Puss Gets the Boot

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.

This was Tom & Jerry's first ever televised outing, but here in the early days they were unofficially known as Jasper & Jinx.

Here we see Tom/Jasper threatened with being put out if he breaks one more thing so Jerry/Jinx see's this as a chance to put the cat threat away for good!

It's quaint, it looks great, the soundtrack is fitting and it already has that infamous Tom & Jerry charm.

Jerry looks the same as he does decades later whereas Tom looks quite a bit different, arguably a more realistic feline.

The trouble with Tom & Jerry has always been that I tend to find myself cheering Tom on. With so much at stake I was doing the same here, but you know the drill in these kinds of things the outcome was never in doubt.

Cute early Tom & Jerry action and essential viewing for fans.

The Good:

Charming

Very well made

The Bad:

I've never felt more sorry for Tom!

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

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.

Jasper the cat breaks a vase when chasing the brown mouse (who would later be called Jerry -- according to Patrick Brion's 'Tom & Jerry: The Definitive Guide To Their Animated Adventures' he had no name at this time -- Tom and Jerry were apparently the results of an inter-company competition). The noise attracts the black maid of the house, who tells Jasper that if anything else got broken he would be out of the house ('O-U-W-T! Out!'). Guess what the mouse subsequently tries to do? This was the first of the Tom & Jerry cartoons, despite the difference in names. Although it seems a little slow-paced and long now, it did set the standard, and got further recognition of its brilliance when it was nominated for an Academy Award. It still has its charm, and is worth seeing if only to see the cartoon that started it all. Didn't Jasper/Tom look different back in 1940, eh?