THE GHOST OF THOMAS KEMPE
(1979)
Dir - Robert Chenault
Overall: MEH
This season three episode of the ABC Weekend Specials series is an adaptation of Penelope Lively's children novel The Ghost of Thomas Kempe, which concerns a particularly annoying poltergeist who gets a young boy into an endless barrage of trouble. Thus a long-established staple of the horror genre is beaten into the ground where someone witnessing supernatural activity is never believed by anyone, which is commonly reserved for women or kids to be at the butt-end of such unwavering prejudice. Considering the the title spirit is a centuries old sorcerer, it is ridiculous that everyone endlessly blames little James Harrison for mischief that defies the laws of physics, several such grown-ups even doing so just because he is seen walking his dog in the vicinity of vandalism or objects being thrown around. Even though it is a kids program first and foremost, nothing that transpires here is remotely frightening let alone spooky, plus a missed opportunity was taken in expanding upon the backstory of the title spectre besides just making him a pesky asshole.
(1980)
Dir- Charles A. Nichols
Overall: MEH
The first of two children's films based off of author Barbara Brooks Wallace's Miss Switch character, The Trouble with Miss Switch
aired on Saturday morning as part of ABC Weekend Specials which
regularly adapted literary material aimed at younger teens. A Ruby-Spears production with the company's frequent director Charles A.
Nichols in tow, it has a fun, slightly spooky musical score and
lighthearted antics like witches flying around on broomsticks who brew up spells in their
cauldron and cause high school quarterbacks to disappear. This particular story presents the concept of a witch's
council that utilizes a Compute-O-Witch to tally its members magical
accomplishments, a concept that is as silly in animated form as it
sounds on paper. Unfortunately, it is about as funny as it is scary and
since it focuses on two adorable, nerdy kids helping their favorite
sorcery-practicing teacher around, it is definitely for younger
audiences only and not something to be marveled at besides its innocent,
nostalgic appeal.
(1982)
Dir - Charles A. Nichols
Overall: GOOD
A loose adaptation of Deborah and James Howe's initial novel in their Bunnicula series, Bunnicula The Vampire Rabbit was the first of two horror-tinged installments in the fifth season of the ABC Weekend Specials program, both of which were animated. The story is largely unfaithful to the book, only maintaining the basic premise of the vegetable juice-sucking title critter being found in a shoe box with a note written in Romanian also inside of it. Whereas in the novel said bunny was never proven to be an actual member of the undead, here he is shown to have explicit vampiric abilities, flying around in a cape with glowing red eyes while he magically levitates three ravenous wolves in a food processing plant. Granted said shenanigans were reveled to have happened outside of Harold the dog's vision, (Harold being the narrator of the story and ergo not a hundred percent certain of what transpired in this particular instance), but even the story's plot here has a unique trajectory to what it is based upon. Still, it is an amusing romp that anyone familiar with the source material may get an innocent enough kick out of.
(1982)
Dir - Charles A. Nichols
Overall: MEH
Ruby Spears Production's The Trouble with Miss Switch sequel Miss Switch the the Rescue features the same main voice cast and personnel while adapting another of Barbara Brooks Wallace's books with identical, purely kid-friendly results. Comparatively, this is a more elaborate story involving time travel, a character getting turned into a troll, and flying pirate ships. That said, it still revolves around the good-natured title character pitting her wits against her
nemesis Saturna who was banished to the inhospitable Island of Fire
and Ice after their previous encounter with each other. This also serves as the final project that frequent voice actor Hans Conried, (from Dudley Do-Right and Disney's Peter Pan fame), ever appeared on, voicing a seventeenth century Warlock. Oddly, the one-two punch of each ABC Weekend Specials episode did not result in at least a season long series to capitalize on their moderate success, but they collectively make a harmless, mildly spooky double-feature.
(1983)
Dir - Larry Elikann
Overall: MEH
The sixth season opener of ABC Weekend Specials was an adaptation of Virginia Masterman-Smith's 1979 novel The Treasure Trap, here changed to the somewhat misleading title of The Haunted Mansion Mystery. Notable for containing an early performance from a thirteen-year old Christian Slater, it features he and Tristine Skyler investigating the whereabouts of a crotchety old, child-hating miser who lived in the latter's house and presumably hid away his vast fortune before mysteriously disappearing. Standard stuff which is anchored well enough by the likeability of the two young leads, but there are only vague supernatural teases thrown in and it ultimately leads to a low-stakes finale where everyone gets to laugh and smile about how safe everything turned out. Perfectly fine entertainment for the youngster demographic that it is aimed at, but hardly memorable and only of passing interest to anyone coming across it all of these decades later.
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