Changes: The Star Of Christmas

Revision as of 16:54, 9 December 2019

The Star Of Christmas is Big Idea's second VeggieTales Christmas special. It was released on October 29, 2002.

The show is set in London in 1882 and has a definite Charles Dickens quality to it. Indeed, the sequel, An Easter Carol, features the same characters and the same setting and is a direct parody of the Dickens' classic A Christmas Carol.

This wanted to go in a VeggieTales compilation A Silly Little Thing Called Love.

The story The Star Of Christmas centers on two would-be operatic composers who are based on W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan. VeggieTales has spoofed Gilbert and Sullivan's work in Lyle the Kindly Viking and (specifically The Mikado) in Sumo of the Opera. In this episode however they spoof the people, Gilbert and Sullivan, themselves.

Plot

The episode is set in London in 1882. It begins with Cavis Appythart and Millward Phelps—jingle writers who decide to make their big break into musical theatre. While Millward is content to see their work featured on billboards and in newspapers, Cavis believes they can make a difference in crime-ridden London by staging a grand musical that will move the citizens to greater expressions of love. Their opportunity arises when Millward's Uncle Nezzer grants them the use of his theater on Christmas Eve. They plan the huge production of a new musical called "The Princess and the Plumber" (a hybrid of Super Mario Bros. and The Nutcracker). Unfortunately, the script is not yet complete, and the premiere is only three days away.

Seymour Schwenk (Sullivan's and Gilbert's middle names), their friend and an inventor, shows up in an experimental rocket car (a direct reference to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang) and delivers a box of light bulbs to them. Cavis maintains that if their production is glitzy and bright (electric lights are still a novelty at this time and were first introduced at the Savoy Theatre for Gilbert and Sullivan's Patience) then it will be a bigger hit and reach more people. He plans to integrate the lights directly into the scenery itself (and, soon, the costumes as well).

However, they still have much work to do. They need to convince the city's premiere talent, Constance Effie Pickering, to star in the lead role, and they need to get a commitment from Prince Calvin Fredrick to attend the premier. While Cavis and his assistant Bob Winston work on Pickering and the Prince, Millward struggles to complete the script. Everything comes together, and Cavis starts feeling confident that their production will be a huge success. The Plumber tells Pickering that her pipes are corroded they water can't drain and her toilet exploded, she's flushing in vain.

After noticing a flyer for a Christmas pageant planned to debut on the same night at a local church, Cavis goes to investigate. He observes Edmund Gilbert preparing a low-budget children's play, and concludes that it poses no threat to their grand production. However, the pageant intends to feature an object called the "Star of Christmas". Wondering aloud about this as he leaves the church, Cavis is overheard by Arthur McHollingshead. Arthur, a historian, reveals that the Star of Christmas is an ancient relic that has not been seen by the public in 79 years. He rushes off with great excitement to report the news, which promptly makes the front page headline the following morning.

Faced with the prospect of losing their audience (and in particular the Prince) to the pageant, Cavis vows to make their own production greater and flashier. But they can't compete with the Star of Christmas, and in desperation Cavis and Millward go to the church to steal the Star. They are caught, however, and narrowly escape from the aged "Moyer the Destroyer" who was left to guard the relic. With the Star and the flashy lights, Cavis is certain that "The Princess and the Plumber" is now a guaranteed success. But during dress rehearsal, the excessive amount of lights (a suspected fire hazard all along) ignite the curtains. In minutes the theater goes up in flames and with it the Star of Christmas. As they stand and rue this terrible turn of events, an officer named Dwiglight Howarde arrives with Moyer LaGumtree, and Cavis and Millward are arrested.

In the jail, they meet a prisoner, Charles Pincher, who laughs at their efforts to spread love by means of an elaborate stage production. He claims that real love does not expect fame or wealth in return, that real love makes sacrifices to help others without expectation of personal gain. That kind of love, he says, is extremely rare.

