Directing Animator
Posted:
Jul 3, 2007, 2:31 PM
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Thoughts on "Tom and Jerry Tales"
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I'm not sure if this should go here in the MGM forum, because it involves characters that originated at MGM, or in the Television Discussions, because this pertains to a television show. I'll let you decide, Bruce...
Anyway, I finally was able to catch an episode of "Tom and Jerry Tales" on the KidsWB last Saturday. I have to admit I had mixed feelings. On the one hand I was glad that the producers (including the late Joe Barbera) decided to try and emulate the classic theatrical shorts in terms of characterization and storylines... but on the other hand I sensed that something was nevertheless missing, although I haven't yet been able to put my finger on it exactly.
I do wish they had used the original sound effects (like a shotgun blast to accompany someone getting bashed in the head, or a bullet ricquocheting whenever someone zips out of frame), however. The music also sounds a little chintzy, but maybe I'm being too picky here.
The episode I saw last Saturday seemed to have a nautical theme throughout, with each of the 3 individual cartoons involving either deep-sea fishing, a day at the beach, or treasure-hunting for pirate-booty. I'm glad they gave Spike the bulldog the familiar Jimmy Durante voice from the old MGM shorts. It was also interesting to see the amourous octopus character from the animated sequence in the MGM musical, Dangerous When Wet, resurrected for the deep-sea fishing story; although I noted more than a few borrowings from Pepe LePew ("...I am zee locksmith of love...") in the characterization. I note that Sander Schwartz is an executive producer, so maybe that was his way of incorporating the Looney Tunes characters into this series.
Sometimes Jerry's character design seems to alternate in some scenes between the Hanna-Barbera version and the one that appeared in the crappy Gene Dietch shorts in the early 60's; but maybe I'm just seeing things. Tom has the grey patch in between his eyes that was part of his design up until the mid 1950's, when he became more streamlined. The reason his design was streamlined back then ws to reduce what is known in animation as "pencil milage" (this was the reason that Mickey Mouse was animated without a tail during WWII). So it's amazing that the patch was included in the TV series, given the fact that the budget must be considerably lower than that at MGM during the 40's...
I will have to watch a few more episodes before I can come to any considered opinion of this series. Overall, I feel that it comes close to recapturing the look and spirit of the originals; but I also think that what is currently lacking is heart. From what I've seen so far the sentiment seems a little contrived. What also seems to be missing is some of the subtle nuances that made the original series so enjoyable. The characters sometimes move too fast here, with little of the "business" that helped define their personalities. I'm thinking, of course, of the shorts from the late 1940's (like The Little Orphan or Cat Fishin') when the characters were at their peak. It's a shame that Bill Hanna had passed on before this new series got off the ground; I think it lends credence to the generally-held opinion that both he and Barbera were jointly responsible for the success of Tom and Jerry. Any contribution that Hanna made to this new series would undoubtedly have breathed even more life into the characters.
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"Sit, Ubu, sit... good dog!" ("Arf"!)
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Supervising Animator / Contributor
Posted:
Jul 3, 2007, 6:13 PM
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I, too, wish they used the classic sound effects. But that was a problem with Sander Schwartz; he didn't care about the original sound effects. That's a reason why "What's New Scooby-Doo" was not as good as the old series.
Then again, the Gene Deitch "Tom and Jerry" cartoons NEVER used the original MGM sound effects. But the Gene Deitch SFX would probably work better with "What's New, Scooby-Doo." 
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People think I am crazy just because I didn't like "Ratatouille." Am I REALLY crazy, or do I see things differently?
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Animator / Contributor
Posted:
Jul 4, 2007, 3:57 AM
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That was the most dead-on analysis I've read in a long time.
The rights and title to Tom and Jerry passed to Ted Turner when he purchased the MGM and UA libraries. But Turner Entertainment alone couldn't produce a viable reprise of the Tom and Jerry cartoons. After the merger with Time Warner, however, all the pieces were in place: copyrights, title, production, distribution, financing. The dream of recreating the magic of Tom and Jerry was given to Cartoon Network Studios, the former "Termite Terrace."
Credit where it's due: they gave it a really good try. Original patron Joe Barbera (may he always hear our laughter) composed some of the storylines and gags. Most of the staff was familiar with the characters of Tom, Jerry and Spike. As executive producer, Sander Schwartz would have been the one to put forward the idea, "Let's do another Tom and Jerry series." It's doubtful that he would have done any of the writing or scene planning himself.
Now, the late Joe Barbera could draw characters and plan layouts and compose gags as well as anyone. But it was the late Will Hanna (may he always be among friends) who understood the gags, and could plan the scenes frame by frame for optimum effect. Need proof? Recall one scene from Quiet, Please, the 1945 Academy Award winner for best animated short.
Tom has chased Jerry onto a countertop. There, Jerry begins writing hastily on blank paper, then hands the finished piece to Tom. It is shown to be Jerry's Last Will and Testament, bequeathing unto Tom Cat his sole earthly possession: one custard pie. At "custard pie," we viewers know exactly what will happen. This punchline has been "telegraphed," so it shouldn't be very funny when it comes. But when Will Hanna composed the scene, Tom looks up from reading Jerry's will with a look of expectant delight, "A custard pie?" He turns to Jerry, agog with anticipation. "Let me have it!"
Tom's whole head wobbles with the impact. There's an explosion of custard and cream and goo. And for a moment, the cat stands there, a horrific mess, silently suffering his penalty. We can almost hear his thoughts: "Any moron would have seen that coming, and I ... ask ... for ... it."
