As a kid growing up, I loved Inspector Gadget, one of the best children's shows ever made in my opinion. For those familiar with the concept, I needn't go over it here, because if you were unfamiliar with that lovable, bumbling, bionic police inspector, you probably wouldn't be watching this Christmas special. Well, I've seen it, and let me tell you, it was far removed from the original 1983-1985 series. For starters, MAD is supposed to be a criminal syndicate that deals in organized crime, kidnapping world leaders, stealing gold and jewels, causing malevolent destruction and doom around the globe, and here, Dr. Claw just kidnaps Santa Claus and assumes his duties. It just happens out of nowhere, Santa and his elves are happily making toys, singing all the way. Oh, and despite what the Nostalgia Critic said in his review, they're saying "elfin'", not "effin'." ELFIN! Just like Stewie Griffin says "laugh and (cry)", "not effin'." Some people have very dirty minds. Anyway, Dr. Claw infiltrates the workshop and dons his own Santa suit, and it's here we actually get to see Claw's full body. Not his face, though, if you want to see that, track down the 1992 figurine. He kidnaps Santa and hypnotizes the elves whose caps he surreptitiously placed a hypnotic microchip. There was only one person who could save Christmas. The fate of the holiday was in the hands of one person: Inspector Gadget.... 's niece, Penny, and of course, her dog, Brain. But as usual, they'll let Gadget take all the credit. Santa Claw sends MAD Agents to eliminate his foe via Wile E. Coyote traps, but they fail every time. And if you're wondering why we don't get the famous Inspector Gadget theme, it was because of licensing issues. Bah humbug. Next, we find the child-minded inspector on Santa's lap at the mall with his mile-long list, but it turns out this Santa was Chief Quimby in disguise. He gives Gadget his message about trouble at the North Pole and that he must get up there to investigate immediately, and it wouldn't be Inspector Gadget if he didn't blow up the chief with his own message. LOL. So the bumbling detective heads to the North Pole, with Penny and Brain coming along as I guess he couldn't say no, or we didn't have time to see how they would sneak along anyway. When they finally arrive, Gadget shakes hands with Santa, not knowing who he really is. I'm going to assume that Inspector Gadget doesn't even know what Dr. Claw looks like, as this is only the second time in the series that both characters interact directly, and both times, Gadget doesn't recognize his own arch enemy. Penny and Brain recognize him, of course, and as usual, oblivious Gadget doesn't listen. He goes on to inspect the workshop, singing a 12 Days of Christmas rendition, and thankfully he only reaches five before Claw deposits him in the underground dungeon along with the real Santa and his reindeer. Oh, and of course, Inspector Gadget thinks the real Santa is a MAD Agent and arrests him. Go-Go-Gadget Brain... sorry, it was sent out for repairs and never returned.
Meanwhile the real hero of our story hides out in a jack-in-the-box, trying to get a more up close and personal look at the place. Penny quickly notices the hypnotized elves and all the broken toys. Now, I'm going to address what we're all thinking about here: Penny's voice and the way actress, Erica Horn, is portraying her. Ordinarily Penny sounds much more mature and is smarter beyond her years, but here she sounds like much more of a small child. I'm sure Erica did the best she could, and if anybody is blame, it's the writers and the voice director for how they presented her character. They probably didn't reach out to Cree Summer because she was all grown up at this point, and Holly Berger, who voiced Penny in Gadget's second season apparently retired from acting after the show ended. The Nostalgia Critic didn't mention Berger at all in his review when complaining about Penny's voice and why Summer didn't come back, but more on that later. Anyway, as Brain communicates with Penny on what happened to Gadget, she keeps saying "that's good" and "that's bad" like Homer Simpson in a Frogurt shop. Yes, they wrote Penny as a small child, it was bad, get over it. Oh, and the hypnotized elves imprison her in the jack-in-the-box, but you know she's gonna get out. You're probably wondering why Dr. Claw has gone to all this trouble to kidnap Santa and break all his toys. Why allocate resources to this and not toppling the regime of a peaceful nation or stealing a valuable diamond? Well, this time it's personal. Santa didn't bring him a dirty trick sled when he was a Baby Claw. Yep, that's all there is to it. It's payback. He wants to ruin Santa's reputation. He watches on the monitor as Inspector Gadget uses tickle torture to get the real Santa to talk, and during this distraction, Brain manages to sneak the key off MAD Cat's antlers, then he goes to rescue the real Santa. I should like to add that before the rescue, Gadget was trying to pull off Santa's "fake" beard. Wait, so has Gadget become the villain in his own Christmas special? He's roughed up and tortured Santa more than Dr. Claw did. Gadget foils their rescue and goes to tell the "real" Santa, who is presently loading up his "sleigh": The MAD Mobile. Yep, Gadget is now the villain. Fortunately, Penny manages to free herself and deactivate Dr. Claw's control over the elves. Together, with Santa and the reindeer, they stop Claw from taking off and strand him on a floating sheet of ice... why not apprehend him? You're gonna let him get away? Next, the chief parachutes in to congratulate Gadget on a job well done. Yeah, you tortured Santa, you aided Dr. Claw, and you let him get away. Top notch police work, Inspector. Though he never apologizes to the real Santa, jolly St. Nick still forgives him and allows he, Penny, and Brain to ride in his sleigh.
So, if you're a big fan of the Inspector Gadget series, you may feel very divided over this Christmas special, as I said it's far removed from the show. I mean, Gadget is his usual idiotic, bumbling self, and I guess Dr. Claw had nothing better to do than take over Santa's workshop at the North Pole over a personal vendetta. Penny was the hero, as always, even though her portrayal was very off. I've mentioned the Nostalgia Critic's review of this special throughout my own, and if you've seen it, you probably saw the tacked on "cartoon" about Penny becoming bitter over never receiving credit for her work. Ha, well, cute idea and all, and it was nice you got Cree Summer to voice her, but you've pretty much missed the point of her character. Penny obviously never cared about getting credit, as she did it purely to help her uncle, knowing how helpless and incompetent he is. If she wanted credit, she could easily have proven how it was her and Brain who saved the day each time. She's selfless, generous, and as a heart that's definitely in the right place, and like a true hero, she doesn't want credit, she just does her job. In fact, Penny is probably the best character in any kids' show from back in the day: intelligent, sharp, an excellent role model for children, especially little girls, she's the real hero of the series. In fact, I've seen a few videos online called Inspector Gadget Without Gadget, or something like that, and they took episodes of the series, removed Gadget, and focused entirely on Penny and Brain, and the funny thing is, the series WOULD still work without Gadget, it just wouldn't be as funny. He's basically a sidekick comic relief in his own show. In closing, if you want something nice to show your kids this Christmas, then Inspector Gadget Saves Christmas is harmless fun. They got Don Adams back as Gadget and Frank Welker as Brain, Dr. Claw, and MAD Cat, and they both do an awesome job, as always. Maurice LaMarche once again plays Chief Quimby, and while Erica Horn isn't the best Penny, she was still a child and we know she did her best. I recommend this special, and I definitely recommend the ORIGINAL Inspector Gadget series. Stay away from the more recent CGI adaptations, and definitely, at ALL COSTS, avoid that Disney movie.
0 out of 0 found this helpful.
Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
