Pudgy Takes a Bow-Wow

A good deal of the pre-Production Code Betty Boop cartoons are daring and creative, with content that makes one amazed at what's gotten away with. While the later Betty Boop cartoons made after the Code was enforced are still watchable and exceptionally well-made, they are so toned down that they feel bland.

Fleischer were responsible for some brilliant cartoons, some of them still among my favourites. Their visual style was often stunning and some of the most imaginative and ahead of its time in animation. The character of Betty Boop, one of their most famous and prolific characters, may not be for all tastes and sadly not as popular now, but her sex appeal was quite daring for the time and to me there is an adorable sensual charm about her. The good news is that she has not lost her charm, despite being significantly toned down, she is still cute and most of her comic timing is good.

Adorable Pudgy steals the show though, with the cat close behind. Their chemistry and antics are what dominate the cartoon and they are entertaining and cute, in fact the funniest moments come from them.

One of 'Pudgy Takes a Bow Wow's' best elements is the animation, which is fantastic, especially in the backgrounds. It's very rich in detail, crisp and beautifully drawn. The music is mostly infectious, lush and dynamic. There are some amusing moments and it is cute without being too saccharine.

However, there is a vast preference for the Betty Boop cartoons that have a more surreal edge to the visuals and sharper and more risqué material. Although cute and entertaining, there is still a tame feel and slight blandness. The story is also slight and predictable.

More of a problem is Betty's stereotypical and downright painful imitation attempts at being Chinese and Italian.

To conclude, nice cartoon but not a great one. 6/10 Bethany Cox

When this cartoon begins, Betty Boop is getting ready to go on stage. Just before, she puts Pudgy to bed and heads off for the stage. However, as Betty is doing her song (a particularly bad one, at that), Pudgy is awakened by a cat. And, doing what dogs do, he gives chase. The pair end up interrupting Betty's routine (again, the song sucked, so it was a blessing) and the audience loves the antics of the dog and cat. At first, the pair pretend to be friends and perform together. However, it soon turns to an all-out war--and the audience* is in stitches.

For the most part, I liked this cartoon. But, as I mentioned above, Betty's song was pretty awful---and seeing her pretending to be Chinese and Italian was quite painful. However, Pudgy was cute and the animation was nice.

*After seeing most of Betty's films, this is the first I can recall where her audience was made up of humans. Normally they are various human-like animals or weirdos. Here, they are just folks.