Chuck Jones is widely considered one of animation's finest directors/animators and for very good reason. When he was at his best, his cartoons were masterpieces of animation, comic timing, characterisation and wit.
The Sniffles cartoon series were very early efforts for Jones, and, while they are interesting from a historical perspective, it is safe to say that from personal opinion they really don't see him at his best. There is somewhat of a still finding his feet feel here, with the humour once he became a regular director for the Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies cartoons becoming much funnier, more constant and wittier and the characterisation far more interesting.
Notable for being Sniffles' swansong cartoon and the only one of his twelve cartoons to be an entry in the Looney Tunes series, 'Hush My Mouse' is one of his best. There is not much wrong with it, except that Sniffles' incessant chatterbox blabber-mouthing is overdone and gets on the nerves and although Sniffles has evolved in personality his cuteness jars a little with the rest of 'Hush My Mouse's' content, which is one of his least cutesy cartoons by quite some way.
'Hush My Mouse' is a clever and very amusing cartoon, the parodying of 'Duffy's Tavern' is done in a fun and witty way and the Edward G. Robinson spoof is spot on. There is the admission though that it would help if one is familiar with the subject and content to completely get the humour. The supporting characters, particularly Robincat, make more of an impression than Sniffles. The voice acting from particularly Mel Blanc and Dave Barry is very good.
As to be anticipated, it is Jones after all, the animation is excellent. It is lush and vibrant in colour and meticulous and beautifully drawn in detail. The character designs are fluid, well drawn and distinctive Jones, if not the creative ones of his very best cartoons. Carl Stalling's music is lush and characterful, with clever orchestration and a mastery of not just adding to the action but enhancing it as well (Stalling was a near-unequalled master at this, though Scott Bradley gave him a run for his money).
In conclusion, very nicely done but one's enjoyment is dependent on familiarity with the content and whether you like Sniffles or not. With me, the content was familiar to me, having gotten myself acquainted with it before watching the cartoon, and Sniffles when his personality became more interesting is tolerable. 8/10 Bethany Cox
