This year of WB cartoons includes one more award-winning entry, and in addition to the usual cartoon shorts, the start of a new project for the cartoon studio...

Don't Axe Me
Directed by Robert McKimson
After Daffy snatches Rover's (the Fudds' pet dog) food, the dog decides to take revenge by convincing Mrs. Fudd to serve roast duck for their guest Reverend Brown. Daffy finds out about the plans and tries his best to prevent Elmer from using his axe on him. Elmer's wife, making her only appearance here, is a nicely designed character – she both looks and sounds like a female version of her husband without being too direct a copy. The scene with Rover making his dinner suggestion to her is the funniest one in the cartoon! But the scenes with Daffy and Elmer (both portrayed well, as usual) are of course entertaining too. A strong cartoon, despite being one of the less known ones from this period.
9.5

Tortilla Flaps
Directed by Robert McKimson
Speedy and his friends are celebrating Cinco de Mayo, but the festivities are interrupted when El Vulturo attacks, trying to eat the mice. The bird repeatedly tries to catch Speedy, but his speed and cleverness prove too much for the predator. A typical chase cartoon – good gags and villain, but not a particular standout. Speedy is very likable, adding a lot of appeal to the short.
8.5

Hare-less Wolf
Directed by Friz Freleng
Charles M. Wolf's wife tells her lazy husband to go shoot a rabbit. He immediately meets Bugs Bunny, but the forgetful wolf lacks the wits to beat him. A funny short with one of Bugs' less intelligent opponents – while he's definitely far from a match for our hero, his constant forgetting what he was supposed to do makes for some funny gags. Bugs even reminds him a couple of times that he was looking for a rabbit – probably the most help he ever gave to one of his enemies!
9

A Pizza Tweety-Pie
Directed by Friz Freleng
Granny and Tweety are on vacation in Venice. Sylvester (portrayed here as a stereotypical Italian cat) sees the bird and makes various failed attempts to catch and eat him. The Italian theme adds some flavor to an otherwise average Sylvester and Tweety entry – Tweety singing "Santa Lucia" is very cute, and Sylvester's accented lines are amusing. Also an imaginative ending with some stylized animation!
8.5

Robin Hood Daffy
Directed by Chuck Jones
Friar Tuck (Porky) wants to join Robin Hood (Daffy) and his merry men. But Robin Hood's incompetence, especially when trying to rob a wealthy traveler, don't convince him that he's dealing with the real Robin Hood. One of Jones' classic Daffy and Porky cartoons, once again with Daffy as the incompetent hero. Daffy is responsible for the slapstick, while the sarcastic Porky provides the drier humor. The result is definitely a memorable cartoon, with some great visuals and brilliant lines. Out of the several Robin Hood parodies the studio did, this is the best one.
10

Hare-way to the Stars
Directed by Chuck Jones
Bugs accidentally ends up in space, meeting Marvin the Martian who's planning to blow up the Earth with his new Illudium PU-36 explosive space modulator in order to have a better view of Venus. Bugs has to foil his plans before returning home. This might be my favorite of the Bugs and Marvin cartoons – brilliant expressions from Bugs, the Martian's best portrayal yet with his amusing dialogue, and the debut of the funny instant Martians (though their design is virtually identical to the aliens from "Jumpin' Jupiter"). One of the best Bugs cartoons lately.
10

Whoa, Be-Gone!
Directed by Chuck Jones
Wile E. Coyote (Famishius vulgaris ingeniusi) tries to catch the Road Runner (Birdius high-ballius) using contraptions like a trampoline, a barrel of dynamite and a do-it-yourself tornado kit. Another good entry in the series – again some gags that take unexpected turns, my favorite being the last one with the tornado seeds.
9

A Waggily Tale
Directed by Friz Freleng
A little boy called Junior is treating his pet dog badly despite his mother telling him not to. He gets grounded and has a dream about being a dog, getting adopted by a little girl and having a bad time himself. An interesting story for a cartoon, with the short itself being a nice one but not a particular standout. There are a couple of appealing references to popular songs from the time, but otherwise it could have done with more gags.
8

