Let’s point out the obvious: Chuck Jones is my favorite cartoon director of all time, so it wouldn’t be astonishing to expect some more apologetic arguments from my part, but I’ll nevertheless try to sound as impartial as possible. In this case, I’ll be including nearly every inch of his enviable career, from his rocky beginnings to his undisputed level of legend.
DISCLAIMER: this list will feature some unpopular takes.

(I’ll try my best to make the lowest amount of mistakes on my breakdowns, it’s not easy to ID Jones’ work.)

28) 1940

Big surprise, Jones’ 1940 is worse than his still infamous 1939. His bootleg Disney period sprinkles in gorgeous-looking cartoons, but great visuals aren’t worthy a damn if neither the script, nor the characters can provide actual entertainment. As a matter of fact, his early shorts are party favors, they do enchant the audience on one hand, but they’re so lethargic they actually become a pain to watch. Tom Thumb in Trouble is the epitome of such a weakness, because it may look impressive, but the characters are just so annoying for how flat and two-dimensional their personalities are. Yet, what actually makes it put on an even worse light is the fact it takes itself WAY TOO SERIOUSLY. Overreactions are something THIS Jones can’t handle yet, so whenever Tom Thumb’s father gets upset, he looks more ridiculous than intimidating, and not in a good way. Besides, if Rich Hogan would prove to be the perfect partner for Tex Avery, his chemistry with Jones doesn’t produce a likewise satisfying outcome, even though a few late 1940 shorts are barely watchable, like the infamous Good Night, Elmer – it’s overhated, but at least we got Elmer in it – and Bedtime for Sniffles – pre-blabbermouse Sniffles isn’t my cup of tea, but this Christmas-themed short is utterly innocuous. On the other hand, Sniffles Takes a Trip is the typical jewelry store window lacking any sort of substance, because Sniffles can’t hold a short on his own with his innocuousness, while The Egg Collector reuses the same plot from Little Brother Rat + the bookworm, which is already not a promising premise to begin with.
As for Elmer’s Candid Camera, it is the first cartoon to use Elmer’s definitive design and the last of proto-Bugs before A Wild Hare. As usual, its pacing is downright lethargic, letting any attempt to amuse fall flat rather easily, although it’s quite curious to hear Elmer say “wabbit twacks” in a non-feisty tone. Looney Tunes don’t follow continuity, but what if Elmer started hunting rabbits upon considering such an unpleasant experience? Who knows.
Known animators: Bob McKimson (last work in Tom Thumb in Trouble), Ken Harris, Phil Monroe, Rod Scribner (occasional, last work in Elmer’s Candid Camera), Bobe Cannon, Rudy Larriva (presumably debuts in The Egg Collector), Phil DeLara (presumably debuts in Good Night, Elmer)…

1. Mighty Hunters (Monahan, 9363) 4/10
2. Elmer’s Candid Camera (Hogan, 9371) 6/10
3. Sniffles Takes a Trip (Monahan, 9372) 5/10
4. Tom Thumb in Trouble (Hogan, 9425) 4/10
5. The Egg Collector (Givens, 9595) 5/10
6. Ghost Wanted (Monahan, 9537) 6/10
7. Stage Fright (Hogan, 9757) 4/10
8. Good Night, Elmer (Hogan, 9775) 6/10
9. Bedtime for Sniffles (Hogan, 9635) 6/10

27) 1938-39

I used to have a negative opinion on his debut year, but after the necessary rewatch, it seems like Jones’ early shorts weren’t THAT slow at first. Certainly, they were not near as chaotic as the edgelord Clampett era, but were decently paced. The Night Watchman can be considered a serviceable debut – first of Jones inheriting Tashlin’s unit – in spite of a weak protagonist, and Dog Gone Modern supplies a little bit of creativity within the modernized house, in which the story takes place. The Two Curious Puppies are definitely derivative characters – being non-anthropomorphic dogs like Pluto? – but much like Sniffles, Jones’ early creations aren’t really that entertaining. Unfortunately, the remaining shorts are integral part of the infamous Disney bootleg era, displaying extremely sluggish pacing and gorgeous visuals in favor of comedic substance. Even considering screwball Daffy’s presence in Daffy Duck and the Dinosaur, the short deliberately decides to take its time, to the detriment of humor, which kinda ruins a few scenes like Fido stunned by a rock and rugged Daffy, but… I just can’t hate this one, given the blight of the Disney bootleg era.
In fact, several shorts deserve some more diss, like Robin Hood Makes Good – a boring entry made worse by Bernice Hansen’s vocals, The Good Egg handling suicide moments in a pretty slow and unsettling fashion (this Jones isn’t abrasive yet, so he prefers cutesy setups), The Little Lion Hunter introduces a new character, Inki, hunting the Minah bird, and that’s about it, I never cared for this series, and a couple of Sniffles shorts – innocuous yet considerably tasteless. As for Old Glory, I do have a soft spot for this one: it looks great, no question about it (clever use of rotoscope during the patriotic montage and also on Uncle Sam) and the idea of favoring nationalism and education over comedy isn’t that bad, if handled well. Too bad it’s developed in such a fascist and condescending way it becomes worthy of any sort of hatred and criticism, because it’s bland, boring and positively pretentious. NINE WHOLE MINUTES OF SHAMELESS PROPAGANDA, worse than Larriva’s Road Runner series, worse than Angel Puss, worse than most of McKimson’s mid-60s shorts. It’s an awful experience in an otherwise regretful year, filled with lesser highs and painful lows.
Known animators: Bob McKimson, Ken Harris, Phil Monroe, A.C. Gamer (occasionally), Rod Scribner (occasionally), Ben Washam (occasionally), Keith Darling (presumably), Rudy Larriva…

1. The Night Watchman (1938) (Pierce, 8607) 7/10
2. Dog Gone Modern (1939) (Hogan, 8745) 6/10
3. Robin Hood Makes Good (1939) (Monahan, 8751) 5/10
4. Prest-O Change-O (1939) (Hogan, 8833) 6/10
5. Daffy Duck and the Dinosaur (1939) (Monahan, 8839) 7/10
6. Naughty but Mice (1939) (Hogan, 8861) 4/10
7. Old Glory (1939) (9239) 3/10
8. Snowman’s Land (1939) (Monahan, 8925) 4/10
9. Little Brother Rat (1939) (Hogan, 8931) 6/10
10. The Little Lion Hunter (1939) (9105) 5/10
11. The Good Egg (1939) (Monahan, 9099) 4/10
12. Sniffles and the Bookworm (1939) (Hogan, 9197) 4/10
13. The Curious Puppy (1939) (Givens, 9157) 6/10

26) 1941

On one hand – maybe due to my bias – in his 60-year-old career, Chuck Jones only had three underwhelming years. I don’t even consider his post-60s stuff that bad, either, but only subpar compared to his golden era. Therefore, his 1941 is the final negative year, which actually made me ponder where I should’ve ranked it, because 1939-1940 featured plenty of duds, whereas his 1941 is so mediocre I hardly remember anything. Accordingly, which one should I have ranked lower? A bottom year or a nothing year? With that said, Elmer’s Pet Rabbit is obviously the most notorious short, but not for the fairest reasons since Jones and Hogan flanderize Bugs’ character in his second appearance after A Wild Hare, by transforming the slick trickster into an unpleasant douchebag. He’s not even funnily annoying, he’s downright detestable in this cartoon, and actually wants to become an Easter rabbit – fortunately debunked in 1947’s Easter Yeggs. It’s not the absolute bottom, but definitely got its structural problems. Inki and the Lion is just as forgettable as the Inki series standards, the running gag of the Minah Bird’s off-screen strength has already gotten old, because he’s boring and his theme sounds equally boring. Joe Glow, the Firefly is also pretty bland and exists only for using the “Turn off that light” callback for the millionth time.
If I could possibly save Sniffles Bells the Cat and Toy Trouble for their somewhat passable setups, The Brave Little Bat does seriously lack a proper plot, as it’s merely about the flying blabbermouse’s verbose exposition over and over. There’s nothing else.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Phil Monroe, Bobe Cannon, Ben Washam, Rudy Larriva, Phil DeLara…

1. Elmer’s Pet Rabbit (Hogan, 9769) 6/10
2. Sniffles Bells the Cat (Hogan, 9855) 6/10
3. Joe Glow, the Firefly (Hogan, 9784) 5/10
4. Porky’s Ant (Hogan, 9888) 5/10
5. Toy Trouble (Hogan, 9949) 6/10
6. Porky’s Prize Pony (Hogan, 9940) 6/10
7. Inki and the Lion (Hogan and Pierce, 79) 5/10
8. Snow Time for Comedy (Hogan, 95) 5/10
9. The Brave Little Bat (Hogan, 177) 4/10
10. Saddle Silly (Hogan, 213) 6/10
11. Porky’s Midnight Matinee (Hogan, 192) 5/10

25) 1979-80

Surprise surprise, I actually find aged Jones’ work less problematic than youngster Jones’, which doesn’t justify his performance by default. We all grew up watching the Bugs Bunny/Road Runner movie, for being a collection of his famous shorts from the Golden Age, but simultaneously we do realize something weird is going on during this period, such as Mel Blanc’s more feeble vocals due to aging, Golden Age animators getting older too, tone-deaf sound effects, Dean Elliott’s not so versatile score (he’s not THAT bad, sounds solid in Road Runner shorts, sounds eh in others. Still better than post-1964 Bill Lava) and Jones continuing his smarmy metamorphosis that began during the previous decade, which made the very short he wrote not as sadistic and abrasive they used to be, by placing nicety-friendly setups, like in the case of Portrait of the Artist as a Young Bunny, whose slow pacing sort of ruins the fairly decent joke of Elmer not respecting the law of gravity because he hasn’t studied it yet. Mike Maltese joins Jones one final time in his lifetime in Duck Dodgers and the Return of the 24½th Century – sequel of the 1953 classic – a pretty odd short with a few funny bits like Porky shaving off Gossamer completely or the “Let them eat cake” reference, but again – given such a languid pacing, it’ll never be considered as good as the original, not even in spite of Maltese’s final contribution.
As for the timeless Coyote-Road Runner series, Freeze Frame is kinda forgettable, yet still better than Larriva’s series, and Soup or Sonic is essentially recalled for the last scene, in which Wile E. actually manages to catch the Road Runner AT LONG LAST, but once he realizes he’s just THAT gigantic, he scornfully asks the audience – that always wanted him to catch the Road Runner – what he’s supposed to do next. The highlight of an aged Jones.
Known animators: Phil Monroe, Ben Washam, Lloyd Vaughan, Virgil Ross, Manny Perez, Ken Champin, Mark Klauser, Irv Anderson…

