Jennifer Hale

The brainchild of Rocko's Modern Life creator Joe Murray, the half-hour animated series Camp Lazlo was set at a summer camp populated by goofy-looking anthropomorphic animals. Most of the "Bean Scouts" at Camp Kidney were willing to follow orders and toe the line, which was just the way that Scoutmaster Lumpus, a egocentric, control-freak moose, preferred to have things. Unfortunately for Lumpus, he had to contend with the rule-bending shenanigans that went on in the camp's "Jelly Cabin". Ringleader for the troublemakers was Bean Scout Lazlo, a mischievous monkey; his best friends and co-conspirators were Raj, an adolescent elephant, and Clam, a pygmy rhino. To counteract the hijinks of Lazlo and his buddies, Lumpus kept a pair of obnoxious snitches at his beck and call: Slinkman, a nerdish banana slug; Edward, a snotty, anal-retentive Platypus; and Edward's own flunkeys, the dung beetles (Chip and Skip). Some of the episodes focused on the great rivalry between Camp Kindey and the all-girl Squirrel Scouts in the camp on the other side of Leakey Lake. Foremost among the Squirrel Scouts were Gretchen the alligator, Nina the giraffe, and Patsy the mongoose, who had a crush on Lazlo (and frequently crushed him in her enthusiasm!) A good, old-fashioned exercise in harmless cartoon nihilism, Camp Lazlo premiered July 8, 2005, on the Cartoon Network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Having already inspired two feature films combining live action with computer animation, E.B. White's whimsical 1945 children's book Stuart Little was transformed into a 13-episode, cel-animated TV series, which debuted in America over the HBO Family cable channel on March 8, 2003. As before, the stories centered on the Manhattan-dwelling Little family, who managed to adjust to the fact that their "son" Stuart was a three-inch-tall talking mouse. While Mr. and Mrs. Little and Stuart's brother were amenable to this setup, the family cat, Snowball, was sorely annoyed at having to play up to a "master" who under any other circumstances would have been Snowball's midnight snack. Forsaking the gentle New Yorker humor of the White original and the daffy slapstick of the movies, the TV series adhered to the Kid Vid party line by having Stuart help his family solve all their problems ("You're never too little to do big things"). Of the actor who appeared in the films, only Hugh Laurie provides the voice for the cartoon version of Mr. Little, while the computerized Stuart of the big screen was seen only in wraparound segments. Stuart Little was produced by Sony Pictures. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The most adorable little superheroines in all of Townsville make the jump to the big screen in this feature-length animated adventure based on the popular Cartoon Network series The Powerpuff Girls. Brilliant scientist Professor Utonium (voice of Tom Kane) is performing an experiment in his lab when Jojo, a monkey trained to assist the professor, accidentally drops a bottle of hyper-powerful Chemical X into a mixture of sugar, spice, and everything nice. To the professor's surprise, what should emerge from the subsequent chemical reaction but three little girls: bright and practical Blossom (voice of Cathy Cavadini), sweet and sunny Bubbles (voice of Tara Strong), and tomboyish Buttercup (voice of Elizabeth Daily). Professor Utonium discovers that the girls have remarkable powers and super-human strength, and he hopes they'll be able to improve life in the crime-infected City of Townsville. However, after their first day at Pokey Oaks Kindergarten with Ms. Keane (voice of Jennifer Hale), the girls learn that having super powers can be both a blessing and a curse. Rejected by their classmates and quite unhappy, the girls are easily swayed when Mojo Jojo (voice of Roger L. Jackson), a superintelligent monkey in a turban, asks them to help him with a campaign to save the city. What the girls don't know is that Mojo Jojo is actually the monkey who once assisted the Professor; now he's embraced evil and hopes to use the Powerpuff Girls as part of his criminal scheme to wrestle control of Townsville away from the dense but well-meaning Mayor (voice of Tom Kenny). The Powerpuff Girls Movie was directed and co-written by Craig McCracken, who created the original television show as well as writing most of the episodes. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

