All the Herman and Katnip cartoons are more than watchable, but they vary in terms of quality and how good they are, some are good, a few great though most fall into the worth watching but unexceptional category. The mid-50s and after period was around the time when the Herman and Katnip cartoons and most of Famous Studios' output had noticeably lower budgets and got more repetitive.
With Frighty Cat, however, it is among the best of the later Herman and Katnip cartoons. It doesn't completely escape the problems that their later cartoons had, while the animation has some colourful and atmospheric moments (like a quite spooky opening shot) some of the drawing is rough (especially in the early half) and the quality of the backgrounds is uneven, with a few looking nice and others looking sparse, too much of one colour and lacking in detail. A vast majority of the Herman and Katnip cartoons are standard and predictable, and, while it still entertains regardless, Frighty Cat is not an exception, the outcome is not that surprising for anybody already familiar with Herman and Katnip or the idea of the cartoon even (the playing-on-someone's-fears idea is not much new) and the interplay is a little over-familiar and repetitive in places.
The music score is fantastic however, it's very beautifully orchestrated, rhythmically it's so vibrantly energetic and it has so much character and atmosphere, the opening, piano and skulls' scenes being the standouts. The main theme tune is catchy as well. As always with Winston Sharples, the music adds much to the cartoon and not only matches brilliantly with the action but enhances it even more. Frighty Cat has some well-executed and amusing sight gags- though the skulls' gag is a little brief and obvious- that avoid being too brutal or cruel (despite the concept and that Herman and Katnip did tend to get on the mean-spirited side sometimes), and while they're not particularly original they are still timed well and they entertain. Frighty Cat also does a good job with its atmosphere, there is a real spookiness at times here, not just in the opening but also the under the floorboards gag and the very clever scene with the piano.
Frighty Cat is paced swiftly, and the timing is just right. Herman and Katnip are a well-matched pair, with Herman not being annoying or too mean-spirited and Katnip being appropriately antagonistic and dim-witted. The cousins are decent support, and have more to do than usual than being prevented from doing something by Katnip and relying on Herman to outwit him. In their early appearances they did bring a poignancy, but then their situation got so much of more of the same it started getting tiresome, Frighty Cat manages to avoid that. Sid Raymond and Arnold Stang, in their last cartoon as the two characters together, provide some dependably good voice work that matches their characters' personalities ideally.
In conclusion, a good cartoon and one of the better later Herman and Katnip outings. 8/10 Bethany Cox
