Shoebox Zoo

shoebox zoo is brilliant. who ever said that Vivian Endicott Douglas was a bad rotten actress, you are very wrong she is the best actress i have ever seen. well in programmes anyway. you should be ashamed of your self writing that. that gutted me reading that. if you really think she is that bad ( WHICH SHE IS NOT ) she is only 13 years old trying to play a girl who lost her mother, talking to toys. which are real according to Marnie but in real life we all no that there not. i just want to say to you what planet are you from? and yes I'm talking to the person who wrote that stupid paragraph about her being a bad actress!!!

This much hyped Canada/Uk co-production aired in 2004 on BBC ONE as a children's fantasy TV series with cutting edge special effects. It concerns the destiny of a Canuck girl, recently relocated to Scotland after the death of her mother, after she finds a box full of walking, talking miniature animals: an eagle, a bear, a snake and a rather sneaky wolf. She discovers from an old wizard that she is 'The Chosen One' and, with the aid of her new friends, must battle against an evil Shapeshifter to find an ancient book that could hold mankind's fate in the balance..

There, I've just made the plot go about ten times faster than it actually does during the course of the programme. In reality it takes about half the episodes of the first series (The second is unseen by me) to get anywhere near the quest, in which far too many pointless scenes and aimless talking have been added to space out the run. Maybe this would have been better condensed into a six-part arc. Worse, in my opinion the girl (Vivian Endicott Douglas) who plays the main character (Marnie) is a pretty rotten actress, she lacks charisma and doesn't exactly impress with her wooden delivery. The young Scottish lady who plays the supporting role 'Laura' (Krystina Coates) would have been a much better choice.. but I guess as this series was mainly bankrolled with Canadian dollars, they wanted someone from their home nation as the focal point.

Tony Donaldson and Peter Mullan ham it up as the representatives of evil and good respectably, and David McKay is amusing as the Shapeshifter's lackey, coming up with many of the drama's best lines. The computer animated beasts are great, all perfectly voiced by the likes of Rik Mayall and Alan Cumming in such a way you forget it's them and you just become absorbed in the personalities. It's just a shame that they're not on-screen for longer, because when they're absent.. things tends to get a bit dull.

One thing I must mention is I had just finished watching 'The 10th Kingdom' on DVD before coming to 'Shoebox Zoo', and it is every way a superior production to this. Both have very similar aspects, like the magical fantasy setting and having young females in the lead roles, but where T10K scored was having a sympathetic heroine who could do things for herself, where as Marnie in TSZ comes across as a whiny brat who is helped out at every turn by the good wizard Michael Scot. Some 'Chosen One'!! Subsequently I didn't much care whether she found the book or not, and only lasted the course because of the animals and the odd funny moment provided by Mr Mckay. There's some very good and original ideas here, but too much padding to go with it. A little note addressed to the makers: Remember, it's always QUALITY, not QUANTITY that matters.

I had seen "Shoebox zoo" as a kid, though I don't think I've ever seen it in full - I'm slightly familiar with the second, America-set season, and pretty much not at all with the first, Scotland-set one. In the years since, I've tried to find that series from memory, and eventually did, after a false start with another "girl talks with talking figurines" series "Wonderfalls". Now, however, I have watched it in full- ehm, well, no, not really, but I tried. S2 of this show was mind-numbing with its plotholes and incoherent worldbuilding, so I skipped large chunks at a time. Still, I've seen enough to pass judgement, which is: "SZ" is an incoherently written mess that alternates between unfathomably boring (mostly S1) and ridiculously moronic (both seasons). In fact, S1 is almost the platonic ideal of the concept of "a story about nothing told badly". S2, meanwhile, is actually a bit more dynamic, Marnie being allowed to venture out more - literally and metaphorically. The Quest in it is therefore not quite as undermined by the tiny cast of indifferently self-sabotaging characters and similarly pathetic amount of sets of S1. However, the world loses increasingly more coherence and believability even as the characters begin to learn the basic principles of goal-attainment.

Now, it's not without good sides. The child actors (majority of the cast) are pretty decent and come across as rather believable, with the lead, Marnie, and S2's Becky being especially charming. The adult actors are likewise decent, though impress less, not beleaguered by the tyranny of low expectations. The series can occasionally (less rarely in S2) be atmospheric and intriguing. Finally, it is a little bit less childish than one would assume, between its heavy focus on Marnie's grief from losing her mother through a slight serving of blood and violence to the moral grayness of Marnie's transformation in S2.

But that writing, man. Its saving grace in S1 is just that we know little: the series can muddy the waters on how exactly the magic works, what limits the participants and where their loyalties lie. As we learn more, the complete nonsense that is this writing becomes ever more apparent, all while the dodgy special effects worsen the impression even further. The characters do as little as possible, unless to set an obstacle in front of their own goals, but there aren't really stakes anyway, and nothing quite follows anything else logically, so why shouldn't they just have fun with the whole thing? Well, because it makes it difficult for the audience to have fun, that's why!

My ratings by season: S1: 3 S2: 2.

