The Terrytoons are oddly interesting, mainly for anybody wanting to see (generally) older cartoons made by lesser known and lower-budget studios. They are a mixed bag in quality, with some better than others, often with outstanding music and with some mild amusement and charm and variable in animation, characterisation and content.
1939, like all the other years for Terrytoons, saw a hit and miss batch. Of which 'The Owl and the Pussycat' is one of the low middle ones ranking it in correlation with the rest of the Terrytoons. It is an unexceptional, nothing exactly special and somewhat lacklustre cartoon and has the same amount of problems as it has the amount of strengths. Completest sake is the main reason to see it.
Best asset is the music, which predictably is incredible. It is so beautifully and cleverly orchestrated and arranged, is great fun to listen to and full of lively energy, doing so well with enhancing the action. The ambitious, elaborate detail in the backgrounds is still great to see.
The animation quality at this point had on the most part come on leaps on bounds compared to when Terrytoons first started, the colours are vibrant and some synchronisation is neat. The voice acting is okay at least.
It is a real shame that 'The Owl and the Pussycat' wasn't better than it was, because it could have been one of the best. The first third was pretty charming and didn't feel too cutesy or overlong.
However, the last two thirds when the conflict appears were standard Terrytoons territory that felt like a different cartoon altogether. It made the cartoon disjointed after the promising start, if the poem was focused on and adhered to, it would have made it a better and different effort for them.
Outside of the backgrounds, the animation has its crude moments, the character designs are steps backwards after seeing general steady improvement from about 1936 onwards.
Story of the last two thirds is likewise paper thin and formulaic with a big air of over-familiarity due to doing very little new with a premise that was feeling old well before this was made. This was standard Terrytoons and was like the first third didn't happen. The rival owl is the most interesting character , but the lady owl was blander and her voice fairly annoying, already diminishing the cuteness value. Sourpass is not a particularly interesting or appealing character either. The rest of the characters are personality deprived. The ending couldn't have been more predictable.
Gags are too few and generally don't quite have the lustre and cleverness as others, due to too much of the material being stale from being used before, the charm is completely lacking in the last two thirds and the cartoon sometimes feels choppy, generally there is not enough charm, the pace is not tight enough and a minute longer wouldn't have hurt it.
Altogether, has merits but lacking. Started off nicely on the whole, apart from the crude character designs, but falls apart quickly and doesn't recover. 4/10 Bethany Cox