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I prefer them to be called Tom and Jerry. This cartoon was made way back in 1940 and features the very first appearance of the troublesome twosome. Though they look rather different.

I guess Hannah-Barbera didn't know, at the time, what a massive franchise they had in their hands. Puss gets the Boot almost seems like a one-off short. Granted, Tom and Jerry never really did anything else than chase, and that's exactly what they do here.

It also features the Tom's owner (or owners slave), the highly racist and so un-PC black woman with the stripey socks. This would never be allowed today unless in satire. How glorious the early 20th century was.

I do think Tom and Jerry have done better before, the story is rather routine and there are one or two sound effects that sounded a little strange, but this is a very interesting start for the dynamic duo. Here they are called Jasper and Jinx, but they are as likable as ever, Jerry/Jinx especially is very cute when he squeaks.

The animation is quite good. Both Tom and Jerry look different but are well animated, while the backgrounds are very nice. The music is beautiful with a lot of energy, the sight gags and chases are funny and the pace is on the money.

Overall, Puss Gets the Boot is not Tom and Jerry's best, but for a debuting cartoon it is a fun and interesting one. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Tom And Jerry has been a historical part of many childhoods, including the childhood of the 15 year-old geek writing this review. Many generations of children in the present day are forced to soak up the blandness and laziness of modern cartoons, such as The Amazing World Of Gumball, Phineas And Ferb, Teen Titans Go!(my lord....), Sanjay And Craig, and so on. I wouldn't be surprised if they aren't enjoying them as much as the heads of Hollywood think they are, but if there's one thing I learnt from the animation format in all my life, I found that Tom And Jerry is much more significant than any mainstream Saturday morning cartoon, both historically and in my humble opinion. Take Puss Gets The Boot- the first of several shorts of the Tom And Jerry series, it might be completely different from most Tom And Jerry cartoons you normally see on TV, but I blame that on Cartoon Network's executives and chairman. However, you must remember the theory of evolution- change over time. Throughout the years, the animation in Tom And Jerry has improved in designs and textures, the number of characters have increased, the music has gone more complex, the list goes on. In Puss Gets The Boot, the characters look a little scruffier and less simplistic than the later shorts, Tom meows instead of yelping in pain(fun fact: the voice actor of Donald Duck at the time lended the screeching of Tom's character), and there's more of a reliance on African American stereotypes. What makes this short film so satisfying is that it shows that even in the beginning, Tom And Jerry still had it's charms of seeing this poor cat always failing to get what he desires, and the supposedly innocent little mouse getting the better end of the deal. This may be very well one of the best Tom And Jerry shorts, even if it had differences in what you'd usually see. Also, Mammy Two-Shoes is the stealer of the show, hearing her yell "O-U-W-T, out!" is just hilarious!

I always wondered what Tom and Jerry's first cartoon was, and now I know. It's only a few minutes long, but I thought it was a fine first appearance for the famous cat and mouse duo. In this short film, Jasper and Jinks, referred to as Tom and Jerry, are the featured characters.

Mammy Two-Shoes' "O-W-T-Out!" is amusing, and I adore Jerry/Jinks' squeaky prayers. If anyone wonders which version of Tom & Jerry I love the most, it is Tom & Jerry from Hanna-Barbera (1940-1958) and from Looney Tunes animator Chuck Jones (1963-1967). All in all, I believe Tom and Jerry are off to a great start in this cartoon.

This is a historic cartoon in that it's the first ever Tom and Jerry. Actually, it's not even called that because Tom is "Jasper" in this one, and he looks different. His face is bigger and fuzzier. Actually, his whole body is furrier.

When you are used to seeing these Looney Tunes cartoons from mostly the late '40s through the 1950s and then you see the beginning years, like in Bugs Bunny's case, it's strange to see how they look. We get comfortable and used to seeing our "friends" a certain way, so I always prefer that over these early renditions of a character. I've said the same about Bugs and Daffy Duck.

Audio-wise, too, this is different in that Tom, when injured, makes screeching noises like an actual cat, which is not the norm for him.

However, the joke in this cartoon is one that they would use over and over, no matter who was doing the writing or animating: the cat being told "if this happens one more time, you're outta here..." and Jerry hearing that and planning to make sure that happens. In this debut cartoon the threat by the maid and the threat is that if "Jasper" breaks one more object in the house, he's toast.

For audiences in 1940, I'm sure this was very entertaining but for those of us who have seen at least 40-50 Tom and Jerry episodes, this is nothing we haven't seen done before and done much better. Overall: not bad but nothing special except for historical value.