Punch and Judo
- Episode aired Jul 23, 1972
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Featured review
Hardly any punch here
'The Blue Racer' "Punch and Judo" (1972)
Opening thoughts: 'Punch and Judo' is another one of the barely average outings of not just the Blue Racer series but also of any of DePatie-Freleng Enterprises' output. Not much punch can be found here. It has its good things and it actually started off decently. It is very sad though that it went downhill fast once a certain character is introduced. While there are worse cartoons out there than 'Punch and Judo', it is not a good representation of the studio and one would not think that the studio were capable of good work, and one can see actually from the best of Pink Panther, The Inspector and Ant and the Aardvark that they absolutely can.
Good things: Characterful music score that fits very well. Catchy theme tune. Fun opening credits sequence. Fun character animation on Blue Racer.
Big improvement in the voice work from Larry D Mann, really enjoyed the craftiness that was missing in the previous three Blue Racer cartoons. Did think that 'Punch and Judo' was pretty decent in the first minute and a half or so where it was just the Blue Racer, thanks to some amusing if corny lines from the Blue Racer. Also found the lady beetle gag amusing, though it is a pretty derivative.
Bad things: Goes downhill drastically and very fast once the beetle arrives. Flat and scrappy animation is seen through, the abstract-ness is taken to extremes to the point it looks cheap. Despite Mann's improved voice acting, Blue Racer is still too one note and bland. The beetle is supremely irritating once again and the stereotyping is very distasteful. Tom Holland's voice work is too broad and caricaturish.
Writing generates very little spark and only has some amusing lines at the beginning and too many dumb ones with the beetle. The gags (which are not many) are not original and are nothing special or particularly funny, the bow and Blue Racer using himself as an arrow gag is repetitive. No surprises going on in the pretty threadbare story, which is merely a small series of gags and lots of corny and at times incomprehensible dialogue (most of it from the beetle) revolving around the same formula the previous Blue Racer cartoons followed.
Concluding thoughts; Concluding, barely average.
5/10.
Opening thoughts: 'Punch and Judo' is another one of the barely average outings of not just the Blue Racer series but also of any of DePatie-Freleng Enterprises' output. Not much punch can be found here. It has its good things and it actually started off decently. It is very sad though that it went downhill fast once a certain character is introduced. While there are worse cartoons out there than 'Punch and Judo', it is not a good representation of the studio and one would not think that the studio were capable of good work, and one can see actually from the best of Pink Panther, The Inspector and Ant and the Aardvark that they absolutely can.
Good things: Characterful music score that fits very well. Catchy theme tune. Fun opening credits sequence. Fun character animation on Blue Racer.
Big improvement in the voice work from Larry D Mann, really enjoyed the craftiness that was missing in the previous three Blue Racer cartoons. Did think that 'Punch and Judo' was pretty decent in the first minute and a half or so where it was just the Blue Racer, thanks to some amusing if corny lines from the Blue Racer. Also found the lady beetle gag amusing, though it is a pretty derivative.
Bad things: Goes downhill drastically and very fast once the beetle arrives. Flat and scrappy animation is seen through, the abstract-ness is taken to extremes to the point it looks cheap. Despite Mann's improved voice acting, Blue Racer is still too one note and bland. The beetle is supremely irritating once again and the stereotyping is very distasteful. Tom Holland's voice work is too broad and caricaturish.
Writing generates very little spark and only has some amusing lines at the beginning and too many dumb ones with the beetle. The gags (which are not many) are not original and are nothing special or particularly funny, the bow and Blue Racer using himself as an arrow gag is repetitive. No surprises going on in the pretty threadbare story, which is merely a small series of gags and lots of corny and at times incomprehensible dialogue (most of it from the beetle) revolving around the same formula the previous Blue Racer cartoons followed.
Concluding thoughts; Concluding, barely average.
5/10.
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- TheLittleSongbird
- Nov 15, 2023
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