Sylvester's cartoons with Sylvester Jnr. and Hippety Hopper were reasonably entertaining, but got increasingly limp and the later ones lacked the energy generally of the earlier ones. Cats A-Weigh! is one of the earliest and also one of their best and funniest.
Not the most exceptional or surprising of stories for anybody familiar with the basic formula of the Sylvester-Hippety Hopper series (Sylvester believing baby kangaroo Hippety to be a big mouse), sure, but the energy and production value are high and so is the quality of the humour. The animation is excellent and one of the best-looking of the series, being typical of Robert McKimson's late 40s/early 50s energy. The colours are rich, vibrant and bold, the backgrounds are incredibly detailed and the characters are all well-designed and move smoothly, movements and gestures are big and brilliantly done too which make the characters' actions and reactions even funnier. Carl Stalling's music is a perfect fit and is fabulously and cleverly composed music in its own right, with lush orchestration, lively style, energetic rhythms and how it matches so well with everything and makes enhance gestures, expression and the action.
Cats A-Weigh! is also one of the funniest of the series, with hilariously witty dialogue that feels fresh and even more hilarious sight and physical gags. The story while structurally formulaic is fresher than most cartoons in the series, goes at a very energetic pace and the interplay between the three main characters sparkles. Sylvester Jnr. (at a period where he wasn't too much of a bratty character) and Hippety Hopper are cute and amusing characters, and Sylvester carries the laughs as if the laughs come naturally to him and few other Looney Tunes characters can play cunning so charmingly and empathetically. Mel Blanc's voice work is super as always.
All in all, one of the best and funniest of the Sylvester/Sylvester Jnr/Hippety Hopper cartoons. 9/10 Bethany Cox