Tex Avery Screwball Classics: Volume 2 Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

Tex Avery Screwball Classics: Volume 2 Blu-ray Movie Review

Second verse, not as good as the first.

One of the most talented contributors to American animation's Golden Age, Frederick "Tex" Avery directed some of MGM and Warner Bros.' best-loved shorts and co/created many iconic characters including Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd Egghead, and Droopy while mutually influencing contemporaries like Tom and Jerry. Avery's work was known for its raucous energy and demolition of "the fourth wall", resulting in unpredictable and addictive six-minute powder kegs often aimed squarely at adult audiences. Earlier this year, Warner Archive Collection paid tribute to the late legend with Tex Avery Screwball Classics: Volume 1, the very first time Avery got a full HD release all to himself. This second volume follows suit with another 21 uncut shorts (bringing the running total to an even 40), again largely culled from the best surviving source elements... with a few glaring exceptions, but more on that later.

Please note that, while these shorts are largely presented in chronological order within four respective categories, Warner Archive has continued the "pick and choose" approach unlike their ongoing Popeye collections.

• "Little Rural Riding Hood" - This take on The Country Mouse and the City Mouse follows the hillbilly cousin of The Wolf as he travels to the big city in hopes of meeting that foxy dame, Red Hot Riding Hood. Slobbering all over himself at the mere sight of voluptuous Red, he embarrasses his much more polite and reserved relative in the audience at her bawdy, burlesque show. Eventually, though, the tables are turned yet again.

• "The Cuckoo Clock" - In the dark halls of an otherwise empty mansion, a cat does battle with the silly inhabitant of a cuckoo clock. It's not exactly the strongest short on here but features memorable (and uncredited) narration by Daws Butler, who'd later be known as the long-running voice of both Yogi Bear and Elroy Jetson.

• "Magical Maestro" - A live performance by "The Great Poochini" is thwarted by a mischievous magician in this memorable -- and thankfully uncut! -- 1952 short. Fun fact: this is the only Tex Avery cartoon to be selected for preservation in the Library of Congress' National Film Registry. Watch out for the stray hair, too.

• "One Cab's Family" - Another personal favorite, this four-wheeled family adventure quickly evolves from a marathon of flimsy visual puns into the emotionally gripping saga of a rebellious son's sacrifice to save his loving dad. It's like Field of Dreams, except...wait, it's nothing like Field of Dreams. Still great, though.

• "The Cat That Hated People" - A black cat complains about the world's cruelty in this depressing but kinda enjoyable short. He's also voiced by Paul Frees, who did voice work for many of the Rankin-Bass Christmas specials including Frosty the Snowman (as Santa) and Santa Claus is Comin' to Town (as not Santa).

• "Doggone Tired" - While attempting to rest up for an early morning rabbit hunt, a faithful dog is kept awake by his prey. This is a decently amusing short, and one of only two Avery-directed MGM toons that have since fallen into the public domain (the other being 1945's "Jerky Turkey").

• "The Flea Circus" - I'm not the biggest fan of Avery shorts driven by non-stop visual puns, but this lively flea circus performance has a few sweet moments and voice work by Bill Thompson, who also voices Droopy.

• "Field and Scream" - A fitfully entertaining collection of brief animated vignettes following hunters and fisherman doing what they love best. This 1955 short was released when Avery left MGM for a second stint at Walter Lantz Productions (formerly known as Universal Studio Cartoons, where he worked as an inker and animator).

• "The First Bad Man" - Another late-period short from Avery's time at MGM, this brief odyssey concerns the first villain in human history, "Dinosaur Dan", and his dastardly exploits in prehistoric Texas. It's fittingly narrated by Maurice "Tex" Ritter, the popular country music singer and father of John.

• "Out Foxed" - Droopy does battle with a snooty English fox with plenty of steaks at stake. Daws Butler again provides voice work here, as well as William Hanna and, of course, Bill Thompson as Droopy.

• "Droopy's Double Trouble" - Another solid Droopy short, this one features a guest appearance by his twin brother Drippy ("He's strong!") as they're both tasked with protecting a rich man's luxurious house from strangers... including Droopy's pal Spike, who for whatever reason is now homeless with an Irish accent.

• "Three Little Pups" - A fun but pretty straightforward take on "The Three Little Pigs" featuring Droopy, his two brothers, and the affable Big Bad Dog Catcher (Daws Butler), who's technically The Wolf from "Little Rural Riding Hood" and similar shorts but bears almost no resemblance. [*Whistles "The Year of Jubilo" quietly*]

• "Dragalong Droopy" - A personal favorite, this enjoyable 1954 short features an epic battle between shepherd Droopy's grazing flock and the Wolf Rancher, who aims to protect his grass -- and literally anything else that can be eaten -- from the donkey-riding dog's hungry invaders.

• "Homesteader Droopy" - Another pioneering adventure from the same year, this short offers a series of Road Runner-like visual gags in which "Dishonest Dan the Cattle Man" -- who always follows the law of the west -- vainly attempts to destroy the modest cabin of Droopy and his family.

• "Dixieland Droopy" - Probably the least -- or, more fittingly, the "blackest sheep" -- of the included Droopy shorts, this 1954 outing depicts the pup (as "John Pettibone") annoying anyone and everyone with his Dixieland record... until it breaks and he enlists the help of a flea jazz combo fronted by Pee Wee Runt.

• "Counterfeit Cat" - Spike the Bulldog guards a family's beloved canary from a stray cat (possibly Bad Luck Blackie), who pretends to be a neighborhood dog by playing dress-up.

