Before they became hacking and slashing horror movie characters (?), “The Banana Splits” were a niche kids program from the seventies. They were performers dressed in animal outfits that performed original pop rock like “The Monkees” and got in to various misadventures. They’d also show various animated shorts during the program. While I was never personally a fan, “The Banana Splits” were so much more interesting than “The Monkees” ever were. Their animated Halloween special is also one of the highlights of their television life, even if you’re not a fan.
A girl named Susie goes to an amusement park and is greeted by the group of costumed tour guides, The Banana Splits, who take her on a tour of the park. In another (animated) realm a Wicked witch sees Susie and wants to kidnap her, and make her a witch so she lures her into her realm with the help of a balloon. The Splits follow her and discover a world of magic. There they try to rescue Susie from the witch and are aided by a couple of bickering wizards named Hocus and Pocus.
“Hocus Pocus Park” is a quite entertaining stand alone adventure that works despite its flaws. The big appeal of “The Banana Splits” is how so rough around the edges it was, as well as the fun music. For reasons never quite explained, this special goes from live action to animation after spending about ten minutes with the Banana Splits. After spending their time at Hocus Pocus Park, they get themselves in an adventure in order to rescue Susie. To its credit the animation is pretty solid, as Hanna Barbera was infamous for cutting corners back in the seventies.
There’s the usual “Scooby Doo”-esque hijinks with them running around, confronting various ghoulies, and getting in to mishaps. Hocus and Pocus are the typical bumbling Hanna Barbera sidekicks, with even Hocus resembling Shaggy. At the very least, Daws Butler is as great as ever, voicing a lot of the characters. For fans, the special ends in a live action format with the group performing in the park. “Hocus Pocus Park” is a neat TV special for the series, filled with kitsch and innocent Halloween fun.