The Windblown Hare

The Windblown Hare is a classic twist on the Three Little Pigs story, and has become one of my favourite Looney Tunes and Bugs Bunny cartoons (coming from a huge fan of both). It's a great cartoon to begin with, but is made even stronger by the interplay between Bugs and the Wolf.

Visually, The Windblown Hare looks wonderful, with beautifully vibrant colours, charmingly detailed and carefully drawn backgrounds, slickly drawn physical comedy and smoothly drawn characters that move and interact and easily and are unmistakable Robert McKimson. No surprises seeing as the Looney Tunes cartoons were mostly (apart from their 60s output) incredibly well-made. Carl Stalling could always be counted upon to write a good music score, and he does so and more. The lush orchestration, clever use of instruments, energetic rhythms, lively pacing, great sense of mood, the brilliant matching of visuals and action and how the material is made better by the music sometimes are all present, and in a way that few other cartoon composers excelled as well in (and this is coming from a fan of the work of Milt Franklyn, Winston Sharples and Oliver Wallace).

In terms of humour, The Windblown Hare is among the cleverest and funniest of McKimson's work, with deliciously witty and often hilarious dialogue (and this is not just with Bugs, the three little pigs are no slouches in the humour department either) and the perfectly executed light switch and staircase gag standing out of the clever sight gags. The story starts strong and gets even better once Bugs and the Wolf are together, with the pacing moving buoyantly and without a jagged edge in sight. The three little pigs are quite cute and very amusing, but it's the sparkling interplay between smart and likable Bugs and the rapacious and zany Wolf that makes the cartoon particularly enjoyable. The voice work from Mel Blanc is characteristically superb.

Overall, a Looney Tunes, Bugs Bunny and McKimson classic, and a great twist on the Three Little Pigs story. 10/10 Bethany Cox