User Reviews

"The Truce Hurts" is an American 8-minute cartoon from 1948, so this one has its 70th anniversary next year. The fact that this was made by Hanna Barbera makes obvious immediately that this is another T&J cartoon and it's one of not too many where Hanna also performs as a voice actor. The story is pretty simple. Dog, cat and mouse are fighting each other as always and dog gets the idea to sign up a peace treaty. And it works fairly well for a while because Tom saves Jerry from another cat (helpless Jerry why???) and Butch/Spike saves Tom from another dog who apparently does not just hate cats, but even wants to eat them. But in the end their instincts prevail. After they don't mind too much with Butch getting the biggest portion of milk, things look very differently when it comes to a juicy steak. Everybody for himself is the motto. And so they end up just the way they were before signing the treaty, like exactly exactly, which was one of the funniest moments here. The final shot is also an example how these films, like television episodes frequently (Simpsons for example) basically always end with the same scenario and situation like they started. I thought this was an entertaining watch here and I can see why it is one of the more T&J cartoons. Animation's fine, plot is decent and voice acting is good too. And lets be honest here: We like the two (three) the best when they are going against and not with each other. Go check it out.

This short opens with the noise of conflict coming from a house, Jerry comes flying out, picks himself up and returns to the fray then the same happens to Tom. After more noise Jerry comes running out chased by Tom and Butch the Bulldog. The trio start bashing each other then something surprising happens; Butch asks why they need to fight all the time; they look at each other then sign a peace treaty. Things go well as they are kind to each other; Tom saves Jerry when he is caught by an alley cat and Spike saves Tom when he is about to be eaten by another dog. Of course this peace can't last; what spoils it is a steak that falls from a passing van; the three of them can't agree the fairest way to share it and ultimately they end up fighting once again.

I liked the way this short opened with just the sound of a fight rather than actually seeing it and the synchronised way they kept hitting each other was funny. Their truce was an interesting idea and it was fun to see them rescuing each other; the response of the alley cat to this was priceless. The gag where the trio end up 'blacked up' after being splashed with mud seems a little dubious in this day and age although they just stand there stunned rather than doing anything racially stereotypical. The use of music from the 'Wizard of Oz' was a fun touch that should please people who know the film but won't seem out of place to those who don't. Overall I don't think this is a classic but it is still fun and worth watching if you are a fan of Tom and Jerry.

"The Truce Hurts" was originally released back in 1948.

Anyway - As the story goes - The dog, the cat and mouse agree to live together peacefully when they sign a truce. But it doesn't last very long.

. . . falls flat on its face when Butch and Jerry refuse to ante up to feed the kitty. Writing as a Futurist engaging in Monday morning quarterbacking, THE TRUCE HURTS here on a micro scale akin to Lady Liberty dousing her torch in disgust in New York Harbor to protest the jackals bending over backwards to carve up America's women on the High Kangaroo Court. Packed with devotees to the Art of Workplace Harassment and party boy assault perpetrators, any thought of "truce" with such malingering miscreants is tantamount to treason. As this picture documents, making a pact with a liar is as bad as deeding your soul to the devil. There are many reasons for rats having a bad name, and mice constitute a smaller problem in size only. As this story demonstrates, a peace pipe usually means water down the drain.