On with the New

Wow, this was a far cry from the great Betty Boop cartoons earlier in the decade. The "bite" is gone and with it, much of the humor. Betty looks about three times the size she was in other cartoons. She looks out of proportion to the picture. Looking at this you would think there has to be different animators although her face still looks the same.

The story isn't much; Betty is seen overworked as a cook and dishwasher at a local eatery quits when she gets a telegram saying she's got a job at a nursery. She thinks the little babies are "angels" until it's bedtime and the kids go crazy. Betty winds up learning the grass isn't always greener on the other side.

I didn't find anything to laugh at in here. There were some "cute" scenes, such as the babies being dried on a conveyor belt/assembly-line style, but that was about it.

Because this is one of the last Betty Boop cartoons by Fleischer Brothers Studio, she looks different. In the last couple years, the studio updated her--making Betty taller, less sexy and more contemporary. So don't be surprised when you see this.

This cartoon finds Betty working at a restaurant. Here she is overworked and hates her job, so she's thrilled when she gets a letter telling her that she's been hired by a local nursery. At first, the job looks fine and Betty is quite happy, but at nap time, the kids act like they are re-enacting the story "Lord of the Flies" and they run amok. In the end, a happy Betty has returned to her old job.

Not a lot of laughs here. Nice animation but that's really about all.

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 animation, as always, in 'On With the New' is extremely good, being beautifully drawn, crisply shaded and meticulous in detail. The music is infectious, lush and dynamic.

'On With the New' is cute with adorable babies that aren't too bratty when misbehaving. The voice acting is good.

However, 'On With the New' is paper thin on story and conflict and there is nothing really that's funny or even remotely amusing. Which makes it less easy to forgive the lack of creativity or the risqué and surreal edge.

Betty's personality is so toned down by now that she comes over as bland. While the cartoon is cute, sometimes it does get on the wrong side of saccharine sweet.

In conclusion, average Betty Boop. 5/10 Bethany Cox