Gato miedoso

Scaredy Cat is the first in a series of Porky/Sylvester teamings directed by Chuck Jones, and the series certainly started with a bang. Sylvester and his master Porky move into the last house the real estate agent had, for reasons only Sylvester understands. The house is inhabited by homicidal mice, who will stop at nothing to kill the intruders most painfully. Sylvester is the only one who knows what's going on, and the oblivious Porky mistakes Sylvester's attempts to save him as murderous. The animation of Porky is good, but Sylvester doesn't really look like himself. We must take into consideration that Sylvester was quite a new face in '48, and besides Jones never really drew him like Freleng did. The best horror scenes are those in which the mice's plans don't come off, like Sylvester's empty basket descending. The audience never knows what happened to the basket, nor what happened to Sylvester when he goes all white. This is a brilliantly funny cartoon, essential for all Looney Tunes fans, and as all Looney Tunes fans will have the Golden Collection DVD, all fans will see it!

It's easy to confuse this short with "Claws for Alarm" like I did.

Although not the more terrifying of the too this one really does not pull punches on its dark humor and the sequence of one life threatening trick after another narrowly avoided is very sinister.

It's a tremendously satisfying narrative of misunderstanding and redemption which is touching and funny.

Porky Pig and his loyal cat Sylvester move into a big scary looking house and Sylvester (who doesn't have any dialogue in this 'un) is instantly panicky and afraid. He's sure the house is over-run with homicidal mice, booby traps and ominous shadows. However Porky doesn't appear to be listening and insists Sylvester sleep in the kitchen and not beside him, where he feels more safe.

Sure enough, it's not long before the mice are poking at and prodding Sylvester with sharp objects or launching the poor kitty through windows. Despite repeated attempts, Porky will just not pay attention until he himself is kidnapped.

Now it's up to Sylvester to rescue him in an unusual role as the victim turned hero. You gotta love him, he's just so adorable.

This is the primary pretext of SCAREDY CAT. The feline set also tends to be quite self-centered, evidenced by Sylvester hoisting an anvil over his tuna fish provider P. Pig, forcing him onto the wagon to the killing field. If there were any cats along for the maiden voyage of the Titanic, one can bet that they'd have filled the space on the few available lifeboats as soon as the crow's nest dude yelled "Thar she's blowing free ice cubes for your drinks!" Fluffy does not observe any of the laws stipulating "Women and children first!" Fickle felines always desert just when their owners need them the most. That's why no one writes about "The cats of war" or "Fluffy come home."

Classic Chuck Jones short with Porky Pig and his cat Sylvester moving into a run-down old house. Sylvester soon discovers the house is full of not-so-friendly mice that try to kill them at every turn. This is the first of three cartoons that paired Porky and Sylvester in a spooky place where strange things are happening. The animation is fluid and beautiful with rich Technicolor and well-drawn characters and backgrounds. Excellent voice work from Mel Blanc. Lively music by Carl Stalling. This is a great cartoon with nice atmosphere and lots of humor. Sylvester gets the funniest bits, despite his not talking in this entire short. The mice are a hoot! Love the ending.