Heavenly Puss

Fatally crushed by a piano while pursuing Jerry, Tom must be assessed before being permitted to ride the Heavenly Express; rather than being congratulated for his mouse chasing efforts, he is told that he has one hour to seek Jerry's forgiveness or he will forever be condemned to Hell.

After a couple of fun but relatively uninspired capers—The Little Orphan and Hatch Up Your Troubles—it's nice to see the people behind Tom and Jerry at least trying something a little different for a change, even if it isn't a wholly successful idea. The basic premise—that Tom would be punished for all eternity just for following his natural instincts—is admittedly daft, but it's a lot of fun to see Tom begging Jerry to sign his name while the devil (Butch the Bulldog) prepares a bubbling pot of brimstone in Hell.

Of course, it all ends up being a dream, and thus a bit of a cop-out, but it's fun while it lasts. Plus, it has a gag about drowned kittens in a sack—not something you see every day in a cartoon!

One Announcement before I start this Review.

Next Year, this will mark the 70th Anniversary of this Theatrical Cartoon Episode.

Let's Start this Review.

This is the 42nd Tom and Jerry Cartoon in this Series.

When Tom was sleeping peacefully, he finds out that Jerry sneaking inside the house. While chasing Jerry, Tom got crushed by a Piano (Easily). He was later up to Heaven w/ Golden Escalator (Long isn't it) and entered the Pearly Gates, Where there was a Large Group of Cats in Line, Whether they've been badly Damaged or hurt, Even though, They never see themselves in the light of day.

For a Bonus, Inside the Bag, there were cute kittens that came out, AWWWW! :) <3

Later, Tom came in and the Gatekeeper told him not to go pass the Gates. The Gatekeeper enforces Tom to give "Certificate of Forgiveness" so the Gatekeeper gave Tom an hour (Well, not as long as they thought).

So Tom has to apologize Jerry for things he had done. He wants Jerry to sign the "Certificate of Forgiveness". Whether Tom would faced the Pearly Gates or Face-to-Face on Devilish Bulldog (Spike), so it turn out that it was all a Nightmare (that came True). "End of Story"

Oh, and one thing,

P.S: This got released on the same month and year on one of the MGM's Public Domain Cartoon.

Back to this Review on depths and Details.

This Cartoon Episode has one of Tom and Jerry's Best Episode that I've seen in years. It was funny, It has Beautiful, Goregous, Remarkable Animation Backgrounds and (also) Characters. Scott Bradley was a wonderful Composer for the Dramatic and Soothing (or Smooth) Music. Other Animators were Good, But Ken Muse was at his Strongest. It was different Tom and Jerry cartoon, It was like Pluto's Judgement Day meets Little Audrey styled Cartoon Episode. It does have effects on Morals Whether Grief, Emotional or Loved. It has a Strong Message. Hopefully one day in the near Future, It will be listed as part of the National Film Registry.

Just to Sum this up.

Forgiveness Conquers ALL!

10/10

Grade: A+

It's not hard to get tired of the bad reputation cats have been given in animated cartoons (Warner Brothers had Pussyfoot as a sympathetic feline, but that's one of the few). They seem to serve only as punching bags for dogs and persecutors of mice and birds. In this cartoon, we have Tom threatened with condemnation to an animal version of Christian hell populated, of course, by devil dogs, and for what? For following his instincts, nothing more. If Christians can be condemned for following their instincts, there must not be many of them in their version of heaven.

Jim Davis, the creator of Garfield, perhaps said it best: "Way down under, we're all motivated by the same urges. Cats have the courage to live by theirs." Seeing the way Hanna and Barbera always cast Tom as the endless oppressor and the foil for Jerry's sadistic manipulation makes me want to do two things: watch only Chuck Jones Tom & Jerry cartoons, where the motivations were distilled to their purest essence (the chase for its own sake) and to go find a few mice for my own cats to play with while I watch and cheer them on.

Tom the cat gets killed by a falling piano and ascends to cat heaven via escalator. But upon arriving at the pearly gates, the gatekeeper tells him that he needs to get Jerry the mouse to sign a document saying that he forgives Tom all the times that he chased after him. If Jerry doesn't sign it Tom has to spend eternity in hell. So naturally Tum is scared out of his cat skull and tries with all his might to get Jerry to sign on the dotted line. This cartoon is a bit far from being my favorite and I felt bad for Tom. This cartoon can be found on disc one of the Spotlight collection DVD of "Tom & Jerry"

DVD Extras: Commentary by historian Jerry Beck

My Grade: B

In an attempt to catch Jerry, Tom gets killed when his plan goes wrong. His spirit then ascends to the clouds, where he finds the Heavenly Express train preparing to disembark. The problem is, the ticket-seller will not let Tom pass due to his malevolent antics with Jerry, so he is given one hour to get Jerry's signature on a Certificate Of Forgiveness -- or go to Hell!

This cartoon is quite amusing, and the oversensitive ones will be pleased to know that there's little of the violence that the T&J series has often been accused of emphasising. The cartoon also has a twist at the end that I won't spoil.