Winnie the Pooh: Seasons of Giving

I am a big fan of Winnie the Pooh, love most of the movies, the specials and the TV series and of course the whimsical stories of AA Milne. Seasons of Giving is cute with strong messaging, but my feelings were mixed. The characters are still likable, who doesn't love Tigger, the writing is droll with many touches of charm and poignancy and the storytelling is simple, beautifully paced and still has the childhood innocence I associate Winnie the Pooh with. The highlight is the use of the episode "Find Her Keep Her", which was both heart-warming and touching. Conversely there were some things I didn't like. The animation had a scratchy look to it, with many backgrounds lacking finesse and the colouring very flat. I didn't think much of the songs either, the incidental music was decent but by the end my teeth were starting to hurt from the sugar and schmaltz that the songs exuded. Nor did I like Piglet's voice, too high in pitch and it wasn't sweet or timid enough. Thank goodness Jim Cummings and Paul Winchell fared much better, as well as Peter Cullen. In conclusion, I wasn't crazy about it but it wasn't terrible. 6/10 Bethany Cox