Sheep Wrecked

Droopy guards his herd of sheep against a passing hobo wolf. The most interesting aspect is the wolf's mannerisms. He's a cross between a southern hick who says "y'all", and a slacker hippie who often ends his sentences with "man". It says something about the times when that character is considered a wolf. There are more memorable sheep dog and wolf cartoons but this is an interesting addition.

Who could get angry at that lovable wolf from "Billy Boy" (1954)? With his laid back whistling and his Southern drawl. He wears green striped boxers beneath his fur for crying out loud! He's only after a sheep 'cause he's hungry anyway. Certainly not Droopy. He just gets even. It is his duty to defend his flock of sheep after all. Director Michael Lah comes up with some good Tex Avery style gags the Droopy way, like the backfiring bottle full of flees (it seems the Droopster always keeps that red tuft of hair of his squeaky clean) and the obligatory pair of sexy legs.

Wolfie tries out several disguises, but when he dresses up like Little Bo Peep, it looks like the Drooper is about to stick his gun where the sun don't shine. That vicious carnivorous lamb killer even tries it the Wile E. Coyote way (borrowing a guided missile from a military compound), before being an inspiration to the Bubba character from "Forrest Gump" (fantasizing about his favourite meal). The finale is a bit of a downer for our friend the wolf, but certainly good for laugh for all us happy people. So even without Tex at the helm, Droopy and Wolvie deliver.

7 out of 10

In the 1930s and 40s, the quality of animation was simply terrific....with high cel counts of 24 frames per second, gorgeous backgrounds and very smooth movement. But something happened in the 1950s...the cel counts dropped and backgrounds became unimportant if not downright ugly. And why not? After all, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences (the Oscar folks) gave out awards no longer to the gorgeous looking films but to stuff like Gerald McBoing-Boing...and so cheap animation was suddenly critically acclaimed and was more acceptable.

If you want a good example of this change, compare the old Tom & Jerry cartoons of the 1940s with those of the 50s and 60s. The contrast is shocking...and in addition to cheaper animation, the stories themselves got cheap. And so, if MGM did that to Tom & Jerry, it's no surprise they would also do this to Droopy. Here in "Sheep Wrecked", the backgrounds are simply the ugliest I've ever seen--bright orange with very minimal clouds, cacti and mountains. Frankly, they look as if they were painted by a 7 year-old. So, if you assume that I hate this new style of animation, you'd be 100% right...I hate it and was NOT pleased with "Sheep Wrecked" because it might just be the ugliest looking Droopy cartoon of all time.

So is the story at least good? Perhaps not bad...but Droopy doesn't act like Droopy...or at least compared to the masterful and FUNNY Droopy directed by Tex Avery at the character's peak.

Overall, this is a watchable cartoon but one that simply isn't up to the quality of previous Droopy incarnations. No wonder the character soon disappeared from theaters with stuff like this.

Droopy is a sheepherder is this cartoon short and the Wolf is out to make a meal out of the sheep. Unfortunately for him, the fierce-some Droopy drives him away, from cannonballs to his scary shotgun. But, what sticks out is the wolf's gentleman-like and simple attitude when dealing with Droopy and trying to get the sheep.

A somewhat funny cartoon overall.

Grade B-

This was very, very good, and only a weak ending in the last minute prevented this from being one of the best Droopy cartoons I've ever seen. It still ranks pretty high, thanks to "the wolf," who is flat-out hilarious in here.

The wolf is after the sheep, guarded by Droopy, the fearless Sheepherder. The wolf, that southern gentleman with the strong accent and humorous dialog, reminded me of the poor coyote in the Road Runner cartoons. Both of them tried every trick in the world to get their prey, only to have all the schemes backfire.

The sight gags in here are terrific and the wolf makes a number of funny cracks as well, even in defeat.