Wet Hare

Enjoyable Bugs short with our hero squaring off against a French Canadian lumberjack named Blacque Jacque Shellacque. The lumberjack's building a dam that cuts off the water supply so he can charge people (and bunnies) for water. Some funny gags in this one. It's always a treat to watch Bugs outsmart blowhards like this Blacque Jacque character. The animation is quite nice with bright colors and lovely backgrounds. The '60s was not the best decade for Looney Tunes, quality-wise, so I'm always happy to see shorts like this that hold up well compared with the excellent work from the preceding decades. The incomparable Mel Blanc does typically flawless voice work for Bugs and Jacque. The music is lively and upbeat. It's not the best Bugs short but it is fun and one of the better ones from the '60s.

Robert McKimson's "Wet Hare" is one of those slapstick productions that looks more serious nowadays.* It's impossible not to laugh as Bugs Bunny torments a man who tries to take over the water supply, but knowing how corporations often buy up water supplies and then charge people for it, the cartoon looks more serious nowadays.

Of course that's just me. At face value it's a hilarious cartoon, with Bugs doing his usual stuff. They probably had fun making it.

*Others include "Protocol" (about the tendency to turn unqualified people into celebrities due to their perceived relatability), "Big Business" (about strip mining) and "Stay Tuned" (which predicted every TV show in which people humiliate themselves for money).

I felt this cartoon had a few very good things about it and a few not so-very good things, making it quite a mux-ip of a cartoon and one worth watching (aagh this is the first IMDb review of it!) Basically, in this cartoon, Bugs Bunny, as he often does, tricks his cartoon companion to remedy the thing that made Bugs cross and unhappy in the first place. In this case, he is annoyed with a Frenchman who is building a rock dam at the top of a waterfall which supplies not only Bugs' blessed shower, but the water he needs for himself and his carrots (oh, of course, we must not forget the carrots!). The ways in which he tricks the Frenchman into destroying the dams he makes &c are not very original, but funny enough all the same.

The things I liked about this cartoon that were unaverage: 1. The fact that a dam was included, it is not a theme that I would have thought of for a Bugs Bunny episode, as I do not associate him particularly with enjoying showers (as he does in this episode) and it worked pretty well for the cartoon. 2. The song that Bugs Bunny sings during his shower. The voice that Mel Blanc (almost definitely) puts on for Bugs Bunny does not sound like him. As the cartoon first started with the hearing of Bugs' singing, I thought it was a different character at first! 3. The ending. I wasn't expecting it and it was very entertaining. :-) The things I slightly disliked about this cartoon that were average: 1. The baddie was a Frenchman - why French? Why did the makers have to distinguish him to be French in particular? 2. The jokes that were pulled off between the Frenchman and Bugs were generally not particularly good and I was expecting them (I think part of the reason for this is that it was one of the much later episodes).

I recommend this to people who like Bugs Bunny in general, the same song repeated quite a bit and for people who think Bugs Bunny has a right to have water for himself and his carrots. Enjoy "Wet Hare"! :-)

P.S A little comment for the 2nd reviewer:

If you ever read this, I just want to let you know that I did very much enjoy this cartoon and I liked many things about it. The things I did not like about it quite as much appeal to different people, but this was a cartoon I liked watching and will almost definitely watch again. Thank you. Also, I am merely dissecting it because that what I like to do in reviews.

I love Looney Tunes and Bugs Bunny, and I loved Wet Hare. Maybe Bugs has done better, such as What's Opera Doc, Rabbit of Seville, Rhapsody Rabbit, Water Water Every Hare and The Hunting Trilogy. However, that doesn't stop Wet Hare from being hilarious and from in my opinion being one of the better "later" Bugs cartoon. Bugs is on top form, witty, arrogant and wise-cracking and Jacques is an ideal foil. Both characters are voiced perfectly by Mel Blanc. The animation is not the most luscious I've seen from a Looney Tunes cartoon, but it is very colourful and the music is typically energetic. The story is fast-paced and engaging, the writing is full of puns, wit and freshness and the sight gags come thick and fast and is just as inspired as the writing. In conclusion, maybe not Bugs' best, but definitely one I'd see again. 10/10 Bethany Cox

Cartoon Network is now airing Looney Tunes in the a.m. If you keep your eyes open you just might see it. Me and a friend have an inside joke associated with Black Jaque Shellacque and Bugs, and we never tire of laughing over it. I just wish it was on one of the Golden Collections.

To the 1st comment, why are you dissecting a cartoon with logic? Just watch it and enjoy (or not). As far as Mel Blanc and Bugs' singing voice, I believe Mel was having Bugs imitate Al Jolson. Anyway, I prefer to look at a cartoon for it's artistry, originality, voice talent, musical score and production quality. All aesthetics, no logic. Have you seen footage of the artists at Warner Bros. back in their heydays? They were the goofiest, craziest people on the lot, and acted out a lot of the gag scenes at "Termite Terrace."

In the end, I'll always love this cartoon. It may not be the best Bugs adventure, but it's a classic to me. And my friend. And my sister. And another friend.