Three years after introducing Daffy Duck in 1937, Tex Avery brings us the debut of Bugs Bunny. Mind you he doesn't look much more like the modern Bugs than the original Daffy did, and he sounds way different. His personality is reasonably intact though, apart from a slight tendency to behave maniacally like the early Daffy. Interestingly he hadn't yet really developed the occaisionally vindictive personality traits that he briefly acquired under some of Warner's early 40's directors.
As you might know, I get rather tired of Warners' 'hunting' scenarios, but I must remember that this short is 66 years old, that the idea wasn't worn out then, and that
Bugs would graduate to more diverse storylines later.
Really there isn't much to tell, plot-wise. Elmer is huinting rabbits, and gets more than he bargained for when he comes across Bugs (Elmer, BTW, looks positively slim in this short, compared to the corpulent figure he would be given by some other early 40's directors).
The short has an unmistakable Tex Avery feel to it, from the sight gags to the slightly manic edge (my favourite gag for some reason is where Elmer sticks an improtu wooden sign into the ground and it lights up in neon).
Tex was never a great one for developing characters. Droopy is probably the most famous character which he actually created and developed. With both Daffy and Bugs he seemed happy to give them a kick-start, and then pass them on to other directors while he concentrated on one-shots. Neverthless, in 'A Wild Hare' he delivers a recognisable Bugs, and starts one of the most famous careers in animated history.
A surprisingly strong short, and remarkable for its time, though Bugs would go on to greater things.
/ 3 reviews)
Reviews for A Wild Hare
