Making Friends

I enjoyed "Making Friends" but strongly suspect many won't, as the cartoon is super-cutesy...the sort of cloying cuteness that was so common in mid-1930s cartoons.

When the story begins, Pudgy is moping about the house....so Betty tells him to go outside and make some friends. Soon he's meeting all sorts of forest animals and Pudgy makes friends easily because he's so nice and helpful. But things don't go well when he brings all his new friends home with him!

Well animated...and super-cute. What more can I say? If you are looking for edgy or hilarious, this isn't it...but it is diverting and pleasant.

A good deal of the pre-Production Code Betty Boop cartoons are daring and creative, with content that makes one amazed at what's gotten away with. While the later Betty Boop cartoons made after the Code was enforced are still watchable and exceptionally well-made, they are so toned down that they feel bland.

Fleischer were responsible for some brilliant cartoons, some of them still among my favourites. Their visual style was often stunning and some of the most imaginative and ahead of its time in animation. The character of Betty Boop, one of their most famous and prolific characters, may not be for all tastes and sadly not as popular now, but her sex appeal was quite daring for the time and to me there is an adorable sensual charm about her. The good news is that she has not lost her charm, she is still cute and her comic timing is good.

Less good is that, thanks to the production code her sensuality is heavily muted, and it was like she had lost a large part of what made her such a unique character back then and what made her popular. She is also somewhat underused and like a supporting character.

'Making Friends' is a nice cartoon and is very high in the appealingly cute factor, but emotions-wise there is not much else. There are a few mildly amusing moments but the humour is not constant. The story is thin and at times over-stretched making parts occasionally drag. The risqué and surreal edge that made the pre-Code Betty Boop cartoons so intriguing is also missing, giving a tameness and blandness.

On the other hand, the animation is as exceptional as can be, it's beautifully drawn, crisp and meticulously rich in detail, the backgrounds are especially impressive. The music is infectious and dynamic.

Pudgy is adorable once again and is the star of the cartoon really. The voice acting is good. The cute factor is high and appealing in it, and never does it get too saccharine.

In conclusion, nice enough if lacking. 6/10 Bethany Cox