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Wednesday, December 20, 2017

Christmas: Charlie and Lola : How Many More Minutes until Christmas

Joshauonline UK  Christmas 

      This time in our Christmas watching  we don't go really for a special  or something Peanuts related instead we delve into something off the wall for us.

   Short in short  : Charlie and Lola is  British animated series that aired on the young children's channel CBeebies and also on BBC Two, it has aired in other countries as well. It's based of a picture book series made by Lauren Child in the year 2000, it got popular to where it became a television series in 2005.


   We are going to be taking a look at the Christmas episode called "How Many More Minutes until Christmas?"




   The episode starts with Charlie explaining to his sister , Lola what an advent calendar is. Then she's in class with her friends and talking about what in the advent calendar and Father Christmas (Santa) .  The days progress on.   She makes a card for her friend Lotta and a card for her invisible friend Soren.  (Who we get to see!)  Then she writes a letter for Santa putting  it the same colored envelope as Lotta, guess what probably will happen later.   It's time to pick a Christmas tree.



    When it's time open the cards for each each other and Lotta opens hers and finds out that the letter for Father Christmas  meaning the two got switched.  Lola worries that Father Christmas might not come , Charlie tries to convince her that maybe if they try again  so she agrees.   When there's a phone call she finds out that her grandparents who she wished in her letter to come,  aren't coming.  Now It's Christmas Eve  and they all go caroling and the snow starts falling meaning (they dreamed a white Christmas).  Charlie and Lola do the Christmas Eve routine leaving milk and cookies out. They  can't find the door for Christmas Day in the advent calendar and I guess imagine themselves in the calendar.  The elves they meet all look dejected and C&L explain to them and wonder where the door went, and the Elves (Who speak in some of repeating thing)  to find out they've ran out of wrapping paper.

    We are Santa Elves.... well never mind / Copyright Tiger Aspect 

       So Charlie and Lola leave the Elves and  then they find out the sky is made of paper and decide to tear some of the sky off to make wrapping paper. Then help wrap up the presents and she wonders if they saw her letter, but they are unsure.  Then her letter makes it through the shoot.  (Charlie and Lola save Christmas)   Now it's Christmas!  (yay)  The presents are wrapped in sky paper  (what is this universe?)  and it apparently Llola asked Father Christmas to give her brother a pineapple, the grandparents make it after all.



        There is sparse writing in this because there are not alot of things that  were in the special that were part of the plot as much.  "Charlie and Lola" is a really good series for younger children  but can be enjoyed by anyone , there characters are charming and sweet.  For a Christmas episode it has alot of Christmas in it, the build up to Christmas from Charlie and Lola's point of view , where time feels slower and the excitement builds.   The animation of the series a whole is a nice mixture of taking the books and applying to animation. It uses a mixture of 2D cel animation , paper cut out , fabric , and photomontage.  Like the Peanuts the adults exist but aren't shown or even heard (even more  like the Peanuts in comic form) and they use child actors for the voices. 

    It's not a bad Christmas episode  either,  I like again like the charm of just showing Christmas ' build up and the things that we do this time of year, making cards , lists, getting trees, advent calendars and more.   Again like the series it's good for younger children that's the target audience but the older children and parents can watch with out feeling  like their brains are melting.


 That's the look at this tune in next time when we find out what happens we we jump into a calendar from 1923.

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