A Connecticut Rabbit in King Arthur's Court

Warner Bros. had retired the Looney Tunes characters throughout the '60s and stopped producing cartoons at the end of the decade (although the cartoons kept rerunning on TV). The release of "Bugs Bunny Superstar" in 1975 renewed interest in the series - sort of like how "American Graffiti" and "Happy Days" renewed interest in 1950s culture - so it was no accident that they brought the characters back for original productions.

I should say that the animation in "A Connecticut Rabbit in King Arthur's Court" looks really rough, and Sir Elmer of Fudde (Elmer Fudd) doesn't sound quite right with Mel Blanc doing his voice (his original voice artist Arthur Q. Bryan died in 1959), but you just gotta love some of the tricks in this movie. Whether it's Merlin's (Yosemite Sam) rants, Connecticut Rabbit's (Bugs Bunny) excessively long lance, or just the idea that advice from Ray Bradbury crossed with the missed left turn at Albuquerque could result in all this, there's some really funny stuff here. Chuck Jones had not run out of steam. Really great.

BTW, did you notice that the shield displaying the title said "Whatsupius Doctorus"? That could easily be one of the bogus scientific names in a Road Runner-Wile E. Coyote cartoon.

PS: this was the first time that Chuck Jones had directed Yosemite Sam, who had previously been a Friz Freleng character.

Bugs Bunny in King Arthur's Court (1978) is a TV Special with some of our favorite Looney Tunes characters and it was absolutely glorious.

Positives for Bugs Bunny in King Arthur's Court (1978): It was a lot of fun watching these Looney Tunes characters during medieval times. You have a misunderstanding joke about Bugs being mistaken as a dragon that was very funny. The fight scenes between the Looney Tunes characters was very entertaining. The animation looks amazing and I'm always a fan of hand-drawn animation. The King Arthur prophecy angle was top tier comedy as I was smiling. And finally, this TV Special is an easy watch from beginning to end.

Overall, Bugs Bunny in King Arthur's Court (1978) is a phenomenal TV Special with the Looney Tunes characters and I can't wait to rewatch it later on in the future.

A great TV special that recaptured some of the magic from the old days. Hard to find today in decent quality as most later home video releases were in VHS, it can be found in good quality in the Looney Tunes Golden Collection DVD sets. Bugs ends up in midevil times and the King, the Wizard, and the Knight are all some of Bugs Bunnys old pals like Daffy Duck, Yosemite Sam, and Elmer Fudd. Very rarely shown anymore on TV. Go searching for this one and enjoy. It's well worth the trouble to find it. Some of Mel Blancs last times voicing many of the characters. This was worthy of theatrical release but aired on TV in 1978 and was rebroadcast a couple more times in the 80s but not since. A great Looney Tunes gem that adults and kids alike will love.

Love animation, it was a big part of my life as a child, particularly Disney, Looney Tunes and Tom and Jerry, and still love it whether it's film, television or cartoons. Actually appreciate it more now thanks to broader knowledge of directors, studios and animation styles that was not had as much before.

Chuck Jones is one of the greatest geniuses in animation history, or at least to me and many others, he deserves his legendary status and his best cartoons are masterpieces. Even his weakest works generally are watchable. 'Bugs Bunny in King Arthur's Court' was one of those cartoons done when Looney Tunes were past prime (which generally they were since the mid-60s) and while not among Jones' best work (nowhere near) or the best representations of Looney Tunes it is worth watching.

'Bugs Bunny in King Arthur's Court' is a long way from perfect. The animation is mostly not very good at all. A good deal of the drawing is rough rather than smooth, the backgrounds sparse in detail and the colours sometimes lack vibrancy, coming over as flat.

Although Mel Blanc was, and still considered as, one of the greatest voice actors ever, that doesn't mean he wasn't immune from sounding off on occasions. Have never really cared for Blanc's voice work for Elmer, a large part of it may be down to being familiar for goodness knows how long by Arthur Q. Bryan and have always found that Blanc doesn't fit anywhere near as well, his voice too deep and abrasive and his speech impediment not as natural.

Some of the material is a bit over-familiar and would have benefitted from more wit and variety.

However, Blanc shows with the other characters that he had definitely not lost it, every ounce of the exuberance is present as is his unmatched ability to give individual identities to multiple characters. While having relatively little to do as Porky, he is especially spot on as Bugs and Yosemite Sam.

They are the two characters that come off best easily, Bugs is charismatic and both arrogant and likeable while Sam is wonderfully hot-headed and temperamental, for a first time attempt for Jones at the character (being a creation and prolific character of Friz Freleng) he does very well. Daffy is as manic and witty as ever and enjoyed everything with Ray Bradbury. Porky is underused but still likeable and Elmer does have funny moments but would have made more of an impression if Blanc's voice work worked. 'Bugs Bunny in King Arthur's Court' is very amusing on the whole, with some nice dialogue, well-timed gags, a lot of energy and some neat tricks and little things. Things may be predictable but nothing is dull.

Jones's trademark humour and directing style is all over the cartoon, showing that he was still going strong rather than running out of steam. The music was better than expected, it is not discordant from the action and it is nowhere near as cheap-sounding as Bill Lava's later work, while not coming close to Milt Franklyn and especially Carl Stalling.

On the whole, pretty decent but wasn't mind blown by it. 7/10 Bethany Cox

"A Connecticut Rabbit in King Arthur's Court", which is retitled for home video as "Bugs Bunny in King Arthur's Court", is a real treat for all Looney Tunes fans. Chuck Jones takes the original Mark Twain novel and turns it upside down. This is not the novel, but a truly original reworking of it.

Bugs Bunny is the "Connecticut Yankee", which in itself is kind of odd because Bugs is from Brooklyn, NEW YORK, but never mind, we'll except the premise. Daffy Duck is King Arthur, Porky Pig is Sir Loin of Pork and Yosemite Sam is the Black Knight. The story is so well known that I won't bother retelling it here.

This short subject is smart, funny and original. This in itself is amazing since most animation is often uninspired, particularly when it comes from literature. But Chuck Jones, by planting the Looney Tunes characters into the plot and by making this 100% new footage, rather than most of the TV specials which are edited from the shorts, has made one of the most memorable TV specials ever.

**** out of 4 stars