"A Charlie Brown Celebration" is aptly named, as it really is just that: a celebration of what made the Peanuts comic strip popular. It is a bit different, though, for two reasons. The first is that it is an hour long, and all previous made-for-TV specials prior to this had been 30 minutes. The second is that there is no cohesive story or plot here. Rather, the entire program is made up of smaller skits, some as short as 10-15 seconds; others are several minutes. None could support an entire show, and so they ended up here. It's like if Charles Schulz pulled out his sketch book and transported several of his ideas from paper to screen at once.
"Celebration" is also noteworthy because it contains the first animated appearance of two minor Peanuts characters: Eudora and Truffles. "Who?" you may ask lol. Yeah me too. I had to look them up, but these two characters both appeared briefly in the Peanuts daily comic strip in the 1970s. And they both make an appearance here.
Another reviewer wrote that this is his or her favorite Peanuts special, but I have a hard time understanding that sentiment. It's entertaining for sure, but it lacks any truly heartwarming or sentimental moments that made the best Peanuts specials "special." What you get here is what you might expect. Sally still has a crush on Linus. Lucy still tries to shake Schroeder from his Beethoven obsession. Charlie still wants to kick the football. This is all fine and good, but your favorite? That seems a bit of a stretch.
So, overall, amusing and entertaining. As I said, about what you'd expect from a good (not great) Peanuts program. Peanuts fans should not be disappointed.
7/10. Would I watch again (Y/N)?: Yes.
