When prepping for almost any holiday, people all around the world watch, and rewatch, the Peanuts holiday specials. Charlie Brown and his friends have specials for major holidays like Halloween and Christmas and smaller celebrations like Arbor Day. Valentine’s Day is not a holiday that gets a lot of specials, but Peanuts fills in that hole. For being mostly 6 year-olds, the Peanuts gang has a surprisingly realistic and relatable outlook on romance. With six different specials dedicated to the holiday, these insightful kids cover a lot of topics that even adults are scared to confront.
THAT CUTE LITTLE RED-HAIRED GIRl
When people think of this beloved cartoon classic, many can recall Charlie Brown’s crush on the illusive little red-haired girl. He definitely has a lot going on. He is stuck in his own insecurities to the point where he can’t even go talk to her. This is the problem with idolizing someone you are in love with; you can feel so insignificant that you can’t work up the courage to do things you’d normally do otherwise.
But at the end of You’re in Love, Charlie Brown, the little red haired girl leaves Charlie a note that says she likes him. He is literally jumping for joy, leaving us to wonder what’ll happen next in their relationship. The specials that usually deal with this couple end with ambiguity, keeping the audience on their toes and the realistic aspect at the forefront. Sometimes relationships are uncertain, and that can be exciting.
It’s Your First Kiss, Charlie Brown marks a huge step in this little story: he courts his crush at their school’s homecoming dance. When he works up the courage to kiss her on the cheek, he is light on his feet to the point that he questions if it even happened. But the next morning, his friend Linus confirms that it was real. It all worked out in the end for Charlie, all because he held his head high and decided to go for it. While this might not work for everyone, it certainly can happen.
TO BE LOVED IN RETURN
On a similar level, Charlie Brown’s little sister Sally is also dealing with an infatuation with Linus. Calling him her “sweet baboo,” she chases him throughout the entire Peanuts series. Linus continuously turns her away and avoids her, but she never backs down. Knowing Sally is younger than the rest of the kids, we recognize that she isn’t aware that endless chasing doesn’t make the other person love you.
In Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown, Linus becomes infatuated with his teacher, Miss Othmar. This is certainly a surprising and inappropriate scenario, but it does showcase what happens when someone falls for an unavailable person. Linus creates an exaggerated scenario in his head of who Miss Othmar is, when in reality she is treating him like everyone else.
PAINFULLY REAL: A HURTFUL HOLIDAY
These kids also aren’t afraid to tell the audience how painful love can be. In the same special I mentioned before, Linus’ sister Lucy goes on a long, screaming rant to Beethoven-obsessed Schroeder about “the tortures of a memory of a lost love;” she is catapulted into a violent fit that could easily be thrown into a “female rage” edit on TikTok. With that, I’d like to say: me too, Lucy. She does not hold back, smashing Schroeder’s piano to bits and shrieking about the pains of loving the one who got away.
This certain special deals with a lot, huh? That’s not the end of it. Charlie Brown’s class holds a Valentine’s party where all the kids bring valentines for each other. He brings a suitcase, in case he gets a lot of valentines, and he doesn’t receive a single one. Some of the girls in his class give him a used valentine, but Schroeder stands up for Charlie. He calls the girls out for only thinking of Charlie Brown when they feel guilty since they didn’t think of him in the first place. While Charlie accepts the pity valentine, it still speaks volumes on how the other kids don’t think of him first and how they view him. I found this part relatable, understanding what it feels like knowing you weren’t on someone’s priority list. It shows that Valentine’s Day can be a hard time for some, when you see everyone else getting love and you feel left behind.
PEPPERMINT PATTY: THE SECOND CHOICE
Peppermint Patty can be seen as annoying; this tomboy is independent and strong, but is also unaware of others’ opinions sometimes. There’s No Time for Love, Charlie Brown is definitely a turning point in the two children’s relationship. After the gang gets mixed up and go into a supermarket instead of an art museum, Peppermint Patty realizes she has feelings for Charlie Brown, even with the knowledge that he liked the little red-haired girl. She doesn’t know how to handle her feelings for him, and that can turn into anger. At one point, she lashes out and says no one could ever fall in love with Charlie Brown. Obviously she doesn’t mean it, she is just masking deeper emotions she doesn’t know how to face.
This special also addresses a very real aspect of love: living in an extremely busy and demanding world. The first half of the short emphasizes how busy the kids are with school and how overwhelmed they feel. This can be especially relevant to college kids and adults, who may feel like they have too much to worry about to have time for romance. Peppermint Patty talks about “all these dumb things to do,” a statement that can sum up many people’s current situation in this crazy world. Even with that, Patty still falls for Charlie, proving herself wrong and showing that love can sneak its way into your life when you least expect it.
I am always drawn to rewatching these specials around Valentine’s Day because they make me feel less alone. I have never really gotten into the romantic scene, so especially as a college girl this sometimes can bring me down. Seeing cartoon children deal with similar problems that I have dealt with recently gives me an incredible sense of comfort. It lets me know that I’m okay where I’m at right now. Charlie Brown is a hopeless romantic, like myself, and it keeps him going.