Danger Mouse: Complete Seasons 3 & 4 [DVD] [1981] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]

Danger Mouse was an incredibly unique animated series. As an adult, I like the droll British humor and drop-ins of other favorite shows like Doctor Who. As a matter of fact if you look at the story "Dangermouse Saves the World Again" from this box set, you will see the brain-sucking machine is really a Dalek upside down.

Some might think this animation was cheaply done. I guess it was. But there are many Japanese anime series that use the same style - limited character movement and the occasional real live background inserted into the animation.

Series 3 + 4 might be better known to some US viewers because these aired on Nickelodeon during the mid 1980's. The show was taken off the air at Nickelodeon not long after these went out, although Cosgrove-Hall continued producing them into the early 90's.

Drawbacks are these episodes are shown the way they aired in the UK as five minute cliffhangers and you have to sit through the theme music/credits over and over and over. That's partly why I went with four stars. That and the extras are kind of weak. I might have liked to see an interview with Mark Hall or Brian Cosgrove reflecting on these particular stories.

I enjoyed Danger Mouse and his clumsy sidekick Penfold twenty years ago. Now I'm enjoying them all over again with my Middle Schooler.

I confess to loving the first 2 seasons of Danger Mouse, but I love these more. Like the last set the episodes come in 2 formats; 5 part stories composed of 5 minute segments, and whole stories in 11 minutes. The only 11 minute episodes are the last 2 of season 3. Here's a review of the episodes, with synopsizes from the box or me.

18. The Invasion of Colonel K: Baron Greenback invades Colonel K's mind to steal all of its secrets. This a great episode. A

19. Danger Mouse Saves The World...Again: Will Danger Mouse lose his thoughts? And the world its signposts? Good episode overall, but the ending was a bit weak. B

20. The Odd Ball Runaround: Danger Mouse & Penfold carry plans from Australia to London. By far the best episode of this season. A+

21. The Strange case of the Ghost Bus: Ghost buses sink ships in the Indian Ocean. There's a reason this episode is only 11 minute; they only had enough funny material for a 5 minute episode & rather than torture us they decided just to make it short. There are some laughs, but not enough. C-

22. The Trip To America: A Texan helps Danger Mouse recover the world's greatest buildings. This is a short episode I wish was longer. Texas Jack McGraw is a funny character. B+

23. The Wild, Wild Goose Chase: A new gizmo leads Danger Mouse to Baron Greenback's hideouts. This is a terrific episode to start season 4 with. A+

24. The Return of Count Duckula: Duckula is back, & he'll turn every political figure in Britain into wannabe thespians unless he gets his own TV show! Can DM & Penfold stop him? The first episode wastes time recapping Duckua's first appearance, but the rest is excellent. A

25. Demons Aren't Dull: But this episode is. Danger Mouse faces off with a demon from the fourth dimension. The demon promised a refreshing change from Greenback, but after the first episode the laughs only come fitfully. C

26. 150 Million Years Lost: Poor Penfold is caught in the past by Professor Squakencluck. A great episode with some of my favorite lines in the whole series (Danger Mouse meets a knight in armor, & the knight laughs. DM: "I thought we weren't going to have canned laughter on this show.") A

27. Planet of the Cats: Danger Mouse & Penfold get sent to a future world filled with cats. A pretty funny Planet of the Apes spoof. B+

28. Four Heads Are Better Than Two: Danger Mouse & Penfold are partnered with robotic duplicates of each other in a move to double their chances to catch Baron Greenback. Great premise & a great execution. A+

29. Tower of Terror: Danger Mouse & Penfold are trapped in a New York skyscraper where nothing makes sense. This is one of my all-time favorite Danger Mouse episodes ever. The randomness of it all makes it a joy to watch over and over again. A+

30. The Great Bone Idol: Baron Greenback & Duckula team up to steal the great bone idol, which has the power to control all the dogs in the world. The best episode featuring Duckula yet, with a lot of really funny jokes (the running gag about cliffhangers is hysterical). A+

31. Public Enemy No. 1: Danger Mouse gets amnesia, & Greenback convinces him he's the White Shadow, who robs from the rich & gives to the poor (DM: Oh, like, um, "thingymibob."). Standard amnesia episode, with no real twists & not enough laughs. C

And that's the last we'll see of the 5 chapter episodes. Oh well at least they were getting better, so we went out with some real good ones. One of the best things about watching them is Isenbaed's (the Narrator) recaps & questions. He got some funny ones in season 2, but here; well, let me explain something first. I saw a lot of these on VHS, where the 5-part stories had the recaps, cliffhangers & credits edited out, destroying great gags. Penfold: "What will save us now?" Danger Mouse: "Only one thing can save us. The end of episode 4." The recaps were a lot more fun, with the Narrator making more puns, snide commentary & especially going for added alliterative appeal (it was amazing how he did that a lot & it never felt repetitive). Also, some of my favorite lines of his come during the cliffhangers edited out. "There are 2 ways to find out what happens next. Either bribe the scriptwriters or tune in to the next episode!" My favorite line of his in this collection (that I can remember offhand) is his comment on a cliffhanger (or was it a recap, I forget) in Tower of Terror where Danger Mouse falls off the edge of the film. "To see how this situation develops, tune in next time." I really like the animation style too. The comic book sound effects, the designs (the live-action stuff in the background always makes me chuckle), and the facial expressions are all good, if not the best. I'd still recommend Seasons 5 & 6 over this set for first time viewers or those who haven't seen it in years, but as you can tell this is still a pretty darn good buy. Tune in next time, when the series gets really good, on Penfold! And Isenbaed! Oh, & Danger Mouse too.

If your not familiar with the series, it is about a secret agent mouse and his hedgehog sidekick. Produced by the BBC in the early 80's. Campy but fun. This is the set that I think I can remember most of, and the writing gets even better!