'Cheese Chasers' is quite a unique cartoon, not just for Chuck Jones but generally as well. The short-lived (only six cartoons, all worth seeing) but worthy-of-more-attention Hubie and Bertie series is unlike what is often seen in cartoons, and 'Cheese Chasers' is one of the more unique cartoons in the series.
Luckily, 'Cheese Chasers' is also a wonderful cartoon. While not quite one of the funniest or laugh-a-minute-hilarious cartoons Jones has done, it is still very entertaining and humorous, with some great dialogue including the witty and very tense exchange resulting in imploring to be massacred. What 'Cheese Chasers' also manages to excel in is tackling a very heavy subject and not trivialise it, dealing with it in a dark, sometimes poignant and delightfully bizarre way. Bizarreness is not always a good thing, dependent on the execution, but it works brilliantly here.
The animation is excellent. Attention to detail is meticulous, the colours are rich and vibrant and the characters are designed in a way that's distinctively Chuck Jones. As always, Carl Stalling's music does not disappoint and demonstrates why he has always been my personal favourite of the regular Looney Tunes composers. Orchestration is clever, rich and luscious, the energy, character and appropriately dark atmosphere are evident throughout and it not only fits with what's going on but adds to it.
Hubie and Bertie are both lively and appealing characters, and they are ideally matched by the suitably antagonistic Claude and the delightfully dim-witted dog. Cat and mouse games have seldom been darker or more bizarre in cartoons than in the Hubie and Bertie series, not even in Tom and Jerry. Mel Blanc and Stan Freberg provide flawless vocals.
All in all, really wonderful stuff. 10/10 Bethany Cox