The Invisible Mouse

I love Tom and Jerry, and The Invisible Mouse was just great fun. The story is basic, but original and amusing, but there are so many reasons why this cartoon works. The animation is top notch, smooth and crisp, and the music has enough energy to sustain interest. The pacing is thick and fast, the sight gags may be predictable to some but I for one found them really clever and hilarious and the chase scenes are typical Tom and Jerry classic fashion. Tom is quite dastardly but oblivious to what's really happened, while Jerry is really funny, although the best gags are when he's invisible, such as when he drinks the milk and Tom believes he's seeing things. Nicely rounded off as well. Overall, another delightful cartoon. 10/10 Bethany Cox

In one of the usual chases between Tom and Jerry, the latter jumps into a bottle of invisible ink and becomes invisible; he then proceeds to have some fun at Tom's expense. This is a fantastic cartoon, with tons of gags (albeit mostly violent ones, but since when did cats and mice use tact?) and a frenetic pace. Recommended. (Mind you, here's a puzzle: Jerry dives head-first into the bottle of invisible ink, so how come when he emerges it's the BOTTOM half of him that is invisible?)

The usual cat and mouse antics abound until Jerry jumps into a bottle of invisible ink. He gets the bright idea of torturing Tom without him knowing. The cat gets wise and tries to do stuff to make him 'see' jerry even if it's not fool-proof. Of course Jerry gets Butch aka Killer aka Spike the dog into the act (even if it's late in the short, and his contribution is minimal indeed) Brilliant animated short which kind of reminded me of the one with the white mouse who scares Tom so badly. Most of the gags work and all violent as any good tom and jerry short should truly be. This hilarious cartoon can be found on disc one of the Spotlight collection DVD of "Tom & Jerry"

My Grade: B+

The cat and mouse are involved in the usual chases when Jerry dives into a bottle of invisible ink and discovers that it makes him vanish. Instead of seizing the opportunity to go spy on a girl mouse changing room or something, he uses his new-found invisibility to torment Tom. And it's pretty funny and quite inventive despite being a somewhat one-joke cartoon. And the action never leaves the interior of the house, which is usually the trait of below average T&J shorts. Still worth a 7/10.

However, I'm not sure how an invisible mouse can cast a shadow on the wall, it defies physics and the very nature of being invisible itself.

The basic joke here is simple. These characters -- all cartoon characters of the era -- are drawn on paper with ink. So using "invisible ink" will make a character invisible.

I'm sure this isn't the first cartoon that implicitly plays with the notion that the characters are drawings on a page. (I'd like to know which was the first.) And this is a pretty subtle reference. But we get it without even thinking about it.

Other than that, the chases and such are ordinary, most involving techniques Tom uses to make Jerry visible.

Ted's Evaluation -- 1 of 3: You can find something better to do with this part of your life.