Olive is not your ordinary, average dog. Nope, she's a Christmas-loving pooch who stepped in to save the holiday when Santa almost considered canceling his usual run. But I'm getting ahead of myself. I remember when this special aired 21 years ago (God, I feel old) and at the time, I didn't think much of it. It looked like another crappily animated cartoon big names threw together for big bucks. But now, two decades later, I've decided to give it another chance. So, back to our story in rendered Nintendo 64 Town, Olive loves the Christmasy time of year, even when her buzzkill owner Tim doesn't. He's disappointed that Olive isn't like other dogs, as they can talk to each other and she doesn't destroy things or make a mess in the house. He wants a wild mutt who will pee on his carpet and chew his slippers. Well, clearly, he knew what he was getting into when he bought a dog that could talk to him. Anyway, Olive went back to her doghouse to chat with her pet flea... as you do. But a bulletin on the radio warns the world that due to Blitzen suffering an unfortunate accident, Christmas might very well be canceled. But when Santa says he'll have to make do with all of the other reindeer, Fido the flea misinterprets that as "Olive the other reindeer" and tells the amiable pooch that she's really a reindeer and suggests she go to the North Pole. To get her going, the flea purposely misinterprets Tim when he comes over to apologize, making it sound like he didn't want Olive anymore and was getting a new dog. Fido is a jerk. And so, Olive heads off to find a way to the North Pole, accidentally bumping into the surly post man called... Post Man, and he sounds like Dan Castellaneta doing a decent imitation of Vincent Price. On this day, Post Man is unusually happy because Christmas seems to have been canceled. He hates Christmas because it means extra work for him, and when he hears Olive intends to save Christmas, he plans to stop her by any means necessary. So when the stalwart dog buys a bus ticket to the North Pole, she's accompanied by a con artist penguin named Martini, who reluctantly saves Olive when the Post Man attempts to kidnap her... that's a sentence I just said. En route to the north, Olive and Martini meet the bus driver named Richard Stands, who thought the Pledge of Allegience was about him (for which it stands) and some other tourists who try to tell her she misheard Santa and was wasting her time, but Olive stands by her assertion that she is a reindeer and that Santa, as well as the whole world, needs her. Speaking of wasting time, that zany Post Man is still hot on that pup's trail... what? Jingle All the Way can't be the only Christmas movie to have a crazy mailman villain.
They arrive at Arctic Junction, where Richard treats Olive and Martini to some food, while the Postman becomes Guy N. Cognito, the waitress. He tells Olive that Santa is waiting outside and wants to meet her, and because Olive is too gullible for her own good, she falls for the rookie mistake and the whacked-out mailman takes her hostage. In the back of his van, she finds a parcel addressed to her from, and I'm not kidding, Deus Ex Machina... don't you just love that guy? It's a metal file, which Olive uses to liberate herself from her captivity. Fortunately, Martini was still at the diner and they try to find somebody in the bar who can take them the rest of the way, only they discover the bar to be full of rubbernecks, surly reindeer and belligerent elves. They scoff at Olive being a reindeer and threaten to chuck her off the roof, when she makes another passionate speech about finding her place and that you should earn what you want, and not just get it... hear that, welfare frauds? Seeing the error of their ways, everyone apologizes for being a jerk and trucker Round John Virgin (Round yon virgin) agrees to take Olive and Martini the rest of the way. Upon reaching the North Pole, they discover a press conference being held, awaiting Santa Claus to officially announce he's canceling his Christmas Eve flight, though St. Nick himself feels reluctant to do so. At first, Olive is barred from getting in by a jerk gate guard elf, but after a nice distraction from Martini, Olive gets in and tells Santa she's the "other reindeer". So with no other alternative, they strap her in with the rest of the team, while the evil Post Man arrives to deliver Santa more letters, all nasty notes telling the jolly man they hate him and to "lose weight". You know, I have a feeling those letters aren't from actual children. Post Man also pulls a fast one by stealing Santa's sack of toys and replacing it with junk mail. Dude, you have serious issues. Even the Grinch would tell you to tone it down. So, with Olive trying her best to keep up with the rest of the team, Santa's sleigh takes flight. But upon landing at their first stop, they discover the presents gone. Olive knew who was behind it, so using her terrific power of scent, she leads them to the Post Man, who had kidnapped Martini and was most likely on his way to dispose of the toys. They manage to catch him, making his truck crash. With the gifts back in the sleigh and the Post Man subdued, Olive and the other reindeer successfully complete their run, and she makes it home in time to celebrate Christmas with Tim. So, Christmas was saved, Santa and his reindeer had their confidence restored, Martini went straight and was given his old job back at the zoo, and even donated a brand new penguin: the bound up Post Man. He really should thank Martini, because after he's fired from the post office and probably jailed for the numerous laws he broke, he'd be lucky to be allowed anywhere near a mail box again. So it was a Merry Christmas for all!
After watching this again after so many years, I have to say it was better than I remembered it. The animation is weird, the characters look disjointed and, as stated above, it looks like an early N64 game, but animation aside, the voice acting is really good. That's Drew Barrymore as Olive, Dan Castellaneta as the Post Man, Joe Pantoliano as Martini, Ed Asner as Santa (so does this take place in the same universe as Elf?) and Peter MacNicol as Fido, all gave very lively and enjoyable performances. Some jokes are pretty funny too, and the humor doesn't get lowbrow, as a lot of these types of shows often do. The characters are very likable, even the Post Man who is so over-the-top that you can't help but laugh at him. So this Christmas, if you've seen it already or want to see it for the first time, I recommend Olive the Other Reindeer.
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