This home video release finds an interesting way to repackage older Disney cartoons. Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse, finds Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, and all of the other beloved Disney animated characters unable to leave a holiday party. In order to pass the time, the gang watches a compilation of holiday-themed short films. There is something for every member of the family on this look at Disney older efforts. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

This adventure story, created with state-of-the-art computer animation technology, follows the adventurer Sinbad (voice of Brendan Fraser) as he discovers a mysterious island ruled by King Akron (voice of John Rhys-Davies) and his daughter, Princess Serena (voice of Jennifer Hale). Their benevolent rule is being challenged by Baraka (voice of Leonard Nimoy), a vicious wizard who uses his powers to sway the island to his own evil purposes. Serena enlists Sinbad's help in a voyage to find the missing ingredients for a spell that will conquer Baraka once and for all. Sinbad: Beyond the Veil of Mists was the first full-length animated feature using the 3-D Animated Motion Capture process, which allows computer animators to translate the movements of live actors into animated characters, providing a heightened degree of realistic, natural movement. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Mark Twain's classic novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is re-created here as an animated adventure movie. Featuring a country music soundtrack with songs by Hank Williams Jr., Waylon Jennings and Lee Ann Womack, the video is also accented with famous voices, like those of Don Knotts and Betty White. The characters have all been resurrected as animals; Tom and Becky are cats, Huck is a fox, and Injun Joe (more sensitively corrected to be "Injurin' Joe" in this production) is a bear. The animation is excellent, though the plot itself is a looser interpretation of Twain's story. Children aged five to 12 should enjoy the story and lively animation while getting a basic introduction to a classic piece of literature. ~ Sarah Block, All Movie Guide

Scooby, Shaggy, Velma, Fred, and Daphne once again pile into the Mystery Machine and stumble onto danger. This time they happen upon some ghoulies in a small New England town. ~ All Movie Guide

After seven weeks of reruns and pre-emptions, ER resumed its third season on April 10, 1997, with a steady string of new episodes. In this one, Greene (Anthony Edwards) is accused of favoring a white patient over a black one when both teenagers arrive at the same time in the ER with gunshot wounds. Elsewhere, Jeanie (Gloria Reuben) discovers by accident that Carla (Lisa Nicole Carson) is pregnant with Benson's (Eriq La Salle) baby; Carol (Julianna Margulies) suspects that an 18-year-old patient was drugged and date-raped; and Carter (Noah Wyle) devotes his entire shift to a case that has already been written off as hopeless. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The scene is a research facility in outer space, where a team of scientists is working on transdimensional technology. Alas, the scientists breach the gateway to a hostile "other" dimension, whose residents seize the opportunity to take over the earth -- and perhaps the rest of the galaxy as well. Naturally, only the members of the Quest team can prevent this catastrophe. Shari Belafonte is heard as Professor Diana Cruz. "Other Space" was initially telecast on February 11, 1997. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Apparently intended to be shown right after the 1996 Real Adventures of Jonny Quest episode "Bloodline," "The Bangladore Falcon" was held back from release until February 14, 1997. While touring Bangalore, India, the Quest team teenagers find a rare falcon, which may or may be not be able to lead the kids to the legendary city of Shambala. Also expressing an inordinate interest in the falcon are the beautiful but lethal twin daughters of the team's old nemesis Dr. Zin. Lucy Liu, here billed as Lucy Xavier Liu, provides the voice of Melana Zin.

~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

For the second consecutive episode, the evil Jeremiah Surd tries to destroy the Quest team. This time, Surd has invaded the mind of team member Jessie Bannon. As Jonny and his father Benton embark upon a "Fantastic Voyage" through the girl's thought processes to undo Surd's damage, Jessie herself proves to be more than a match for the Quests' perennial foe. "Thoughtscape" was originally telecast on February 13, 1997. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Having some fun with Questworld's virtual reality capabilities, Jonny and Jessie challenge each other to a three-dimensional digital game. Unfortunately, their enjoyment is spoiled by the interloping Jeremiah Surd, who has a deadly game of his own in mind -- and on his own turf, "Surdworld"! "Digital Doublecross" made its cable TV debut on February 12, 1997. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide