In my opinion, the Heckle and Jeckle theatrical series is generally the best of Terrytoons Studios' regular character theatrical series (do like enough cartoons from that of Gandy/Sourpuss too). Which generally were interesting watches, if more the earlier ones than the later ones, but not all of them did much for me. It does help too that Heckle and Jeckle themselves are compelling lead characters in the way that some of the studio's other recurring characters weren't.
1947's 'Happy Go Lucky' is only the third Heckle and Jeckle cartoon and the basic tone and formula of the series is already established and the characters not the kind that took time to make much of an impression. 'The Uninvited Pests' was a very strong start, while 'McDougal's Rest Farm' was not as strong but still impressive in a lot of areas. 'Happy Go Lucky' to me is closer to 'The Uninvited Pests' level, which, although 'McDougal's Rest Farm' was still quite good, is a good thing.
Basic plot-wise, there is not much special here, other than the setting and gags it's pretty more of the same to what we saw before in the previous two Heckle and Jeckle cartoons. Which does take away from any freshness.
The ending especially, while amusing, was one that has been seen many times in animation. Or at least the type of ending.
Have nothing to fault the animation for, yes 'Happy Go Lucky' does a lot very well and the best aspects are great. Here in the animation, there are vibrant colours, nice attention to detail, far from static or simplistic backgrounds, the drawing is so much smoother than when the studio first started and the transitions are much more fluid and less choppy, nowhere near as much recycling or cutting corners either. The music never disappointed with Terrytoons, always the best asset of their worst efforts and it is one of the best things here still. It is so lovely to listen to and there is such an uplifting vibe hearing it because of the snappy character it has.
When it comes to the gags, 'Happy Go Lucky' is again one of the highest gag counts for any Terrytoons cartoon up to this point and perhaps of their entire output. The cartoon is filled with them and they all range from amusing to hilarious. The scarecrow sequence is especially a delight. The dialogue avoids being too corny. The pace is fast and furious and the action and increasing anarchy is wonderfully chaotic, yet remarkably it doesn't feel too much of an overload. The story is not novel, but the character interaction, constant entertainment value and eventful content helped always make it interesting still. Heckle and Jeckle are highly entertaining characters, their movements, the way they talk (in the use of language and the voices themselves) and their expressions make them quite unique characters for Terrytoons. Dimwit the dog, aptly named oddly enough, is a nice contrast and has equally good comic timing, a worthy enough character to take the butt of the laughs well. The chemistry between the characters is dynamite. The voice acting is very good.
On the whole, very enjoyable. 8/10
1947's 'Happy Go Lucky' is only the third Heckle and Jeckle cartoon and the basic tone and formula of the series is already established and the characters not the kind that took time to make much of an impression. 'The Uninvited Pests' was a very strong start, while 'McDougal's Rest Farm' was not as strong but still impressive in a lot of areas. 'Happy Go Lucky' to me is closer to 'The Uninvited Pests' level, which, although 'McDougal's Rest Farm' was still quite good, is a good thing.
Basic plot-wise, there is not much special here, other than the setting and gags it's pretty more of the same to what we saw before in the previous two Heckle and Jeckle cartoons. Which does take away from any freshness.
The ending especially, while amusing, was one that has been seen many times in animation. Or at least the type of ending.
Have nothing to fault the animation for, yes 'Happy Go Lucky' does a lot very well and the best aspects are great. Here in the animation, there are vibrant colours, nice attention to detail, far from static or simplistic backgrounds, the drawing is so much smoother than when the studio first started and the transitions are much more fluid and less choppy, nowhere near as much recycling or cutting corners either. The music never disappointed with Terrytoons, always the best asset of their worst efforts and it is one of the best things here still. It is so lovely to listen to and there is such an uplifting vibe hearing it because of the snappy character it has.
When it comes to the gags, 'Happy Go Lucky' is again one of the highest gag counts for any Terrytoons cartoon up to this point and perhaps of their entire output. The cartoon is filled with them and they all range from amusing to hilarious. The scarecrow sequence is especially a delight. The dialogue avoids being too corny. The pace is fast and furious and the action and increasing anarchy is wonderfully chaotic, yet remarkably it doesn't feel too much of an overload. The story is not novel, but the character interaction, constant entertainment value and eventful content helped always make it interesting still. Heckle and Jeckle are highly entertaining characters, their movements, the way they talk (in the use of language and the voices themselves) and their expressions make them quite unique characters for Terrytoons. Dimwit the dog, aptly named oddly enough, is a nice contrast and has equally good comic timing, a worthy enough character to take the butt of the laughs well. The chemistry between the characters is dynamite. The voice acting is very good.
On the whole, very enjoyable. 8/10
