The main event here is the Thanksgiving special, a lesson in the real meaning of the holiday. Rabbit takes his usual imperious tack when everyone gathers for their feast, lecturing the gang on how they need to find the proper items for the Thanksgiving table. This turns into a quest which, in the usual fashion, comes full circle and teaches that what's on the table isn't nearly as important as the people gathered around it. The four episodes drawn from Season 1 of "The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh" provide a look back at where the show began, 20 years ago. "Groundpiglet Day" and "The Magic Earmuffs" have plenty of humor, while "Find Her, Keep Her" and "The Wishing Bear" provide some nice sweetness to balance things out. Kids will wonder why some of the favorites like Heffalump aren't anywhere to be seen in the older episodes, and the overall quality of the animation appears rougher than anything produced in the last few years. Even so, the quality of the storytelling and the authenticity of each little parable is unmistakably Winnie the Pooh.
A few extras included on Winnie the Pooh: Seasons of Giving 10th Anniversary Edition offer coloring fun for kids and the option to decorate a virtual Christmas Tree. The connection to Christmas is a bit odd, because there isn't a deep holiday or winter theme in this collection. Kids won't mind at all, and doling out episodes from "The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh" as bookends to other features or television specials is a smart way for Disney to stretch its release calendar. Pooh has made several evolutions over the years, and it's wonderful to see his roots.