1. Freeze Frame (1979) 6/10
2. Portrait of the Artist as a Young Bunny (1980) (with Phil Monroe) (Jones) 6/10
3. Spaced Out Bunny (1980) (with Phil Monroe) (Jones) 5/10
4. Soup or Sonic (1980) (with Phil Monroe) (Jones) 7/10
5. Duck Dodgers and the Return of the 24½th Century (1980) (Jones and Maltese) 6/10

24) 1990s

The final cartoons he wrote, directed and produced, animated by a whole new generation (Eric Goldberg in A Chariots of Fur being a prime example, but Tom Ray’s also partaking). To be fair, they may not be as sluggish as his ’80s performance, but tend to display the overexposition and excessive padding as Jones’ massive weakness. Besides, George Dougherty’s score sounds as disjointed as the compositions of WB ’90s series like Pinky and the Brain, Tiny Toons and Animaniacs (they’re not that bad, but kinda feel a bit too soft and repetitive in the long run). Superior Duck is another follow-up of the 1953 classic + portions of McKimson’s Stupor Duck, based upon fanservice by inserting as many iconic characters as the short can contain (Foghorn, Porky, Taz, Marvin…) and that’s about it, it’s not a very good short, the narrator is pretty annoying and gags aren’t that effective. As for From Hare to Eternity, the only thing I remember is the dedication to Friz Freleng – who died two years prior – before the ending rings, because the short features padding, padding and more padding. I don’t expect this from a Bugs-Sam cartoon.
Conversely, Another Froggy Evening reuses the same structure as One Froggy Evening, but across different historical moments, from stone age to American Revolution, in which the same moustached character (and his various descendants) wants to get rich and famous thanks to Michigan J. Frog, who sings only in front of his owner. Albeit not as timeless as the 1955 short, it’s got a few funny details like the cameo of Siskel and Ebert giving thumbs down, and the ending with Marvin singing alongside Michigan. I wouldn’t mind rewatching it. Chariots of Fur is an adequate conclusion of Jones’ series, better paced than Freeze Frame, extremely well-animated, with its moments like “it’s not cool to laugh at the surgeon general” and Mel Blanc’s archived YEOW during the cactus costume scene. Overall, Jones never directed an actually bad Coyote-Road Runner series, which proves the strength of his own formula, as long as he’s the one who uses it. Larriva and McKimson weren’t as fortunate.

1. Chariots of Fur (1994) (Jones, Fossatti and Freberg) 7/10
2. Another Froggy Evening (1995) (Jones, Arioli, Fossatti and Freberg) 7/10
3. Superior Duck (1996) (Jones) 5/10
4. From Hare to Eternity (1997) (Fossati) 6/10

23) 1944

Of course, there’s no way the year of Angel Puss can be well-regarded. Jokes aside, this is an okay-ish year, even though it’s definitely a slowdown of Jones’ growth process that began in 1942. As a matter of fact, both Maltese and Pierce’s contributions are fairly solid, which get sadly overshadowed by Lou Lilly’s dud, Angel Puss, in which his writing flaws stand out incredibly easily without Clampett’s direction. Bland, boring and racist, what else?
Bugs Bunny and the Three Bears features the Three Bears, a dysfunctional and imperfect family, who are some of the most entertaining characters ever created: a short-tempered and abusive father, a dimwitted overgrown baby bear and an apathetic yet horny mother, they work because they’re so imperfect. Unfortunately, the last segment doesn’t compel as much as the introduction of the Three Bears. The Weakly Reporter is a spot-gag short – you should know I don’t like them that much by now – but I suppose a few scenes are decent, like the tire on a stretcher and the alarm clock robbery. From Hand to Mouse follows the formula of the mouse constantly outsmarting a dumb lion, which may be chuckle-worthy the first time, but then gets rather unimaginative quickly. Angel Puss is Angel Puss: can you come up with a better start than being willing to drown your own cat??? Fuck this.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Bobe Cannon, Ben Washam, Phil DeLara (maybe leaves after Bugs Bunny and the Three Bears), Lloyd Vaughan, Shamus Culhane (occasionally), Ray Patin (occasionally)…

1. Tom Turk and Daffy (Maltese and Pierce, 1-14) 8/10
2. Bugs Bunny and the 3 Bears (Pierce, 2-13) 7/10
3. The Weakly Reporter (Maltese, 6-13) 6/10
4. Angel Puss (Lilly, 4-14) 4/10
5. From Hand to Mouse (Maltese, 9-14) 6/10
6. Lost and Foundling (Pierce, 1-14) 7/10

22) 1963-67

Controversial pick, which requires an answer to the question “How come is his T&J era ranked higher than some years of the classic era?” Well, it is THAT simple if it’s more compelling than the Disney bootleg period. The original purpose was to revive the T&J franchise after the dark ages of Gene Deitch, so a few partners of his from the WB times joined in, like his layout artist and co-director Maurice Noble, the other side of his duo Mike Maltese, his veteran animators Ken Harris, Ben Washam, Dick Thompson and Tom Ray alongside Disney legend Don Towsley (clever pick considering MGM also availed of former Disney names – Ken Muse, Ed Love and Ray Patterson – that contributed to their fortune), composers Eugene Poddany and Dean Elliott… Jones did definitely want to play it safe, given the numerous co-workers he already cooperated with. Likewise, his T&J shorts are pretty derivative from his WB stuff, as a precise attempt to bring back that healthy, yet abrasive violence from the H&B era, thus Jones seems like the correct choice for such an ambitious task. Unfortunately, his performance turns out to be way softer than his golden era, so the violence doesn’t come off as abrasive and cruel as expected. Still, I don’t feel like bashing his T&J depiction, because it’s an animated MIRACLE, his shorts look pretty competent (for the most part, maybe Levitow’s series looks rougher around the edges) for a ’60s series, also considering the Woody Woodpecker Show, Pink Panther and DePatie’s WB shorts weren’t meeting the same fortune.
Specifically, The Cat Above and the Mouse Below tries to recreate the setting of MGM’s on-stage cartoons – Magical Maestro and The Hollywood Bowl – with mildly satisfying results. Is There a Doctor in the Mouse? has Jerry drink up a potion that gives him super speed – like the Road Runner. The Unshrinkable Jerry Mouse basically mashes up both Two’s a Crowd and Feline Frame-Up. Tom-Ic Energy combines the Coyote-Road Runner formula with a horny cat speaking and acting like Pepé le Pew. Eugene Poddany remains a very underappreciated composer, who has to continue that solid legacy begun by legends Scott Bradley at MGM and Carl Stalling at WB (whom he momentarily replaced in 1950), a nearly impossible task since his score needs to match the characters’ actions without any line of dialogue – as tradition demands. Even so, he delivers such beautiful performances in Snowbody Loves Me, Of Feline Bondage, Cat and Dupli-Cat (the singing at the beginning is already better handled than whatever What’s Opera, Doc? tried to do) and The Year of the Mouse, a blatant rehash of 1949’s Mouse Wreckers, which also happens to be crueller than the Hubie and Bertie short, resulting in a more satisfying cartoon than the Oscar winner. That violence is so functional it makes the ending so coherent, as well as an improvement over the abrupt finale of Mouse Wreckers. Dean Elliott’s score is less versatile than Poddany’s, but kinda works on action-focused entries like Duel Personality, split into different sections like in the Coyote-Road Runner series, Cannery Rodent or in Tom Ray’s clip shows, in which they use footages of the H&B shorts. Bottom line, even in a decade filled with dying animated shows, Chuck Jones always lands on his feet, because *SPOILERS – unlike Freleng and McKimson – he didn’t decline that much in the ’60s. His Tom and Jerry series remains likeable, definitely rewatchable, whilst derivative and not as fresh and edgy as his older work or Hanna & Barbera’s original creation. It’s surely not among the worst adaptations, that honor goes to the 1975’s Tom and Jerry Show and the 1992 movie directed by Phil Roman (WHY?), scored by Henry Mancini (WHY??), with the tacit approval of Joseph Barbera (WHY?????).
Known animators: Ken Harris, Ben Washam, Dick Thompson, Tom Ray, Don Towsley, Phil Roman…

P.S.: How the Grinch Stole Christmas remains an undisputed classic, as well as a partial, yet momentary return to abrasive Jones.
A few animation breakdowns.

21) 1942

Might come off as a surprise, as 1942 represents the big change, from Disney bootleg to more limited and smeary animation. I definitely want to debunk this myth, because he had already stopped mimicking Disney a year earlier, even if his shorts were mostly forgettable, and the big change already occurred in The Draft Horse (The Dover Boys essentially perfected what The Draft Horse launched) did make his animation method more functional and more distinctive (finally his unit is no longer composed of McKimson lookalikes), although what I do consider the most meaningful change is on the writing front, from Rich Hogan to the rotation of Tedd Pierce and Mike Maltese, whom Jones demonstrated to create some chemistry with. The last of the Jones-Hogan collab produced either nasty results like in The Bird Came C.O.D. – Conrad the Cat doing mundane stuff, also dealing with an unpleasant bird in a top hat running gag – or used unremarkably derivative characters one final time like in Dog Tired, even though Mel Blanc’s hyena laughing sounds pretty funny. Monahan writes Conrad the Sailor, a decent short with Daffy showing Conrad how to be a great character, that is doing the opposite Conrad does.
Curiously enough, while Jones’ consecration would be made possible with Maltese’s scripts, it’s actually Pierce who “manipulates” his creed at first, as seen in The Draft Horse (the colonel getting emotional over the horse’s pantomime is one of Jones’ early examples of subtle, out of context humor), Fox Pop (smashing the radio repeatedly might be one of his early instances of edgier humor) and of course The Dover Boys, filled with priceless bits like “NO ONE WILL NEVER KNOW”, the subverted damsel in distress trope and the convenient “how to remove lady from tree”, but also featuring some pretty corny and dated main characters, which stop me from ranking it any higher. On the other front, Maltese started arranging some new formulas, either with the creation of Henery Hawk in The Squawkin’ Hawk, or by establishing Daffy as Porky’s foe in My Favorite Duck, in which Porky is allowed to feel negative emotions for the first time ever, upon Daffy constantly putting his patience into test during his camping. Possibly the first noteworthy effort of the Jones-Maltese duo, given the solid chemistry between Daffy and Porky.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Bobe Cannon, Ben Washam, Rudy Larriva, Phil DeLara, Rev Chaney (Dog Tired)…