Feather Bluster
Directed by Robert McKimson
An elderly Foghorn Leghorn and Barnyard Dawg notice their grandsons partaking in similar antics to what they used to do and start reminiscing about the good old days and all the tricks they played on each other. Another cheater cartoon with clips taken from earlier Foghorn shorts. While I feel these take up a bit too much of the short, the new scenes do have a charm of their own with the nostalgic atmosphere and the cute moments with the little rooster and dog. For a cartoon mostly based on old material, they could have done a lot worse.
8

Now, Hare This
Directed by Robert McKimson
B.B. Wolf tries to catch Bugs, but his attempts fail, and Bugs tells him he has to outsmart a rabbit in order to get one. After B.B.'s nephew shows up, the wolf gets an idea to do a routine based on the story of Little Red Riding Hood. Wackiness ensues, as Bugs sees through their plans. I think this is quite a clever cartoon! As usual, the fairytale parody works well – Bugs' ways to outwit the wolves are ingenious, the characters' acting in the routine is amusing, and they're all portrayed entertainingly. Out of the two recent cartoons pitting Bugs against a wolf, I found this the stronger one.
9.5

To Itch His Own
Directed by Chuck Jones
The Mighty Angelo, the world's strongest flea, goes on vacation from the flea circus. He finds a nice vacation spot on a dog who doesn't seem to mind much, but his relaxation gets interrupted by another dog, the tough Butcher. Angelo goes to attack him. A fun short, an imaginative idea to see a flea actually helping a dog against another one! There are some wild expressions and other fun moments along the way, all of it working well without much dialogue. The last Warner Bros. cartoon to feature music by the legendary Carl Stalling. He had worked on the cartoons since 1936, scoring most of the classic Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies during this period.
9

Dog Tales
Directed by Robert McKimson
An old-fashioned spot gag cartoon, this time looking at various breeds of dogs, some of them participating in a dog show. There are a couple of reused gags here (including one with Charlie Dog, thereby making his last appearance), but I think the new ones are entertaining enough with the typical corny jokes. For the most part, this is the type of cartoon we could have seen in the late 30s or early 40s, but there are also signs of the latest popular culture with the appearance of Elvis Presley in dog form. A good effort!
8.5

Knighty Knight Bugs
Directed by Friz Freleng
King Arthur tells his knights to retrieve the Singing Sword stolen by the Black Knight (Sam). But since none of them will do it, the court jester (Bugs) gets the task. He gets the sword quite fast, but the Black Knight and his dragon go after him. Another successful Bugs and Sam cartoon with strong characterizations and gags. The constantly sneezing dragon has the most comedic scenes here, complete with Sam's angry reactions. The dialogue is also great throughout. The studio's fifth Oscar winner for best short cartoon, and the second in a row – sadly, it was to be their last. It's a bit surprising to have this as the only Bugs cartoon to win the award, as some other entries in the series are more beloved... but it's definitely not a bad one to do it with!
9.5

Weasel While You Work
Directed by Robert McKimson
Foghorn and the Barnyard Dawg are at it again, this time playing tricks on each other in the snow. The weasel shows up, trying to eat Foghorn, and the rooster and the dog repeatedly try to sic him on each other. Pretty ordinary Foghorn short, apart from the winter theme – but certainly entertaining. The weasel makes his last appearance of three – I feel parts of his personality were reused to create the more memorable Taz. Due to a musicians' strike, the following six shorts would use stock music by John Seely. The music is rather enjoyable at times, but apart from an organ arrangement of "Camptown Races", it doesn't sync quite as well as the usual WB cartoon soundtrack.
8.5

A Bird in a Bonnet
Directed by Friz Freleng
Tweety is being chased by Sylvester and hides in a hat. Granny buys the hat, thinking it has a stuffed bird on it. Sylvester makes various failed attempts to snatch the hat from her. A different idea for a Tweety cartoon, as he's mostly relegated to a prop here. On the other hand, Granny gets one of her most significant roles, as she foils Sylvester's attempts. Not a series highlight, but a nice one for its unique idea and the slapstick.
8.5