"Shoebox Zoo"

(Season 1)

Colorado-born eleven year old Marnie McBride (Vivien Endicott Douglas) is mourning the loss of her beloved mother as she settles into her new home in Scotland with her widowed father (Jason Connery, son of Sean), who takes her to a run-down junk shop on her eleventh birthday. There, she is given a box of toy animals by a mysterious old man (a sleepy Peter Mullan), which spring to life (they are voiced by Rik Mayall, Siobhan Redmond, Alan Cumming and Simon Callow) the next morning. She soon learns from these creatures that they are on an important quest to find an ancient book that holds a dark magical power within its pages, and need to find it before the evil shape shifter, Toledo (Tony Donaldson, in an dire, pantomime-like performance) does first. Marnie reluctantly offers to help, but finds she has her own fair share of problems to deal with, as she tries to make some friends (Krystina Coates) at her new school, as well as put up with the classroom bullies (Maxi Moffatt, Sean Young and Fergus Nimmo, all of whom should be banned from acting hereafter).

While 'Lord of the Rings', 'Harry Potter' and other fantasy franchises seem to be coming at cinemas left right and centre, it's quite difficult to recall a broad, generously budgeted BBC television fantasy drama since the sublime 'Chronicles of Narnia' and 'The Phoenix and the Carpet' miniseries (both of which were based on novels). "Shoebox Zoo" comes to life from the collaborative minds of writer Brian Ward, CBBC Scotland producer Claire Mundell, and director Justin Molotnikov, and it's undoubtedly an ambitious project. But let's not kid ourselves: "Zoo" is clearly the Beeb's answer to the recent crop of theatrical fantasy blockbusters, and who can blame them? The imaginations of children nationwide have been captured by Harry and Frodo's magical adventures, and I applaud the BBC for giving families a chance to enjoy observing similar quests in the comforts of their own home.

The problems become apparent in the on-screen execution of the show. "Shoebox Zoo" strives to be epic and involving, but the lack of finesse in Justin Molotnikov's direction causes a once-promising fantasy tale to crumble under its own lofty aspirations. Molotnikov brings to "Shoebox" a dull, unimaginative aesthetic, hampered even more so by downright lazy plot movements and references that borrow heavily from other, superior films and television shows, from "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" to the aforementioned 'Lord of the Rings' trilogy. Much has been made of the higher than normal production cost for the show (£4 million per season), but in this case, bigger does not necessarily mean better, with special effects that are decidedly half-baked, extracting the viewer straight out of the world of "Shoebox" faster than you can say "Toledo the Shapeshifter". In particular, the computer animation used to bring the animals inhabiting the "Zoo" of the title to life makes has been poorly rendered, which is the last thing the show needs on its plate, as Molotnikov cuts to the wooden (in more ways than one) creatures too many times. Alas, the vocal cast of solid British acting talent surprisingly doesn't help in breathing life into the motley group of characters, with none of the performers emoting beyond their subhuman caricatures (Siobhan Redmond, you should be ashamed), but it's doubtful that Edwin, Ailsa and pals would convince even if the actors were trying their very best. The production values of "Zoo" are dreadfully meagre, and everything Molotnikov does with them seems forced and unnatural.

Also, it just doesn't feel as if Marnie's actions seem to matter in the grander scheme of things, and she's trying to prevent the end of the world for Christ's sakes!

Another thorn in the side of "Shoebox Zoo" is Molotnikov's continued reliance on actress Vivien Endicott Douglas's shrill performance as Marnie McBride. I'm sure many will use her age and inexperience to justify, but let's be honest: Douglas is all wrong for the part of Marnie, which requires far more acting finesse and ability to project natural teen angst in front of a camera than the thirteen year old is capable of. Marnie is a wallflower of sorts, but Douglas is all too happy with playing up the character's bitchy outbursts, and actually botches scenes where Marnie is allowed to grieve over the loss of her mother. Douglas makes Marnie cold and unlikeable, when an affable central character was a key factor in making "Shoebox" work.

Of course, not being based on a novel or any previously produced or published work of any kind, Brian Ward seems to have been given the permission to run to the hills with his creation for as long as he wants; apparently a second season of "Shoebox Zoo" is currently in production. Additionally, two more lay in wait some way down the pipeline, along with a feature film. But what's the point of unleashing a story onto the big screen when it can't even be executed properly on the tube? Hopefully, none of these grandiose plans will ever make it past development. Yes, "Shoebox Zoo" does have potential, but unless the show carries through with its promise to deliver a classic fantasy story, this is one "Zoo" I won't be revisiting any time soon.

~5/10 ~

Shoebox Zoo is an enjoyable, yet flawed fantasy series. The enchanted creatures are the stealers, thanks to the talented vocal cast & the animators. The villain, Toledo, provides menace & humour in equal measure. However Marnie is a hateful protagonist, throwing tantrums at the slightest provocation & often mistreating the "Zoo." She is impossible to sympathise with. I also dislike Michael Scott, who also abuses the animals. I thought John Roberts, arrogant & mysterious, was the best of the children involved. The episodes are at their best when the creatures are on screen. The school scenes (excepting those with John Roberts) only bog down the story. The narration is irritating and unnecessary. There are some parts that are predictable for older viewers, but also some genuine surprises. I was disappointed by the ending though. However I will definitely be watching Season Two, if only for the delight of seeing & hearing the fantastic, animated ensemble.