1. The Bird Came C.O.D. (Hogan, 351) 4/10
2. Porky’s Cafe (Hogan, 444) 6/10
3. Conrad the Sailor (Monahan, 415) 7/10
4. Dog Tired (Hogan, 417) 6/10
5. The Draft Horse (Pierce, 575) 7/10
6. Hold the Lion, Please (Pierce, 609) 7/10
7. The Squawkin’ Hawk (Maltese, 627) 7/10
8. Fox Pop (Pierce, 721) 7/10
9. The Dover Boys at Pimento University or The Rivals of Roquefort Hall (Pierce, 631) 8/10
10. My Favorite Duck (Maltese, 1085) 8/10
11. Case of the Missing Hare (Pierce, 829) 7/10

20) 1956

Weakest year of the ’50s, as Jones endures a decline during the aftermath of the WB shutdown in 1953, because Maltese had left the studio and absolutely needed him back. In the meantime, Tedd Pierce joined again to help him on a few shorts, but his comeback didn’t result in being the most propitious choice. To this day, I can hardly find a reason for the Jones-Pierce 2.0. providing an unstable performance if compared to their ’40s cartoons. A disdainful point would be that Pierce got used to McKimson’s directional mediocrity so much he could no longer write captivating stories. Then again, their shorts – fortunately – aren’t really rock bottom, because Jones and his unit always save the day, but at the same time you can’t help but miss Maltese’s setups, which had the tendency to limit Jones’ liberties, often for their own sake. Accordingly, if Freleng’s 1956 isn’t too prolific for playing it way too safe, Jones’ 1956 doesn’t work much for the exact opposite reason, too many flights of fancy. I’m positively secure if McKimson ever directed Bugs’ Bonnets, it would suck like Don’t Axe Me: can you even imagine Bugs and Elmer – two distinctive icons – changing their personalities once they wear a specific hat??? We’re not in the early ’40s, this is 1955/56, this concept is really stupid and confirms Pierce’s evident weaknesses when it comes to write a main character in distress, as Bugs is essentially a non-character, utterly influenced by floating hats. I’d even be brought to dislike it without Jones’ unit and the “romantic” ending. Plus, the new gunshot sound effect sucks, I prefer the older one. Broom-Stick Bunny… I wish I could like it as much as others do, because Witch Hazel is a great character, June Foray’s vocals sound stellar, the mirror from Snow White is a clever device and the ending is way better than the Bewitched Bunny finale – gotta love the Joneseque derpy smirk on the horny genie – but there’s still something off, like – again – Bugs at his blandest, a la Daffy in Golden Yeggs, and his out of character reaction when Hazel gets ready to split him with a cleaver. WEEPING, SERIOUSLY? I just don’t get it, like Barbary Coast Bunny: in this case I can’t understand why this one is so liked, maybe for the high-pitched RLY? In any case, the short is fine, yet the casino setting is just too static and there’s way too much padding. Rocket Squad is simply inexcusable, by making references to a TV series nobody watched, flattening Daffy and Porky by removing their personalities and shamelessly recycling the sceneries from 1953’s Duck Dodgers. Pierce didn’t even try it to make this one less boring, while Jones fancily flew.
Upon this unsuccessful comeback, Jones could get Maltese back, whose duo obviously needed some trial stage in order to get back on track. Rocket-Bye Baby is a forgettable entry with bland spouses, yet slightly less underwhelming than Freleng’s Goo Goo Goliath – the old lady’s shriek punchline is rather funny – Deduce, You Say! uses the stabilized “Daffy the flawed protagonist and Porky the wise sidekick” formula pretty decently, but I’m frankly not extremely enthusiastic about it – the Shropshire Slasher is no Marvin the Martian – though I do acknowledge its moments like Daffy collecting clues and Porky’s sarcastic comment when he finds a clue. As for the Coyote-Road Runner series, Gee Whiz-z-z-z-z-z-z is a great short – the confused bullet, the bat-man costume and the subverted gag of running through a painting are worth your vision – while There They Go-Go-Go! might suffer its quite slow prologue. Maltese definitely wants to take his time. Bottom line, disappointing first half, slight return to form once Maltese is back.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Ben Washam, Dick Thompson, Abe Levitow, Keith Darling (recurring).

1. Bugs’ Bonnets (Pierce, 1387) 7/10
2. Broom-Stick Bunny (Pierce, 1385) 7/10
3. Rocket Squad (Pierce, 1347) 5/10
4. Heaven Scent (Jones, 1379) 6/10
5. Gee Whiz-z-z-z-z-z-z (Maltese, 1399) 9/10
6. Barbary Coast Bunny (Pierce, 1389) 7/10
7. Rocket-Bye Baby (Maltese, 1395) 6/10
8. Deduce, You Say! (Maltese, 1400) 7/10
9. There They Go-Go-Go! (Maltese, 1427) 7/10
10. To Hare Is Human (Maltese, 1430) 8/10

19) 1959

Quite decent effort, plenty of his shorts are either co-directed or even entirely directed by his protegé, Abe Levitow. I’m going to rate them anyway, because his unit is essentially Jones’. With the exception of the two Coyote-Road Runner shorts, these cartoons were produced prior to the musicians’ strike in 1958: Baton Bunny isn’t a masterpiece – it’s got a bit of a slow start – but it contains one of the absolute best orchestrations by Milt Franklin, superior to his work in What’s Opera, Doc? (we’ll eventually have to address it). As for Levitow’s shorts, Really Scent proposes an interesting variation, with Fabrette/Penelope having a white stripe on her tail since her birth, as a result she can’t get a boyfriend for looking like a skunk. Unlike the other shorts, she’s actually interested in Pepé, but his stench impedes her from flirting further. A Witch’s Tangled Hare – on the other hand – is the weaker among the Bugs-Hazel series, its beginning is a bit slow – Maltese’s tradition intensifies – the ending is quite puzzling and worst of all, NO HAIR PINS. COME ON. Unnatural History is a spot-gag entry… another one.
Upon the musicians’ return, both Hot-Rod and Reel! and Wild About Hurry strongly benefit from Franklin’s orchestrations: the latter is possibly the better cartoon, only for the indestructible steel ball segment.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Ben Washam, Dick Thompson, Abe Levitow, Keith Darling.

1. Baton Bunny (with Abe Levitow) (Maltese, 1466) 7/10
2. Hot-Rod and Reel! (Maltese, 1524) 7/10
3. Wild About Hurry (Maltese, 1525) 8/10
4. Really Scent (Abe Levitow) (Maltese, 1418) 8/10
5. A Witch’s Tangled Hare (Abe Levitow) (Maltese, 1439) 6/10
6. Unnatural History (Abe Levitow) (Maltese, 1424) 5/10

18) 1962

Pretty much of a decent effort. It’s also the year of his featurette Adventures of the Road Runner, which includes anything: footages from older Coyote-Road Runner shorts and From A to Z-Z-Z-Z, as well as exclusive clips from To Beep or Not to Beep – it would be released the following year, with new sound effects and entirely rescored by Bill Lava, since Milt Franklin passed away some time after this special – and an actual “behind the scenes” of Wile E. explaining how he locates the Road Runner and, above all, why he’s so obsessed with eating him. Gotta love the fact even his feathers taste like different flavors.
Always speaking of the Road Runner series, it may sound formulaic and all, but unlike the Tweety-Sylvester series, Wile’s character wasn’t conceived WITHOUT the Road Runner in the first place, and on top of that, its main strength has always been the varying length of their skits, thus making them more unpredictable. That’s why it’s one of my favorite WB series, yet Zoom at the Top isn’t the best epitome, since it’s got two lengthened sections, the bear trap and the glued boomerang. A Sheep in the Deep, conversely, is a virtuous example of why the Ralph-Sam Sheepdog series is so well-structured, since it doesn’t stick to Sam stopping Ralph’s numerous attempts to steal his sheep, but also treats this formula as full-fledged jobs, with the two acting hostilely ONLY at work, and being genuinely polite to each other outside their job. Specifically, this short cleverly showcases Ralph’s daily routine, the two having a serene lunch break and then resuming their hostility as if nothing happened. The ending twist is also unexpected, since their work shift ends right when Ralph is about to suffer an explosive sheep. Martian Through Georgia features an apathetic alien who leaves his planet to land on Earth and embrace their traditions. Pretty dully executed, characters are unremarkable, the commotion caused by the martian’s presence is nowhere near as ludicrous and preposterous as 1953’s Punch Trunk, and the flow of events is just too predictable. By the way, didn’t they sexualize his “crush” a little bit?
Known animators: Ken Harris, Dick Thompson, Tom Ray, Bob Bransford.

1. A Sheep in the Deep (with Maurice Noble) (Jones, 1563) 10/10
2. Zoom at the Top (with Maurice Noble) (Jones, 1574) 7/10
3. Louvre Come Back to Me! (with Maurice Noble) (Dunn, 1572) 7/10
4. Martian Through Georgia (with Abe Levitow and Maurice Noble) (Jones and Kohler, 1556) 5/10

17) 1946

Let’s put it simply: Hair-Raising Hare is a sheer classic, featuring a memorable red-furred monster wearing sneakers, Gossamer, chasing Bugs around Peter Lorre’s castle, who is so intimidating he scares his own reflection at the mirror. He’s a sociopath, too. The most noteworthy shorts of this otherwise decent 1946 are produced by the Wackiki duo’s pens: Fair and Worm-er handles chain hunting quite well, with each creature but the worm taking both roles of prey and predator, while Roughly Squeaking involves Hubie and Bertie manipulating a dumb cat throughout the short, by making him believe he’s a lion with consequent disastrous outcomes, since the dog can’t put up with the lion’s BS until he finds out he’s indeed a pelican, much to the bird’s plucked shock. One of the earliest epitomes of Jones’ abrasive humor taking advantage of characters’ stupidity, made even solider by their hyperbolic reactions.
Sadly, his 1946 is no bed of daffodils, since if Hush My Mouse is an alright, yet unnecessary epilogue for Sniffles in the classic era, Quentin Quail is a disgrace, the quail’s daughter is a pain in the ass, the story is bland and the ending doesn’t work at all for how asinine it is.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Bobe Cannon (last work in Quentin Quail), Ben Washam, Lloyd Vaughan, Dick Thompson, Basil Davidovich.

