This was the second of the "Popeye Color Specials", a trilogy of "Popeye" two-reel films that were filmed in Technicolor.
This cartoon makes use of Max Fleischer's Tabletop process. This was a process that combined 2D and 3D animation. Miniature sets were built on a stage, then the characters were animated and superimposed over this background, so that various objects could pass in front of or behind them. This created an impression of depth to the viewer.
In Abu Hassan's cave, Popeye jokingly asks Wimpy "How did you get in here, young fella?" While the joke refers to Wimpy having been taken away by the bandits, it also refers to Popeye the Sailor Meets Sindbad the Sailor (1936), the previous big-budget Popeye two-reeler. Wimpy had wandered into Sindbad's home during a standoff, and a surprised Popeye asked him the same thing.
This cartoon opens with Popeye serving in the U.S. Coast Guard.
The story is inspired by the story "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves", but Ali Baba is mentioned only in the title and doesn't appear at all in the short. It could be argued, though, that Popeye takes Ali Baba's role in the tale.