Falling Hare

Mr. Freeling, Producer of the Bugs cartoons in their most classic era, believed there were two basic dramatic types: Identification Characters (Porky, Elmer Fudd ) and Aspiration Characters ( Bugs, and...Yosemite Sam? Hmmm...). Bugs as we know is a supernatural Being, with powers ordinary rabbits or humans do not have. In this movie he encounters another such Being, the Gremlin. But the Gremlin is even more Elemental than Bugs---he's a sort of Primordial Force of Destruction.Its not that he hates anybody; its his job, and he does it well, like James Bond. Right at the outset of the Bug/Gremlin collaboration the little guy says that you have to hit Blockbusters just right; Bugs, with his typical streetwise sangfroid says, "Yeah?" but instead of the usual blowing off of the other character, the Gremlin even more authoritatively replies "YEAH!" and makes it stick. From then on, the Gremlin is in charge.

For another Bugs-Tables-Turned storyline, see the one with the Lion ( married to Hortense ): "I gotta go Mr. Bunny; sorry I can't stay and Kill you."

But for me the most important and intriguing detail of the cartoon is during the sequence with the Blockbuster Bomb, when the music distinctly plays the phrase "I'll Take Manhattan." This was 1943, remember, and the Manhattan Project was top secret.

This short has a lot of topical humor, which is the case with most of the work produced anyway, but this is topical to World War II and to many people alive today, that seems like eons ago. References to Wendell Wilkie and "A" cards and the like will sail by many in the audience, but sight gags and the overall wackiness will be enjoyable enough. Check out the title of the book Bugs is reading at the start-it's a great gag! Well worth watching. Recommended.

Bugs encounters a gremlin, a character that destroys airplanes. No matter what Bugs does, he gets pounded, crushed, abused, and done in. This is unusual because of all the Warner Brothers characters, he is the one that is usually in total control. He is the abuser. Here, it is 1943, and the propaganda is thick. It's an action packed episode.

Whereas Joe Dante's holiday classic "Gremlins" portrayed its title characters as evil, conniving little monsters, "Falling Hare" shows a (slightly) different side. In this case, Bugs Bunny is reading "Victory Thru Hare Power" when he reads about gremlins sabotaging the airplanes. Naturally, he doesn't believe it. But when a gremlin starts sabotaging the airplane that Bugs is working on, Bugs suddenly changes. Usually the cool-headed, acerbic type, he becomes an impetuous, accident-prone twerp. And the gremlin knows exactly how to use Bugs's weaknesses against him. I guess that you could say that the little guy becomes Bugs, while Bugs becomes most of the other Looney Tunes.

So, while the gremlin here is still conniving, he's clearly got his goals laid out. It's a pretty neat cartoon. And the soldiers' opinions of the sergeant probably would have to get CENSORED!!!!!!!!!!

I love Looney Tunes, and this is one of my favourites. It is very fast-paced without feeling rushed. It has a great and original story. The script is fresh and witty. The animation and settings look great, and don't look dated. The music has quirkiness and charm as well as a vast amount of energy. The gags are wonderfully timed and ones not to forget in a hurry. Bugs' mental breakdown is one of the best in cartoon history, and Bugs himself while different from his normal persona is just great. The gremlin is for me one of the most memorable foils/support characters in a Bugs Bunny cartoon, he looks cute but his actions suggest otherwise. Mel Blanc's vocals are superb. And not to mention, this is one of those cartoons where it does a very good job at keeping everything in sync, just hear how the gremlin strikes the bomb with his hammer in tune to the music, hearing that you'll probably agree that bit especially is very cleverly done. All in all, a classic. 10/10 Bethany Cox