Despite Oswald the Lucky Rabbit and his cartoons being popular and well received at the time, they have been vastly overshadowed over time by succeeding animation characters. It is a shame as, while not cartoon masterpieces, they are fascinating for anybody wanting to see what very old animation looked like.
'Permanent Wave' is a significant improvement over the previous Walter Lantz cartoons, which really are only for historical interest and agreed much better than many of his later Oswald cartoons. It is a much better representation of Oswald, who is closer to his personality in the Disney and Winkler era cartoons, and doesn't fare badly by Lantz standards either.
Sure the story is flimsy (then again you'd expect that in an Oswald cartoon by now) and very predictable. While the gags hit more than they miss thankfully, a couple have less than crisp timing and not so inventive.
On the other hand, the animation is good. Transitions smoother and there are some very nice details and fluidity. Synchronisation is much better, not sloppy (though with the odd sloppy moments) and the sound more resonant.
The gags are mostly inventively done and actually fun, while Oswald is endearing. The music is energetic too.
Overall, decent Lantz Oswald cartoon and one of his better ones. 7/10 Bethany Cox
