Basically a sequel of the classic The Snowman, this special is the same thing as the first special. A boy moves into a new home, his dog dies, he finds an old box with the snowman's old coals, hat and scarf, and he rebuilds the snowman thanks to a picture of the snowman and his boy (when was there a moment in the first short when the mom took a picture of the snowman).It's not awful or bad. The animation is wonderful to look at and looks like a storybook that came to life. I always enjoy looking at that. Once again, nobody talks in the short and a lot of character comes out in the simple animation and the music. The new boy is his own character and a bit older than the boy in the previous short, which can be interesting. It's kinda nice to see the snowman again as he hasn't changed much. He's still warm and friendly, and the relationship between the snow dog and the boy is kinda neat. The snowman party is updated a bit with a carnival setting and ski races, which is actually kinda fun, though I still prefer that dance party in the first short. The problem I have with the short is that it's a cut and paste of the first movie, just adding a dog. The boy builds a snowman solely because he's inspired by a picture of the boy who first built him. Doesn't that kinda suck the fun out of wanting to build a snowman? The first movie he did it because he was having fun in the snow, why couldn't this boy just have fun rather than shoehorn in the importance of the first short? Also, in creating a snow dog it takes away the importance of the snowman himself. There was just something charming about the snowman and the boy being together in the first short. Also, when the three go flying to the North Pole, there's a pop song involved and it sticks out like a sore thumb. And while it does seem cool to go flying on a biplane with a snowman, there was something more magical and whimsical about just gliding in the air like Peter Pan over towns and getting sprayed by a whale. What bothers me the most the whole thing is just a rushed cut and paste version of the previous film. Half of it is devoted to the boy and the other half is trying to squeeze in everything from the first film that we barely get to know the snowman at all. In the previous short, we knew him for his lively curiosity and warm personality, because it took the time to show us who he was and his relationship with the boy. And finally let's talk about the obvious ending and I don't think that I'm really giving anything away: The snow dog gets a magic collar that turns him into a real dog when the sun rises, but once again the snowman dies. Even though he dies in the first short, it was an ending that was truly heartbreaking because the relationship between him and the boy felt genuine. In this one, it was long foreseen since the start of the short and the audience can barely feel the relationship between the boy and the snowman thanks to the rushed pacing. This honestly seeing the snowman come alive again pretty pointless. It's not a horrendous short, but neither is it much of a classic. In many respects, it seems more like fan fiction than a Christmas short. The first one felt timeless, while this one had no real reason to exist. If you like it, I'm glad for you. There is some things to be enjoyed about the short, I just wish they devoted a bit more time to things like the relationship between the boy, the snowman, and the snow dog, or even expand the party rather rush it all in.

I was all ready to dismiss this film before I'd even watching it; the critics were lukewarm and it didn't feel like there was much excitement for the film compared to some of the more modern family fare – but it was Christmas and nostalgia and tradition has a place and it is this place that this short film made sure it settled. The film does work but it must be said that it almost works despite itself and it shows how good the construct of the original film was by virtue of the fact that this is what still stands up even with a different façade plastered over it.The film starts with a rather obvious device of a dog's pet dying – it is sudden and sentimental and it jarred me by its simplicity. When the dog finds the snowman's gear you already know where it is going and it follows this path all the way to end which doesn't quite have the impact of joy and sadness that the film wanted to have. Along the way though the film works by virtue of doing the same as it did before but with some details changed. We get the soaring flight and North Pole meeting all playing out under some reasonably effective music – it is cheering and warming and it helps that it is animated in the same way as the original film. That said, it also hinders it a little because it is so close to the original in tone and style that it really brings nothing of note to the table of its own – apart from the dog of the title (I wish I had a dollar for every household that made the joke "snow dog is better than no dog" when this was on).The ending plays out the same way as the original and, just like the original film, the credits pile in on top of the moment like it is trying to beat the traffic; it would have had more impact if left to breathe for a minute first. Despite the negatives though, I still really liked it and had a bit of a lump in the throat at one point and found the music and animation and delivery to work on a level that was high enough to be met halfway by my nostalgia. It does need to be met there though, because it doesn't bring much new to the film and it does feel like it is afraid to take even a step away from the original film – and for good reason.It isn't brilliant and it won't replace the original film, but it is warming and mostly works – expect it to become a fixture every year just like the original Snowman.

