'She's a Good Skate, Charlie Brown' is a Peanuts special that instead of focusing on Charlie Brown, moves the spotlight to Peppermint Patty. And it does an amazing job with focusing just on primarily one character.

I know call this a "spinoff", but it is a Peanuts special that just focuses on Peppermint Patty, Marcie, and Snoopy (with small cameos from Charlie Brown). It takes a risk with Peppermint Patty pursuing a ice skating competition and it nails the finish. The animation is cute and fun. The music is relaxing and inviting. The dialogue is okay, but you appreciate Peppermint Patty and Marcie so much it doesn't matter.

I know I'm biased towards nostalgia with ice skating, but this special is pretty good. Its so much better than you would think given it was released during the "forgotten years" of the Peanuts animated specials.

Give it a watch. I promise you won't be dissapointed!

Who would have thought that Tom-boy Peppermint Patty, the girl with the 95 mph fastball could be such a lovely figure skater. And who would have known that silly and fun-loving Snoopy, the dog who pretends he's a WWI fighter pilot could be such a demanding coach. Such is the case in "She's a Good Skate Charlie Brown". This is one of the more memorable Peanuts adventures , not so much for the usual sight-gags, and banter, but for the wonderful climactic scene at the skating competition when Woodstock the bird steps up to the microphone and takes over for a broken cassette player allowing Patty to perform a beautiful and graceful program on the ice. Between the spellbinding and haunting melody and the amazing skating motions wonderfully captured in animation form (you would think you were watching the Olympics)...you know you are seeing something truly special...a highlight of the "Peanuts" series.

Peppermint Patty is in training for a figure skating competition with Snoopy as her coach. There are a number of obstacles along the way, including a group of hockey bullies and Marcie's poor dressmaking skills. But Patty forges on with help from her coach and a certain little bird. This is a rather different Peanuts special as the focus is entirely on supporting character (but fan favorite) Peppermint Patty. She, Marcie, and Snoopy are the only characters with a lot of screen time. The rest of the gang shows up at the skating competition and get a line or two each. Woodstock is also present in the background throughout and gets one of his best moments from any of the TV specials at the end. The skating sequences are really well done with authentic movements, accomplished with rotoscoping. Charles Schulz's own daughter did some of the skating. It's not a very humorous cartoon but it does have heart and a pleasant tone. Not one of the greats but nice.