Tex Avery Screwball: Vol 3 (blu-ray)

A great collection of cartoons that are comedic and a bit risqué for all the adult children in us .

This is a great collection of classic Tex Avery cartoons.

After 2 amazing volumes of Tex Avery’s MGM cartoons, Volume 3 didn’t fail to amaze me. Animation purists should be happier with this volume as the film grain is left intact rather than being barely visible. I don’t play shorts frame by frame, so I can’t say anything about DVNR, which was a big complaint in Volume 2 which I didn’t mind as I don’t play cartoons frame by frame. I will say, though, that some of the restorations look much darker than previous prints, with Slap Happy Lion being the biggest example. Also, the restorations for Blitz Wolf and Little Johnny Jet look different than their restorations for the Academy Awards collection. Personally, I thought the Academy Awards restorations look better color wise, but that’s just my opinion. The cartoons are the best they’ve looked in decades. Happy Go Nutty looks amazing as well as Jerky Turkey. Another highlight is The Crackpot Quail with the original soundtrack, and yes it’s restored and looks amazing. The original soundtrack with the razzing noise is much funnier than the whistle version, and fits with the dialogue more. I highly recommend this volume and let’s hope a Volume 4 comes out with the remaining 5 shorts, including Uncle Tom’s Cabana and Half Pint Pygmy.

Brought back so many great memories watching as a kid. Still just as funny now.

very funny cartoons

The Tex Avery Screwball Classics Collection has been increased with the addition of more shorts from the MGM Period of Frederick Bean Avery, known by his friends as "Tex." Last time, Volume 2 came with some interesting shorts like "Little Rural Riding Hood," "The Cuckoo Clock," "Magical Maestro," and the Cartoons of Tomorrow. This time around, we are treated to around 20 more Tex Avery Cartoons including:- Blitz Wolf- The Early Bird Dood It- One Ham's Family- Happy-Go-Nutty, starring Screwy Squirrel (one that played ALL DAY on April Fool's Day, many years ago, might I add!)- Jerky Turkey- The Shooting of Dan McGoo- Swing Shift Cinderella- Wild and Woolfy- Northwest Hounded Police- Slap Happy Lion (with Tom & Jerry ending cards)- King-Size Canary- What Price Fleadom- Little 'Tinker- Señor Droopy (from Guadalupe)- Cock-a-Doodle Dog- Rock-a-Bye Bear- Little Johnny Jet- Billy Boy (boy-boy-boy-boy)- Deputy Droopy- CellboundAnd one Bonus Cartoon from Tex's days with Warner Bros. and Leon Schlesinger: The Crackpot Quail with Original audio.Now, I was told that these cartoons are all uncut by Jerry Beck in a post about it, hence the Meathead quote for the title of this review. And as of this writing of the review, there is only 7 Tex Avery Cartoons left for Warner Archive to release, so they can prevent me from wanting to get "the Compleat Tex Avery" on Laserdisc. They need to release these on Volume 4:- Uncle Tom's Cabaña- Half-Pint Pygmy- Henpecked Hoboes, starring George and Junior- Lucky Ducky- Droopy's Good DeedAnd the CinemaScope Remakes:- Millionaire Droopy- Cat's MeowOf course, if they put those on there, they should throw in some Warner Cartoons he did, like "The Village Smithy," "Daffy Duck and Egghead," "Daffy Duck in Hollywood," and even "Believe It Or Else!" I love the set, and it really does make for a great bit of binge-watching, when combined with the other two sets and extras. If you're into Tex Avery's MGM years, this and the first two volumes oughta be good for you. You don't want the remaining 7 Cartoons from MGM to go unreleased, do ya?

After nearly a year, we’ve got the next batch of Avery’s MGM cartoons. This doesn’t complete the filmography, as five shorts (plus two unofficial remakes) are missing. It’s still up in the air if UNCLE TOM’S CABAÑA and HALF PINT PYGMY will see the light of day. The completist in me demands to see it happen, but I’m not that concerned if it doesn’t, since I’m satisfied with the laserdisc transfers I already own. And neither of those are quintessential Avery shorts. (LUCKY DUCKY and HENPECKED HOBOES are though)The titles presented here are among Avery’s best work at MGM. So many great cartoons all in one place.The only downside is that the color timing is off on a few titles. Some shift to a yellow tint and appear dark. Not the Metrocolor transfers though. As reported, Blitz Wolf had to be sourced from a lower resolution dupe print, but only for the first two minutes. The rest looks great. This issue can be traced back to the late 80s. Other than that the other shorts look great.For good measure, the original soundtrack for the WB short The Crackpot Quail, which was presumably rejected by the censors, is thrown in as a bonus feature. The HBO Max restoration is mixed in with the original soundtrack.Hopefully Jerry Beck’s hint of a volume four will come to pass. If they managed to get un PC gags in all the releases (especially ones that were missing from every previously accessible print), surely the more controversial shorts can be put out. A volume four could feature the best of Avery’s WB shorts which have not been yet released (i.e. Cross Country Detours and Detouring America). Fingers crossed.

This is the 3rd Screwball Classics with the Tex Avery cartoons made for M-G-M, part of Warner's Archive Collection. These are all magnificent examples of how "loony" a cartoon short could be designed, Anyone can see how influential the Avery style is present in many others of his peers, notably in the Tom&Jerry series, also in Avery's M-G-M passage.In this particular volume, one can find some of the best Tex Avery's work. Two of my favourites are "Swing Shift Cinderella", and "Deputy Droopy".These shorts are all very well made. Volume 3 has recovered a lot of the original prints, and the sound is quite good.