Bully for Bugs (1953)
Article 5754 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 4-28-2020
Directed by Chuck Jones
Featuring the voice of Mel Blanc
Country: USA
What it is: Bugs Bunny cartoon

Bugs takes the wrong turn at Albuquerque and, instead of ending up at the Coachella valley, finds himself in Mexico in the middle of a bullfighting ring. There he must contend with a bad-tempered bull.

Usually I don’t review cartoons like this one in which the only real fantastic element is anthropomorphic animals, but I make exceptions if the title is listed in the Walt Lee guide. I’m not going to complain; this is one of best of the Bugs Bunny cartoons, and it serves as a good counterpoint to my review of the dismal BUGS BUNNY IN KING ARTHUR’S COURT from a couple of days ago. Like that one, we have Chuck Jones and Mel Blanc on hand, but we have all the other elements that made Warner Brothers cartoons what they are; superb animation (especially of the bull), dialogue kept to a minimum in favor of comic action, wonderful use of music (including “La Cucaracha” and other familiar pieces), and exquisite comic timing. My favorite touch was the insults Bugs hurls at his foe; Gullabull, Nincowpoop, Embezzle, and Ultra-Maroon.