Reviewing Every Classic Sam And Ralph Cartoon

Previously I talked about Chuck Jones and how he was better with making cartoons in the 40s than how abstract and pointless his 60s cartoons were, and at one point I talked about one of the best characters I ever seen nowadays. Sam Sheepdog and Ralph Wolf. All of their shorts are masterpieces. I'm not kidding. So I'm reviewing all 7 of their shorts. Let's get right in!

Don't Give Up The Sheep (1953)

Back in 1953, Chuck Jones made really solid and fun cartoons like Forward March Hare, Duck Amuck, and Duck! Rabbit, Duck!, but nothing comes this close to these two characters in a expressive and fun start. I love Sam's expressions and some of the backgrounds feel so nostalgic to me. There is also memorable gags like the Pan with the flute gag, the wildcat gag, and him disguising as a bush. This is fantastic from start to finish. And promise me, in my opinion it starts to get better.

Sheep Ahoy (1954)

The introduction as a whole in this is already amazing. Backgrounds, excellent, Ralph's really creepy, yet amazing expression behind the bushes, also excellent. This one also has great gags like when Ralph is using a smoke bomb to cover himself so he won't be noticed, but then Sam puts a stick of dynamite to make it worse. And just this entire land filled with more characters like with the black haired sheepdog and darker wolf is enjoyable on its own. 

Double Or Mutton (1955)

In my taste, best Sam and Ralph cartoon so far. Every gag in this is perfection. Also love when the certain time of day it's raining and has a vibe to it.  Has an incredible background in the last 10 seconds of the cartoon and Ralph's expressions are getting so funnier. 

Steal Wool (1957)

When I think of a Sam and Ralph cartoon, this one already pops out of my mind. It's probably because some of these gags I remember so well, like when Ralph keeps in tact of a sheep so he won't get noticed by Sam. Also this is pretty much the first time we ever visited both of their houses. I'm shocked they live in the same neighborhood and live so close, makes it feel more relaxed and heartwarming. 

Ready, Woolen, and Able (1960)

How the heck does the aesthetic of these get better and better the times I see it? I mean I don't necessarily love Chuck Jones's work but man when it comes to the settings like this, I get a feeling that I need to experience nature far more than I ever have. Sunrises and sunsets are truly inspiring. Anyways, this is funny to the core. The best part is that Ralph is just seeing all of these Sam Sheepdog look-a-likes whenever he fails. This has to be Ralph's worst day yet but for a cartoon it's funny for that reason.

A Sheep In The Deep (1962)

When I went back and watched this one, I suddenly realized, these are one of the best classic cartoons I ever seen in terms of how heartwarming these can get. The lunch-time scene is a masterpiece of a moment, when Ralph dances it gets me in the mood, and the ending is both funny, and really wholesome. Love these guys so much. We have one more cartoon left to go. 

Woolen Under Where (1963)

The final short that Sam and Ralph have to offer and it's absolutely sensational. Not only does this have the best finales for very overlooked characters but has the best ending to date in the classic Looney Tunes catalog next to Kitty Kornered and The Great Piggy Bank Robbery's ending. The moments are fun, and we almost saw what might have been the last fate for Sam Sheepdog but then it was too late and he didn't get affected. Let these characters be alive, I never wanted them to be lost in the dust. These characters are truly impeccable.

What a blast to be watching all of these cartoons after I decided to watch every Classic Looney Tunes cartoon last year. I remember saying that these cartoons were alright, but man I changed so much and I loved a more relaxing, laid-back personality with art like Sam Sheepdog and Ralph Wolf. Not gonna lie, I found these characters more iconic than Wile E Coyote and Roadrunner. Their on my Top 10 Favorite Cartoon Characters list. I admire them.

Anyways better be leaving, see you next time, Bye-a! 👋 

Late 30s-40s Chuck Jones Is Better Than 60s Chuck Jones Looney Tunes Shorts

 

This is kinda an unpopular opinion, but Chuck Jones's 30s to 40s work on the Looney Tunes cartoons were more gag heavy and pleasant than what he evolved to in the 60s.

If you didn't know, Chuck Jones is one of the directors from the classic Looney Tunes Era. He worked on a bunch of shorts from 1938-1964. 

What I'm going to do is compare a early cartoon to a later cartoon and feeling for my opinion on certain shorts, so don't get mad at me if you say "that is better than that" or "your wrong." I will not except it.

I'm starting off with Chuck Jones's first cartoon he ever directed by himself called The Night Watchman (1938), and it's a very solid cartoon, what's best is that the backgrounds are masterful in this. It's an amazing first second on what Chuck Jones has for his talent.

I really like the designs here especially the main tough guy rodent, he's got a good personality. The ending also shows Tommy The Cat fighting back the rats and the main leader, and at that his pants get loose. It's hilarious and got good expressions.

