Doggone Cats

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.

Arthur Davis may not have been one of the all-time greats when it came to animation directors, and he was in the shadow of a stiff competition of animation directors (won't name them right now because that wouldn't be fair on Davis) with more distinctive and imaginative styles. He was nonetheless a competent director with enough solid cartoons under his belt. 'Doggone Cats' is not just another one of his solid cartoons, it's a very good one.

Sure, it does tread familiar ground in story and humour, particularly the story, based on a non-novel idea, that is very slight and ends somewhat predictably. Having said that, 'Doggone Cats' has very little wrong, there is enough variation and freshness of the gags to make them at least amusing, the best of them actually very funny if not quite hilarious, and there is a tremendous lively energy throughout.

'Doggone Cats' animation is excellent. Beautifully drawn, very detailed and the colours are vibrant, complete with some great expressions and Davis' distinctive style of the characters moving from foreground to background.

Carl Stalling's music score is typically lushly and cleverly orchestrated, with lively and energetic rhythms, it's also beautifully synchronised with the action and gestures/expressions and even enhances the impact.

While agreed not famous iconic ones, the characters are fun and interesting. Especially Sylvester, though Wellington is also very effective in the humour and sympathy departments. The chemistry between them entertains hugely.

Voice work as always is never less than great. Mel Blanc has the lion's share voicing all three lead characters and he gets to show off his unique genius and why he is such a legend in the voice acting world.

In summary, very good. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Called in from chasing a couple of cats, Wellington the dog is dispatched by his owner to deliver a package of great importance to a relative. Wellington is warned of the importance of not letting go of the package - a fact that the two cats play on in order to get revenge on the dog for chasing them in the first place.

What starts out as a sort of cats being chased by big dog cartoon quickly turns into a manic fight between three characters over a package. The action sees the cats pretending to be trains (by smoking cigars!), playing American Football with the package and generally doing all sorts of crazy stuff with it. It is all very rough but it is very funny at times. The ending is a solid punchline that only adds to the craziness that has gone before it.

The lack of famous characters is not a problem here, as the three players are rough and ready and really fit the action. The yare animated with character but not with smooth careful lines. Instead they have a manic look to them that really fits the comedy. Both cats reminded me of Daffy Duck in his crazy period and Wellington himself plays both the bulldog type character but also shares the laughs.

Overall, if you like manic imaginative cartoons then this one should please you. The gags will mostly be familiar to you from other cartoons but that's not to say they can't still be funny - and delivered in a fast paced and energetic cartoon like this, they are funny!