Home, Tweet Home

Simple but effective Sylvester & Tweety short directed by Friz Freleng. This time Tweety is in a park (pre-Granny era so he's alone) and Sylvester is trying to get at him and failing repeatedly. It's a straightforward plot but the Looney Tunes cartoons were never driven by a great story. The gags here, such as Sylvester trying to take the place of a toddler and getting a spanking or Sylvester's creative usage of bubble gum, are lots of fun to watch. Mel Blanc's voice work is exceptional as always. Carl Stalling's music is energetic and suits the action perfectly. The animation is beautiful with well-drawn characters and backgrounds and rich colors. It's not one of the best Sylvester and Tweety cartoons but it is a good one.

In one of Friz Freleng's earliest Sylvester/Tweety shorts we find Tweety taking a bath in a city park's birdbath when Sylvester (cleverly hidden behind a newspaper) spots him. Thus begins a classic chase through the park and into the city. Oh, and a feisty nanny spending an afternoon at the park with the baby she's watching somehow gets mixed up in the whole situation.

Being a 1950 cartoon, we see the deceptively cute Tweety at his most aggressive. The bird takes great pleasure in thwarting Sylvester's every attempt at catching him, resorting to everything from anvils to even getting a "guard dog" (in what has to be one of the most creative visual/musical moments ever in a Sylvester/Tweety cartoon). The best gag, however, involves Sylvester disguising as the Nanny's child.

The animation, particularly of the park scenery, is topnotch (and it's here that we really see Tweety develop visually), Carl Stalling's musical score is (as usual) excellent, and the ending is perfect (particularly, Tweety's final line after getting rid of Sylvester is hilarious).

Overall, this is easily among the finest Sylvester/Tweety cartoons. And considering the excellent quality of the two's shorts up until around 1960, that's certainly saying something.

There may be those who disagree but I like these Sylvester and Tweety cartoons, and Home, Tweet Home is one of my favourites of theirs. It has a simple yet effective story, starts off well and ends well too.

The animation is excellent, very vibrant and colourful with beautiful backgrounds, while the music is never devoid of its quirkiness. The dialogue is very funny, especially Tweety's final line which is not only funny but hilarious, but it is the sight gags where Home, Tweet Home really scores. The chase through the park is classic, but the one with Sylvester using bubble gum to get to the top of the building is great. Even better is the one where Sylevester disguises himself as a granny which has hilarious consequences. Sylvester is great to watch, while Tweety manages to be both cute yet more active and somewhat aggressive here. Mel Blanc's voice characterisations are stellar once again too.

All in all, a hilarious cartoon and one of the better Sylvester and Tweety cartoons in my opinion. 10/10 Bethany Cox