1. Quentin Quail (Pierce, L-6-15) 4/10
2. Hush My Mouse (Pierce, 13-15) 6/10
3. Hair-Raising Hare (Maltese and Pierce, 1-15) 10/10
4. Fair and Worm-er (Maltese and Pierce, 5-16) 7/10
5. Roughly Squeaking (Maltese and Pierce, 7-16) 8/10

16) 1943

Pretty decent year, in which Jones improves what he started in 1942. He finally acquired his own identity also thanks to Maltese and Pierce’s writing, who are the protagonists of Pierce’s Wackiki Wabbit, playing two famished castaways willing to eat Bugs on a desert island. That or acting like cannibals. These two characters may not be entertaining on their own, but they certainly benefit from being actual spoofs of both Maltese (short and plump) and Pierce (tall and skinny). This short also has its humorous bits, like Bugs’ condescending tribal dance, the coin scene and the chicken puppet. The Unbearable Bear marks the return of Sniffles after 18 months, this time with a brand-new characterization: he’s a blabbermouse, he won’t ever shut up, he’s so annoying… but it’s actually funny. The gag with Mama Bear washing the burglar while sleepwalking is also pretty funny, but the ending feels a bit too cheap. Fin’n Catty displays a cat willing to eat the goldfish, but he’s afraid of water, while The Aristo-Cat – first appearance of Hubie and Bertie – involves the two mice manipulating the pampered cat over what’s really a dog and/or a mouse. Though, I believe Roughly Squeaking remains a more cunning short.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Bobe Cannon, Ben Washam, Rudy Larriva, Phil DeLara, Lloyd Vaughan…

1. To Duck or Not to Duck (Pierce, 800) 8/10
2. Flop Goes the Weasel (Maltese, 1112) 5/10
3. Super-Rabbit (Pierce, 1029) 8/10
4. The Unbearable Bear (Maltese, 995) 7/10
5. The Aristo-Cat (Pierce, 1031) 7/10
6. Wackiki Wabbit (Pierce, 1051) 8/10
7. Fin’n Catty (Maltese, 21-12) 7/10
8. Inki and the Minah Bird (Pierce, 23-12) 6/10

15) 1961

Maltese had already left John Burton’s studios a few years prior, so Jones had to co-operate with several writers – John Dunn or Dave Detiege – or write his cartoons on his own. Either way, the Duo’s last short was released in this very year, The Mouse on 57th Street, which would be an averagely mediocre short – two dumb police officers chasing a mouse wearing a diamond – but the fact it’s technically the last of Jones-Maltese in the original run certainly puts it in a nasty light. D’ Fightin’ Ones had more dignity than this pile of mediocrity.
Fortunately, as we all know, Jones never crashes when he risks to fall, as his 1961 remains a good year: even without Maltese’s scripts, he can still direct notable Coyote-Road Runner entries, as well as creating memorable one-hit characters like Hugo in The Abominable Snow Rabbit, a return to form for Pierce after the unremarkable post-shutdown parenthesis. Given the deserved success of One Froggy Evening, Jones decides to let another animal achieve a singing talent, this time a giraffe in Nelly’s Folly, which is a bit overhyped as far as I’m concerned, because the cunning and cynical humor of One Froggy Evening is completely absent here in favor of a more saccharine setup. The sight gags of the bird’s very high note and the taaaaaaall microphone/multiple TV screens are quite amusing, and I might understand the criticism towards celebrities bumping into dramas once they become famous, but when the characterization is lackluster and Jones’ cynical spirit appears only on the surface, you basically lose any will to supply a captivating story. Since the plot was already not so imaginative, it absolutely needed some more inner abrasiveness instead of an averagely banal happy ending. Despite it received an Academy Award nomination – just like Beep Prepared – I don’t think Jones deserved it with this uninteresting short.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Ben Washam (Nelly’s Folly), Dick Thompson, Tom Ray, Bob Bransford.

1. Zip ‘N Snort (Jones, 1498) 8/10
2. The Mouse on 57th Street (Maltese, 1543) 5/10
3. The Abominable Snow Rabbit (with Maurice Noble) (Pierce, 1551) 9/10
4. Lickety-Splat (with Abe Levitow) (Jones, 1573) 7/10
5. A Scent of the Matterhorn (Jones, 1552) 6/10
6. Compressed Hare (with Maurice Noble) (Detiege, 1557) 8/10
7. Beep Prepared (with Maurice Noble) (Jones and Dunn, 1607) 9/10
8. Nelly’s Folly (Abe Levitow and Maurice Noble) (Jones and Detiege, 1558) 6/10

14) 1947

Despite 1947 is a transitional year, and despite the Wackiki duo writes both Jones and Freleng’s cartoons, Jones’ performance is slightly above Freleng’s, possibly because he didn’t direct a dud like The Gay Anties. Sure, Inki at the Circus does belong to a mid series, which stands on ONE SINGLE JOKE, the Minah Bird, chuckle-worthy the first time, but becomes dull soon after. He’s boring and again his theme sounds anachrostically boring for 1947’s standards. As for the more positive stuff, Scent-imental Over You involves a Chihuahua who dresses up to make friends, but only manages to catch Pepé’s horniness. Here the Pepé formula is relatively fresh, so it leaves sufficient room for variations, like the inclusive ending with Pepé not minding interracial. House Hunting Mice retells 1939’s Dog Gone Modern with Hubie and Bertie, yet it doesn’t add much else apart from Hubie slapping some sense out of Bertie as a running gag. Little Orphan Airedale is also a retelling, of Clampett’s Porky’s Pooch, but displaying a whole lotta different atmosphere, as Porky is far less tolerant and more short-tempered than Clampett-Foster’s character, who is utterly reluctant to adopt Charlie as a pet, and unlike Porky’s Pooch, he keeps on rejecting him, thus resulting in a more fierce, yet funnier short. The pregnancy bit is hilarious, as well as Porky falling for in-house snowing.
Then we have A Pest in the House follow the leitmotiv of a sleepy, yet neurotic guy who punches Elmer right in the nose whenever Daffy annoys him. Repetitive story, Daffy continues his villainous arc in Jones’ cartoons, he’s indeed annoying… I really love this loud and disdainful short released in a good year. No Bugs Bunny, though.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Phil Monroe (returns in Little Orphan Airedale), Ben Washam, Lloyd Vaughan, Dick Thompson, Basil Davidovich (leaves after A Feather in His Hare).

1. Scent-imental Over You (Maltese and Pierce, 1016) 7/10
2. Inki at the Circus (Maltese and Pierce, 1029) 5/10
3. A Pest in the House (Maltese and Pierce, 1024) 9/10
4. House Hunting Mice (Maltese and Pierce, 1049) 7/10
5. Little Orphan Airedale (Maltese and Pierce, 1032) 8/10

13) 1945

If Freleng’s 1945 shorts but Life with Feathers were written by Maltese, Jones’ 1945 shorts but Fresh Airedale are simultaneously written by Pierce. If Freleng created new characters like Sylvester and Yosemite Sam, Jones introduced Pepé le Pew in Odor-able Kitty – in which he stalks a male cat because he’s a pretty horny guy for being a family skunk – as well as the abrasive kind of pattern in Fresh Airedale, in which Shep – an unfaithful and sneaky dog – steals his master’s food, assists a burglar, brags about some good actions committed by the cat or by another dog and always, I mean ALWAYS, gets away with his evildoing, much to the cat’s frustration. I do get its purpose of illustrating how unfair life is, but the fact NO character is actually likeable doesn’t make me appreciate this short any better. The master is a prick, Shep is assdog and the cat is just a foolish dweeb.
Regardless, 1945 is a quite solid year: Trap Happy Porky showcases a simple story of Porky hiring a cat in order to get rid of mice, only to be left unable to sleep due to some subsequent feline singing performance. Hare Conditioned involves Bugs escaping from the store manager’s intention to stuff him, while Hare Tonic is a classic “Bugs fooling and manipulating his opponent” plot, in this case Elmer, who makes him believe he came down with rabbititus. Great short that rehashes the beginning of Elmer’s Pet Rabbit in a much more functional fashion, with WAY better pacing and WAY better comedy.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Bobe Cannon, Ben Washam, Lloyd Vaughan, Dick Thompson, Basil Davidovich.

1. Odor-able Kitty (Pierce, 11-14) 8/10
2. Trap Happy Porky (Pierce, 9-15) 7/10
3. Hare Conditioned (Pierce, 5-14) 8/10
4. Fresh Airedale (Maltese, 3-15) 5/10
5. Hare Tonic (Pierce, L-8-14) 9/10

12) 1957

“HOW DARE YOU LEAVE HIS 1957 OUT OF THE TOP 10???” When I listed Freleng’s yearly filmography, I ranked his 1957 at #2 because he directed so many classics (Three Little Bops, Show Biz Bugs, Birds Anonymous), whereas Jones delivers an overall positive output, but nowhere near as satisfying as the next 10 years. I certainly don’t consider From A to Z-Z-Z-Z a masterpiece, but I liked its creativity during Ralph’s daydreaming, therefore the main goal of Boyhood Daze was to recreate the same story and the same protagonist, but with lesser results. There must be a reason why One Froggy Evening would be retold 40 years after its release, so just imagine an already claimed non-masterpiece being rehashed within 3 years, not an indispensable short. Go Fly a Kit may own a cute premise of a flying feline being raised by an eagle, but I just loathe these saccharine patterns lacking substance and aggressiveness. On top of that, I realize I might sound unpopular, regardless of my infinite admiration towards Milt Franklin, but Carl Stalling handled sad moments far better than he ever did: just compare his compositions of Pigs in a Polka (the wolf playing violin) and The Old Grey Hare (Bugs digging his own grave) with Franklin’s in these two shorts. This issue will be covered again below. The two Coyote-Road Runner shorts – Scrambled Aches and Zoom and Bored – are extremely enjoyable (the steamroller bit in the former has some terrific score by Stalling), Ali Baba Bunny is solid, yet not the best Bugs-Daffy pairing, though Daffy pushing the genie inside his own lamp is quite funny, as well as Bugs ignoring Daffy’s pleas, while Steal Wool is a pretty great Ralph-Sam episode, displaying humorous bits like the dynamite bridge and the whole rubber band section.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Ben Washam, Dick Thompson, Abe Levitow, Keith Darling (recurring), Corny Cole (Zoom and Bored)…

