I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown

Amazon.com I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown might otherwise be called "Peanuts: The Next Generation" for its sprightly emphasis on Linus and Lucy's younger brother, Rerun, and his quest to be worthy of a pet pooch. Like a, well, dog with a bone, Rerun is intent on forging a happy friendship with a canine as cool as Charlie Brown's Snoopy--in fact, he keeps coming around to see if Snoopy wants to play. (Of course, Snoopy's idea of playing is making Rerun his co-pilot in the imaginary cockpit of his imaginary World War Ibomber.) This holiday season television special is not the wise, enduring classic that is 1965's A Charlie Brown Christmas, but it is charming and sweet, particularly when Snoopy's brother, the desert-dwelling Spike, comes to stay. Schroeder fans will enjoy the usual shtick between love-struck Lucy and the piano genius' detachment. --Tom Keogh