Buckaroo Bugs

Looney Tunes has made a big hit featuring Bugs Bunny in groundbreaking Buckaroo Bugs. After Bosko and Buddy(the classics from 1930s') Looney Tunes gains acceleration with Bugs; within more vivacious, more musical, more compositional series.

Bugs has innovations for himself: For the first time, he plays a cowboy, a thief,i.e. a villain character; though he plays more Bugs Bunnily than before, eats more carrots and makes more jokes than usual. He's well known as a carrot thief in an old west town. Hence a cowboy named Red Hot Ryder goes after him. Bugs feigns ignorance to different characters such as a newsboy and a postman, but never reveals his true identity till Red's horse realizes him. It's both funny and dully that the horse is more brainy than the cowboy who rides it.

Impersonating a horse is surely a good idea, but mainly there is more bleakness than the appealing facts. In the first place, Lou Lilly's story and script is very plain and tasteless. William Tell overture has used nicely to introduce the larger-than-life cowboy character at the beginning; yet in a matter of minutes this mood becomes very placid. Some more action sequences could have been used to boost it, like in the episodes with Yosemite Sam.

Bugs Bunny's first Western fails to find(or create) the right cartoon character to accompany him. Our eyes were looking for Yosemite Sam; for Bugs needs better challenges. This episode is more addressed to preschool children.

I'm wondering how the Devil they got this cartoon past the censors. Of course,the seldom shown ALL THIS AND RABBIT STEW also had Bugs stripping a hunter nude,but at least that one was hiding behind a bush.

You might notice that the most obvious things a magnet can steal--- Red Hot Ryder's GUNS--mysteriously disappear just before the magnet goes to town on him---on both occasions.

I'd love to see the magnet scenes in slow-motion camera.

Ryder DID get to use the "Whoa,Horsie!" bit a few years before Yosemite Sam made it his own special gag.

And remember--Ryder yelling WHOA! As they fall into The Grand Canyon;as if he could somehow defy the law of gravity.

This cartoon -- directed by the great Bob Clampett -- is one of the best Bugs Bunny cartoons ever (IMO). In the "Western" storyline, our favorite hare is the Masked Marauder, stealing carrots from Victory Gardens (they had those in the Wild Wild West?!??) and being pursued by the not-so-bright Red Hot Rider (his horse is smarter than he is!). Bugs, as he does with Elmer, then proceeds to have fun tripping up this adversary. This classic cartoon dates from Clampett's -- and Warner's -- golden age of the 1940's, a time in which the wildly hilarious "Warner Style" reached it's peak. This one is a must for any Bugs Bunny fan.

The big question in this story: "How long will this fair-weather fiend, the Masked Marauder, be allowed to roam at will, dragging in the mud the name of justice and decency?"

The answer: "Brooklyn's famous fighting cowboy, riding to right this wrong, rides 'Red Hot Ryder'!!"

Wow, those corny and ultra-dramatic lines are uttered to set up this Bugs Bunny Looney Tunes effort from 1944. Unfortunately, it might have been the high point of the cartoon.

Bugs was his normal cocky and humorous self but "Red Ryder" was so stupid-sounding he was annoying and not decidedly not funny. He sounded more like the "Lenny" (of Mice and Men") dopey characters that were in a few other Looney Tunes. I would prefer to see Bugs up against someone of equal intelligence, but that is rarely shown. Hearing "Which way did he go" Which way did he go?" a half dozen times in this retarded-sounding voice is more irritating than it is funny.

The beginning of this nine-minute cartoon was very good and the whole thing looked promising until "Red Hot Ryder" showed up. After that, there wasn't much to laugh about.

Buckaroo Bugs is a thoroughly entertaining Bugs Bunny cartoon. My only problem was that Red while he is voiced brilliantly and has some nice juicy dialogue comes off weak and silly as a character. Buckaroo Bugs is entertaining for primarily a rootin' tootin' performance from my favourite rabbit(or wabbit as Elmer would say) if there ever was one. Bugs is well supported by some rapid razor sharp dialogue, wonderful visual gags, great animation and a corker of a score with the William Tell Overture played to perfect use. And Mel Blanc? What can I say about this truly talented guy? I know I keep going on about him, but he does deserve credit for bringing these truly wonderful toon characters to life and and being funny in the process. Overall, near-perfect as a cartoon, that is lots of fun. 9/10 Bethany Cox