1. Scrambled Aches (Maltese, 1436) 8/10
2. Ali Baba Bunny (Maltese, 1415) 8/10
3. Go Fly a Kit (Maltese, 1433) 6/10
4. Boyhood Daze (Maltese, 1421) 7/10
5. Steal Wool (Maltese, 1445) 9/10
6. What’s Opera, Doc? (Maltese, 1397) 8/10
7. Zoom and Bored (Maltese, 1467) 8/10
8. Touché and Go (Maltese, 1482) 7/10

Okay, let’s address the elephant in the room. What’s Opera, Doc? doesn’t POSITIVELY deserve to be overhyped THIS MUCH, and doesn’t likewise deserve to be regarded as “the best cartoon of all time”. Quite a pretentious overstatement. In fact, I don’t even consider it a masterpiece, as it’s simply recalled for its inclusion in the Bugs Bunny/Road Runner movie. Though, I don’t think it’s garbage, either, since Jones’ direction and Noble’s layouts are extremely competent and totally worth your vision. Among the positive stuff, I do acknowledge the first 2 minutes and 50 seconds being the best part of the short: great atmosphere, competent score by Franklin, as well as some humorous moments like Bugs mocking Elmer for his “magic helmet” and the “That was the wabbit” delivery. Unfortunately, everything goes downhill once Elmer falls for Bugs in drags, but not completely because the dance segment is kinda nice, also well-orchestrated by Franklin. The rest, though, features so many flaws I shall now proceed to list them down:
1) Unlike Rabbit of Seville, the characters’ singing is completely static, as all they do is singing without making an actual action, which automatically makes their scenes in question regress into filler category.
2) “Return, My Love” has truly AWFULLY sappy lyrics, which makes Macarena sound like Stairway to Heaven in comparison. As if it weren’t enough, Franklin’s arrangement sounds quite jarring for how CRINGE it sounds, the characters’ singing manages to get a bit less static, but isn’t sufficient to make the whole segment more engaging. Total Jonesesque flight of fancy and apparently Maltese can’t write songs anymore.
3) Arthur Q. Bryan’s singing sincerely got so much worse he’s quite inaudible. Try to compare them to Rabbit of Seville or even Elmer’s Pet Rabbit to get the idea.
4) Bugs’ crossdressing isn’t even that original, since it’s essentially the same setup developed in Freleng’s Herr Meets Hare in the mid ’40s, but at least that segment was hilarious, orchestrated by Stalling to perfection and ABOVE ALL, didn’t even think of taking itself too seriously, which is the most serious sin of What’s Opera, Doc?: letting oneself be so blinded by one’s own ambition to forget cartoon fundamentals.
5) In fact, the ending is further ruined by this very sin and Franklin’s weakness of handling mournful moments without that sense of solemnity Stalling could express. Bugs’ supposed death isn’t portrayed like a sad moment, it’s more Bambi-like level of sappy.
Furthermore, this short factually usurped every single credit the OTHER musical short released in 1957 demonstrated to deserve way more, Freleng’s Three Little Bops: it illustrated a classic tale in a unique and imaginative fashion, the characters’ singing and playing feels DYNAMIC, allowing the plot to flow seamlessly, there’s copious room for comedy and Stan Freberg sings so much better than Q. Bryan. Accordingly, in a rightful universe, Three Little Bops should receive far more credit than its usurper, the overrated flight of fancy passed off as the best cartoon of all time, but in actuality it’s not even the best musical short of 1957.

11) 1963-64

Why so high? As I stated earlier, Jones fell down sometimes, but never crashed completely. Not even during his last days at WB, in which he delivered a relatively solid performance, in spite of a few questionable experiments, like Hare-Breadth Hurry, the last pairing of Bugs and Wile E., with the latter playing the Road Runner hunter and not the cocky super genius, which makes us obviously ponder why he’d replace the Road Runner in the first place. That said, it’s an overhated short that doesn’t deserve so much hate, personally. If you desperately want to hate something, feel free to vomit your disdain over Phil Monroe’s The Iceman Ducketh, THAT is an inexcusable disgrace. Now Hear This contains a bunch of random futuristic imageries and noises and that’s about it. Has to be one of the most preposterous experiments of this era, there’s barely nothing sensible, anything is random, but this is the very reason why this short is a thought-out experiment. On the other hand, I Was a Teenage Thumb is a conventional and meaningless retelling of the Little Thumb tale, which wasn’t really the case given how much I disliked Tom Thumb in Trouble. I suppose War and Pieces might also be considered an experimental Coyote-Road Runner short, as well as the last of Jones at WB, due to its stripped-back animation, visible onomatopeias and futuristic noises. I enjoy this final picture that also showcases Road Runner watching porn, the highlight.
As for the traditional stuff, Transylvania 6-5000 features the classic vampire-umpire challenge between Bugs and the vampire, solid series finale, yet a bit sluggish at parts, while To Beep or Not to Beep could perhaps be my favorite Coyote-Road Runner episode only for THAT segment, the various catapult tries are what the audience is mostly reminiscent of. Lava’s score is pretty solid, too.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Ben Washam (Now Hare This), Dick Thompson, Tom Ray, Bob Bransford.

1. I Was a Teenage Thumb (with Maurice Noble) (Jones and Dunn, 1578) 5/10
2. Now Hear This (with Maurice Noble) (Jones and Dunn, 1611) 8/10
3. Woolen Under Where (Phil Monroe and Dick Thompson) (Jones, 1620) 8/10
4. Hare-Breadth Hurry (with Maurice Noble) (Jones and Dunn, 1616) 7/10
5. Mad as a Mars Hare (with Maurice Noble) (Dunn, 1667) 7/10
6. Transylvania 6-5000 (with Maurice Noble) (Dunn, 1621) 8/10
7. To Beep or Not to Beep (with Maurice Noble) (Jones and Dunn, 1608) 10/10
8. War and Pieces (with Maurice Noble) (Dunn, 1660) 7/10

10) 1960

Only great years in Jones’ yearly top 10. The ’60s are normally a period of recession for animated products, but not quite for the Jones-Maltese Duo. Sure, Who Scent You? doesn’t come off as the most imaginative Pepé short – pretty prosaic indeed – and the various segments of Fastest with the Mostest drag out a bit too long – perhaps my least favorite Coyote-Road Runner, but remains a decent entry – but on the flip side Jones directs his own Hopalong Casualty – the return to blue sky upon years of yellow – mostly remembered for the earthquake pills segment and Ready, Woolen and Able alongside Maltese, that one short in which Ralph goes insane due to the endless amount of Sams in the surroundings.
High Note marks a welcome back to absurd creativity after the Nibelungenlied flight of fancy, in which the conductor note has to retrieve a missing inebriated note in order to play The Blue Danube. That’s exactly the Jones I worship: inventive and hyperbolic when necessary.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Ben Washam (“last” work in Fastest with the Mostest), Dick Thompson, Keith Darling (last work in Fastest with the Mostest), Tom Ray, Bob Bransford (both joining from Hopalong Casualty onwards).

1. Fastest with the Mostest (1536) 7/10
2. Hopalong Casualty (Jones, 1545) 9/10
3. Who Scent You? (Maltese, 1492) 6/10
4. Rabbit’s Feat (Jones, 1532) 8/10
5. Ready, Woolen and Able (Maltese, 1519) 9/10
6. High Note (Maltese, 1480) 9/10

9) 1952

The “less monumental” year of the Duo’s Golden Era, in which they still deliver a pretty great performance. Not every cartoon supervisor can boast a supposedly “less monumental” year like this one, even though an experiment like Mouse-Warming feels a bit anachronistic for THIS Jones’ nearly unreachable standards, as it’s a basic return to an averagely cutesy setting, which feels weird considering the Duo had released Feed the Kitty as a far more successful experiment. On the surface, it may appear as the umpteenth cutesy story, involving Marc Anthony – the bulldog – befriending Pussyfoot – a kitten, but the Duo doesn’t fortuitously forget to make them entertaining, and they do to Marc Anthony’s psychological detriment, since the scenes he believes Pussyfoot is undeliberately turning into a dough are the highlight. Although, “Ain’t She Tweet” being used FOUR/FIVE TIMES does test my patience.
1952 also involves some “follow-ups” of previous classics, such as Water, Water Every Hare rehashing 1946’s Hair-Raising Hare (no Peter Lorre this time, Bugs quenching his thirst underwater is hilarious, though), The Hasty Hare displaying “a first round” with Marvin the Martian landing on Earth (Bugs landing on the moon in Hare-Devil Hare is more like a neutral field) and Terrier Stricken re-elaborating Frisky’s constant jumpscaring Claude the Cat, which isn’t the most exciting Jones narrative formula. While the two Bugs cartoons are pretty good, yet not as much as their predecessors, Wile E. Coyote’s comeback after his debut in 1949 sounds like the most interesting news, as not only he partakes in two Road Runner shorts, Beep, Beep (the maze in the cave looks like a direct reference to the three-leaf clover from Fast and Furry-ous) and Going! Going! Gosh! (the slingshot, the grenade in the manhole, Road Runner being chased by a boulder are all terrific scenes), and also as an arrogant and verbose super genius opposing Bugs in Operation: Rabbit, in which he arranges creative traps that always backfire.
Last but not least, the second chapter of the Hunting Trilogy, Rabbit Seasoning and its pronoun troubles, a sheer classic. It may not be as flawless as Rabbit Fire, but some scenes are timeless, like Daffy always falling for Bugs’ pronoun tricks, “I’m driving”, Elmer’s hat boner to Daffy’s disdain. Although, how come does Elmer state he’s never seen a rabbit before?
Known animators: Ken Harris, Phil Monroe (last work in Beep, Beep), Ben Washam, Lloyd Vaughan, Dick Thompson, Abe Levitow (presumably promoted in Going! Going! Gosh!).

