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The Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon, "Cross Country Detours" (1940), is one of a number of Tex Avery-directed animated parodies of the kind of all-encompassing travelogue and documentary short that the studios used to turn out for theaters to show with their movies back in the golden age of Hollywood. These cartoons use a narrator who sounds exactly like the kind of narrator such films used (and may indeed have been one of them). This cartoon focuses on sights and sounds in America's national parks in the west and up north (Alaska). There are 13 gag sequences in all. (The segments involving the dog headed from Alaska to California and leading up to the Redwoods finale all count as one gag.) One of the gag segments involves a frog "croaking" (figure it out) and has been cut from TV prints of this. (Beware of TV prints of Warner Bros. cartoons, especially the older ones, pre-1947.)

The gags tend to be more clever than funny. They often involve interaction between the syrupy narrator and the animals being observed, who speak up to counter the narrator's invariably smug assumptions. (E.g., the polar bear stuck on a floating slab of ice taking issue with the narrator's insistence on how "warm" the bear is.) The animals are very realistically drawn and animated, even when they behave out of character, e.g. the bobcat having a meltdown or, most famously, the lizard "shedding its skin" by doing a striptease, to the tune of "It Had to Be You." In one of the documentaries I've seen on the Warner Bros. animation unit, there was black-and-white live-action footage of a woman executing the movements of a striptease filmed expressly for use in rotoscoping the drawings for this segment. As a masterpiece of rotoscoped animation (in which the drawings are traced over live-action movements), this sequence should be celebrated, never mind that it's also funny and pretty risqué for the era. Also, the cartoon boasts remarkably detailed background paintings of such landmarks as Yosemite Park, Bryce Canyon, Grand Canyon and, in one sequence showing beavers at work, Hoover Dam.

In the Grand Canyon "echo" sequence, I believe the tourist is a caricature of Tex Avery himself and that Avery supplies the voice for the character. (He occasionally supplied a big booming laugh to characters in his cartoons, like the hippo in the audience in "Hamateur Night," 1939.) Other Avery films like this, filled with spot gags, include "Detouring America," "Land of the Midnight Fun," "Screwball Football," "Holiday Highlights," and "Wacky Wildlife."

This Cartoon always seemed Interesting to me, it has a different Premise and still maintains Avery's Classic Humor, it shows us a journey through the different Ecosystems of the United States while some Gags Take effect, This Cartoon also stands out from the rest due to its Longer Than Usual Duration, Which is almost 10 Minutes, but the whole Cartoon is really enjoyable and stands out from the rest.

We see various places in the United States, some Husky Dogs in Alaska, a tourist in the Grand Canyon and some Rangers in California, all beautifully drawn while there are many scenes worthy of laughter.

The Animation is Incredible, it is Warner Bros Animation in its purest form, even to the degree of Disney, Avery's style is present at every moment and the Landscapes are Beautiful and the Attention to Detail is Maximum.

There are also Good Musical Moments, The Iguana Creating a New Layer of Skin (in a sexy way to make people laugh obviously) and one or another well-implemented scene, the Music is Well Placed and does not Fail (Carl Stalling never fails as usual).

I found it to be an Interesting Cartoon, it has a different plot and the Gags are also Innovative, The Exquisite Animation and the crazy Humor make this cartoon quite fun to watch and you won't be disappointed in the process.

Now my Final Verdict, Cross Country Detours tells in a Funny Way about the Landscapes of the United States while there are Quirky and Exuberantly Funny Gags (Like the Frog Killing Himself and the Running Ranger) It has a Good Animation and possibly, you will not be disappointed.

For everything I said above, This Cartoon gets a 9.

Love animation, it was a big part of my life as a child, particularly Disney, Looney Tunes and Tom and Jerry, and still love it whether it's film, television or cartoons.

Also have much admiration for Tex Avery, an animation genius whose best cartoons are animated masterpieces and some of the best cartoons ever made by anybody. 'Cross Country Detours' is not one of Avery's best but for a travelogue cartoon, or for a travelogue of anything, it doesn't fare too shabbily at all, actually it fares well. It may not be one of his overall funniest or most imaginative and at all structurally it's a little episodic, but it's well made and clever.

It is no surprise that, as with a vast majority of Avery's cartoons regardless of the period, the animation is excellent. Beautifully drawn, very detailed and the colours are vibrant. The highlight animation-wise are the different locations brought to remarkably vivid and superbly detailed life.

Carl Stalling's music score is typically lushly and cleverly orchestrated, with lively and energetic rhythms, it's also beautifully synchronised with the action and gestures/expressions and even enhances the impact.

While not hilarious, 'Cross Country Detours' is very clever, with the frog and lizard scenes very daring for their time and still shock. Timing is spot on and the narration is suitably sardonic. Avery directs splendidly and distinctively. Voice acting is very good.

On the whole, a lot of fun. 8/10 Bethany Cox