Movie Info:
Writers: Various
Directors: Various
Cast: Lucille Bliss, Michael Bell, William Callaway, Hamilton Camp, June Foray, Danny Goldman, Don Messick, Frank Welker, Alan Young, Alan Oppenheimer
Rating: Not Rated
Studio: Warner Home Video
Release Info:
Television Release: September 1982-November 1982
DVD Release Date: March 3, 2009
Online Availability: Amazon for $10.99
One of my favorite cartoons of all time is The Smurfs. I’ve been watching The Smurfs since I was three or four years old. I enjoy watching whenever I see the show on television. What’s not to love about the Smurfs? The cartoon is amongst the best the 80s had to offer. They just don’t make cartoons like this anymore. This is also a Hanna-Barbera cartoon. HB owned the cartoon market from the 60s through the 90s.
I already reviewed The Smurfs – Season One, Vol. One and The Smurfs: Season One, Volume Two. I prefer these cartoons in bigger sets. I’m greedy. I want all the episodes I can get, while I can. I’m not sure why Warner decided to release The Smurfs: True Blue Friends (Vol. 1) in a five episode set. It leaves me wanting more episodes and is a waste of money, in my opinion. Still, fans of the show will purchase this DVD just because this is all that is available with these specific episodes, to date.
The Smurfs are the creation of Peyo and I, like many other fans of the show, are so grateful he invented these little blue creatures. The Smurfs is a great show the entire family can enjoy together. There isn’t anything parents will object to, that their children will see on this show. Every episode teaches a lesson. The smurfs must share, work together, and they are almost always happy. Many of the Smurfs represent personality traits that kids can relate to and there is also the classic good vs. evil at play here with Gargamel being evil and always trying to hurt the good smurfs.
The Smurfs show was on for nearly a decade. The show has a universal appeal that both adults and children will enjoy. Boys and girls can watch this show together. Everyone can have fun watching episodes of The Smurfs on this DVD. It’s the perfect DVD for a family night, especially since so many of the cartoons out today aren’t nearly as good as this one. There isn’t much more praise I can give this show. Just know that it rocks.
The Smurfs: True Blue Friends (Vol. 1) Episodes Plot
This is a Vol. 1 set of The Smurfs. This means there are only five episodes included in this one DVD set. I much prefer the season box sets. I already own the Season One Box Sets, but these episodes are all from Season Two of the show, so if you need an additional Smurfs fix, this set will tide you over.
Here is a list of the five episodes included on this DVD, with a description for each of them.
#2.4 – “S-Shivering S-Smurfs” (Originally Aired on September 25, 1982) – It’s autumn in the Smurf’s village and it looks like a snow storm is about to hit. Tracker Smurf tries to warn everyone, so they can prepare for the snowfall, but none of the smurfs will listen. They head out for picnics, painting and fun.
Papa Smurf confirms the early winter storm is coming by his Almanac, so he tells the smurfs to prepare for the storm. The smurfs decide its too hot to work so they slough off when preparing. They even laugh at Tracker and his fur coat, but once it starts snowing they realize the err of their ways. Of course, they have to endure hardship and help from Tracker before they learn their lesson.
#2.24 – “Turncoat Smurf” (Originally Aired on November 6, 1982) – Gargamel and Azrael are chasing Smurfs. He’s been very persistent in trying to catch smurfs lately. Papa Smurf decides to make a potion to make Gargamel nice, but instead of changing one person’s personality, it makes two people exchange personalities. He finds this out when he accidentally dumps it on Smurfette and Grouchy, so he has no choice but to also make an antidote.
With all this potion making, Papa Smurf has been working too hard. As a result, he decides to take a three day rest. With Papa asleep, Brainy decides to spy on everyone and report their misbehavior to Papa when he awakens. He writes everything down in code, so the other smurfs can’t find out what he’s writing. This makes all of the smurfs very suspicious of Brainy. To make matters worse, Gargamel has a dog now, who tracks the scent of the smurfs back to the Smurf village creating havoc. The smurfs believe that Brainy is working as a Turncoat with Gargamel to help him capture smurfs, and his secret code helped lead him to the village. The only hope is the personality potion, which ends up swapping Gargamel’s personality with Azrael.
#2.1 – “The Smurf Who Couldn’t Say No” (Originally Aired on September 18, 1982) – Pushover Smurf is the smurf who can’t say no. Brainy decides to take advantage of this by having him do his work for him. Smurfette needs Pushover to help her, too. Then Hefty decides that he’ll take advantage of the fact that Pushover will do whatever he asks. Tracker and Handy both decide to have him do their work for him, also because they want to get a bite to eat and go swimming. With Smurfette, Clumsy, and all the other Smurfs expecting Pushover to do stuff for them, Pushover has had enough. The preparations for the evening celebration all fall onto the shoulders of Pushover. He ends up being too tired to enjoy the party for which he’s been preparing all day.