1. Operation: Rabbit (Maltese, 1189) 9/10
2. Feed the Kitty (Maltese, 1197) 8/10
3. Little Beau Pepé (Maltese, 1200) 7/10
4. Water, Water Every Hare (Maltese, 1194) 8/10
5. Beep, Beep (Maltese, 1203) 9/10
6. The Hasty Hare (Maltese, 1206) 8/10
7. Going! Going! Gosh! (Maltese, 1209) 8/10
8. Mouse-Warming (Maltese, 1212) 6/10
9. Rabbit Seasoning (Maltese, 1218) 10/10
10. Terrier Stricken (Maltese, 1215) 7/10

8) 1954

The Duo’s performances in 1954 and 1955 are more or less evenly-matched, though there’s no One Froggy Evening. Instead, we do get an unfortunate and pointless follow-up of 1951’s Drip-Along Daffy, My Little Duckaroo, in which Daffy challenges Nasty Canasta throughout the whole picture, with the latter ignoring him most of the time. I do like this intro theme better than Drip-Along, but we’re certainly dealing with a not so successful short: unlike Drip-Along, Porky just sits outside doing nothing, and Daffy consistently ridiculizing himself becomes repetitive rather easily. All the undisputed charm Drip-Along Daffy owned is completely empty in here. No Barking is the last chapter of the Frisky-Claude series, slightly more satisfying than Terrier Stricken, as I like Frisky’s character acting during his introduction and during the mirror scene. Just like Pepé le Pew making a cameo in Freleng’s Dog Pounded, Tweety does appear in this short, too. Nice friendly swap. From A to Z-Z-Z-Z features Ralph, a very high kid, constantly daydreaming of his exciting adventures while at school, to his classmates laughing at him and the teacher being forced to bear his fervid allucinations. Not a masterpiece, but I do appreciate its creativity. Sheep Ahoy is the first Ralph-Sam short in which Ralph also appears to have a work shift like Sam, but unlike the following entries, they’re no friends outside their job, which makes Double or Mutton an even better sequel.
Next up, Bewitched Bunny introduces Witch Hazel, inclined to eat Hansel and Gretel for supper – I still ignore where the “Hansel? Hansel?” running joke came from – and Bugs regretting acting so selflessly in order to save the plump kids. Again, Broom-Stick Bunny may have the better ending, but this one is clearly the better short overall: nice callback to Snow White, Bugs’ characterization is on-point, Bea Benaderet sounds just as great as June Foray on Hazel and HAIR PINS. Stop! Look! And Hasten! is one of the quintessential Coyote-Road Runner, almost any of its segments is iconic, from Wile E. munching flies and a can, the Burmese tiger trap to that steel pop-up grate, while Claws for Alarm is another brilliant Porky-Sylvester short, after 1949’s Scaredy Cat, in which Porky never believes Sylvester’s frightened warnings, leading to regrettable, yet humorous situations. While I’m uncertain whether this one or Scaredy Cat is the better short, this one displays the funniest ending, coherent to Porky’s scarce tolerance. I personally enjoy how much of a sorehead Jones’ Porky behaves like, but just like his pairings with Daffy, he’s once again overshadowed by the more entertaining character, specifically Sylvester.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Ben Washam, Lloyd Vaughan, Dick Thompson, Abe Levitow (not all of them worked on all of these shorts).

1. Feline Frame-Up (Maltese, 1279) 8/10
2. No Barking (Maltese, 1282) 7/10
3. The Cat’s Bah (Maltese, 1285) 7/10
4. Claws for Alarm (Maltese, 1288) 10/10
5. Bewitched Bunny (Maltese, 1303) 9/10
6. Stop! Look! And Hasten! (Maltese, 1294) 10/10
7. From A to Z-Z-Z-Z (Maltese, 1297) 8/10
8. My Little Duckaroo (Maltese, 1300) 6/10
9. Sheep Ahoy (Maltese, 1322) 8/10
10. Baby Buggy Bunny (Maltese, 1324) 8/10

7) 1955

Unlike Freleng and McKimson, Jones’ 1955 isn’t that stormy since he still had some spare cartoons in store, produced before the 1953 shutdown. Plain and simple, he apparently landed on a soft cushion once again. Of course, shorts like Knight-mare Hare and Two Scent’s Worth (written by Jones) do miss Mike Maltese’s influence considerably, because the former lets itself go by narrative abstractionism, incorrect use of filler bits and rambling story, while the latter literally takes its time during its prologue.
Beanstalk Bunny blends the Hunting Trilogy vibes with the Jack and the Beanstalk tale, resulting in a solid short, albeit not as iconic as those three – the glass cutter punchline is really ingenious, though – Rabbit Rampage is the declared sequel of 1953’s Duck Amuck, starring Bugs as the victim of the artist’s brush, who isn’t Daffy (picking Elmer isn’t airy-fairy, but Daffy deserved it for some revenge sake). Great entry, clearly not as fresh as Duck Amuck. Jumpin’ Jupiter is the weaker entry of the Porky-Sylvester series, but remains a pretty great cartoon with some iconic moments, like Sylvester meeting the alien for the first time – hilarious expressions and hilarious score by Stalling – and aliens casually raising their brows in the end.
Regardless, One Froggy Evening is the true classic of his 1955, one of the best cartoons ever made, which introduces the best one-way character ever created, Michigan J. Frog. What’s so great about him? He doesn’t have a personality, he simply sings and dances in front of his master and nothing else. Well, seems like that “nothing else” is what makes this short excel: the plot ranges from displaying the poor lad’s intention to let everybody know his singing frog – in vain – to him falling into disgrace upon his bloody failures, which results in a rather cohesive and complete narration. It’s not deprived from jokes at all – Franklin’s tone-deaf score while the lad’s desperately trying to make Michigan dance and the free beer sign – but at the same time it manages to express an actually miserable and sympathetic situation, because Michigan’s owner isn’t even a bad guy, he only wants to get rich and famous and overcome his status quo, but unfortunately his own gimmick backfired and wrecked his ambition entirely, as well as his financial resources. That’s Jones at his most ruthless and unfair, just like our lives in general: success is never to be taken for granted and no matter how far you’ll go, if you fall down you’ll get seriously hurt. This is a masterpiece all right: complete, humorous, crude and unnecessarily cruel. “Hello my baby, hello my honey” indeed.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Ben Washam, Lloyd Vaughan (last work in Past Perfumance), Dick Thompson, Abe Levitow, Keith Darling (from Beanstalk Bunny onwards).

1. Beanstalk Bunny (Maltese, 1332) 8/10
2. Ready, Set, Zoom! (Maltese, 1327) 8/10
3. Past Perfumance (Maltese, 1329) 7/10
4. Rabbit Rampage (Maltese, 1341) 9/10
5. Double or Mutton (Maltese, 1343) 9/10
6. Jumpin’ Jupiter (Maltese, 1338) 8/10
7. Knight-mare Hare (Pierce, 1349) 7/10
8. Two Scent’s Worth (Jones, 1377) 7/10
9. Guided Muscle (Maltese, 1344) 8/10
10. One Froggy Evening (Maltese, 1335) 10/10

6) 1950

In spite of releasing an absolute masterpiece like Rabbit of Seville – one of the REAL best cartoons ever made – the Duo’s 1950 isn’t regardless strong enough to deserve a spot in the TOP 5. Either way, I refuse to believe an iconic cartoon like Rabbit of Seville didn’t even receive a nomination, whereas From A to Z-Z-Z-Z, Nelly’s Folly, Beep Prepared, Mouse Wreckers, Now Hear This, friggin’ MICKEY AND THE SEAL, CHIP AN’ DALE and the LAUGHABLE PLUTO’S BLUE NOTE did. Whoa, Academy Award surely cannot recognize quality, can they?
Caveman Inki is the only dud of the Duo’s otherwise compelling 1950, the (luckily) last entry of the Inki and the Minah Bird series, which adds essentially nothing to a very forgettable series, as Inki maintains a stereotype status quo and the Minah bird sucks. Fortunately, the other shorts all display Jones and Maltese’s output in brilliant shape, their chemistry is downright matchless in this era: Homeless Hare features the rock-a-bye-baby scene, in which Bugs doesn’t hesitate to remove those balancing bricks one bit, resulting in pure comedy gold – perfect musical timing, perfect Stalling score, perfect expressions. The Ducksters contains more and more unnecessarily sadistic humor – obviously for the best – with Daffy hosting a quiz show and Porky playing the unfortunate contestant. An absolute gem, with moments like Porky knowing the answers of truly IMPOSSIBLE questions and Daffy coldbloodedly shooting a guy in the audience. The Hypo-Chondri-Cat carries on the cruel vibes of Mouse Wreckers, but way more effectively since Hubie and Bertie get to deceive Claude through their interaction. Claude doesn’t deserve his pain at all, the mice never get their comeuppance, but the gags are just hilarious, made even more powerful by Mel Blanc’s EEKS. Two’s A Crowd represents the debut of Frisky the Puppy as Claude’s new enemy, and while it’s not the most memorable Jones’ creation, this one is the better of the bunch only for its ending. 8 Ball Bunny uncovers the unlikely hijinks of Bugs volunteering to take Playboy home, only to realize he wasn’t born in South Pole a little bit too late. While it may display a few similarities with 1949’s Frigid Hare, I still consider this the superior short: Bugs endures literally anything during their wearying journey, from hungry stowaways to him considering Playboy as a meal, and his discouraging realization in the end, of his fatigue being essentially pointless, thus making his mental breakdown extremely relatable, further emphasized by Stalling’s terrific compositions. Absolutely crude and unfair gem.
Nevertheless, Rabbit of Seville barely needs no description, it’s indeed a flawless short: comedy, orchestration, singing, dynamism, timing, animation… I can hardly find a flaw within. So many iconic bits, like the deceiving crossdressing, the fruit salad, Elmer paying barber Bugs, the weapon climax, the marriage… easy in the top 3, it’s what What’s Opera, Doc? tried and failed to replicate.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Phil Monroe, Ben Washam, Lloyd Vaughan, Dick Thompson, Emery Hawkins (recurring).

