Kings Up

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.

Oswald in the Disney years saw mostly good to very good cartoons, and while the Winkler years had some duds there were also cartoons as good as the best of the Disney years. The 1929-1930 batches of Walter Lantz-directed Oswald cartoons were a mixed bag, with some good, some forgettable and not much special and a few mediocre. The 1931 batch was mostly underwhelming, with only 6 out of 18 cartoons being above average or more. The 1932 batch had a few not so good, though the cartoons in question were nothing compared to the worst of the previous 3 years, cartoons, but most were decent to good and some even very good. The 1933 batch is one of the most consistent, with the weakest 'Beau Best' still being decent.

There hasn't been a dud yet in the 1934 batch of cartoons, despite what the low rating here indicates (though this is down to lack of votes than anything else). Do think in some way that 'Kings Up' though is weaker than what came before while having a lot of obvious merits.

'Kings Up' has a few less than great elements. The story is hardly one at all, with the first half being a series essentially of song and dance sequences. Premise-wise it reminded me a little of the superior Mickey Mouse cartoon 'Ye Olden Days.

Pacing is uneven, coming to life in the second half, when there is more of a story and far less set-up, but not quite as momentum-filled (though not dull) in the first half. The characters are not hugely memorable, although still entertaining, outside of Oswald and the villain, and although there is nothing to be offended by there is a very brief racial stereotype early on.

However, the animation is very good. There is the looser and more elaborate look of many of the previous Lantz era Oswald cartoons, but it was surprising and lovely to see parts of the animation reminding one of the animation style of the Disney years in places.

Love the music too, which is very characterful and beautifully orchestrated and performed. The song that fills up most of 'Kings Up' is impossible to get out of your head and is sung wonderfully. The dancing and synchronisation is entertaining and looks very natural in the animation, while there are some amusing and well timed if never hilarious moments.

The more story-oriented second half is quite exciting, even if it is not exactly surprising as to how the cartoon will end. Oswald is endearing.

All in all, one of those decent if unexceptional cartoons. 6/10 Bethany Cox