The Moomin - Series 1 - Complete [1990]

I got this today, have been waiting for a DVD release for YEARS. It's just as lovely and strange as I remember it! Snork Maiden remains my favourite character, and Sniff or the Hemulen my least. But who could forget the Hattifatners?! They're so weirdly-cute!! I'm a little disappointed by the fact says "complete series one" when series one of Moomins spans 78 episodes. But for £5.94(the price I got it for before it rose) 14 episodes are TOTALLY worth it.If your a fellow moomin fan who's been waiting to see the BBC version again you will not be disappointed. I can't remember if the text on the opening is the same as before, but I know there were some conflicts with the actual name, because it was called The Moomins on cbbc when it shown right?(I was very young when first watching them, therefore can't remember everything lol) Really it doesnt matter about the text. Because the music is the same!!! And I know how many people were after this theme!! For it to finally be available is magical really. And it seems longer!! The ending and opening both seem to be a bit longer than when they were shown on the BBC, but thats unsuprising considering how the BBC cut the credits etc. (And according to the credits, Pierre Kartner does the music, and he's done a Smurf theme or something, don't know much, google for yourself.)The quality of the actual video is probably exactly how it looked when it was shown on tv, quite grainy in places. And there are some places where the sound wobble a bit. But frankly I expected this. And for a RRP of £9.99, you can't really expect much more.All I hope is that they release the rest of the episodes. :fingers crossed: But honest to god, this is a saviour to all British moomin fans. We can rejoice finally.Episode details; (as I'm sure people might want to know before buying right?)There are 78 episodes to the original moomin series of the 90's, 14 of which are on this dvd, I'm not sure how many were translated into english and shown on the BBC, but this is a start at least.1. Spring in Moominvalley2. The Magic Hat3. The Wreck4. The Desert Island5. The Hattifatners(god I love them)6. Tiny Guests7. The Suitcase8. The Invisable Friend9. The Hobgoblin10. The Invisable Child11. The Wings12. The Pirates13. The Last Dragon on Earth14. Our Neighbour is a Tough TeacherIf you check IMDB, or ANN, or Wiki for the episode names, it only says the Japanese ones. The only episodes that look to be out of order are 8 and 9. They seem to have been switched in the BBC showing, or the dvd got it wrong. Going by the names in Japanese ep 8(Magic Trick of the Flying Demon) is probably ep 9(The Hobgoblin, who flies on a black panther if you didnt know) on this DVD, so the "Invisable Friend" episode 8 should really be 9. But that doesn't matter really.The episode names themself arn't too far off the actual Japanese if you check the websites that tell you that kinda thing. Which is nice, and btw, on the dvd the episode names are slightly longer in most cases. "The Wreck" for instance is "The discovery of a wrecked ship"Anyways, thats all from me. Hope it helps some people make a decision to buy. Moomins is a lovely series, get this, get the books, get everything you can. I'm lucky enough to own a full set of the mini-plushes which sold in Ottakars round about the year 2000.Just buy it! It's only £7.49 for crying out loud! What do you have to lose? It's one of the most endearing, weird series you'll ever have the pleasure of seeing!(This is Meimi132, but because amazon has changed the way they let people review, now I can't use my account anymore...)

The Moomins need no introduction. This cartoon show, however, may. Around 1990, Telecable Beneluxe and Bulls Tokyo created a tv cartoon series on the Moomins. This was to be the first cartoon series to get the approval of their creator, Finland-Swedish author/painter Tove Jansson. The series stayed more true to the spirit of her philosophical Moomin world, and it still is a series watched by people the world over - it has as much universal appeal as the books have always had.Who doesn't know innocent, adventurous Moomin? Or the consistently-stoic Moominmamma? The restless, sometimes boyish Moominpappa? The irresponsible Little My or the carefree vagabond Snufkin? I for one have yet to meet a person who doesn't. In the first 14 episodes, included on this set, we follow the Moomin family and friends as they find a magic hat, discover a desert island, help an invisible child become visible again and deal with a horrific monster. However, the little things in life are also present, such as friendship, rivalry, depression and even falling in love. The immense popularity of these series is not surprising to me, because they are very sincere, and thus remain true to the books.The voice acting is, for the most part, spot-on, especially in the case of Sniff. However, Ninni the invisible child's voice actress fails at progressing her voice at a pivotal point of the story, which cuts the impact of her road to becoming visible again - a bad error, as far as I'm concerned. The only voice I have a real problem with, though, is unfortunately that of Moominpappa (my favourite character). His voice actor captures none of the restless but consciously macho attitude of the character, instead making him sound irritatingly lofty. I think this is very unfortunate and I'm afraid that it often affects my enjoyment of viewing, but if you can get past it, then the subtle animation and good voice-acting make this a very pleasant series to watch.And yes, these series do differ on the books for some part - Little My and Mymble for instance already knowing the Moomin family at the time of the first episodes, based on "Finn Family Moomintroll" (in which the two weren't present). The Snork has become an inventor, whose dearest ambition is to build a flying ship; a process that's followed through the entire series. Also certain characters from the comic strip get major roles, like the police inspector, one of my personal favourite characters. All in the benefit of these series, allowing it to stay close enough to the books but still allow it plenty of room to expand. And we mustn't forget that Tove Jansson herself wasn't always too strict on continuity with the books, either.Because earlier DVD releases of these series were a fiasco, completely messing up the order and thus continuity of the episodes, I was immensely glad when Dutch company Telescreen took the first step into doing the thing properly. This is the first of intended future releases, and features, as said, 14 episodes. However, as a DVD set, it feels more home-made than a professionally-crafted release, both in picture and sound quality, while decent enough. Don't get me wrong, the packaging is beautiful as is the interface; but in this age of digitally remastered material, I agree that this series deserved that overhaul.This, however, is also a small flaw indeed and it doesn't detract from the overall viewing experience. If you remember these series fondly like me, by all means get this set. Even if you aren't too fond of the Moomin books, you still might like these series. Whether they're drinking tea on the veranda or fending off frightening monsters, falling in love or outsmarting pirates, the Moomins and co are a charming sort as always. This is a nice place in which to get acquainted with them.