1. The Scarlet Pumpernickel (Maltese, 1109) 8/10
2. Homeless Hare (Maltese, 1107) 9/10
3. The Ducksters (Maltese, 1129) 8/10
4. Dog Gone South (Maltese, 1126) 8/10
5. 8 Ball Bunny (Maltese, 1123) 10/10
6. The Hypo-Chondri-Cat (Maltese, 1117) 8/10
7. Caveman Inki (Maltese, 1120) 5/10
8. Rabbit of Seville (Maltese, 1138) 10/10
9. Two’s A Crowd (Maltese, 1135) 7/10

5) 1958

If Freleng reckons 1957 among his most prolific years, preceding a decline in 1958, Jones actually improves his performance in this exact year. Yes, the year of the musicians’ strike leading to the infamous Seely Six – using stock music – is indeed pretty great. Unamazingly, his couple of Seely shorts happen to be the better ones, since both Hook, Line and Stinker and Hip Hip-Hurry! belong to the Coyote-Road Runner series, whose formula strength almost manages to make us not miss Franklin’s score. Once again Jones always lands on his feet, don’t know whether it’s sheer luck or innate skills, at least he doesn’t have to deal with Gopher Broke or A Bird in a Bonnet.
As for the rest, Whoa, Be-Gone! is a great Coyote-Road Runner entry with its moments, like the trampoline, the delusional acrobatics and the tornado seeds – not as extended as the earthquake pills. To Itch His Own marks the final time for Carl Stalling as a composer before his retirement, the idea of a overpowered flea searching for a mutt to “rent” is nice – though, not as hysterical as Clampett’s An Itch in Time, but not as underwhelming as McKimson’s A Horsefly Flea, either – and overall Stalling’s career ends on a decent note. Cat Feud essentially rehashes the same pattern as Feed the Kitty, with Non-Marc Anthony befriending Non-Pussyfoot, by blending it with the plot of Feline Frame-Up, as Non-Claude competes with Non-Pussyfoot for a sausage, but Non-Marc Anthony’s overprotectiveness serves as obstacle against Non-Claude’s plan. Serviceable, but definitely not as creative as Feed the Kitty.
Although, the two classics that steal the show are Hare-Way to the Stars – Marvin’s plan to blow up Earth only because he wants to see Venus better is worth your vision – and Robin Hood Daffy – best short of 1958, as well as a sheer classic Daffy-Porky pairing, in which the Duo takes advantage of Robin Hood Daffy’s growing failures as a hero, with humorously disastrous outcomes. The title screen alone is probably one of the most delusional pieces of artwork in the entire classic era, it’s that iconic.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Ben Washam, Dick Thompson, Abe Levitow, Keith Darling (Hip Hip-Hurry!), Norm Ferguson (To Itch His Own).

1. Robin Hood Daffy (Maltese, 1470) 10/10
2. Hare-Way to the Stars (Maltese, 1464) 10/10
3. Whoa, Be-Gone! (Maltese, 1477) 9/10
4. To Itch His Own (Maltese, 1485) 7/10
5. Hook, Line and Stinker (Maltese, 1487) 8/10
6. Hip Hip-Hurry! (Maltese, 1515) 7/10
7. Cat Feud (Maltese, 1474) 7/10

4) 1948

If the switch between Disneyesque hibernation and functional limited and smeary approach occurred in 1942, 1948 marks the end of the Wackiki duo’s collab – Maltese and Pierce – who had written both Chuck Jones and Friz Freleng’s shorts from 1945 to 1948, so they began working separately, as Pierce joined Freleng’s staff, while Jones simply made his career explode once and for all also thanks to Maltese’s remarkable contribution.
After all, this might actually be the reason why I like to include production numbers, as well, so that you can realize the gap between his pre-explosion and the moment in which a potentially skilled director became a legend. A Feather in His Hare is on paper a minor “Bugs fooling his hunter” short, and it kinda is, though the snow in July and the ending bits are pretty funny. Rabbit Punch is fortunately a more cohesive short, with Bugs challenging the Crusher on a boxe ring – borrowing the ending gag from 1942’s My Favorite Duck, whereas Pierce’s You Were Never Duckier sort of introduces that greedy side of Daffy’s personality, as he enters a poultry contest in order to win 5,000 bucks, but it’s nowhere near as dominant as in Maltese’s shorts, which definitely makes him a hybrid character like in McKimson-Foster’s cartoons. Still, I don’t really care for the story and frankly, both Henery and the chicken hawk are pretty annoying. I just can’t fathom the purpose of Henery’s character outside the Foghorn series.
Now, the collab with Maltese, on the other hand, sounds like a totally different story: Haredevil Hare features Bugs dealing with Marvin the Martian – in his absolute debut – and his innate wish to blow up the Earth. An absolute classic, in spite of Pete Burness’ characters looking inebriated, though his acting on K-9 is hilarious, not to mention Bugs hugging him because there’s a beautiful Earth tonight. Daffy Dilly certainly improves what You Were Never Duckier suggested, with Daffy being interested in J.P. Cubish’s inheritance and trying several times to enter his mansion, much to the butler’s opposition. A much better short with its moments, like champagne Daffy or him interrogating the butler. Nevertheless, Scaredy Cat remains an absolute gem that uses Porky and Sylvester’s pairing – already seen in Clampett’s Kitty Kornered – by establishing a brand-new formula: Sylvester as a scaredy cat and Porky being constantly annoyed by feline yellow streak. This is a perfect short all around, every gag lands: from Sylvester’s random suicide attempt to Porky politely asking him why he’s holding an anvil, from Sylvester’s gray fur to the motivational climax. I’m unsure whether this one or Claws for Alarm is the better short, maybe the former is superior and the latter has a funnier ending, but they’re both sensational. Scaredy Cat would normally fare as an arrival point, but in the Duo’s case, it’s more like a sheer starting point for Jones’ career to reach a legend status.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Phil Monroe, Ben Washam, Lloyd Vaughan, Dick Thompson, Basil Davidovich (A Feather in His Hare), Pete Burness (Haredevil Hare).

1. A Feather in His Hare (Maltese and Pierce, 1027) 7/10
2. What’s Brewin’, Bruin? (Maltese and Pierce, 1035) 7/10
3. Rabbit Punch (Maltese and Pierce, 1043) 9/10
4. Haredevil Hare (Maltese, 1052) 10/10
5. You Were Never Duckier (Pierce, 1046) 6/10
6. Daffy Dilly (Maltese, 1064) 8/10
7. My Bunny Lies over the Sea (Maltese, 1062) 8/10
8. Scaredy Cat (Maltese, 1056) 10/10

3) 1951

What a terribly consistent year. Given that the Duo is practically unstoppable during this era, a few shorts released in 1951 had to follow the tough task to retell some previous stories by also keeping or improving their respective qualities.
Scent-imental Romeo definitely pales in comparison with Oscar-winning For Scent-imental Reasons, since it’s not as crafty or as inventive as the 1949 short, Bunny Hugged rounds up Bugs and the Crusher like in 1948’s Rabbit Punch, yet with less effective results, A Hound for Trouble uses Charlie the Dog for the very last time and alas for him, the Italian stereotype severely gets in the way – we do live in a universe in which Charlie had less screen time than Hippety Hopper, how mortifying. Likewise, The Wearing of the Grin seems like one last occasion for Porky to receive a protagonist role, which he proves he doesn’t quite deserve anymore. The dream sequence looks fascinating, Eugene Poddany’s score sounds marvelous, but Porky – even with his updated personality – can’t hold the scene on his own unlike Bugs and Daffy. Which does nothing but establish his new role as sidekick of a stronger main character.
On the flip side, A Bear for Punishment is a great conclusion of the Three Bears series, as it’s Father’s Day much to Papa Bear’s irritation, leading to downright hilarious situations right from the start, from Junyer hushing the alarm clocks, the breakfast in bed, the shaving segment – with a pretty dark momentary twist – to the ultimate cringe of Mama Bear and Junyer’s lousy show. Watching Papa Bear die inside after Junyer’s cringy poem always makes me laugh. Chow Hound sort of reuses the idea of the overbearing dog from 1945’s Fresh Airedale, by making HIM ONLY the unlikeable character of a mean-spirited and cruel story, in which he gets money out of pet owners because he wants to eat more and more meat, with some gravy, too. A massive improvement over Fresh Airedale, also ending on an edgy note with the cat getting his revenge by making him forcefully ingest the very gravy he’s been asking.
Furthermore, the Duo appears to have a couple of plans for Daffy Duck:
1) Either by establishing him as a flawed anti-hero with Porky as a “comic relief” in Drip-Along Daffy, a classic short in which Daffy has to face Nasty Canasta, with questionable results. There’s so many iconic scenes, like Daffy mouthwatering while the bartender is preparing his deadly drink, “Mary had a little lamb” and the whole ending climax.
2) Or by taking his antagonistic role (also shown in My Favorite Duck, To Duck or Not to Duck, A Pest in the House and The Ducksters, so it wasn’t a sudden process) up to eleven, alongside Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd, in order to originate a Hunting Trilogy with three shorts released in consecutive years. Rabbit Fire is essentially one of those quintessential animated media everybody must know the existence of: someone may prefer Rabbit Seasoning and its pronoun troubles, but I actually consider the first chapter the most classic, the definitive perfect short, whose main theme is Duck Season/ Wabbit Season leading to timeless hijinks like Daffy’s bill going to places, the reverse disguise, Bugs and Daffy reading recipe books out loud, Elmer’s elephant gun and the hilarious twist in the end. I mean, what else am I to describe? This is one of those must-watch.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Phil Monroe, Ben Washam, Lloyd Vaughan, Dick Thompson, John Carey (A Hound for Trouble).

