Wabbit Twouble

Both the fat Elmer and the Elmer we came to know and love were great! Here director Bob Clampett uses the fat Elmer wisely and puts him in a series of great gags that leave you laughing from start to finish. This was truly a great start for the fat Elmer. Sad is that he never really lasted that long.

Elmer Fudd's old auto is doing the "conga" while driving through a mountain pass on his way to "Jellostone National Park" where Elmer is looking forward to peace and quiet. (He looks different in this early cartoon; older and much bigger and fatter.)

Bugs sees him coming, puts up a "camp here" sign and Elmer quickly sets up camp. "Oh, boy, now for a weal west," he says. Yeah, right. Sadistic Bugs is going to wuin his west weally soon! At least Bugs knows he's bad. He stops at one point, looks at the camera, and tells us, "I do this kind of stuff throughout the picture."

Poor Elmer. What did he do to deserve this torment? I have to say, though, that after a slow start, the last half of this short became very funny. Bugs imitating a grizzly bear was a real howl, and the real bear chasing Elmer in the woods was good, too.

Bugs Bunny is one of my favorite Looney Tunes characters, and this short is one of my favorites directed by Bob Clampett. In this cartoon, Elmer Fudd goes on vacation to Jellostone National Park for relaxation, but Bugs Bunny plays pranks on him.

My favorite scene is when, after Elmer hammers up Bugs' hole, Bugs opens the board like a door and mimics Elmer: "That'll hold all wight." He even chuckled like him. I also love the "play dead" scene, which involves a huge black bear-not a grizzly bear, but a black bear! The facial expressions Elmer uses during the bear attack (either one) are priceless.

I have made no secret of loving the Looney Tunes cartoons, and this cartoon featuring inspired duo Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd is no exception. Thanks to the brilliant visual gags and the razor sharp dialogue, Wabbit Twouble never ceases to be less than hugely entertaining. The animation is spotless and the music is rousing and dynamic. Although you do feel sorry for Elmer as he is the butt of the joke as is usually the case, you have to love Bugs here, he isn't what I feel as obnoxious but certainly devious and cunning. Their chemistry is another reason to see this cartoon, it is somewhat electric! And the voice acting of Mel Blanc and Arthur Q. Bryan is superb. Overall, a hilarious cartoon and definitely one I recommend. 10/10 Bethany Cox

I've never understood why everybody delivers unlimited praise to Chuck Jones' contributions to Looney Tunes (which are great in their own right), while the brilliant early-era directors like Freleng, Avery, McKimson, and Clampett go virtually unrecognized. Here, in his first Looney Tune, Bob Clampett gives us a priceless gem. Not only does this mark a drastic change in appearance for that eternal comic foil Elmer Fudd, but it breaks new ground in the visual style and uproarious physical comedy that we have come to love about Bugs, Daffy, and the rest of the crew. This was the beginning of an amazing career for Clampett, who directed some of the best Looney Tunes EVER (Daffy Duck imagines that he is Dick Tracy, fighting colorful villains in a twisted, art-nuveau/film-noir dream sequence, Bugs Bunny terrorizes a retired Elmer Fudd in an effort to save his nemesis' contract, Bugs battles a crafty wartime Gremlin on an aircraft, etc.) Great stuff! But don't watch this crazy little cartoon expecting west and wewaxation. You'll be laughing too hard!