This party is to choose the Foxfire Smurf. When Scaredy Smurf picks the one green berry in the bunch to become Foxfire Smurf, he decides to ask Pushover to do the job for him. Pushover agrees, when he sees how scared Scaredy is, and so he heads out into the forest to collect the Foxfire, unaware of the warnings Papa had given Scaredy about putting the fire out. When Pushover accidentally puts out the Foxfire flame, Pushover must escape. Thinking something happened to Pushover, Scaredy braves the scariness of the forest to go save him.
#2.18 “The Haunted Castle” (Originally Aired on October 23, 1982) – Brainy, Papa Smurf, and Smurfette are far away from the Smurf village. They are looking for something Papa Smurf needs. The land is very dry and Smurfette thinks it needs some rain. She gets her wish and it starts pouring. The two must get to higher ground. Peewit and Johan are out riding when they get caught in the storm, as well. They find an abandoned castle where they seek shelter. This is where they meet Papa Smurf, Smurfette and Brainy, who are also seeking shelter.
It isn’t long before they realize they aren’t really alone in the castle. Their investigations show that no one is in the castle, save for a ghost, who seems to be haunting the castle. They learn he has been haunting the castle due to a curse by a Sorceress. Together, they decide to help him lift the curse, which will bring water to the drought covered countryside. Once they do this though, only the true heir to the castle can release the ghost. This is easier said then done when multiple “supposed” heirs show up to claim the castle.
#2.5 “The Black Hellebore” (Originally Aired on September 25, 1982) – While the Smurfs are out with Papa Smurf, they discover a beautiful flower. Papa Smurf warns them not to touch it. It is a black hellebore, the most dangerous plant around. He promises to explain why it is so dangerous later, but plans to make this one harmless. Elsewhere, Peewit is in the castle singing a horrendous song. Johan decides to hop out of the window to escape the agony, where he meets a beautiful princess, Sabina.
In the same castle, the king’s poison maker, Cloderic, ends up putting a spell on the king through his meal (he puts it in his food when Peewit is distracting the cook with his bad singing), which puts the king to sleep. Johan decides to try and stop Cloderic. He travels with Peewit and the Princess to find the wizard, Homnibus and Papa Smurf, who come up with the antidote. Once the King has awakened and banishes Cloderic, he vows this isn’t the last they’ve seen of him. This is the truth, and his return involves the evil, black hellebore flower.
Storyline/Plot: 
Replayability:
Acting:
Directing:
Audio/Visual:
The Smurfs were around when I was a kid, so when you consider that these episodes look pretty good. That being said, this disc does not come without fault. There are moments of dirt, grain, spots, and other assorted problems. These are small issues though and it’s likely they are things that children will not even notice. The 1.33:1 aspect ratio appears to be what you would see if this show was on television again. The colors are good and the show definitely offers that retro cartoon feel that will make 80s kids feel good inside. Overall, this is by no means a terrible visual quality. In fact, it’s quite smurfy!
The biggest complaint that I have with the audio is that it changes quite a bit. When listening to the menu, the music plays much louder then when the episodes actually play. The volume had to be turned up quite a bit to be at a comfortable hearing level when the episodes were playing. Once the volume was turned up, it did have to be played with a few times, as the dialogue plays at a softer volume than the music, which often booms right through the speakers. Toggling was the biggest issue. There were no issues with distortion or sound deterioration. Assuming the sound was at the right level, at the right time, everything sounded good. In addition to English audio there are subtitles in English for the Hearing Impaired and French.
Visual: 
Audio:
Bonus Features:
There are a selection of trailers and previews available for other Warner Home Video cartoons including Peanuts the Deluxe Holiday Collection, Sesame Street Presents: Follow that Bird, Scooby-Doo Where are You? Vol. 1, Tom and Jerry Tales Vol. 6, The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest, and The Wiggles Present Dorthy the Dinosaur. The other available feature is called Meet the Smurfs and it gives you a chance to pick one of a number of smurfs and learn more about them. There could have been a lot more here, but since it’s just a five episode set I suppose the powers that be at WHV didn’t feel the need to add a large selection of bonuses.
Bonus Features:
Bottom Line:
While I, personally, would hold out for a bigger, season set, I don’t have a problem with owning The Smurfs: True Blue Friends. I love The Smurfs. It’s been a favorite show of mine since I was a kid. I can’t imagine anyone who hasn’t seen The Smurfs. If by some chance your children have not, this five episode volume set is a great way to introduce them to the coolest, little blue people the 80s ever could have introduced. With a pretty good quality for a show that’s almost 30 years old, this DVD’s episodes look great. I’d be hard for me not to recommend The Smurfs: True Blue Friends. Pick up your copy today.
Overall Rating:
Technorati Tags: DVD review, The Smurfs, Hanna-Barbera, Warner Brothers, Warner Home Video, True Blue Friends, Vol. 1, Cartoon, Kids, Family
Written by Ashtyn Evans – Visit Website
—
Ashtyn is in her early 30s. She is a mother, writer, college student, and music lover. Ashtyn has had a successful career as a writer since 2003. She turned to blogging in 2005. Ashtyn attends Wright State where she is getting a degree in Psychology. She has extensive knowledge in SEO and Social Media Development.
