Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz: We’re Not in Kansas Anymore

Inspired by the 1939 classic film adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s The Wizard of Oz, the computer-animated TV series Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz features familiar music and the simpering voices and clownish antics of the Lion, the Scarecrow, and the Tin Man, but--title notwithstanding--no "Wizard" (presumably this is set after he took off). So leader duties in the magical realm fall to ditzy Queen Ozma, who in the episode "Beware the Woozy" is literally petrified by a perfume potion, after which Dorothy and friends use the infamous ruby slippers to transport themselves to the titular pink-and-yellow creature to get some hairs from his tail for the antidote (the Woozy has a strange aversion to people whispering--he responds by shooting lasers from his eyes). Dorothy and her pals engage in problem-solving just in time to stop the squirrelly Gnome King from taking over while Ozma is incapacitated. "Toto Unleashed" finds everyone’s favorite "little dog, too" desperate for attention but understandably ticked when mini-witch Wilhemina (niece of the famous Wicked Witch of the West) uses her flying monkeys to kidnap him to be her own pet. Also including "Mixed-Up Mixer," the valentine-themed "Rules of Attraction," and a patchwork girlfriend for Scarecrow in "Brain Power of Love," this 10-episode set from a rather silly update series is a strong optional purchase. Aud: P. (J. Williams-Wood)