Gee Whiz-z-z-z-z-z-z

I don't have any idea why, but this cartoon can be found on archive.org for free download and is listed as a 'banned cartoon'. However, after viewing it, I saw absolutely nothing potentially offensive about it and think this is a mistake. It's yet another brilliant Roadrunner cartoon from Chuck Jones--and the quality is as good you can get. While it would be pointless to comment on the plot at any length (you just need to see it), the Coyote once again tries many different Acme products in order to catch that darned bird--and, as usual, to no effect other than beating the tar out of poor Wiley Coyote! You'll see him don a bat-man outfit, ride a jet engine as well as paint a scene with the bridge being out (with predictable but very enjoyable results). The bottom line is that this film shows the characters once they've hit their stride--clever and funny all the way. I especially enjoyed the cute ending. Well worth seeing and you have to be dead no to enjoy this one.

Chuck Jones's 'Gee Whiz-z-z', the eighth Road Runner cartoon, introduced a significant new development into the series by replacing the sumptuous desert backgrounds with a more stylised, minimalist look. While this new look may not have been nearly as gorgeous to watch as the earlier shorts, it certainly didn't do anything to slow down the gag ratio. In fact, 'Gee Whiz-z-z' is so packed with great jokes that it forsakes the longer set-up sequences of the previous few Road Runner cartoons and pushes the action right into the credits in order to maximise the amount of time Jones has to make us laugh. 'Gee Whiz-z-z' features a few of the very best gags of the series (amongst a small handful of more forgettable moments). Chief among these is the legendary sequence with the green bat costume. On paper, this gag sounds like a weak offering but with hysterically funny facial expressions and one perfectly timed glimpse towards the camera, Jones turns it into gold and one of the most fondly remembered spot-gags in animation history. There's also a new take on the painted-scenery gag with a neat new twist. My favourite thing about 'Gee Whiz-z-z', however, is the ending in which Jones himself shares in the audiences sympathies for the Coyote so strongly that he cuts him a break with an early iris-out.

More of Wile E. Coyote - aka Eatius Birdius - trying unsuccessfully to catch Road Runner - aka Delicius Delicius. Among his Acme devices are a Batman suit, a rocket, and a fake destroyed bridge. Sure enough, they all backfire on him. I guess that "Gee Whiz-z-z-z-z-z-z" doesn't really add anything new; although, they occasionally have Road Runner quickly turn around while Wile E. keeps zooming straight ahead...most likely off of a cliff.

So, even if there's nothing new here, it's always great to see what happens to Wile E. Among other things, it shows that you don't need words to be funny. And it shows that the classic cartoons are the gold standard (the more recent Looney Tunes cartoons just can't reach the quality set by their forbears). So check it out. You're sure to like it.

The writer in this one wasted no time depicting Wile E. Coyote (Eatius Birdius) taking physical abuse, being run over by a truck and having a crate fall on his head in the opening credits!

The Road Runner (Delicius Delicius), meanwhile, is in top form, making rectangular smoke with his quick turns and then making the pavement wobble like an earthquake hit it after he roars down the road. Even the coyote is impressed as he pulls out a sign to show us, saying "Egad!!!"

He then starts thinking, which means here we go again: more inventive ways to catch the elusive bird. The ones that stood out, at least to me, were: the "confused" bullet, the green "Batman" outfit and flying sequence, Wile's great painting and perhaps best of all: the coyote's final request to the cartoon writer!

Overall, an excellent Road Runner effort.

GEE WHIZ-Z-Z-Z! is yet another of the classic cartoons starring Road Runner and the Coyote of the 1950's. The Coyote constantly tries to capture the speedy Road Runner, who inevitably escapes leaving the predator humiliated, hurt and simply furious, though he never shows it. In GEE WHIZ-Z-Z-Z! he generally misses the Road Runner when the bird turns suddenly, while the Coyote keeps running dead ahead, usually off a cliff.

Some of the funniest moments in the series appeared in this cartoon, such as the bat-costume and the handheld dynamite launcher. The animation is smooth, detailed and makes watching new cartoons in the series, like WHIZZARD OF OW, seem all the more disappointing. Yet for all the great things about GEE WHIZ-Z-Z-Z!, it isn't any better than the usual Chuck Jones run-of-the-mill cartoon in the series. That's how good they all are. The only thing that really makes this a bit different is the layouts, by Ernie Nordli. Maurice Noble had been art director for a couple of years before this cartoon, so why Nordli was working on it, and making the backgrounds look like Peter Alvarado is beyond me. It's not a fault, it just puzzles me. All in all, you can miss this or watch this, any classic in the series will do.