VeggieTales Presents a Medieval Triumph

A couple months ago, I received an email from Big Idea, the company that produces my much-adored video series VeggieTales, inviting me to serve as an ambassador for the company, which would basically involve them sending me a preview video and accompanying materials that I could screen and distribute at my church. I was jazzed. Unfortunately, the response was so overwhelming they decided they wouldn’t engage me in assisting them until their next video. So I didn’t get in on Duke and the Great Pie War early, but I was happy to purchase it when it did hit the stores. I probably would have anyway. I’d been gearing up for it by playing a game at www.bigidea.com in which the object was to accumulate points by flinging Mr. Lunt into a barrel of goo via a catapult. I never became very accomplished at the game, so I didn’t earn enough to land me a prize-worthy score. Playing the game and answering the periodic trivia, however, did give me some clues as to what this next offering from the ingenious Phil Vischer, Mike Nawrocki and friends involved.

A friend of mine who is rather less devoted to VeggieTales than I am actually got to see the video first when she took her niece to a screening at her church. She complained that it was just two completely unrelated stories and it didn’t make any sense. From her description, it seems for whatever reason that the preview copy skipped the introductory and concluding material tying the two parts together. She didn’t mention Silly Songs with Larry – actually The Blues with Larry – so maybe that was absent as well. At any rate, it certainly is not unusual for one of their videos to contain to separate stories united only by a common theme. In fact, this is the case in most of their offerings. When they stray from their established formula, I often miss it; I was particularly disappointed with the much-hyped Esther, which departed so much from the norm that I felt a bit disenfranchised. There is an upcoming video in which I don’t anticipate that being a problem, but I’ll get to that later.

Duke and the Great Pie War is a video about family and taking care of one another. The stories are precipitated by a letter to Bob and Larry from a young girl feeling down because she has to take care of her baby brother all the time and feels as though no one really cares about her anymore. Larry takes the helm here, explaining that he understands her plight, having gone through the same thing with his brother. To Bob’s increasing exasperation, Larry announces that he has three brothers. “I’ve known you for ten years!” Bob complains, wondering why he never heard about these clandestine siblings before. But we must leave Bob with his frustration as we venture into the first story, a familiar one for most who have gone through the ranks of Sunday school.

Baby Sister in DeNile is the tale of young Miriam’s efforts to save her baby brother Moses during a time when Egyptian law decreed that all male infants must be killed. The climactic moment mentioned in the Bible has some build-up here as Miriam (played by Laura Carrot) must deal with her new responsibilities as Moses’ babysitter and try not to feel too unappreciated by her parents, who now only seem to dote on the baby. It becomes a story all too familiar to any child who has had to deal with the mixed emotions of welcoming a younger sibling to the family. In the end it is an act of kindness by her older brother Aaron that convinces Miriam of her sacred duty. Aside from the inner inconsistency of having Moses portrayed as a carrot when he was clearly a zucchini in Josh and the Big Wall, this is a sweet tale that seems especially geared toward children in helping them deal with issues of sibling jealousy. Special highlights include a Jewish-flavored musical rant by Miriam and the notion of a beach pool that must be emptied of Hebrews for the Egyptian princess’ swimming hour.

Larry tries to tackle the blues with his silly song, but he’s just too darn upbeat. Perhaps we can call him a cock-eyed optimist. He’s gettin’ down with a gourd guitarist who clearly means business, but every time it seems as though Larry has found something to be downcast about, he finds a way to make lemonade out of lemons, much to the frustration of his multi-talented buddy. (The gourd in question also plays the harmonica. I can buy that. What I don’t get is how a guy with no hands can provide complex finger-picking…) The song degenerates, as so many of Larry’s musical efforts do, but it ends with Larry finding a more appropriate medium through which to express his exultation.

The main offering is a medieval-style story complete with expertly calligraphied pages and a chorus of narrating minstrels fulfilling the same purpose as the Mikado chorus in Sumo of the Opera. This gives the whole thing a nice mythic, storybook quality. Though the names have been changed, it is based on the biblical account of Ruth and Naomi, the in-laws who stuck by one another so faithfully even when it meant sacrificing a more comfortable lifestyle. Ruth becomes Petunia, a sweet-natured rhubarb, while Naomi is now Nona, whose maternal presence is provided by the usually more distant Madame Blueberry. Petunia is a newcomer but bears a bit of a resemblance to Esther, another shapely biblical heroine (though portrayed by a leek). Our Hero is Duke Duke – biblical counterpart Boaz – who provides Larry’s first chance to play a romantic lead (though there were hints of it in other videos with The Piano Must Go Up! and My Sport Utility Vehicle). Bob plays his loyal assistant, and Mr. Lunt is a villainous presence as Otis the Elevated, who Duke Duke decides to face in battle in an effort to win back the other half of Nona’s golden duck, which when put together provides access to all the riches of the kingdom she fled. (Yeah, it’s a bit complicated.)