Hook, Line and Stinker
Directed by Chuck Jones
The Road Runner (Burnius-roadibus) avoids being caught by Wile E. Coyote (Famishius-famishius), who uses the likes of a sledgehammer and a falling piano. One of the stronger Road Runner cartoons lately – besides the usual great animation, the gags are very good ones, with the last gag with the Rube Goldberg machine being the absolute standout. I think even Seely's stock music works surprisingly well here – it's definitely a different sound from the usual Road Runner cartoons, but the cues are catchy and for the most part quite fitting.
9.5

Pre-Hysterical Hare
Directed by Robert McKimson
Elmer is hunting Bugs, and the bunny falls through the ground. He finds a time capsule from 10,000 B.C., with a film inside. The film shows caveman Elmer Fuddstone hunting a saber-toothed rabbit, with similar results to their descendants' antics. What sounds like a worthy concept for a Bugs Bunny cartoon sadly falls flat. It isn't entirely without good parts: the idea of Elmer Fuddstone trying to invent gunpowder at Bugs' suggestion is a funny one. But besides the mostly predictable gags, the execution of the short is rather sloppy. Reused footage, questionable character design choices, voice synchronization errors... Most unfortunately, Arthur Q. Bryan (who was ill at the time) doesn't voice Elmer here. Dave Barry, who did entertaining Humphrey Bogart impressions in some earlier cartoons, fills in for him – sadly his Fudd isn't at the level of his Bogart. One of Bugs' weakest cartoons, I'm afraid.
6.5

Gopher Broke
Directed by Robert McKimson
The Goofy Gophers are harvesting, but all the vegetables in the field get snatched away, as the farmer takes them to the barn. The gophers find out the barn is guarded by the Barnyard Dawg, so they come up with plans to get rid of the dog, driving him insane in process. Plotwise, this feels quite close to the later Hubie and Bertie cartoons, just with different characters. While I don't think it quite lives up to those, or the earlier gopher shorts for that matter, I think this is also an enjoyable short, especially the dog's reactions, as well as those of a baffled pig.
8

Hip Hip-Hurry!
Directed by Chuck Jones
The Road Runner (Digoutius-unbelieveablii) evades the various attempts of Wile E. Coyote (Eatius-slobbius) to catch him. In addition to the traditional dynamite and boulders, we see the coyote using a motor boat and ACME Hi-speed Tonic. While this is not one of my absolute favorites in the Road Runner series, there's one thing that stands out – the Road Runner himself is portrayed as more of a trickster here, as he's seen actively foiling the coyote's plans on a couple of occasions (including tripping him).
9

Cat Feud
Directed by Chuck Jones
On a construction site, Marc Anthony meets Pussyfoot, with the kitten immediately charming the tough bulldog. The dog even gives the kitten a sausage for a snack, but this catches the eye of an alley cat. The dog tries his best to prevent the cat from snatching it and also keeps the kitten from getting hurt. While not the best Pussyfoot cartoon, it's definitely another cute one, now with new more stylized designs for the characters. A bit similar to "Feline Frame-Up" in that Marc Anthony is fighting another cat to defend Pussyfoot and with the focus on comedic gags more than sweet moments, but in a different setting and without any human characters. This was the duo's last appearance.
9

In the next few years, Warner Bros. would produce four live-action television specials as a part of the Bell System Science Series for AT&T Corporation. All of these had animated sequences produced by the cartoon studio – apparently their first TV work. In this one, they were directed by Chuck Jones.

Gateways to the Mind
While the special explains how the human sensory system works, various short animated clips are shown throughout, with an animator called Gene presenting a few of these sequences. Some of these feature stylized human characters to demonstrate the phenomena. The highlights involve a character called Joe Commuter – we see a little man representing his thinking, showing how complex simple events (like waking up for work or eating a strawberry) are, with some surprisingly lively animation included. Educational content with little humor, but the well-designed characters help present it all in a more memorable and appealing way.
8

Not quite the best year for the studio, but for the most part, they managed to avoid real flops... and of course, Bugs finally got his deserved Oscar. Will the decade end on a high?