First off, for those getting after the film for not following the book's plot, keep in mind Disney does this all the time with their adaptations and still makes it work, so that's not what prevents me from loving this. Oh no. But before I get into my gripes, I'll talk about what I found good.
David himself is a fairly likable character. I like some of the sides, the cheese monster getting a little bit of development in the final third. I also respect this film for showing kids the hardships faced by sweatshop workers. Most of the songs are pretty catchy, even if the melodies are so stuck in the 90's that they kind of lose any chance at having a timeless feel, and it can be entertaining.
Now onto the stuff that needs work. As far as TV animation goes, it's nothing too special. It's not bad but there's nothing special about it. (Also, the editing could use some work) Micawber's also not a particularly enjoyable villain. They have the right idea with him being an irredeemable jerk, but he's so non-threatening that I couldn't really take him that seriously. The opening number also has no reason to exist. You think it's to establish a character, but then it's revealed that, oh, it didn't actually tell us anything about her, so it was literally there for the sake of being there. Though my biggest gripe is that the final conflict is kind of rushed. It's like the director suddenly realized the budget could only cover 5 more minutes, so he just threw everything he could at us, including the duke changing sides in less than a second just because he saw David's not-famous aunt storm Micawber's factory. I would take off points for the main romance being there for the sake of being there, but that was common at the time and is still a thing sometimes in this day and age, so I'll let that slide.
But all-in-all, I like this film fine. It's nothing too special, but it's decent. If you're a fan of animation and you're curious about some non-Disney works, check it out. You might not love it, but you'll probably get something out of it.
