Sheep Wrecked

This was very, very good, and only a weak ending in the last minute prevented this from being one of the best Droopy cartoons I've ever seen. It still ranks pretty high, thanks to "the wolf," who is flat-out hilarious in here.

The wolf is after the sheep, guarded by Droopy, the fearless Sheepherder. The wolf, that southern gentleman with the strong accent and humorous dialog, reminded me of the poor coyote in the Road Runner cartoons. Both of them tried every trick in the world to get their prey, only to have all the schemes backfire.

The sight gags in here are terrific and the wolf makes a number of funny cracks as well, even in defeat.

Michael Lah, long the lead animator for Tex Avery, does a good job on an inadequate budget.

It's nominally a Droopy cartoon, but it's owned by the wolf who tries to steal the sheep. He's voiced in a shiftless Southern drawl by Paul Frees, whose weary reactions to his consistent outwitting is actively entertaining. Unfortunately the cheapness of the production renders this just good.

Droopy is a sheepherder is this cartoon short and the Wolf is out to make a meal out of the sheep. Unfortunately for him, the fierce-some Droopy drives him away, from cannonballs to his scary shotgun. But, what sticks out is the wolf's gentleman-like and simple attitude when dealing with Droopy and trying to get the sheep.

A somewhat funny cartoon overall.

Grade B-

Love animation, it was a big part of my life as a child, particularly Disney, Looney Tunes and Tom and Jerry, and still love it whether it's film, television or cartoons.

Michael Lah's six solo-directed Droopy cartoons (starting with 1957's 'Grin and Share It' and ending with 1958's 'Droopy's Leprechaun'), having co-directed with Droopy creator Tex Avery 'Deputy Droopy' in 1955', are a mixed bag. While a couple underwhelmed, especially 'Blackboard Jumble', others were very good. 'Sheep Wrecked' is one of the very good cartoons of his and a contender for Lah's best Droopy effort. The only real drawback is the weak ending, a little too much of a jarring downer.

'Sheep Wrecked' is one of Lah's better-looking Droopy cartoons. It's more refined and has more imagination while the colours are suitably vibrant, even if it does lack Avery's creative designs and wild wackiness though it does do a great job with the wolf's big expressions.

The conflict is one where the outcome can be seen from the outset but with such a lively pace and the cartoon containing the funniest and most inventive material of Lah's Droopy outings this didn't matter, the best moments being hilarious.

Droopy's personality continues to be very well established and he is very high on the humour and charisma factors. The music, courtesy of Scott Bradley, is lushly and cleverly orchestrated, with lively and energetic rhythms and fits very well indeed. The voice acting can't be faulted.

Best thing about 'Sheep Wrecked' is the character of the wolf, an uproarious delight in every possible way.

Overall, great cartoon and a contender for not just the best Lah-directed Droopy cartoon but the best one that didn't come from Avery. 9/10 Bethany Cox

In the 1930s and 40s, the quality of animation was simply terrific....with high cel counts of 24 frames per second, gorgeous backgrounds and very smooth movement. But something happened in the 1950s...the cel counts dropped and backgrounds became unimportant if not downright ugly. And why not? After all, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences (the Oscar folks) gave out awards no longer to the gorgeous looking films but to stuff like Gerald McBoing-Boing...and so cheap animation was suddenly critically acclaimed and was more acceptable.

If you want a good example of this change, compare the old Tom & Jerry cartoons of the 1940s with those of the 50s and 60s. The contrast is shocking...and in addition to cheaper animation, the stories themselves got cheap. And so, if MGM did that to Tom & Jerry, it's no surprise they would also do this to Droopy. Here in "Sheep Wrecked", the backgrounds are simply the ugliest I've ever seen--bright orange with very minimal clouds, cacti and mountains. Frankly, they look as if they were painted by a 7 year-old. So, if you assume that I hate this new style of animation, you'd be 100% right...I hate it and was NOT pleased with "Sheep Wrecked" because it might just be the ugliest looking Droopy cartoon of all time.

So is the story at least good? Perhaps not bad...but Droopy doesn't act like Droopy...or at least compared to the masterful and FUNNY Droopy directed by Tex Avery at the character's peak.

Overall, this is a watchable cartoon but one that simply isn't up to the quality of previous Droopy incarnations. No wonder the character soon disappeared from theaters with stuff like this.