Bugs Bunny Rides Again

It's the wild west with bullets flying down the street like traffic in Manhattan. Over at The Gunshot Saloon - Come In And Get A Slug," Yosemite Sam walks in with two smoking guns. He orders "all you skunks clear out." Of course, the last one is literally a skunk.

Well, there is one varmint left in the bar.....Bugs, who does his Gary Cooper "High Noon" imitation, walking dramatically toward Sam. At the last minute, he pulls a carrot out of his holster and says, "What's up, doc?"

Off we go with another wild Bugs Bunny animated short, filled with funny dialog which includes a lot of puns and clichés from the Old West. The scenery is also spectacular. I laughed continuously throughout this cartoon. The two of them dancing almost had me in tears, laughing so hard. This is just great material.

It is the wild wild west and bullets are flying. Yosemite Sam arrives in town and squares off against Bugs Bunny. This is fine Bugs Bunny. Bugs elevates everything and makes this better. I would still make a few changes. When Sam orders him to dance, I want Bugs to put on a dress and twirl Sam around. The line thing is funny, but it needs to end with Bugs walking on air and Sam unable to. Of course, the card game needs to be poker and Bugs needs to push all in. In that, he needs to put everything and the literal kitchen sink on top of the table. As for the ending, it is great although I figured on Hollywood instead of Miami.

Classic Bugs Bunny short, directed by Friz Freleng, with Yosemite Sam having his way in a western town until Bugs steps up to challenge him. Lots of funny gags and lines, many of which I remembered exactly even though I haven't seen this short since I was a kid. This is one of those Bugs cartoons I saw a lot growing up. Beautiful colors and wonderful animation. Lively, fun music from Carl Stalling. Great voice work from the legendary Mel Blanc. It's just a really funny cartoon and a good introduction to Bugs and Sam for any little ones who might not have seen his cartoons yet. Kids are still allowed to watch Yosemite Sam, right?

When Yosemite Sam comes into town, his reputation comes before him and the majority of the town run in fear of their lives. However Bugs Bunny stands his ground in a saloon stand off which spills out into the street to decide who stays in the town and who goes.

Another of the Bugs cartoons that sets itself in the old west opposite Sam to good effect – and this is easily one of the best cartoons that I've seen with them. The animation is full and looks great, the characters are detailed and the backgrounds aren't just coloured blotches in the rear of the shot! The plot is a good western spoof (Bugs even says `just like Gary Cooper' at one point') and is pretty funny for most of the time.

Bugs is on top form and Sam is pretty sharp. The two work well together and Sam is a good partner for Bugs. The material is pretty clever but still has good physical slapstick too boot. Overall this is a really good Bugs Bunny cartoon with plenty of laughs and a real sense of quality in everything from the animation, the characters and material.

Bugs Bunny gets in a good old-fashion Western showdown with the ornery Yosemita Sam, the roughest toughest he-man stuffest hombre that's ever crossed the Rio Grande - and I don't mean Mahatma Gandhi (that last part is still censored on the DVD version sadly). This town isn't big enough for the both of them naturally and comic hijinks ensue as they try to outwit each other. This is just a classic Bugs/Sam outing any way you slice it and I enjoyed it immensely. This animated short can be seen on Disc 1 of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 2. It also features an optional commentary by Greg Ford writer of latter day Tunes (late 1980's-early '90's) and Friz Freleng via vintage recordings.

My Grade: A