Review by bob the moo

Flying south in a heavy blizzard, Daffy Duck hits a house, wherein he spots a fellow black duck on the mantle piece. When he eventually works out that the duck is actually stuffed, he decides that it would be easy to dump the stuffed duck and replace him until the spring. However, the dog that belongs to the house's owner smells a rat and tries to get Daffy - despite not being able to convince Porky that his stuffed duck is now real.

I'm a really big fan of Daffy Duck, but I like his crazy persona much more than his later greedy and selfish act. This cartoon sees him just leaving his crazy period but not yet manically greedy - here he is a little dry but still has a bit of the attitude that I love about him. The cartoon is pretty funny throughout as the poor dog thinks he is going nuts; a situation not helped by Porky's disbelief of his story. The material is good and the film finishes on a great little punchline that has a lot to take in in a short shot.

Daffy may not be the best I've seen him but he still works for me; here and there his attitude shines through and that was just about enough to do the job. Porky is good but has limited presence, it is his dog that makes the short work in key sequences - he is a hapless, luckless pup who is sympathetic but still funny. The black ducks towards the end are a nice addition and it's good to see Daffy isn't the only crazy one in the species!

Overall, fans of Daffy might be a little put off by what is a slightly dry role for him, but this short is still pretty funny and well worth a look. The other characters pick up some of the slack and the material throws out some good scenes.