Dave Fleischer was responsible for many gems. Ones that were amusing and charming, though over-cuteness did come through in some efforts and the stories were always pretty thin, with appealing characters, outstanding music and visuals that were inventive and with innovative animation techniques.
Ko-Ko similarly was an always amiable character to watch and among the better recurring characters in Fleischer's early work. Likewise, his series of Out of the Inkwell cartoons were among the best early efforts of Fleischer and silent cartoons in general. Fleischer may not be at his very finest and there are other cartoons of his that fit the word gem more. It is impossible to dislike 'Ko-Ko's Conquest', which put a smile on my face and is very easy to be charmed by.
The story is pretty formulaic and melodramatic, with not many surprises and an ending that can seen very early on, but actually there is very little to criticise with 'Ko-Ko's' Conquest'.
A lot is done very well to brilliantly however. The seamless blend of animation and live action and the delightful interplay are obvious good things, but they're not the only ones.
One expects the animation to be primitive and very low quality, judging by that it's the 20s when animation techniques were not as many, as refined, as ambitious and in their infancy. While Fleischer became more refined and inventive later certainly, the animation is surprisingly good with some nice visual wackiness and wit.
It all goes at a bright and breezy pace, while there are a fair share of funny and suitably wild (not always imaginative, but always well timed and clever) moments and the romantic element is immensely sweet and charming without over-loading that it becomes sugary. Koko as ever is very likeable and amusing. The other characters support him very well.
All in all, very well done and enjoyable. 8/10 Bethany Cox