Roman Legion-Hare

Despite the story taking place in 54 A.D., the writers get their digs in early on the West Coast culture at the time as we see a sign for "Another Appian Freeway for your Safety" sign. It was during this time that many of the freeways in California were being built.

Anyway, we are in the Roman Coliseum and Emporer Nero wants a victim. (If the writers knew what brutal savage Nero was in real-life, would they still be doing a cartoon with him?) Yosemite Sam, the captain of the guards, and he goes out with a small legion to find victims to feed to the lions. Bugs Bunny sees the "parade" asks what's going on. He tells Sam, "Well, it looks like your out of luck. There's no one around but me." Mmm.....not a smart thing to say. The chase is on.

I liked Bugs comment about "these hot-rod kids," after Sam cracks up his chariot.

Overall, this was an entertaining Bugs cartoon. Even if Bugs has to battle lions, you know who is going to come out on top!

It is Rome 54 A. D. The Detroit Lions is in the Coliseum in the Season Opening. Emperor Nero wants his sacrifices for the lions but they have run out. He demands the Captain of the Praetorian Guard Sam to get more victims. Sam and his squad set out on a search. Bugs Bunny sees them and thinks that they are on a parade. Sam sees Bugs as an easy first catch. Bugs keeps getting the best of Sam until he accidentally locks himself in the ring.

This is a solid Bugs Bunny cartoon as he keeps winning against Yosemite Sam. The main problem is Emperor Nero. I don't really like his design. More than that, I would like a famous Looney Tunes character to play the part. I can think of several suitable replacements.

It is 54 AD and Emperor Nero has run out of victims to throw to his award winning Detroit Lions in the coliseum. He dispatches his Captain of the Guard Yosimitus Sammus to find a good victim and bring him back. Sammus and his men find Bugs bunny relaxing in the area and decide that he will do as good as anything else. However Bugs proves more than a match for both Sammus and the lions.

Opening with a very clear spoof of Charles Laughton, this cartoon marks itself out as a spoof of the 1950's Roman epics that were all the rage at the time. Generally the Looney Toons films were pretty sharp at spoofing big films and their stars - even if they didn't make them their rasion d'etre. Here the majority of this cartoon is the usual straight chase between Bugs and Sam, here with a great reoccurring joke where Bugs constantly exposes Sam to the lions. It is obvious but still very funny and much of this is down to the work of the characters.

Bugs is really good after a slow start for him and he not only tricks Sam but also does good work to free up the lions. Sam is really good and is an enjoyable foil for Bugs - he is not his equal but he does react really well to the regular lion attacks and makes them all the funnier for his good work. The gags are consistently funny and they are delivered really well.

Overall this is a funny cartoon that trades on a great running joke involving Sam and a pit full of lions - a clever and funny little short.

Friz Freleng's 'Roman Legion-Hare' is set in Rome AD 54, where Emperor Nero tells Captain of the Guards Yosemite Sam to find a victim to throw to the lions for his entertainment or else Sam himself will have to fill the role. The victim Sam selects is, of course, Bugs Bunny. Although simply placing an established rivalry in a new setting can lead to repetitive cartoons, Freleng always seemed to pull it off far better with Bugs and Sam than he did with Tweety and Sylvester. The ancient Rome backdrop, which chiefly focuses on the Colleseum's lion enclosure, allows for some great gags as Bugs finds new ways to cause Sam to be savaged. The real star of 'Roman Legion-Hare' is Warren Foster's very funny script, which includes one of my favourite lines in cartoon history. As Sam attempts to cross a pit filled with lions on a pair of wooden stilts, Bugs tosses a selection of cutting tools into the pit with the unforgettable exclamation "Here, lions"! 'Roman Legion-Hare' is not especially attractive to look at and the direction is fairly run-of-the-mill but none of this takes anything away from the one essential ingredient it does boast: it's very funny.

It's Rome, 54 AD, and there's a game at the Colosseum. Unfortunately, they're all out of victims for the lions. No problem! Emperor Nero - bellicose as ever - orders Captain of the Guards Yosemite Sam to find one, or he'll be the victim. As you might have guessed, Sam decides that a certain long-eared, carrot-chomping rabbit will make an ideal victim. But of course Bugs Bunny isn't going to submit so easily, especially when the lions seem to be pretty hungry for Yosemite Sam.

Admittedly, the whole thing's rather silly. But there's nothing unpleasant here. Quite the opposite: Bugs plays some hilarious tricks on Sam. And the end puts a new kind of spin on the story of Nero playing his fiddle.