1. Bunny Hugged (Maltese, 1154) 8/10
2. Scent-imental Romeo (Maltese, 1157) 7/10
3. A Hound for Trouble (Maltese, 1160) 7/10
4. Rabbit Fire (Maltese, 1166) 10/10
5. Chow Hound (Maltese, 1132) 8/10
6. The Wearing of the Grin (Maltese, 1163) 7/10
7. Cheese Chasers (Maltese, 1169) 8/10
8. A Bear for Punishment (Maltese, 1173) 9/10
9. Drip-Along Daffy (Maltese, 1192) 10/10

2) 1949

An Oscar-worthy year for the Duo that made Jones’ career skyrocket in 1948, and managed to illustrate the fruit of his improvement even further throughtout this very year.
Then again, like I always say, Academy Award can’t buy quality, because the awarded shorts aren’t even among the best work ever generated by the Duo, which tells a lot about the considerably high quality of their performance. Specifically, Mouse Wreckers received a nomination, whereas For Scent-imental Reasons won an Oscar: the former involves Hubie and Bertie tormenting an asleep Claude both physically and psychologically – never getting away with it, unlike in 1965’s The Year of the Mouse – and quite frankly, it’s not really among my favorite of the Hubie and Bertie series (bested by Roughly Squeaking, The Hypo-Chondri-Cat and Cheese Chasers), as it starts off pretty strong (xylophone matching Bertie’s nodding is hilarious) but there’s not much conflict here, as well as an abrupt ending. The latter is definitely the best Pepé le Pew short, undoubtedly the most famous of the bunch – unsure whether it deserves a prize, then again Tweetie Pie got itself an Oscar for some reason – which ultimately establishes the formula of Pepé being aroused by Penelope, mistaken for a skunk due to the white stripe accidentally stained on her tail. It’s got its moments such as the intro – with Mel Blanc’s horribly hilarious spoken French – the locked glass cabinet dialogue which needs no spoken lines to compel and the ending.
As for Jones’ other series, the Porky and Charlie trilogy begun in Little Orphan Airedale continues in Awful Orphan, whose setup strongly recalls the first chapter, but Porky happens to be even meaner towards Charlie in more than an occasion, like his lacking hesitation to kick “baby Charlie” outside, Charlie being threatened with a knife and the positively hysterical final twist with Porky actually forcing Charlie to stay. Elements that suffice to make this short more humorous than the first. Often an Orphan ends the trilogy by changing a few details, like Porky living in a farm or Charlie already owning a master during the intro, who cruelly abandons him to his fate. Following the trilogy tradition, not only Porky is highly reluctant to keep Charlie as a pet, but also abuses him more than once. Pet abuse isn’t normally funny, but the Duo makes miracles. Although, Charlie allucinating over the two towers falling… sure is weird.
Next up, what’s so special about a wild predator spending his lifetime chasing his supersonic prey? What does actually make the Coyote-Road Runner formula so timeless? The animation, the comedic timing, the unpredictable length of each segment, the music and Wile E’s persistence and determination that drive him to pursue the Road Runner and also to fail every single time. Perhaps this series wants to give us the teaching of never trying to challenge nature. As such, Fast and Furry-ous is a brilliant series opener, with great stuff like the disappointing lid, “Road Runner can’t read”, the delusional boulder plan, the likewise delusional Superman costume or the three-leaf clover segment… this cartoon needs no trial stage, as it gets to the point immediately.
Last but not least, Bugs Bunny’s status: it’s only my assumption, but if he’s among the top tier cartoon characters ever created is especially thanks to the Duo constantly promoting him to his fullest. They know his qualities and flaws inside out and like taking advantage of his playfully sadistic side, ready to outsmart his enemies, no matter how bigger they are than him: be it colonel Shuffle in Mississippi Hare, the Nottingham Sheriff in person in Rabbit Hood or an opera singer Giovanni Jones in Long-Haired Hare, the result remains equally satisfying. It seems like Bugs is the perfect character that captivates Jones’ humor best, which definitely affects his performance in a positive key. Let’s stop there and analyze this latter short: not only it’s the Duo’s first ever breakthrough – more like a Bugsthrough – but also the beginning of their Golden Era, in which Bugs is the protagonist of at least ONE masterpiece per year, from 1949 to 1953 (Long-Haired Hare, Rabbit of Seville, Rabbit Fire, Rabbit Seasoning, Bully for Bugs…), thus confirming his status of WB mascot. Probably unnecessary since he’s been the only one having his own customized title screen since 1941’s The Heckling Hare (so they’ve always been aware of his potential), but he does nothing but establish his role as the king among animated characters. The short itself is a quintessential triumph of Bugs’ typical revenge formula fulfilled at its maximum: the alum gag is great, the explosive pen is great and the whole Leopold segment should teach every cartoonist how to write their stories properly. Absolutely flawless entry that illustrates the discrepancy between the wild hare and the opera singer: Bugs plays banjo, harp and tuba – pop music – and Giovanni Jones sings opera – classical music – and also awards a memorable year for both Jones and Maltese, regardless of the Oscar prize.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Phil Monroe, Ben Washam, Lloyd Vaughan, Dick Thompson.

1. Awful Orphan (Maltese, 1067) 9/10
2. Mississippi Hare (Maltese, 1071) 8/10
3. Mouse Wreckers (Maltese, 1076) 7/10
4. The Bee-Deviled Bruin (Maltese, 1084) 8/10
5. Long-Haired Hare (Maltese, 1080) 10/10
6. Often an Orphan (Maltese, 1096) 8/10
7. Fast and Furry-ous (Maltese, 1091) 10/10
8. Frigid Hare (Maltese, 1089) 8/10
9. For Scent-imental Reasons (Maltese, 1104) 9/10
10. Bear Feat (Maltese, 1113) 8/10
11. Rabbit Hood (Maltese, 1102) 9/10

1) 1953

A mix of certainties and experiments is what makes the Duo’s 1953 the highest peak of their career overall. Sure, the Lumber Jack-Rabbit experiment sort of caused some damage to Selzer’s studios, as its 3D WB shield persuaded them to keep on using 3D technique for the following shorts, as well, causing its shutdown in the exact same year, which wasn’t worth the hassle in hindsight, as it’s not a particularly memorable short. Not bad, but underwhelming compared to other Bugs shorts. Yet again, some one-way experiments involve rather simple stories, which only the best cartoon Duo – alongside Hanna & Barbera – could make them function: a squirrel trying everything to break a coconut is practically the plot of Much Ado About Nutting which is like a potentially tasteless dish that becomes tasty once it’s seasoned. In this case, its seasoning is exaggerating jokes and expressions, the speciality of Jones’ house, taken up to twelve in Punch Trunk, featuring an entire population getting frightened by one, tiny elephant. So, again, another short based upon a single running gag – commotion caused by a minuscule pachiderm – which would usually be repetitive, but the fact the same gag receives numerous variations (straight-jacket, woman hiding inside her own washing machine, intoxicated guy telling him he’s late – callback to Freleng’s Calling Dr. Porky – or the absurd psychologist skit), also showcasing people’s hyperbolic reactions manages to make this short nonsensically hilarious. There’s no way an entire town would be left horrified by a small elephant, it doesn’t and won’t ever make sense, but that’s the very reason why this cartoon is a gem. The pachiderm’s loud trumpeting sounds funny, too. Don’t Give Up the Sheep experiments a new series, about a sheepdog constantly stopping Wile E. Coyote’s red-nosed lookalike from stealing his sheep. Notice how the two aren’t pals at all – unlike in the following shorts – and how Ralph’s design looks more feral than Wile E’s – again, Ralph would become a literal red-nosed Wile E. in the following shorts.
However, the Duo’s colossal experiment remains their readaptation of Jack King’s A Cartoonist’s Nightmare – released in 1935 – by replacing Beans with Daffy and filling the whole thing with jokes. I mean, there must be a reason behind the global success of Duck Amuck, widely considered the best cartoon ever made: the interaction between Daffy and the treacherous artist who sabotages his own picture and constantly alters his shape much to his frustration, the consistent fourth wall break, the explosive and haughty humor, Daffy acting like a delusional primadonna… everything excels here, it’s the umpteenth masterpiece generated by Chuck Jones and Mike Maltese. Period.
As for their certainties, Kiss Me Cat is the sequel of 1952’s Feed the Kitty and – unpopular take – the story is heftier and more elaborate than the first chapter, as Marc Anthony attempts to teach Pussyfoot how to catch mice, to no avail. It owns its funny bits like Pussyfoot’s submissiveness and Marc Anthony’s laughable ballet. Wild Over You features a welcome variation of the classic Pepé formula, by having him fall from a vicious wild cat – not Penelope – who attacks him every single time he tries to flirt with her. As for Bugs Bunny, the history behind Bully for Bugs makes me enjoy this short even more than I should, since Jones, Maltese and his staff stealthily finished it because Eddie Selzer believed bullfighting would never be funny. Such a courageous and brazen move must certainly be praised – though Selzer is right, there isn’t many good bullfighting shorts, beside this one and Senor Droopy – since it’s another Bugs Bunny classic, developed around his trademark revenge formula by hurting and humiliating the bull throughout the picture. Moreover, Carl Stalling happens to compose one of his best scores of his whole career, as he, too, is in peak condition like the Duo, and demonstrates it during the Cucaracha bit, the hilarious sombrero bitch slap and the bull’s final defeat in what’s one of the strongest climaxes in western animation. Another certainty is the Hunting Trilogy that gave us unforgettable classics – Rabbit Fire and Rabbit Seasoning – and Duck! Rabbit, Duck! may definitely not compel as much as the other two, but remains a great, yet slightly more tired effort. Its theme – this time – is Elmer falling for Bugs raising signs of different animals’ seasons being open, and Daffy’s helpless gullibility always gets himself shot. Also notice a continuity pattern – really uncommon for Looney Tunes – standing on seasons, since Rabbit Fire was set in Spring/Summer, Rabbit Seasoning in Fall, whereas this one is set in Winter time. Speaking of Daffy, considering how great his anti-hero formula proved to be in Drip-Along Daffy, the Duo decides to make a parody of the comic book Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, by combining the forementioned formula (Daffy the protagonist and Porky the sidekick) + Marvin the Martian as the villain to an absolute treat, Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century. I mean… do I even have to point out why it’s a masterpiece? Characterization is perfect, Dodgers’ attention-seeking behavior only brings him humiliation and harm, Marvin is a likeable bad guy, the disintegration segment, the discrepancy between their ultimatums – one is dang literal and the other one is dangerous – and the whole ending segment, made even more hilarious by Space Cadet’s deadpan snarker comment on Dodgers claiming the desolating remainder of planet X. No question about it, Chuck Jones’ most exciting year is 1953, whose success could also be made possible thanks to Mike Maltese, layout artist Maurice Noble and his terrific unit, as well as letting his potential as a director burst during this Golden Era, in which he was unstoppable and shared with Maltese a gigantic pairing that turned him into legend.
Known animators: Ken Harris, Ben Washam, Lloyd Vaughan, Dick Thompson, Abe Levitow.

1. Don’t Give Up the Sheep (Maltese, 1221) 9/10
2. Forward March Hare (Maltese, 1243) 7/10
3. Kiss Me Cat (Maltese, 1237) 9/10
4. Duck Amuck (Maltese, 1240) 10/10
5. Much Ado About Nutting (Maltese, 1246) 8/10
6. Wild Over You (Maltese, 1249) 8/10
7. Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century (Maltese, 1264) 10/10
8. Bully for Bugs (Maltese, 1267) 10/10
9. Zipping Along (Maltese, 1270) 8/10
10. Lumber Jack-Rabbit (Maltese, 1291) 7/10
11. Duck! Rabbit, Duck! (Maltese, 1276) 9/10
12. Punch Trunk (Maltese, 1273) 9/10