Flying Saucer Daffy

Now over 60 years old, I have been watching the 3 Stooges since childhood. Wanting to be a completest Stooges viewer, I bought their official complete set on DVD a long time ago (not the best quality, not recommended unless very cheap, used) but now with streaming video I just look up the episodes online. I was looking up a sci fi film review for The 27th Day and saw that it and this Stooge short used Earth vs the Flying Saucers footage. Being it was a Saturday morning why not watch Flying Saucer Daffy? I thought at first from the title it was a Daffy Duck cartoon but was happy it was a Joe Besser Stooges short. Happy about Joe Besser? YES! BTW, my theory after watching the Stooges for over 50 years is that I watched episodes mainly on broadcast TV and they only showed about half of their shorts, perhaps the TV stations had a 100 film Stooge deal?

What this means is that many people only know about the Curly shorts, maybe a few Shemp ones, but all were chosen to be on broadcast TV because things like smoking, drinking and carousing around with women were not shown much. So when people see the Joe Besser shorts they are instantly put off by them, because many have smoking, drinking and carousing around. Some reviewer gave this short a 1 rating saying it didn't follow "Stooge etiquette" of all for one and one for all. Ever watch the very first Stooges short (Women Haters)? I don't think Larry was on the same side with Moe and Curly, lol. Later on, as their act was in its 2nd and 3rd decade, they tried to incorporate more adult humor, I remember watching one with Shemp cheating on Moe's wife (Gypped in the Penthouse)! Another Shemp one had them all cheating on their taxes (Income Tax Sappy)! I'm pretty sure none of these type Stooge shorts got shown on broadcast TV during the 60s to 90s. As much as I love the Curly shorts (and Shemp), to see a Stooge film that I've never watched before, I love it! This one did make me laugh too, so that's the point. I also like to watch how the act was changing with the older Stooges and Besser, looks like Larry got more airtime, and slaps, lol. Watching Joe go against the other two also made me laugh and the ending was very funny. 7 of 10, great way to start my Saturday morning! BTW, stop hating on Joe Besser or, I'll harm you!

The real irony is this: Joe Besser was a top notch comedian, in other situations away from the Stooges. He had a definite track record for being very funny and clever. Moe and Larry and Shemp had actually known him or at least of him for many years and liked his work. So what on Earth was going on when he joined the troop as the "third stooge"? Obviously, nothing. In most of these "late Stooge" era shorts, more often than not, the boys are pitted against each other or Joe against the other two and this is not accurate Stooge etiquette. "One for all, all for one, every man for himself", to quote Curly from "Restless Knights". One thing about a good comedy team, Laurel & Hardy, Abbott & Costello, The Marx Brothers, no matter how much they all try to take advantage of each other or slap each other around, when the chips are actually down, they stick together and come to each other's aid. In this particular one, none of that happens. It's almost like watching a dog fight as one tries to cheat the others or be mean and nasty, and not for comedic effect either. One might assume that there was something behind the scenes going on here, art imitates life. Maybe there really was hence why Besser did not stay very long with Moe and Larry. Just look at the history of the other teams and tell me I'm wrong.

This is it folks. The Three Stooges episode that inspired the hit T.V. series, The X-Files. Well actually, I'm not sure. But don't take Chris Carter's word that it didn't, you can't trust that guy. It's all conspiracies, all lies! Anyways, this before-its-time episode features the boys trying to get a picture of a flying saucer so they can sell it and become rich. This episode has everything The X-Files episodes have: mistaken identities, cover-ups, backstabs, government agents, it has it all. So is there a connection between this episode and Chris Carter's brain child? Don't trust anyone. The truth is out there...

Like the Stooge film before this one, "Sweet and Hot", this movie falls into place along with "Cuckoo on a Choo Choo" and "He Cooked His Goose"/"Triple Crossed". If you want a vintage-style 3-Stooges movie, don't watch ANY of these films. They are all something different.

Can you BLAME them for trying SOMETHING different a FEW times out of 190? And at this point, they really were not "The 3 Stooges" any more, and we all knew it. So, give them a break for a little experimenting!

And AS something different, take this as a Joe Besser trifle, with Moe and Larry as supporting actors, and it's a perfectly odd, interesting and entertaining short subject to spring on an audience before the feature film. Joe, Moe and Larry (as opposed to "The 3 Stooges") take on the Cinderella story and do a convincing job of it; and it's about as creepy as you'd ever want. Joe has many risqué lines, his acting is really quite good, and for once the meanness behind Moe and Larry makes good sense. (Did you not ever notice that when Moe is not beating up on Curly, Larry is always happy to do it?) The movie doesn't last long, but it's long enough to tie all the ends together. My only criticism is that I think the ending, starting where Joe gets "mad", could have been more imaginative and, at the very end, a little funnier and cuter.

If you want to see Moe and Larry in something REALLY different, watch this film. If you want to see The Three Stooges, you now have 186 other Stooges shorts at your fingertips, thanks to Sony.

I am writing this as a rebuttal to the ignorance I see on Joe. First of all Joe fit in really well with Moe and Larry. He was the only Stooge to hit back and Larry trying to boss him around as well as Moe meant Larry got beat up twice as bad, This is a great parody of Cinderella and Besser was a very energetic and entertaining guy. In fact Besser is my favorite comedian period. Every line and gesture is clever and Moe and Larry are great as rotten brothers. The Mom is really funny too. Besser bashers be gone you are not real Stooge fans. Never compare third stooges. Thats like comparing chocolate and vanilla. They are both good. Joe was Shemp's best friend and knew everyone since 1932. All six Stooges were nice guys and liked each other. Joe was always very complementary to the others and Larry in his last years always had a photo of Joe and all the others hanging on his nursing home room wall.