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Growing up as
I did, I have a tremendous love for the
art of animation. I watched cartoons as
a kid like there was no tomorrow. I used
to look forward to each new season of Saturday
morning fare by watching the Friday Night
previews of what was starting the next day.
I can’t tell you how much I miss those
Saturday Morning Lineups, which have become
a thing of the past due to the networks
that show cartoons all of the time. This
isn’t to knock those channels as they
have given me the opportunity to revisit
some of my favorite older cartoons, but
having them so readily available takes away
from that special time that was… Saturday
morning.
One of the things I appreciated about the
older cartoons was their simple form of
animation. In the case of those that came
out of the mind of Jay Ward, the crude drawings
were elevated by silly vaudevillian style
humor.
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Just look back at “Rocky & Bullwinkle”,
“Dudley Do-Right” or “Crusader
Rabbit” and (as an adult) you can recognize
jokes right out of the 1930’s mixed with
the style of the cliffhanger serials. Even his
live action “Fractured Flickers” which
combined old film footage with dubbed in dialogue,
brought a certain slapstick absurdity that kept
me laughing for hours after watching. (If this
show EVER gets a DVD release, it is a must have
in my household…)
Last month, Classic Media did the world a huge
favor by releasing a full series set of “George
of the Jungle.” And I’m not talking
about the live action version with Brendan Fraser
(as brilliant as he was in the role), NO! I’m
talking the 1967 series that ran for a whopping
17 episodes, pairing the witless ape-man with
episodes of “Super Chicken” and “Tom
Slick.” My daughter, who is only 4, was
only familiar with the aforementioned movie. She
knew the song (who doesn’t), but had no
idea there was a cartoon. When the set arrived,
we made popcorn and set ourselves up to watch
a few episodes. Even though she didn’t really
understand some of the show’s written humor,
she’d laughed herself silly every time George
would hit a tree. You can’t get much simpler
than that. Pain is funny.
As for me, I howled with every broad piece of
humor and groaned with every bad pun. A good time
was had by all. What I found even more fortunate
was that Classic Media opted to keep the episode
intact, which meant that we also got to see “Super
Chicken” and “Tom Slick.” Neither
is quite as funny as George, but my daughter now
loves it when I opt to sing Super Chicken’s
theme song. For those of you too young to know
it, just imagine a lot of clucking… on second
thought… don’t imagine me doing it…
The set for “George of the Jungle: The Complete
Series” also comes with the original Pilot
episodes of “George” and “Super
Chicken,” both of which yielded some interesting
differences, at least for hardcore fans of the
series. I’m glad to see the studio take
the time and effort to add little extras like
these. The overall quality isn’t too bad
either, considering the age of the cartoons. You’ll
find a few issues with the audio and video, but
nothing that really takes away from the enjoyment
of watching the series.
So, grab your nearest vine and swing over to the
DVD store to pickup a copy of “George of
the Jungle: The Complete Series.” Just be
sure to watch out for that (WHAM!!!!)……
Episodes:
The Sultan’s Pearl
The Malady Lingers On
Oo-Oo Birds of a Feather
Ungawa, The Gorilla God
Little Scissor
Monkey Business
Next Time, Take the Train
The Desperate Showers
The Treasure of Sarah Madre
The Trouble I’ve Seed
Dr. Schpritzer, I Presume?
Rescue is My Business
Big Flop at the Big Top
The Chi Chi Dog
A Man for All Hunting Seasons
The Forest’s Prime Evil
Kings Back-To-Back
Starring (the voices of): Paul Frees, Bill Scott,
June Foray
Extras: Original Pilots for Super Chicken &
Tom Slick
Specifications: Full Screen
Studio: Classic Media
Release Date: 2/12/2008
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website
We'll give George of the Jungle: The Complete
Series a B.
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