Growing Up Arctic + Puppy Bowl III (Animal Planet DVD/Genius)

 

Picture: C+/C     Sound: C+/C     Extras: C/D     Main Programs: B-/C

 

 

Two new DVDs with enough appeals to get the audience to say “aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww” have been issued by Genius Entertainment from Animal Planet.  Growing Up Artic is the better of the two, with three segments, plus one bonus segment focusing on the lives of four different animals saved from a sad fate thanks to people who care.  A polar bear, seal, walrus and (as a bonus) penguin are the subjects.  All are good programs and the kind that put the network on the map.

 

Sillier and less engaging despite last over two hours is Puppy Bowl III, part of a series of shows the network designed to offset actual Super Bowl broadcasts.  I could see one of them being done, but could these be that successful?  Can you tell one from another?  With puppies this cute, do you care?  Well, you’d had better like them very much or you can forget it.

 

The 1.33 X 1 image in both cases is shot in clean, recent NTSC analog video, though Bowl does not look as clean or clear as it should be.  Maybe it has to do with the ways it was edited, but Arctic is more watchable.  The Dolby Digital 2.0 is on the stereo side in both cases, but Bowl sounds lower and a bit more compressed.  The only extra is on Arctic, Growing Up Penguin, because kids just love ‘em.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo