Review by TheLittleSongbird

Despite Oswald the Lucky Rabbit and his cartoons being popular and well received at the time, they have been vastly overshadowed over time by succeeding Disney characters (like Mickey, Donald and Goofy) and those from Looney Tunes. It is a shame as, while not cartoon masterpieces, they are fascinating for anybody wanting to see what very old animation looked like and what Disney animation was like before Mickey arrived on the scene.

'Great Guns!' is every bit as good as 'Oh Teacher' and 'The Mechanical Cow', meaning very good and interesting if not quite a cartoon masterpiece, and fares better than the still very decent 'Trolley Troubles' (not Oswald's first cartoon but the first one to not be rare). The story is somewhat slight and unimaginative with a familiar premise given at times derivative execution, and some of the pacing is too hectic.

The animation is good on the other hand, for a cartoon so old and techniques still in early days, it's crisp and fluid enough with some nice detail (sure there are some rough spots understandably especially with Disney animation becoming much more refined later). The added soundtrack and sound effects (the 1927-1928 Oswald cartoons being silent) add a lot rather than distract, actually improving the cartoon's impact and making things easier to understand.

The gags work very well, always ranging between very amusing and at times hilarious, like 'The Mechanical Cow' the craziness and wit is even more amped up from 'Oh Teacher' and particularly 'Trolley Troubles'. At the same time, some of the content is interesting and also powerful. Oswald is an endearing protagonist, and his girlfriend much more likable than in 'Oh Teacher'.

Overall, very good. 8/10 Bethany Cox