The Adventures of Tintin

The Adventures of Tintin adapts one of the world's best-loved characters into a extremely faithful and entertaining animated television series. A Canadian production broadcast in the U.S. on HBO, the series vividly captures the intrepid reporter and his colorful friends (including his dog, Snowy, the blustery Captain Haddock, the brilliant but absent-minded Professor Calculus, and the detective twins Thompson and Thompson) as they travel the world on adventures that mix action, mystery, and humor. The books were originally written in French by the Belgian author Hergé (though Tintin himself is a British character), but the DVD set includes both French and English language tracks as well as French and English subtitles.

The five discs feature two stories each: the two-part space-travel epic, Destination Moon and Explorers on the Moon; two of the later adventures, Land of Black Gold and Flight 714; the Scotland-based mystery The Black Island and the political intrigue of King Ottokar's Sceptre; the eerie two-parter The Seven Crystal Balls and Prisoners of the Sun, in which an ancient curse leads to a trip to Peru; and two early adventures, The Shooting Star and The Broken Ear. The animated series perfectly captures the look of the books (although The Broken Ear, the book of which had the roughest art, has been smoothed out to look like the rest of the series), and each 42-minute episode has enough time to re-create the books' character and wit, if not the exact layout and pacing. (The exception is The Shooting Star, which underwent heavy editing to fit into a mere 22 minutes.) Tintin fans will love reliving these adventures, and newcomers have a wonderful discovery awaiting them. (Ages 8 and older: moments of peril, threatening themes, alchohol consumption)

Avatar: The Last Airbender

Mysterious, visually beautiful at times, and surprisingly funny, Avatar: Book 1, Volume 1 is the exciting story of Aang, a 12-year-old reincarnation of the ancient Avatar, whose purpose (in an imagined world that seems both ancient and futuristic) is to restore peace and order between warring armies of the four elements: fire, earth, water, and air. At one time or another, over thousands of years, the Avatar has been embodied in masters of each of the elements. Aang (who is freed from a century-long sleep inside an iceberg) happens to be an "airbender," capable of using air and wind as powerful forces for moving objects and defeating hostile armies of firebenders. The feature-length Avatar follows Aang and a couple of friends as he becomes reacquainted with the world he knew before his 100-year hibernation--a world now lost to history. The story also concerns internal dramas within the unforgiving world of firebenders, who are intent on destruction and conquest. This engaging story, very pleasant to look at in its rich tones of blue and orange, is for all ages.