• "Ventriloquist Cat" - Another simple but entertaining dog-versus-cat outing featuring the same dynamic duo, this lightweight 1950 short features plenty of fun voice-throwing gags and a little more dress-up that isn't far removed from the great Tom and Jerry short, "Flirty Birdy".

These four shorts, produced between 1949 and 1954, feature short vignettes that predict future technology with Avery's trademark visual gags and slapstick, as well as era-specific narration by Frank Graham (The Three Caballeros) and Paul Frees. But geez, somebody has some serious mother-in-law issues.

• "House of Tomorrow"

• "Car of Tomorrow"

• "TV of Tomorrow"

• "Farm of Tomorrow"

Collectively, Tex Avery Screwball Classics: Volume 2 offers a decent to very good batch of shorts that nonetheless isn't quite as solid as those included on the first volume. Disappointingly, Warner Archive's Blu-ray presentation also takes a step backwards... but only from a visual perspective, as otherwise this is a pretty packed little disc that even includes a terrific vintage documentary concerning the late animation legend. Let's dig in, shall we?

Tex Avery Screwball Classics: Volume 2 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Although reports of this collection being a total disaster are, in my opinion, a little exaggerated, it's pretty clear that Tex Avery Screwball Classics: Volume 2 represents a visual step down from the first set. This is almost entirely due to what looks like mild to more intrusive amounts of digital noise reduction applied to the majority of these shorts, which turns what should have been a refined filmic presentation into something a little more waxy and smooth. As evidenced by the 39 (mostly chronological) screenshots in this review -- which include 1-2 captures for each short -- the level of grain varies between "very good" to "almost completely absent", with most falling somewhere in the middle. Tellingly, the grain doesn't come and go during individual shorts; it's likely less of a source material issue than something that was obviously applied after the elements were scanned and, though some folks aren't bothered by DNR, those who appreciate film grain will be pretty bothered by it. Additionally, some of the more offending shorts are exacerbated by mild sharpening and contrast boosting, giving them an appearance closer to digital video than film).

Another odd defect here is that at least three shorts -- "Magical Maestro", "One Cab's Family", and "Doggone Tired" -- have digitally redone studio logos at the beginning, rather than the original ones featured elsewhere on this collection. A curious speedbump and probably not as egregious as the noise reduction, but still worth mentioning.

It's a shame, too, because otherwise this collection looks to be more or less on par with the first volume: most of these shorts are exceedingly clean with great color saturation, and thankfully uncut from start to finish. And of course, let's also remember that the majority of shorts here actually do look quite good from a grain perspective: even if they don't sparkle like Warner Archive's typically terrific treatment of nitrate-era source elements, they're at least somewhat filmic and still represent their best home video presentations to date. But whatever the reason for this moderate downshift in quality (rumors suggest personnel changes behind the scenes as well as less-than-desirable remasters hastily created for HBO Max, but I've leave those conversations in the forum), this rare visual misfire from the otherwise almost-bulletproof Warner Archive Collection will hopefully be, going forward, an exception rather than a rule.

Tex Avery Screwball Classics: Volume 2 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Just like the first volume, these DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio tracks have been culled from different source materials but sound clean and crisp overall. (Going further, the optical audio tracks for some were chosen from multiple surviving options on a case-by-case basis.) Tex Avery shorts are no stranger to volume variances -- during which time dialogue and music cues push and pull against one other violently -- but both elements are completely intelligible throughout. Even at its highest levels, the one-channel audio rarely sounds clipped or strained within the boundaries of normal dynamic range. No signs of hiss, distortion, or audio sync discrepancies were heard along the way, although a very brief audio gag during "TV of Tomorrow" is somewhat spoiled by less-than-optimal mixing.

Optional English (SDH) subtitles are included during all 21 shorts and are formatted perfectly with no sync issues.

Tex Avery Screwball Classics: Volume 2 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This one-disc release arrives in a standard keepcase with screwy cover artwork and no inserts, but an episode list is printed on the back. This time around, we also get a bonus documentary, which is a really nice touch.

• Tex Avery: King of Cartoons (51:52) - This 1988 Turner Broadcasting Systems TV documentary provides a candid and informative overview of the famed animator's life and lengthy career, from his school days and early time at Walter Lantz Productions through his stints with Leon Schlesinger Productions (later known as Warner Bros. Cartoons), MGM, Walter Lantz again, Hanna-Barbera, and a few interesting detours along the way. We also get a handful of first-hand interviews with Avery's friends and colleagues including Chuck Jones, animators Mike Lah, Ed Love, and Mark Kausler, writer Heck Allen, legendary voice actor June Foray, and author Joe Adamson (who wrote an earlier book of the same name). Produced and directed by John Needham, it's a worthwhile extra that I'm glad found a home here -- and no matter your thoughts on this Blu-ray's video quality, at least these shorts look leaps and bounds better than those seen during this special. Geez, we're spoiled.

Tex Avery Screwball Classics: Volume 2 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Unlike the excellent first volume, this second round of Tex Avery Screwball Classics is something of a mixed bag -- and not strictly due to its marginally less consistent batch of classic shorts. Many of these toons -- either in part or whole -- have been subjected to mild or larger amounts of noise reduction, which is almost never the case with Warner Archive releases. This may or may not be a deal-breaker, depending on your level of tolerance. It's a shame, too, because otherwise this is a stacked set: not only do we get two more shorts, but also a great vintage bonus documentary that brings the total content to over three and a half hours of material. Recommended, but with reservations.