Review of Meg And Mog: Vol. 2

Introduction

You might be wondering to yourself "why do I think that I`ve heard of Meg and Mog despite the fact that it was only on TV last year". The answer lies in the fact that they came from a series of books which started out in the 1970s, created by Helen Nicoll and artist Jan Pienkowski. If you`re of a certain age then you`ve probably come across them in book form, but not in TV series form, as this is the first time they`ve been on TV. The series went into production last year and the first episodes were transmitted last autumn. New episodes are due for transmission this autumn.

This DVD contains the next 13 episodes in the series, the first 13 were released earlier in the year. The series tells the stories of Meg the witch, Mog the cat and Owl. The series is a co-production effort shared between Absolutely Productions, Happy Life studio in Stockholm, and Varga studios in Budapest.

Video

A 1.78:1 anamorphic transfer which is nice to see. It`s all very well animated, and retains the look of the books from the 1970s, despite also being quite modern. Everything looks good, with the colour palette looking fine (only 9 colours are actually used, as Jan Pienkowski is known for using big blocks of colour in his work) and contrast levels also looking good. I couldn`t really spot any major flaws on the review disc.

Audio

A standard DD2.0 stereo soundtrack, which is pretty much perfect. There`s nothing wrong with it and that`s all there is to say.

I`ve said in nearly every review of kids TV DVDs that the key to a great TV series for the younger generation is to have great voices for your characters. Willo the Wisp had Kenneth Williams, Dangermouse and Count Duckula featured David Jason. Here we have Fay Ripley as Meg, Alan Bennett as Owl (whose voice annoys me, but should be fine for younger viewers) and Phil Cornwell as Mog. This is a slightly eclectic mix, but it works well as they all have the right voices for the characters.

Features

A few bonus items to keep the little ones entertained for a bit longer. There`s a spot the difference game, a jigsaw game and some pictures that you can print out and colour in. These add a little bit more longevity to the disc, but not much.

Conclusion

A gentle little series about a witch, an owl and a cat. The series has really captured the essence and simplicity of the original books, and makes the transfer to DVD well. I`m normally very critical of modern kids TV, but this series has its roots firmly in the right place, as it`s all about the characters and the stories and its not about marketing and shifting as many toys, interactive CD ROMs and other products as you can.

If your children have enjoyed this show on the TV, then you might want to keep them entertained by letting them watch it again. In the end it`s a reasonable way to keep the little ones entertained, and certainly preferable to some of the more cynical marketing campaigns masquerading as TV shows that we`ve seen of late.