La lapinomalose

The "Hunting Trilogy" of Rabbit Fire (1951), Rabbit Seasoning (1952), and Duck! Rabbit! Duck! (1953) should be considered the comedic high water mark of the Chuck Jones-Michael Maltese collaboration. While they are seldom mentioned in lists of the "greatest" or "most important" cartoons in the history of animation, they are certainly THE FUNNIEST cartoons I've ever seen. Michael Maltese never got the credit that directors like Jones, Freleng or Avery got, but it's his dialogue and situations that make Warner Bros. cartoons, and these three in particular, some of the FUNNIEST ever made.

. . . to utilize when teaching young tykes the basics of firearm safety. The character portrayed during RABBIT FIRE by Daffy Duck appears to be totally clueless concerning Making Peacemakers Safe Again 101. Daffy seldom if ever seems to know whether there's a bullet in the chamber of the shooting irons in his vicinity. While Bugs Bunny, the wily rabbit, seems to be slightly more adept than Daffy when it comes to avoiding self-inflicted bullet wounds, this certainly is not saying very much. As the original Cyclops noted, "In the land of the vision-impaired, the one-eyed giant can rise up to become King.

Rabbit Fire has some of the absolutely funniest lines and sight gags that have ever been seen on film. It is one of three cartoons done as more or les a series and is, in my opinion, the best of them. From Elmer's opening line to the hilarious final line, this is an unalloyed delight. There's also a beautiful gag with an elephant. Much as I love Tex Avery, Chuck Jones's work here and elsewhere is the equal (and, sometimes, superior) to Avery's best. Very much recommended.

This is a terrific cartoon with Elmer Fudd (voice of Arthur Q. Bryan) hunting for Bugs Bunny (voice of Mel Blanc). Daffy Duck (also voice of Mel Blanc) pretends to be a rabbit, leading Elmer to the rabbit hole of Bugs. When Elmer wants to shoot the rabbit Bugs tells him that it is not rabbit season but duck season. Bugs and Daffy are arguing back and forth and every time it is Daffy who is shot by Elmer.

This is a hilarious cartoon with great moments from start to finish. A sequence with an elephant made me laugh very hard, and one where Daffy and Bugs dress up as each other is pretty good as well. One of the better cartoons I have seen.

10/10 It is hard to say what is the best trilogy ever made. Some would say Star Wars, others The Godfather, some Die Hard, and a few would say Evil Dead. Oh, and the Tim Burton Batman trilogy. You know what? None of them reach the height of the shorts Rabbit Fire, Rabbit Seasoning, and Duck! Rabbit! Duck!; aka The Hunting Trilogy. If more people watched these shorts, they would agree, but so far, I'm lonely in this compartment. If you liked this one, Rabbit Seasoning and Duck! Rabbit! Duck! are even better. Watch, and enjoy.