As if on cue, Edmond and his father, Jesse, arrive at the jail to release Cavis and Millward. They have chosen not to press charges for the theft of the Star. Cavis is moved, and he expresses his desire to attend the pageant. But the pageant starts in ten minutes and there is not enough time to get there. Just then Seymour shows up in this rocket car. He entrusts Millward to drive the vehicle and try to get them all to the church on time. It's a harrowing ride fraught with collisions and near-misses, but they do arrive just as the pageant is about to start to crash through a bakery and a bank.

The pageant goes on with the Prince and Miss Pickering and everyone else in attendance. Cavis finally learns that Christmas is not about glitz and grand productions; he understands that it is about a baby in a manger, Jesus, who is the real "Star of Christmas". After the play, Millward and Cavis happily exit the church, only to be confronted by an upset Mr. Nezzer, who reveals to them that he heard about what happened to the theater. He tells the duo that he figured the best plan was to hire them to work for him at his factory until it's paid off (thus setting forth the events of the sequel). Mr. Nezzer then leaves, but not before telling Cavis and Millward they start Monday morning. After he leaves, Moyer shows up and says that the real Star of Christmas (the object) is actually safe, and that they actually took the Turtle of Damascus, which most people consider a hoax (Millward did point out earlier that the "star" looked like a turtle). The episode ends with Cavis and Millward performing a selfless act at last: they bring cookies and a gift to Charles Pincher in his jail cell, Cavis says, smiling warmly, "Merry Christmas Mr. Pincher".

Production

The studio was on a tight schedule in early Christmas 2001 to get the film done. Then, the air condition was left on, and a heat wave never hit Big Idea. Most people slept in their offices trying to get The Star of Christmas finished. Towards the end/before it wrapped, Mike Nawrocki was said he would be on his Sunday drive around the time of New Year's Eve. They were at a cafe, the same cafe they used for the premiere of "Larryboy and the Rumor Weed". There was Lisa Vischer singing "O Come, O Come Emmanuel" during the "Star of Christmas" premier.

Cast of Characters

Bob the Tomato as Cavis Appythart
Larry the Cucumber as Millward Phelps
Pa Grape as Seymour Schwenk
Junior Asparagus as Edmund Gilbert
Dad Asparagus as Reverend Gilbert
Madame Blueberry as Effie Pickering
Jimmy Gourd The Plumber
Jean Claude Pea as Winston, Himself, Fries Pea and Prince Fredrick's Adviser
Scooter as Moyer
Mr. Nezzer as Ebenezer Nezzer
Archibald Asparagus as Arthur Hollingshead
Jerry Gourd as Constable
Charlie Pincher as the Prisoner
Mr. Lunt as Prince Fredrick
Laura Carrot as Mary
Percy Pea as Benny
Annie as Abigail
The French Peas as Themselves and Fries Peas
Ma Carrot with Blue Purple Hat and Blue Purple Clothing as Herself
Unnamed England Boy as Himself
England Brother with Light Blue Hat and Light Blue Waistcoat as Himself
The Banker as Himself
England Man with Light Brown Top Hat and Brown Coat as Himself
Ma Carrot with Blue Hat and Blue Clothing as Herself
England Man with Navy Top Hat and Navy Coat as Himself
Unnamed England Girl as Herself
England Brother with Tan Hat and Tan Waistcoat as Himself
Aaron as Wisemen
Unnamed England Man as Themselves
Unnamed England Brothers as Themselves
Phillppe Pea as Himself, Fries Pea and Prince Fredrick's Adviser
Jerky Vendor/Laundry Man as Himself
Ma Carrot as Themselves
England Woman with Tan Colored Dress as Herself
Unnamed England Woman as Herself

Songs

Due to the format of the show, this episode does not contain the usual "What We Have Learned" or "VeggieTales Theme". It does contain five original compositions and one Christmas traditional:

First Big Break, sung by Cavis Appythart
We Are the Fries Peas, sung by the Fries Peas
Plumber, You Dropped Your Possum, sung by Millward Phelps
Flushing in Vain, sung by Miss Constance Effie Pickering and the Plumber
Plugged Up Love, sung by Miss Constance Effie Pickering, the Plumber, and the Fries Peas
O come, O come, Emmanuel, sung by Lisa Vischer over the closing credits

DVD Content

Big Idea has consistently packed the VeggieTales DVDs with a variety of additional features intended to appeal to both kids and adults alike. This section itemizes the content of the DVD.