And now a 60s era cartoon. Now Hear This (1963). This cartoon is passable enough but I never found it my style of what I watch. It's great for an experience though. Most of it is filled with abstract art and a guy who finds a ear trumpet that somehow is one of the devil's horns. I like it so far and I'll give it this, it has some good gags, but everything else to me was mid, the ending punchline was just a standard joke I didn't get. Not as funny or convincing as The Night Watchman (1938)'s ending.

Also, I don't know why The Depatie-Freleng era and Seven Arts Era for Looney Tunes decided to use the abstract kinda lame intro and outro from this cartoon. Probably cuz they liked the look of it, but to me it doesn't work. 

Early 40s Chuck Jones brought us the most underrated character in Looney Tunes, Sniffles. Seriously I love him and his adventure-like personality. Toy Trouble (1941) is a fun, well made and expressive cartoon. It makes you feel so nostalgic with the toys, the colors, and the cute but not too cutesy designs. It's just a underrated classic and considered to be a 10/10 for me.

The camera angles and moments are all pretty top-notch. Also very funny ending punchline. Highly recommend you watching it. It's easy to follow.

And now we have... This.

Mad As A Mars Hare (1963)

Yeah this was where I believed the animators started to not get what they were doing when making these cartoons. Not to be aggressive but seriously what was this? It starts off with Marvin looking into space until he sees a rocket and it destroys his telescope. It's a average start and Marvin The Martian never fails to make me at least enjoy a little bit of the cartoon. But as is, I didn't really much like the rest, Bugs Bunny is shouting at the futuristic speakerphone and I'll admit it's kinda funny. 

This cartoon though doesn't get much better and if Bob Clampett or Art Davis would make something like this, the animation would have been more expressive, here it feels stiff, again not judging but I've seen greater Marvin The Martian shorts like Haredevil Hare (1948) where the animation has more joy and movement isn't too cutesy fluff. 

Then we have a boring Bugs vs Marvin fight that just goes on and nothing really funny is happening on screen. The ending was at least passable and the design of Bugs transforming into a beast is cool.

Why I seem to like Chuck Jones's cartoons more in the 30s to 40s is that the characters felt more funny and had more of a care-free vibe. The Curious Puppies are utterly underrated characters that need more cartoons. I loved every single one of their shorts and pretty much admire their exploring while someone like the martian from Martian Through Georgia (1963) isn't really interesting and pretty much a character that feels depressed and boring.

I also have to mention that Chuck Jones made two Tom Thumb cartoons and both of them were surprisingly good. What I liked about Tom Thumb In Trouble (1940), is that it had a calming atmosphere and really fun story. While on the other hand, I Was A Teenage Thumb (1963) has funny characters, clever dialogue, and decent jokes. If I had to pick which one is better, I would say Tom Thumb In Trouble is better because the backgrounds were way more pleasent but as terms of humor, I Was A Teenage Thumb had funnier moments.

Admit it there are cartoons in the late 30s-early 40s Chuck Jones Era i don't necessarily like. 

The Good Egg (1939) was really slow for no reason, had annoying characters and featured a suicide joke that just isn't funny.

Ghost Wanted (1940) started off a little interesting but lacked way too quickly.

Bedtime For Sniffles (1940) was one of Sniffles's least interesting and kinda uncomfortable cartoons. I mean who would want to see a character suffer to stay awake and wait for Santa? Not me!

Robin Hood Makes Good (1939) was pretty much safe but not too great. The fox was funny but the squirrels are not interesting characters.

As for the 60s Era for Chuck Jones, there are a few that I consider classics, some are up there being one of my favorite classic cartoons. 

The Abominable Snow Rabbit (1961) is hilarious from start to finish and features one of Daffy's best meltdowns.

Rabbit's Feat (1960) was such a relaxing cartoon. Bugs Bunny and Coyote make a great team even though their enemies. 

Compressed Hare (1961) also was just enjoyable with Bugs and Coyote's interactions. And man the ending is absolutely brutal.

Most of Sam And Ralph's shorts in the 60s were all astounding. Sam And Ralph Cartoons to me are way better than Coyote catching the Road Runner, it's probably because it feels way more structured and laid back.

Sam and Ralph's cartoons backgrounds are the best.

At the end of the day, Chuck Jones is an animation legend that will be loved by audiences for his cynical, yet very well animated cartoons. He made some cartoons that animation professionals admired like What's Opera Doc? (1957), Rabbit Of Seville (1950) and Duck Amuck (1953) and also made some of the best characters like Nasty Canasta, Sam Sheepdog, Ralph Wolf, The Curious Puppies and freaking Charlie Dog! 😄

He may have had some flawed cartoons, but he'll never be forgotten.