Belle Boys

Was very fond of Woody Woodpecker and his cartoons as a child. Still get much enjoyment out of them now as a young adult, even if there are more interesting in personality cartoon characters and better overall cartoons.

That is in no way knocking Woody, because many of his cartoons are a lot of fun to watch and more and also still like him a lot as a character. He is a lot of fun here in 'Belle Boys' and never comes over too much of a jerk. While there is a preference for Wally Walrus, Buzz Buzzard is a worthy foil, formidable while taking the laughs well with great reactions to Woody's trickery.

Enjoyed the hotel setting and the glamorous character Ga-Ga Gazoon, a character who one can understand what Woody and Buzz see in her. Story wise, the action and structure are typical Woody and Buzz, if you've seen other Woody and Buzz cartoons in terms of basic structure you've seen them all even in different settings.

As ever, the animation is great. The characters are well drawn, but even better are the rich colours, meticulously detailed backgrounds and smooth backgrounds.

Music is another strength here. It's characterful, lushly orchestrated and is not only dynamic with the action it even enhances it. The whole cartoon goes at a snappy pace, especially in the second half, and there are some very well-timed and extremely funny gags. The chemistry between Woody and Buzz is a lot of fun to watch and is the length they go to vie for Ga-Ga Gazoon's affections while tricking each other.

All in all, not one of Woody's best but great fun nonetheless. 9/10 Bethany Cox