Love animation, it was a big part of my life as a child, particularly Disney, Looney Tunes and Tom and Jerry, and still love it whether it's film, television or cartoons.
Also have much admiration for Tex Avery, an animation genius whose best cartoons are animated masterpieces and some of the best ever made by anybody. The first George and Junior cartoon 'Henpecked Hoboes' doesn't represent him at his best, this was prime-era Tex Avery (1940s at the MGM) and most other cartoons from this period were far more representative of that which does make the cartoon a slight disappointment. While it is a long way from being one of his funniest or most inventive, 'Henpecked Hoboes' is not a bad cartoon at all, and other than a slight lack of variety there is very little wrong with it.
Regarding the black-face gag, it may not bode well with some and to me it wasn't that funny but actually it is a very brief gag and compared to the racial stereotypes seen in some of the Censored 11 cartoons and some of the Van Beuren Tom and Jerry cartoons it is very tame.
Although it is not hilarious, 'Henpecked Hoboes' does have very amusing moments and is timed well, and while Avery's wild and wacky approach that is so distinctive comes through stronger elsewhere this is hardly devoid of either.
George and Junior are an appealing and amusing double act. The chicken is a good foil. Avery is also on voice acting duty and he shows as much talent for that as he had for directing and animating, both of which he also does a characteristically very good job. Dick Nelson joins him with the voice acting and he's fine.
It is no surprise that the animation is superb, being rich in colour and detail. The character designs are unique, Avery always did have creative character designs, and suitably fluid. The music, courtesy of Scott Bradley, is lushly and cleverly orchestrated, with lively and energetic rhythms and fits very well indeed.
Overall, nowhere near classic Avery but worth tracking down. 8/10 Bethany Cox
