Hare-um Scare-um

In their early days, various Looney Tunes stars of the 1930s looked very different than they would when they became famous. For example, Porky Pig was an incredibly obese and unpleasant looking pig in his early films. "Hare-um Scare-um" features a very different looking rabbit...the rabbit who would soon be known as Bugs Bunny. He also sounds very different in these early cartoons....a bit more like Woody Woodpecker than Bugs.

When the story begins, some guy is upset at the high cost of meat so he decides to go hunting for his dinner. Unfortunately, he spots a goofy rabbit who spends the rest of the cartoon defeating the hunter and driving him mad.

Unlike most of the cartoons featuring recurring characters in Looney Tunes cartoons of the late 1930s, this one is in color and looks really nice. As for the rabbit, he acts more like Daffy Duck, Woody Woodpecker and Robert Woolsey put together than Bugs Bunny...which isn't entirely bad. He's much more overtly looney than Bugs...and I enjoyed his song quite a bit. I also enjoyed the gags.

By the way, the version I saw was posted on HBO Max and did contain the restored original ending.

Genre: A Looney Tunes episode.

Happy Rabbit was the first version of Bugs Bunny and hardly looked like him at all. He appeared in only two episodes, "Porky's Hare Hunt" and "Prest-O Change-O".

And of course everyone knows who Bugs Bunny is, so hopefully now you have an idea of what the bunny here is like. Oh - and one more thing, he is a great deal crazier than Bugs Bunny is. He also appears in "Elmer's Candid Camera" (which appears on the first Looney Tunes Golden Collection so it is easy for most people to watch).

Anyhow, in this episode, a hunter (who is not Elmer and more mean) reads in the newspaper that meat prices are increasing and so he goes off to hunt a rabbit with his dog (who, surprisingly, with a cruel owner, is very sweet and faithful). Who do they find, but this new rabbit(who, admittedly, I am not sure of the name of, although he could be called Happy Rabbit as well)! He is not going to make it easy for the dog or the man to shoot him in any way whatsoever...!

I like this episode because of the bunny here (whatever his name is), the dog, the animation, the lines and a very funny (and arbitrary) song in the middle.

A cartoon worth watching! I recommend it especially to people who have seen Happy Rabbit (if you have not, do and then watch this) and to people who are interested in historical WB cartoons. Enjoy "Hare-um Scare-um"! :-)

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.

While not one of my favourite cartoons of all time and never will be, 'Hare-Um Scare-Um' is very well made and very entertaining. It is interesting to see a proto-version of Bugs Bunny before Bugs Bunny became famous and for having a hunter who is like a more menacing version of Elmer. There's not much wrong actually in 'Hare-Um Scare-Um', it is slight on story and there's not much original in it. Having said that, there is so much to recommend.

However, the animation is very good. It's beautifully drawn, very detailed and the colours are vibrant, complete with some great expressions for particularly the rabbit.

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. All of those things Stalling was an unparalleled master at in animation, or at least in my view.

The rabbit is no Bugs, not as interesting in personality, but the character drives the action to fun effect. The hunter is suitably antagonistic and fun, there are many very funny moments (with the ending especially being a treat) and everything concerning the meat entertains and informs. Timing is lively. Mel Blanc's versatility as ever shines impeccably.

Overall, very good. 8/10 Bethany Cox

The current food crisis (or whatever to call it) in the world makes the otherwise goofy "Hare-um Scare-um" rather relevant. When a hunter can't buy food at the store, he and his dog go hunting. Needless to say, they come across a manic rabbit who makes their lives a living hell. Talking like Woody Woodpecker and behaving like Daffy Duck, this hare is a really wacky one! As the anonymous bunny affirms: "You don't have to be crazy to do this...but it sure helps!" Obviously, this cartoon holds a special historical significance as one of four cartoons (the others were "Porky's Hare Hunt", "Prest-o Change-o" and "Elmer's Candid Camera") starring the rabbit who eventually morphed into Bugs Bunny. Even if you don't know that the leporid here would soon become a street-smart, wise-cracking dude with a Brooklyn-Bronx accent, the cartoon is still a total hoot. But the fact that this nutty rabbit soon evolved into the Groucho Marx of rabbits just goes to show the importance (not to mention the hilarity) of this cartoon, and Mel Blanc's talent with voices. I truly recommend it.

PS: director Cal Dalton ran Friz Freleng's unit from 1937-1939. Freleng had moved to MGM for a more lucrative job, and so Cal Dalton and Ben Hardaway took over his unit. When MGM canceled the series that Freleng had been directing, Warner Bros. rehired him ("You Ought to Be in Pictures" loosely alluded to his experience).

In just eight minutes, this early cartoon shows one of the early incarnations of Bugs Bunny doing what Bugs does best: outwitting hunters, getting the better of dogs and singing about how crazy he is.

"Hare-um Scare-um" has the hunter (an early Elmer Fudd?) hunting after our boy due to high meat prices and getting the worst of it at every turn - as is par for the course here. Bugs even tends to the hunter's dog after a dizzy spell ("Do you succumb to fits? So do I!") and acts as a decoy female pup ("I think you got something there, buddy!"), all in the name of some laughs. And they're here, thanks once again to Mel Blanc's voice wizardry and a skewed sense of humor.

You'll love the last scene. Classic.

Ten stars for "Hare-um Scare-um". Great job, Bugs - oh, and you too, Mel.