Shorts! Betty Boop: Buzzy Boop at the Concert & Sally Swing

Our time with Betty Boop is unfortunately coming to a close, as her theatrical shorts series would end in 1939. In her series later years, Boop's shorts have increasingly featured other characters as the focus instead of herself, and here we have two shorts that, frankly, aren't an exception in that regard. But they do both, at least, bring back some of that jazzy, swingy vibe that existed in older Boop shorts. Is it enough to make them worth watching? Listen to find out!

All of Disney's early film output was experimental, but besides perhaps Snow White itself, none were more so than Fantasia. Designed as an experience unto itself, with a road show and everything, Fantasia was a huge passion project for Walt, one he intended to last for years with new versions and all sorts of exciting things... but then, it bombed at the box office, not making an actual profit until decades later. Since then it's become much more revered, but even so, does this film with such a tumultuous history, one that some critics find condescending and pretentious, still hold up close to a century later? Listen to find out!

The late 1930s were the golden age of Mickey, Donald and Goofy cartoons, though 1938 was the last year we got several of them a year. Of them, these two have been picked for review, featuring the boys building what equates to an Ikea boat, and the boys living in a trailer, driven around by Goofy. How do these two hold up to the likes of Clock Cleaners and Lonesome Ghosts? Listen to find out!

There's a movie by Studio Ghibli that came out between the two icons that are Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away, and it's a movie that few people seem to talk about. It's another Isao Takahata feature, and another one of his that's based on a Japanese comic strip. Featuring a watercolor aesthetic way before his eventual Princess Kaguya film, this movie looks like virtually nothing else in the Ghibli catalogue. Does this quirky little film deserve to be forgotten amid the titans released on either side of it, or is it just as worthy of esteem as they are? Listen to find out!

It's Porky's birthday, and who's showing up to celebrate? Is it his friends Gabby and Petunia, or perhaps rising co-star Daffy Duck? No! It's... it's a penguin and goose we've never seen before. Oh, okay, well, this is also one of the last Bob Clampett cartoons that Chuck Jones did animation for, so is it a good sendoff? Listen to find out!

To wrap up our Holliganza this year, we take a look at a non-Rankin/Bass Rudolph short film that does its best to harken back to that original special and the way it was animated. Intended to be experienced with 4D effects, we didn't get to experience quite everything this short was intended to offer, but even still, was this a pleasant way to end the year? Listen to find out!

(Spoiler Section Length - 2min 45sec)The last attempt at a non-Rankin/Bass Rudolph movie went over poorly, at least financially, so this time around the rights-holders are doing a direct sequel to Rankin/Bass' efforts. They're also not putting this thing in theatres, which was probably financially a smart move. With CGI animation and character designs harkening back to the original, does this movie prove even a little more worth watching than its direct predecessor? Listen to find out!

Our first Rudolph film post-Rankin/Bass has virtually nothing to do with the Rudolph special we all know, and instead is a retelling of the story with a lot of added aspects like fairies, an ice witch and a sly arctic fox. It's also got a lot of well-known actors lending their voices to the project, such as Whoopi Goldberg and John Goodman. The creators of the film were so confident in their work that they even decided to put it in theatres! Was the result as good as the original Rudolph, or perhaps even better? Listen to find out!

We've been through all of the Rankin/Bass adventures of Rudolph and Frosty, so why not check out their adventures as handled by their later rights-holders? First up is Frosty, who, well, Returns in this eco-focused special from the 90s starring John Goodman and various improv talents. It might be nostalgic for some, but looking at it all these years later, does it hold a candle to the original special? And regardless, is it good in its own right? Listen to find out!

In the late 1930s, Friz Freleng decided to leave Warner Bros to seek greener pastures, and ended up over at MGM, working on their new in-house series The Captain and the Kids. Unfortuantely for Freleng, his time at the studio would be short, and unfortunately for MGM, so would this particular series of shorts. But does that mean there's nothing to offer from Freleng's short-lived tenure at the studio? Let's find out!