Bad Ol' Putty Tat

Oh-me! Oh-my! - Who would've ever thought that being a sweet, little bird like Tweety would also have its fair share of hazards and drawbacks, too?

But - Hey! - When you've got a totally determined and persistent putty-tat like Sylvester continually stalking you for his next meal - How can Tweety's diminutive size not make him a victim who is repeatedly finding himself on the lookout for any dangerous traps that are being cleverly set for his inevitable capture?

Anyway - This pre-CGI animated short from 1949 was (IMO) quite an enjoyable view. It was delightfully directed by Friz Freleng with the added bonus of featuring the always-amusing voice-talents of Mel Blanc.

I'm not the biggest Tweety fan, but this one was pretty good. It had a funny humorous moments (seeing that damn speech impediment having bird getting the feathers blown off him as a badminton ball really made my day) And it's always good to watch Slyvester (before he got saddled with a little tyke) Seeing this and liking it made me realize that maybe my dislike of Tweety was misplaced. Maybe I just really couldn't stand the Granny character. I'll have to look more into this new spin on it, but it would change all my understands of my Tweety watching childhood. This animated short can be seen on Disc 3 of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 2.

My Grade: B

Friz Freleng's 'Bad Old Putty Tat' was only the third pairing of Tweety and Sylvester but already this set-up was beginning to grate. An uninspired chase around a nondescript, dingy garden, 'Bad Old Putty Tat' was an early indicator of how repetitive and unfunny this series would be. After an inventive opening shot which suggests a joke has happened off screen before the cartoon even began, 'Bad Old Putty Tat' quickly descends into the same tired old gags. Tweety, once such a brilliant character in the trio of Bob Clampett films in which he debuted, has become infuriatingly cutesy and unfunny while the usually brilliant Sylvester is here, as in so many Sylvester and Tweety cartoons, reduced to a mute dupe, a role that could be played by any other generic cat character. The only sequence during which 'Bad Old Putty Tat' feels like it might come to life is a scene in which Tweety is mistaken for a shuttlecock and that is mainly for my own sadistic desire to see the ruined Freleng version of Tweety being smacked back and forth with Badminton racquets!

Tweety Bird has to fight off Sylvester Cat. Despite their size difference, Tweety always comes out ahead. Sylvester doesn't get to say much. It is all Tweety Bird. It is Tweety who does all the talking and gets the best of the situation. I remember all the gags from my childhood. Maybe there is some reworking in other episodes. Mostly, this is the distillation of the quintessential Tweety Sylvester story. It doesn't get more complicated than this. The old lady may make an appearance in other episodes, but she's not essential. This has all the essential elements here and there is good in its pureness.

It seems like within just a few short years of debuting Sylvester, the Termite Terrace crowd had given him the works (Tweety actually debuted before Sylvester). In this case, Sylvester tries to go after Tweety yet again, but Tweety somehow has all the conveniences necessary - such as mallets and dynamite - to fend off a putty tat attack. Of course, things really get cool once they start playing badminton.

What you have to realize about Tweety is that he was not really what we think of as "cute". He was actually a mean mother. If anything, we should pity Sylvester. But no matter, "Bad Ol' Putty Tat" is another one of the cartoon greats.