When compared to the original Charlie Brown Christmas this movie seems to be less social commentary and more an excuse for gags. It's more cartoonish and has more obvious laughs rather than any irony or important things to say.

There's another Xmas play in this 'un. Peppermint Patty is refusing to do any homework and is annoyed that Marcie is playing Mary and she is left with the thankless role of a sheep. Still, she's determined to steal as much scenery as possible. Charlie Brown is selling his old comics to buy an Xmas present for his wannabe girlfriend and his sister Sally has only one word to say in the play 'HARK' but she ends up yelling 'HOCKEY STICK' instead.

More like a series of Peanuts vignettes than a real TV special. But still nice.

The only thing this short has going over its predecessor is the animation has improved. However, considering that the animation of the original Charlie Brown Christmas isn't really something to get worked up over, it leaves little room for this short to be as relevant.

The characters are still as sweet, but the first one spent a lot of time dealing with the anxiety of the season while this one just kind of presented it as it is. The first one had a lot to say, this one didn't.

Most importantly, the first one was funnier.

Not that this isn't an enjoyable experience by any means. They make a good back-to-back show together and Snoopy always jumps the quality up from good to great. So enjoy.

--PolarisDiB

The Peanuts gang return for this breezy and entertaining romp. The ever-hapless Charlie Brown tries without any success to sell wreaths door to door in order to raise twenty-five dollars so he can buy a gift for the adorable Peggy Jean, Peppermint Patty struggles with a book report, Sally tries to memorize the one line she has to say in the upcoming Christmas play, and Snoopy gets into his usual mischief which includes posing as a sidewalk Santa. Director Bill Melendez and writer Charles M. Schulz string together an amusing series of random vignettes while maintaining a pleasingly wry tone and snappy pace throughout. The delightfully jaunty'n'jazzy score by Vince Guaraldi and David Benoit and beautifully fluid animation both help matters a lot. The voice actors all do fine work, with stand-out contributions from John Christian Graas as the precocious Linus, Lindsay Benesh as bespectacled brainiac Marcie, and Deanna Tollo as the sweet Peggy Jean. The Christmas play rates as a definite hilarious highlight, with Peppermint Patty forgetting her one line as a sheep ("Baaa!"). Granted, this program isn't as poignant or thoughtful as the terrific classic original, but it still makes for a perfectly amiable diversion just the same.