DVD Review: "VeggieTales: Esther... The Girl Who Became Queen"

Rated: Not Rated (US) / G (Canada)
Starring: Jessica Kaplan, Phil Vischer, and Mike Nawrocki
Released: 2000

Synopsis: Esther is just an ordinary girl.  Raised by her cousin Mordecai (Pa Grape), she likes to stay out of the spotlight…until she ends up becoming the queen of the land! When Esther discovers an evil plot orchestrated by the wicked Haman (Mr. Lunt) against her own people, it’s up to her to put a stop to it…but, the king doesn’t like uninvited visitors, and Haman is his right-hand man! Will Esther succeed in thwarting Haman’s dastardly plan?
Based on the Biblical book of Esther.

The Good: Esther is a very popular Biblical figure; her story has been told in celluloid format several times in the past few decades alone.  As usual with this series, the Veggie version has some changes in order to make it more kid-friendly, but the moral still shines through brightly.  The animation is outstanding; the textures and scenery are especially well-done.  I liked the songs, and the narrator was fun.  Not too much to complain about, except…

The Bad: The usual Silly Song was absent from this episode; fans of the series may be disappointed in that.  Also, I found a reference to controversial pop star Janet Jackson unnecessary.

Content Concerns:

• Sex: None. 5/5
• Nudity: None. 5/5
• Language: Mild name-calling, i.e. “fool”. 4/5
• Violence: Mild slapstick. 4/5
• Drugs: None. 5/5
• Frightening/Intense Scenes: Some emotional intensity, and the overall mood is darker than usual for this series. 3/5
• Other: A reference to controversial pop star Janet Jackson; some changes to the original Biblical story. 3/5

Conclusion: VeggieTales has legions of fans, even outside of the Christian community; people everywhere know about Bob the Tomato, Larry the Cucumber, and “The Hairbrush Song”.  Big Idea continually delivers a great product, which is why viewers everywhere just eat it up.  This one here is definitely a keeper; though not the best of the series, it’s definitely great.

Score: 4.5/5