Chapters

1. Cavis Has an Idea!

2. Cavis and Millward's Big Break

3. Miss Effie Pickering

4. Planning the Pageant

5. A Bigger Spectacle!

6. Stealing the Star

7. A Disastrous Rehearsal of The Princess and the Plumber

8. Christmas Eve in Jail!?!

9. Race to the Church

10. The Church Pageant

11. Merry Christmas, Mr. Pincher

12. Ending Credits

Bonus Features

Audio Commentary - Previews - Behind the Scenes - Concept Art - Progression Reel - Ye Olde Silly Synth - Trivia Challenge! - Sing Along "While By My Sheep" - The Toy that Saved Christmas Storybook - Millward's Mirror Morpher - Family Fun Activity- Very Veggie Christmas Tunes - Bob & Larry's Countertop Recipes - DVD-ROM Fun

References

External links

Trivia

When Millward and Cavis are thrown into jail, the numbers on their mug shots are the birthdates of Mike Nawrocki and Phil Vischer, respectively.
When Larry is playing the harmonica in jail, he is playing the "You know what we have learned..." song.
The film was nominated for Best Animated Home Entertainment Production in the 30th Annie Awards, but lost to Rolie Polie Olie: The Great Defender of Fun.

@@ Line 7: / Line 7: @@
 The story The Star Of Christmas centers on two would-be operatic composers who are based on [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W._S._Gilbert W. S. Gilbert] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_Sullivan Arthur Sullivan]. ''VeggieTales'' has spoofed [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilbert_and_Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan]'s work in ''[[Lyle The Kindly Viking|Lyle the Kindly Viking]]'' and (specifically ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mikado The Mikado]'') in ''[[Sumo of the Opera]]''. In this episode however they spoof the people, Gilbert and Sullivan, themselves.
 ==Plot==
-The episode is set in London in 1882. It begins with Cavis Appythart and Millward Phelps—jingle writers who decide to make their big break into [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musical_theatre musical theatre]. While Millward is content to see their work featured on billboards and in newspapers, Cavis believes they can make a difference in crime-ridden London by staging a grand musical that will move the citizens to greater expressions of love. Their opportunity arises when Millward's Uncle Nezzer grants them the use of his theater on Christmas Eve. They plan the huge production of a new musical called "The Princess and the Plumber". Unfortunately, the script is not yet complete, and the premiere is only three days away.
+The episode is set in London in 1882. It begins with Cavis Appythart and Millward Phelps—jingle writers who decide to make their big break into [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musical_theatre musical theatre]. While Millward is content to see their work featured on billboards and in newspapers, Cavis believes they can make a difference in crime-ridden London by staging a grand musical that will move the citizens to greater expressions of love. Their opportunity arises when Millward's Uncle Nezzer grants them the use of his theater on Christmas Eve. They plan the huge production of a new musical called "The Princess and the Plumber" (a hybrid of ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Mario_Bros. Super Mario Bros.]'' and ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Nutcracker The Nutcracker]''). Unfortunately, the script is not yet complete, and the premiere is only three days away.
 Seymour Schwenk (Sullivan's and Gilbert's middle names), their friend and an inventor, shows up in an experimental rocket car (a direct reference to ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chitty_Chitty_Bang_Bang_%28film%29 Chitty Chitty Bang Bang]'') and delivers a box of light bulbs to them. Cavis maintains that if their production is glitzy and bright (electric lights are still a novelty at this time and were first introduced at the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Savoy_Theatre Savoy Theatre] for Gilbert and Sullivan's ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patience_%28opera%29 Patience]'') then it will be a bigger hit and reach more people. He plans to integrate the lights directly into the scenery itself (and, soon, the costumes as well).