or scaring some of his friends as a giant. This cartoon made it out to be that the whole notion of this would scare and give everyone nightmares for years to come. The whole moments seemed pointless and maybe it would have been better if they went about things differently. This all had potential to be a pretty good no frills type of episode but I can't for one second feel that this was done well the way it was. At least make it 12 minutes long and give some story here for the viewers.
The biggest disapointment I suppose is a situation that could have been great to those mega macro fans out there was ruined by the before mentioned fourth wall breaking moment above. Tigger suddenly says something to the extent of "Lets make him quadrooply as big" and Pooh does indeed zoom up in size. But it is more of a blink moment as more of the moment is focused on him struggling to stay in the film. What a bummer to put it lightly. Its not a total loss though. You do get some giant Pooh like moments and for the two minutes or so that has alright situations it is good enough for that. The animation isn't bad at all and it's definitely a better then nothing thing. But not by much.
I really can't believe I spent 10 bucks on this. The episode is not worth that nor is the rest of the tape that is full of more of the same type of not scary or thrilling stories that are supposed to be halloween themed. All I can say is view this at your own risk. The episode isn't cheap to come by on DVD but easy enough to get now on VHS used or otherwise. You have been warned if you decide to go after this episode. Buyer beware.
RATING: D
(Gopher in the story falls down his gopher hole after the giant Pooh monster stomps over head and falls down)
Gopher: "Monsterrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!"
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FINAL NOTES:
*Part of specially released Halloween episodes. It was only released originally on VHS as a made to video cartoon movie released in time for Halloween of 1995 and become part of the shows episodes when the repeats made its way to Toon Disney network on cable. The opening credits and characters in it were all the same as was found on the synidcated "The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh" cartoon series that was often shown on ABC network and later on cable on the Disney Channel. It was set up exactly like any episode of the series would be even before it was included into the mix of episodes.Errors--
Factual -- The whole idea of growing too big to fit on a film cell is very ridiculous even by cartoon standards. There really shouldn't be a size limit to how big one can be drawn as it is all relative to how big the surroundings are drawn and how big you make anything the character is interacting in. The whole idea that the whole Pooh universe takes place on a bunch of film reels just seems a bit silly and a poor use of the fourth wall being broken. Where they realize they are just cartoon characters and nothing more.
Continuity -- Winnie the Pooh wasn't sitting in the room when the story started. In fact Tigger even claims that he is going to go join him as he didn't like the story. But at the end of the story a giant sized Winnie the Pooh is sitting there as if he had been in the room the whole time.
Continuity -- The story was supposed to take place during night. Yet when the giant sized Pooh is walking in the town it is very bright and sunny. When he goes to attack a house towards the end it is dark again.
+ :Giant Winnie the Pooh stomping through the area causing trouble. Tigger makes him really big at one point.
- Very short and the macro moments are far and few in between. Very baddly written and very poorly done. Could have been so much better had it not been written for someone two years old.
