The Prize Pest (1951) User Reviews

An unexpectedly good episode

[Mightyzebra · 8/10 · 23 September 2009]

Before I begin my review, may I ask, what did the Looney Tunes makers have about Jekyll and Hyde? This is one of three episodes I've watched with the above-mentioned theme and it seems to be coming of age now.

Anyhow, I liked this particular episode because of the pace of it, some of the verbal jokes included and I like the animation and personalities of Daffy Duck and Porky Pig here. Robert McKimson's Daffy Duck cartoon seem usually to have Daffy in a unique style - this cartoon is no exception. Some of the cartoon seems a little unorigianl, but overall it is entertaining nonetheless.

In this episode, we see Porky Pig listening to the radio and he hears a programme saying that a lucky person will win a prize straightaway, delivered to their front door. Of course, the winner is Porky, but his prize - well, let us just say the radio programme people did not pick the prize well if they wanted to please the public. Daffy Duck bounces out of the parcel and creates havoc for poor Porky...

This episode deserves to be watched by fans of Looney Tunes in general, people who do not mind Jekyll and Hyde references and for people who like Daffy and Porky. Enjoy "The Prize Pest"! :-)

Rather cute...

[planktonrules · 8/10 · 6 August 2013]

This is a very nice Daffy Duck cartoon--full of laughs and fun. The show begins with Porky Pig inexplicably winning a prize. Little did he know that is was the booby prize--Daffy. No sooner did the duck arrive then he began behaving like a pest. Daffy was pushy and rude and drove poor Porky crazy. However, when Porky had enough, Daffy decides to be even worse--pretending to be insane and very dangerous. It was so bad that Porky was serious concerned for his life. However, when Daffy overplays his hand, Porky is bent on revenge! Overall, very funny and a bit cruel--which I appreciate! By the way, when Daffy starts acting like a French lover, he's imitating Charles Boyer--a wonderful actor of the era.

From its very beginning, America has viewed psychiatry . . .

[oscaralbert · 6/10 · 24 November 2015]

. . . as just another hoax, not unlike global warming, equal opportunity, and the moon landings. Warner Bros. makes this distrust of DSM IV's great-grandpa the theme of its animated short, THE PRIZE PEST. Daffy Duck thinks he can use Porky Pig's fear of "schizophrenia" to usurp Porky's household. Daffy doesn't realize that Americans take great delight in being totally inconsistent about so-called "mental health." There are laws on the books designed to prevent hospitals from their current practice of treating serious physical illnesses (for free, if necessary), but turning away all acute psychiatric patients who do not have millionaires to underwrite their treatment. Yet the Rich People Government in charge of America lets half of these disabled mental patients suffer on the streets, while the other half languish in abusive prisons. When one of these untreated nuts kills someone, are they pitied with an "Innocent, by Reason of Insanity" verdict? Heck no, they're tortured to death on gurneys in executions frequently dragging on for six hours or more! Obviously, there's loads of humor to be mined from this situation, and Daffy Duck does his best, with help from Porky Pig here.

This allegedly "humorous" brief cartoon pokes fun at the comedy involved in . . .

[pixrox1 · 6/10 · 14 May 2021]

. . . home invasion. It's as if Mr. Capote wrote about the Clutter Farm Tragedy by going for the yuks involved. By this film studio's malignant metrics, FORENSIC FILES should be billed as a situation comedy. Daffy sneaks into the patsy pig's home castle in the guise of a gift-wrapped Trojan Horse invader. As soon as the unlucky hog opens his own personal version of Pandora's Box, out jumps a crazed fowl, who immediately begins tossing all of the Pork Guy's prized possessions out various windows! Such wanton property destruction must be met with fatal projectiles, or America will end up being overrun by unruly mobs of Communist Insurrectionists, along the lines of what happened in our hallowed U. S. Capitol Jan. 6, 2021. Just as the pig battling THE PRIZE PEST allowed vandal Daffy to run away with no penalty, the pigs fighting the insurrectionists took a cue from this cartoon and let all but one slow-moving door climber scurry away intact from the Halls of Congress like a hoard of roaches too fast to be contained!

Daffy and Porky really shine here...

[TheLittleSongbird · 9/10 · 16 July 2010]

I like The Prize Pest for its interesting atmosphere especially, it is quite strange yet somewhat unique as well. This cartoon is rarely shown, which is a shame because it is very, very good. It has an interesting story, colourful animation especially in the backgrounds, lively music, terrific dialogue, interesting gags and wonderful voice work once again from Mel Blanc. Maybe it can be hectic in places, but I still enjoyed The Prize Pest regardless. Daffy further elevates this cartoon, and Porky has more to do and does well with it. Overall, really good and interesting, with Daffy and Porky really shining. 9/10 Bethany Cox