It's one thing to write great jokes and gags; it's quite another to deliver them. Hanna and Barbera made one of the greatest partnerships animation has ever known. We are so very fortunate their works are preserved and available.
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Directing Animator
Posted:
Jul 6, 2007, 7:36 AM
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I remember reading a thread in the Forum awhile back about a new theatrical Tom and Jerry cartoon that was directed and/or produced by Spike Brandt, along with Joe Barbera. A number of Forum members had been rather excited about the short (which had a ninja-warrior subject), saying that it really captured the look and feel of the original MGM shorts. Was this a pilot for the new TV series on Kids WB, or was it a completely different and isolated project? I don't recall seeing Spike Brandt's name among the production credits for the TV series (but then, they were moving too fast to be read with any degree of clarity).
One other thing I forgot to mention in my last post was that I thought that the backgrounds looked a little too "busy" and detailed for the characters to read properly against them. They looked wonderful, though... and it looks like some of the effects like shadows were done by CGI (there is one shot in the treasure-hunting cartoon in which Tom becomes airborne and his shadow moves across Jerry's face as he looks upward to watch).
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"Sit, Ubu, sit... good dog!" ("Arf"!)
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Directing Animator
Posted:
Jul 28, 2007, 6:52 PM
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Well, I caught another episode this morning on the Kids WB... and this time each of the cartoon shorts had an amusement park and/or circus theme.
In the first cartoon Tom and Jerry are enjoying an evening on the boardwalk of an amusement park when their reverie is spoiled by the appearance of a comely (and somewhat manipulative) female cat. Jerry does everything he can to dissolve the tryst, including throwing a carnivorous fish into the mix. The female cat ultimately dumps Tom who goes back to hanging with Jerry.
In the second cartoon Tom is wandering the grounds of a visiting circus in search of food. His attempt to swipe a hot dog from Jerry is foiled by a well-placed stick of dynamite (surprising considering how the PC watchdogs have watered-down most TV animation content). A chase through the hall of mirrors ensues. T&J are frightened to the point at which they each turn white as a sheet, whereupon they are hired by the circus management as "albino freaks" for the sideshow.
The third may have taken place at an amusement park, but I don't remember; Tom was featured as a magician in that one and Jerry kept trying to upstage him, ala Tom and Jerry at the Hollywood Bowl.
Overall the gags in this particular episode were ok, and I have to say that the female cats depicted in the first two shorts were very attractive-looking indeed (how on earth can I say that without sounding weird)! My biggest problem, however, is with the music score; which sounds almost identical in each short and has none of the inventiveness of Scott Bradley's scores from the classic theatrical shorts (which made them all the more enjoyable). True, this TV series is operating on a budget, and the costs of contracting a 50-piece orchestra to lay down music tracks would be prohibitive; but still I wish that whoever is composing the music for this series would take a cue from legendary greats like Bradley and Carl Stalling. Right now the music sounds generic and just plain dull.
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"Sit, Ubu, sit... good dog!" ("Arf"!)
(This post was edited by zavkram on Jul 28, 2007, 6:53 PM)
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Inbetweener
Posted:
Aug 6, 2007, 3:17 PM
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I agree on the music front- it just doesn't have the magic of any previous incarnation of the theatrical shorts- heck, even Konichek's musical scores became pretty good by the end of the Deitch era. And I have a soft spot for a few of the Dean Elliott pieces in the later Jones shorts.
The trouble is that it looks too...slick, manufactured, like a generic boyband. There's no accidental 'off-model' character designs, there's nothing particularly original to the humour or soundtrack, there's no...soul.
And Jerry just sounds like a girl.
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"Stop steaming up my cup!"
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Supervising Animator
Posted:
Sep 29, 2007, 5:40 PM
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I finally saw some this morning-and I agree. It definately lacks heart. What's more-it's actually boring.
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Bugs Bunny cartoons are not supposed to feature a lisping Viking rabbit hunter enthusiastically professing his operatic love for a bunny in drag.
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Apprentice
Posted:
Oct 2, 2007, 4:11 PM
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I've seen parts of some episodes and here's what I think: the sound effects aren't that great. No matter how many times I heard that shot gun going off in the originals when someone smacked into something it was always funny...these s/e don't have the same power. The art,as also mentioned, doesn't show the character the hb shorts did. And I have to agree with oneuglybunny with the comic timing, I think if you gave hb and the 'tales people the same basic outline to make the same cartoon the hb version would be funny and the new crew's one wouldn't be nearly as good. Also, one of the 'tales shorts I saw had a lot of dialogue between two astronauts and T&J running around almost as secondary characters. It was almost as if the people working on it weren't able to make a full 7 min. short about T&J and keep it interesting without dialogue. The originals were always about T&J not human characters...
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Directing Animator
Posted:
Oct 3, 2007, 9:45 AM
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I've noticed that Tom and Jerry Tales is out now on DVD; which may explain why Warner Home Video's Family Division is doing a huge song-and-dance with the Tom and Jerry Spotlight Collection... They're probably afraid that if any customers take exception to the portrayals of African-Americans in Casanova Cat, Mouse Cleaning, His Mouse Friday, A Mouse In the House, Saturday Evening Puss, etc., and decide to return the DVD sets; then the sales of the Tom and Jerry Tales DVD sets might see decline.
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"Sit, Ubu, sit... good dog!" ("Arf"!)
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Key Animator
Posted:
Jan 22, 2008, 9:37 PM
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It's okay. Better than the 1975 and 1980 versions, but not as good as the H-B and Chuck Jones versions.
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Thank God for kids who love obscure things-Lee Hazelwood (1929-2007)
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