Review of The Night Before Christmas

This The Night Before Christmas is an early Tom and Jerry short from the newly created Hanna-Barbera unit at MGM. Jerry wakes up and looks at the presents under the Christmas tree. He lands on Tom and gets chased by him constantly as Jerry rides on the toy train before bumping into the toy tunnel. This keeps going on until the mouse escapes through the door slot which the cat blocks. Then Tom sees Jerry freezing to death outside so he comes back there and brings him inside to thaw him out. For a gift, the cat gives the mouse a candy cane. Skeptical at first, Jerry sees Tom drink some milk from a saucer and puts his cane in it. Snap, it hits a mousetrap! Tom, thankful, smiles at his newfound pal. Jerry then goes to his hole and finds another mouse trap with cheese on it. Once again, he uses his cane to snap it up. When it does, it goes slowly with Jerry now smiling at his new friend. The end. Unlike later series entries, this Tom and Jerry aren't so aggressive in their chases (perhaps because Tex Avery hadn't arrived at MGM yet). So this one is a little cute with some nicely timed gags. While Hanna-Barbera would have more lasting success on television, nothing equaled their output at MGM. So I recommend this to anyone who is interested in all things Hanna-Barbera. And to the just departed Joe, rest in peace.