hellraiser7 When I was a kid one of the things I thought of being was a doctor, so that I could help find the cure for Cancer so it would be destroyed forever. This is another one of my favorite Pennuts specials which is strange to say since this is not entirely the most uplifting, well it kinda is due to the finale. And it's no doubt one of the most unique of the bunch because it deals with a serious and rather touchy subject, however it does it with dignity and subtlety. But I love this special because it's the most emotionally engaging and touching.The animation is unchanged as usual, wouldn't want it any other way. The music is solid, there is one really good song however it's the score at the end that I found memorable, it was just beautiful because of how emotional it was.The main stars of this are Linus whom to me is at his emotional best and for once is without his blanket which I thought was a wise choice showing some growth and maturity to the character.But also on a character that isn't a regular to the Pennuts gang, Janyce who is I think a beautiful character, I really like how we do get a certain amount of depth to her character that I actually found myself caring for her. She is a youthfully spirit that just has great aspirations in life.The chemistry between both Linus and her I felt was genuine and kinda beautiful, sure there was Linus and Sally but those two are just friends and never really added up to much. Here it's different because both interact on a more deeper level, I personally wouldn't of minded if this special was longer would of like more scenes with both of them.And this of course makes this special all the more sad, just hearing the news about Leukema from Janyce and what she has to go though really hits hard. It wasn't fair but it really presented the reality that this kinda of thing can hit anyone at any age at any time, no one is immune to the possibility of death.There are a lot of other memorable moments as we see Linus and Janyce go though the motions, like one moment I'll remember when some random blowhole just picks on Janice for no good reason and does something uncool and that moment Linus just loses his cool. I just thought it was interesting just seeing hot white anger on Linus's face really looked like he was seconds away from punching that kid as he does what any good boyfriend should do, defend his girlfriend. All I can say is way to go Linus and yeah what that blowhole did made my blood boil red hot too, insult to injury isn't funny.But of course the one moment that really stuck with me was when Linus asked Charlie Brown the question which of course is the title itself. I'll admit it was a bit heart wrenching hearing that and this is from a character that usually has the answers but for once he doesn't. That's a question we all ask when faced with this terrible dilemma, and to this day I honestly don't have the answer.It then of course gets down to an ending that I'll admit put happy tears in my eyes, and was hopeful.If the film has messages they are these, treasure life and live it well because none of us have as much time as we think. But also to never stop fighting.Janyce and many others won her fight, and I believe we will win the war against Cancer.Rating: 4 stars

TheBlueHairedLawyer This episode of Charlie Brown was a little depressing and morbid, but it has a valuable lesson for kids about life, grief and the importance of friendship in hard times.Linus has a crush on Janice, a pretty girl in his class, but one day she gets really sick and doesn't come back to school. When Linus and Charlie Brown drop by the hospital to visit her, they discover that Janice has leukemia (bone cancer), and that she'll have to stay there for radiation treatments. Linus is beside himself with sadness; he doesn't understand why a little girl would be given such an awful illness, but when she comes back to school he stays by her side and stops bullies from laughing at her, until finally in the spring they're able to play together on the swing sets again.There should be more shows like this for kids. I'm not saying kids should be surrounded in this stuff, but children today are growing up in safe little bubbles on their cellular phones with no idea of how to handle what life can throw at you. Chances are at some point in life they'll have to lose a loved one, if not to cancer than to something else, and it's important to know that nobody is to blame, that sometimes unfair things happen for no reason.FYI, Janice doesn't die, so this episode isn't too sad for kids.

Sparrow_in_flight For little kids, this is a great video for explaining cancer. Any kind of cancer, almost, not just leukemia. In a very gentle way, it gives a basic overview of testing and the effects of chemo. It also makes sure to provide a few of the traditional Snoopy laughs while still being true to the serious nature of the story. It's one of my favorite Peanuts specials, and I was glad to learn it is on video; I'm going to order a copy ASAP.

Livedog It's one of those things that you think is too good to really exist. "Have you seen that Charlie Brown special where the chick gets cancer?" It's surreal, like if there were an episode of Sesame Street where Oscar the Grouch catches HIV from a dirty needle in his trash can. They missed a great opportunity for a funeral scene where they play the Charlie Brown theme on an organ, Linus has a black blanket, Snoopy dances in place really slow.