Blue's Birthday

And now, I would like to present a review for the Birthday episode that aired prime-time on Nickelodeon on June of 1998. It aired after "What Does Blue Want to Make Out of Recycled Things?" and before "What Was Blue's Dream About?" Let's give the premise first.

The plot of this special is that it's Blue's Birthday and Steve and the audience are getting ready for the big bash! Along the way, we play Blue's Clues to figure out what Blue wants for her birthday present, also, we finish setting the table, and adding one more balloon to the group, also, we skidoo into the Present Store to buy something for Blue for her birthday. The audience buys her a blue puppy doll, and (spoiler alert) a turquoise turtle named Turquoise, and last but not least, open presents. Everybody was there, including Gingerbread Boy, Baby Bear, Magenta, and many others. Now, let's give it a proper review.

This special is a heck of a lot of fun. It has all sorts of birthday feel to it, comedy, education, and of course, love. Also, I should mention that Mailbox gave Blue a birthday card, and the video letter includes guest stars including Gloria Estefan, who also appeared in Elmopalooza, which came out the exact same year this special did. Other celebrities include, Tia & Tamera Mowry, Amanda Bynes, Michelle Trachtenberg, and Rosie O'Donnell! What a star-studded video letter. Interesting fact: In the video version, the Rosie O'Donnell appearance was cut off for heaven who knows what, and it also had a longer opening and a longer ending with Steve getting a present from Blue, a cookie that thanks him for her birthday.

One thing I should point out by the way is that Steve's hair beginning with this episode is a little bit shorter than last time, in fact the only time in the episode where he retained his longer hair was in this shot right here on the left where he asks the audience if they can help him figure out what Blue wants for her present and to help get ready for the party, and also in the stock late Season One intro. This is strange because the episode that aired after this was "What Was Blue's Dream About?" where he retained the original hair style, I point all this out because Nickelodeon had a very strange airing order. I'd be willing to bet that that shot where Steve gets up after getting the notebook was taped much earlier in production, but that's just me.

Okay, final verdict? It is a good episode, not one of the best, but still pretty good. The highlights are the episode are present time, the video letter, and Pin the Flag on Mailbox, that's big-time birthday comedy right there. But, if I were to re-edit this special and make it into a pledge-drive, I would put in Sesame Street birthday related segments as well, like "A Cat Had a Birthday," Ernie and Bert celebrating the letter U's birthday, Charlie's Birthday at Charlie's Restaurant, "If I Knew You Were Coming," and the biggest highlight of them all, "Put Down The Duckie," the celebrity version, I would also put in the sketch where Kermit talks to Oscar about public television from the Sesame Street pledge-drive special that was also named Put Down The Duckie.

But in the end, it doesn't need to be a pledge drive or have all those things, but that's just me. Go ahead and check the episode out if you want to.