First-rate Rankin-Bass production that ranks at the top in terms of Easter/Easter Bunny holiday fare. I grew up with this one and loved it then and love it as much if not more now. It has a nice story with some wonderful lessons laced within, great stop-motion animation the way only Rankin and Bass can do it, the vocal talents of Danny Kaye and Vincent Price, and the beautiful, catchy music of Maury Laws. Peter Cottontail oversleeps from staying out late partying when he is supposed to compete the next morning against the wicked Irontail only to lose the challenge and see Irontail take over April Valley. There Irontail, with magnificent vocal gusto from Mr. Price, makes numerous changes from changing Easter bonnets to Easter galoshes and egg colors only to new concrete and black. Peter, now social pariah, makes his way out of April Valley to find Mr. Sassafras who hooks him up with a machine that can go back in time with French-speaking caterpillar Antoine as his pilot. Peter and Antoine then make their way through all of the holidays of the calendar as Peter learns true lessons about life. The message in this one is universal and fun at the same time. Maury Laws songs are just wonderful from "The Puzzle of Life," "In Spring the Easter Bunny Never Sleeps," "Be Mine Today," and my personal favourite "If You Can't Get It Altogether Improvise." Danny Kaye resoundingly does the voices of three key characters, and it is clear he and Vincent Price are having a lot of fun. The figures are lovely and I always had a soft spot for January "Boom-Boom" Irontail and his cry "Come Montressor! Away!". I wish they could still make them like this today. I wonder - and doubt - if much of the animated junk they churn out will last and have the same impact on it viewers that this still holds on its over 35 years ago. Well, I'm feeling old - if I could only go back to yesterday and get a second chance.

I love Rankin'/Bass, their specials and their films are timeless childhood favourites. I had never seen this before and never even heard of it until three days ago, and for many reasons which I will explain later I desperately wanted to see this. Thank goodness for good ol' YouTube, for this was a fun special, that is very ideal for the Easter season.

The animation is surprisingly colourful and detailed. My complaint really was the picture quality. As it was on YouTube, the quality of the video was a little fuzzy. Also, while the story is very well done and original, I do think specials like Santa Claus is Comin' To Town has a slightly stronger storyline. That said, the writing is very well done and is constantly entertaining, whether it is the references to Peter's ears drooping when he lies or the lines from IronTail. The songs are very sweet and memorable, especially If Only I Could Get Back To Yesterday and When You Can't Get It Altogether, Improvise. But what made the special was the voice acting. I just wish to add that I admire every member of the cast involved. Paul Frees does strong voice work as usual, and Casey Kasem, who I best know as Shaggy in the Scooby Doo cartoons, is a sheer delight as Peter. The villain IronTail is voiced magnificently by the brilliant Vincent Price, who is superb in everything he's in, particularly in Abominable Dr Phibes, Great Mouse Detective and Theater of Blood. And then there's the underrated and very talented Danny Kaye, who was the perfect choice for the narrator.

All in all, I recommend Here Comes Peter CottonTail. It isn't my absolute favourite of the Rankin'/Bass specials, and despite one or two minor flaws, it is pretty darn good. 8/10 Bethany Cox

I must have been six when I saw "Here Comes Peter Cottontail". Now that I know who did some of the voices, that only makes the movie cooler. The plot of course has good rabbit Peter Cottontail (Casey Kasem, aka Shaggy on "Scooby-Doo") trying to become the Easter Bunny after lascivious rabbit Irontail (Vincent Price) wins the contest. Through some mishap, Peter accidentally travels through the whole year, selling eggs for every holiday.

Maybe this does mostly serve as a kids' movie, but it's pretty neat. With Shaggy as the good guy, Dr. Phibes as the bad guy, and Danny Kaye as the narrator, how can you go wrong?