The scenery is most appealing, a lush vision of the English countryside. I have trouble feeling too sorry for the two women being forced to live in poverty in a tree stump because it’s such an incredibly charming home. Given the setting and the creators’ obvious affection for Monty Python, it’s no surprise that a reference or two to those zany Brits manages to surface. Puns abound, and we’re treated to allusions to Three-Dog Night, surf music and that famous Abbot and Costello routine. Duke makes a dashing if rather clumsy knight; both of these qualities are most evident in his association with Petunia. Infatuated into an inconvenient state of awkwardness, he spends most of his time around her bumbling about, tripping or bumping heads with her. His decency is readily apparent, however, overshadowing his clutziness. Though he hasn’t known Petunia long, he is willing to go to great lengths to look after her well-being, even if it means a joust for which he is ill equipped.

The video concludes back on the countertop, where our hosts drive home the importance of being your brother’s keeper, so to speak. Whether or not it’s your actual family, you should make the effort to look after those entrusted to your care. There’s an extra treat at the end as Larry introduces his brothers, a curious crew who don’t seem to fit with the description Larry provides of them. We’re left with Bob’s perplexity and the possibility that more revelations on Larry’s relatives are yet to come. Hopefully we are also left with a greater urge to assist our friends and family when they are in need.

This was a good offering. I can’t express how glad I am that Big Idea did not fold when it went bankrupt. These folks are a constant source of amusement and inspiration. What I wouldn’t give to have the drive and creativity to build up such an empire from practically nothing. They’re amazing, and I hope they keep doing what they’re doing for a very long time. I know that they will for a while, at least. Even though the previews were in a separate section rather than mandatory viewing before the film as they sometimes are on DVDs, I couldn’t help but sneak a peek at them before I watched this video. The first was a source of great excitement. VeggieTales already has a video game featuring Minnesota Cuke (Larry, of course), but now they have a full-blown video coming up that parodies Indiana Jones, with the illustrious cucumber searching for Samson’s hairbrush. It promises to be a thrilling ride, accompanied by an aside about Junior’s troubles with a bully (featuring a glorious-looking tree house) and a silly song about Larry’s burning passion for pizza. But Minnesota Cuke… How cool is that?

Not as cool as what’s coming in November. I can’t believe I didn’t get it when I saw the title Lord of the Beans. My mind briefly flitted to Lord of the Flies but not to the parody I have hoped for more than any other in my 8-year obsession with VeggieTales. Even when I saw, to my delight, what was obviously a hobbit hole, I took it as a passing (albeit exhilarating) reference. But it soon became evident that what we were dealing with here was another epic VeggieTales offering, tackling a tale that so deserves their attention. In their version, a Flobbit named Toto Baggypants (Junior Asparagus) must go on a quest to the Land of Woe to determine how he must use the magic bean bequeathed to him by his uncle Billboy. Though he is pursued by relentless armies of Sporks seeking to deliver him to the evil lord Scaryman, he is assisted by a ragtag team of veggies bearing suspicious resemblance to Gandalf (Mr. Nezzer), Gimli (Pa Grape), Aragorn (Larry) and Legolas (Jimmy Gourd). (From what I’ve seen so far, it looks like Toto may be the only Flobbit, which unfortunately means no parodying Sam. What a disappointment if this is the case, but I’ll learn to live with it…) The scenery is glorious, the casting inspired and I can’t wait to see what they come up with for music.

How can I wait until November? At least it is something glorious to look forward to. And the tie-in merchandise… I anticipate buying it all. And if they’re smart, they’ll market this as aggressively as possible in order to tap into the vast legions of Lord of the Rings fans who may not be aware of or interested in VeggieTales but will undoubtedly eagerly lap up such a carefully orchestrated parody. While Lord of the Beans is not hitting the theaters and will clock in at a mere 44 minutes, the main story will fill that entire space, and in this instance I do not mind at all. After all, such a method was charmingly employed in their Dickensian parodies (The Star of Christmas and An Easter Carol), and if anybody deserves a whole video to himself it’s Tolkien.

So yeah, you may be figuring out that while I liked Duke and the Great Pie War and would certainly recommend it, greater things lie ahead. Much greater things. Long live Toto!