User Reviews

Tex Avery worked on this one, credited as an 'artist' and it must have annoyed him, because while the construction of this cartoon and the gags are good, the timing is slow and, at times, awful -- and Tex, as we know, was always anxious to get on to the next gag. We've only got a few minutes folks. Instead, we are caught up in the relatively meaningless plot, as Pete tries to kidnap Oswald's girlfriend and he has to rescue her. From the carnival by the sea. That's enough basic ideas for Tex to have constructed four cartoons and have enough gags left over to leave for Michael Lah.

Oswald has been in some pretty good cartoons, but this, alas, is not one of them.

Despite Oswald the Lucky Rabbit and his cartoons being popular and well received at the time, they have been vastly overshadowed over time by succeeding animation characters. It is a shame as, while not cartoon masterpieces, they are fascinating for anybody wanting to see what very old animation looked like.

The 1932 batch of Oswald cartoons, despite being of an uneven overall standard, has generally been far better than the 1931 group, of which only six were above average or more and the rest were average at best and a few less than that. Of the 1932 batch, 'Wins Out' and 'Let's Eat' were mediocre and 'The Winged Horse' was on the forgettable side, but 'Grandma's Pet', 'Beau and Arrows', 'Mechanical Man' and 'Day Nurse' were good, and 'Cat Nipped', 'The Busy Barber' and 'A Wet Knight' very good.

Contrary to the previous reviewer, though with a lot of respect for their opinion, to me 'Carnival Capers', while not one of Oswald's best, was one of the good cartoons of that year and pretty good for an Oswald cartoon under the direction of Walter Lantz.

It is agreed somewhat that some of the timing is slow and a little too drawn out, which really does hurt the less eventful parts of the cartoon to quite a bad degree. Like with most Oswald cartoons, the story is thin and pretty formulaic.

With all that being said, the gags are very neatly executed and often very funny, misfires are rare here. Oswald is a likable protagonist and the rest of the characters are fun to watch, not once does anybody do anything to infuriate the viewer.

On top of that, the music score is witty and pleasantly orchestrated, not to mention dynamic with the action. Animation is very good, with a looser and more elaborate style than seen in 'Yanky Clippers' and other pre-Lantz Oswald cartoons. It's crisp and fluid enough with some nice detail especially with animation techniques still in early days.

Summing up, good if not great Oswald cartoon. 7/10 Bethany Cox

. . . in CARNIVAL CAPERS. The extended scene involving a jiggling rear end never would have seen the light of a movie projector after Papal Censors took over America's Free Speech, Freedom of Expression, Freedom of Thought and Artistic License two years later. At the beginning of CARNIVAL CAPERS, a mutt on a date orders a pair of shakes for his gal and himself. The bored-looking ice cream vendor grabs a shaker, fills it with enough cool treats for two, and slips the frigid liquid inside the Gee String of a topless female exotic dancer. Wedged safely in the crevice of her derriere, the icy confection gets all shook up before being proffered to the romantic pair. Just try to get such service at Sonic!