It's amazing to me the way a small half-hour animation from over 30 years ago came to have such a massive impact and became such an integral part of the Christmas spirit for so many people, and now a new sequel gets to carry on the joy... I really liked this, I thought it was very sweet and heartwarming. I was very impressed by how well they managed to duplicate the look and style of the original, yet subtly bring the setting up to modern times. Things were modernised, yet at the same time stayed true to the classic formula. Although I found it to be fairly good all the way through, it was slow-paced and patchy at times, and I thought the song "Light the Night" was a very poor choice, as it was most lame and corny and didn't even come close to the bittersweet magic of "Walking in the Air". I'm glad they didn't opt to go with the 1982 song again though. That would have been just a little too much history repeating. It was really nice to see the snowman again, like being reunited with an old friend. Such a warm character, perhaps a tad ironic, when you consider what he's actually made of! My favourite feature of the snowman was always the funny tangerine nose, and I loved how the snowdog carried on the tradition with the single orange seg that he had for a nose - supercute! I of course felt differently when I was a kid, but now I don't get why it's supposed to be so utterly tragic when the snowman melts away in the original animation. I know it's symbolic of death, and childhood's end and everything, but the snowman in a sense is winter, and winter can only pass, but he'll always come back next year, so it ain't so bad. At least that is how I like to look at it. Of course it's a shadow of the first one, how could it ever not be? People never like sequels to great things, and this had a heck of a lot to live up to. But that's no reason at all not to give this worthy little gem a chance. The final twist was what truly made it special for me. I don't want to spoil anything, but I will just say that the classic phrase about a dog not being just for Christmas never rang truer. A certain way of reaching the hearts of human beings is through their dogs... I didn't think the addition of the Snowdog was mere fluff, I thought that the minor character added a little emotional depth, but in a different way because some of the themes, in a rather emotionally powerful way, played into people's love of their dogs. The final image is very moving and poignant, and echoes well the original sentiments, but in a significantly different, and lesser way. The ending was sad, but the impact was blunted considerably by what happens - so compared to the original I think it's a bit mild and something of a sweetened fable. It was very well done and evoked just the right amount of emotion without feeling forced. And it did make me all misty-eyed, but probably not for the reason it was supposed to. It was the element of the dog, reminded me of our own who we lost several years ago just before Christmas. We loved that dog. The earlier animation has more than stood the test of time and I'm sure this will too, I just don't see it ever being considered as timeless or special, nor does it quite rival it for charm. But regardless, it's sure to become a classic in its own right and a familiar, well-loved festive staple on some TV channel somewhere every Christmas - and I hope it does, it truly deserves to be, because I thought overall that it was sweet and brilliant.

Thirty years have passed since the classic animation 'The Snowman' first aired on Channel Four; now it is time to return. This sequel opens with a new family moving into the house one summer; as well as another young boy there is a dog but it soon dies and is buried in the garden. When winter comes the boy discovers a package hidden under the floorboards in his bedroom; it contains the scarf, hat and coal-buttons of the Snowman along with a picture of him and the original boy. That night it begins to snow and the next day the boy remakes the snowman and from the left over snow he fashions a little snowdog. As he gets into bed he looks out of the window and is shocked to see that they have come to life. As happened in the original, this boy is taken on a magical journey, flying over London they head north and meet Father Christmas. Anybody who has seen the original will be anticipating a tear inducing ending but this time the sadness is reduced as one last magical thing happens when they get home!'The Snowman' was a hard act to follow but this certainly comes close. Like the original it shares a distinctive animation style that gives a real warmth to the characters… even those made of snow. The setting is quintessentially English but the lack of spoken dialogue means that this could be enjoyed by people everywhere. The song used here sadly doesn't have the ethereal charm of 'Walking in the Air' but it isn't bad. People who enjoyed the original are sure to enjoy this and once again they should be prepared to shed a tear or two but expect to be smiling at the same time… I wouldn't be surprised if this one is still being shown in thirty years as well; perhaps we'll get part three in 2042!