"ANGEL WARS: THE MESSENGERS"
DVD Review
by Kevin Carr
| MOVIE: **1/2 (out of 5 stars)
DVD EXPERIENCE: **1/2 (out of 5 stars) Not Rated Studio: Fox Back to DVD Review Home |  |
WHAT IT’S ABOUT
The fourth DVD volume of the “Angel Wars” animated series is titled “The Messengers.” This compilation of computer generated cartoons gives a Christian spin to your standard Saturday morning style. Following a group of angels in training, the story shows a speculative behind-the-scenes look at angels fighting demons in the shadows of our world. Told with a science fiction feel, the series features would-be angels working towards being awarded their wings as they battle evil forces with spaceships and various other high-tech devices.
WHAT I LIKED
As a general fan of animated shows, I welcomed this rather mainstream take on the angels versus demons storyline. Even though the series is based on Christian ideals and offers its own sense of witnessing to its audience, it is constructed much like a mainstream animated show. The protagonists are young upstarts, which is your basic teenage element we’ve seen as far back as the original “Scooby Doo” days.
At its heart, “Angel Wars” is an action piece that has a distinct religious overtone. In some ways it reminds me of the VeggieTales series, which has some pretty blatant Christian messages, but can still be enjoyed on a secular level. In short, whether the kids watching the show are born again Christians or not, they should find something to enjoy about the very mainstream feel of the characters.
Of course, the Christian audience the show is targeting should really enjoy this. It offers an action series for kids but avoids much of the violence and other nasties in the mainstream shows that might turn off the religious parents.
WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE
While this series bridges the gap between religious and secular viewers, the Christian background is a stumbling block for anyone who isn’t ready to be saved by an animated series (and I say that with my tongue firmly in my cheek). Unlike VeggieTales, which isn’t overtly evangelical on face value, it’s hard to hide the fact that the main characters are, in fact, angels. So, if you don’t want any preaching for your kiddos, you might want to skip this title.
The design of the show and the animation is decent but not spectacular enough to raise it above the fold and be seen beyond its status as a niche show. CGI has gotten so good that unless it is at the level of a feature film, it will get lost in the fray of other computer animated shows from “Jimmy Neutron” all the way down to “Bionicle.”
DVD FEATURES
The DVD comes with a bonus episode called “Mind Your Ps and Qs” as well as detailed character bios for the angels in the series. There are also a handful of trailers for other children’s titles, although not overtly religious ones.
WHO’S GOING TO LIKE THIS MOVIE
Christian parents who are looking for a wholesome action cartoon for the kids at home.
