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Three stories make up the latest 3-2-1 Penguins DVD, all centering around Biblical principles.  Cooperation, mercy, and revenge/anger are the latest challenges to twins Jason and Michelle, who of course end up in adventures with their Penguin friends, face dangers involving their nemesis Cavitus, and learn a few things along with the way.

“Do Unto Brothers” casts the twins against each other as they refuse to work together, each insisting their plan is the better one.  With the issue unresolved, the Penguins show up, needing their help.  Their ship gets sucked into a JellyWorm Hole, and all of the cast (except for the inept Kevin) get captured.  Everyone has an idea of how to escape, and all insist they are correct.  When they realize what they need to do, success follows.  This episode is fairly clever, and fans of Star Wars will appreciate the satire/homage contained here.

The second story is “Oh Mercy!,” which opens with Jason refusing to forgive Michelle for breaking his video game.  On the Penguins’ ship, the Captain has lost his “spheroid crystals” (think about it).  The Penguins are commissioned to take the Crown Jewel to the Gator-King, who bears a striking resemblance to another king.  Zidgel accidentally breaks the jewel.  Having blamed others for losing his marbles, he receives the same measure of mercy he gave to the others, and ends up in prison.  The message is obvious, and it finally dawns on Zidgel (and Jason) what needs to be done.

When wronged, we can choose revenge or “killing with kindness”.  This is the topic of “Between as Asteroid and a Hard Place”.  The twins have their usual squabble, and get paged by the Penguins before they can solve anything.  Through a series of mishaps, both the Penguins and Cavitus’ crew wind up trapped on an asteroid.  Michelle is faced with dealing with the evil gerbil brained robot on her own, and temporarily defeats him by employing a rubber and glue gambit.  The angrier everyone gets, the worse things  become.  Momentary alliances between the rival crews (and Michelle and Cavitus) are considered, but will that get them free of the asteroid?

My children thoroughly enjoyed these stories, and as usual, there was enough humor and message to keep me involved until the end.  While not as widely recognized as Veggie Tales, 3-2-1 Penguins usually conveys their message in a clever way, while not obscuring what needs to be heard.

Brian A. Smith
30 December 2009