Walt Disney Treasures: The Adventures of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit 1927-1928 (2007) (Repost)

Before Mickey, there was Oswald, the floppy-eared star of Walt Disney's first cartoon series, The Adventures Of Oswald The Lucky Rabbit. Fun and mischievous, the cheerful rabbit's popularity quickly multiplied, and so did his shorts. Between 1927 and 1928, Disney created a bounty of legendary and rarely seen Oswald cartoons. Now for the first time ever on DVD, we present the premiere collection of Disney's Oswald shorts - all featuring new scores composed especially for this release. The long-lost rabbit's life story, from his birth to his long-awaited return to Disney, and a documentary on the legendary Ub Iwerks are revealing portraits of one of the most important stars in Disney's menagerie. Featuring exclusive introductions by film historian Leonard Maltin, this is a timeless collection from generations past for generations to come.

Cartoons Included:

Trolley Troubles (1927) (5:54)
Oswald the conductor has trouble on his hands when a stubborn cow and a ornery goat hinder the path of his trolley.
The first official Oswald the Lucky Rabbit short, and technically quite bold, with Ub Iwerks' perspective shots of the trolley going through the tunnel sophisticated by industry standards at the time. The last sequence, with the out-of-control trolley running down the steep tracks, is as good as anything you'll see today, despite the advances in animation. Lots of physical slapstick, of course, with a tit-for-tat revenge credo that's still funny today.

Oh Teacher (1927) (6:01)
Oswald rides his bike to his girlfriend's house before going to school, but a mean cat takes Oswald's place. Oswald rescues his girlfriend from drowning (although she thinks the cat helped her), so Oswald contemplates beating up the bully at school recess.
The use of Felix the Cat conventions like a question mark utilized as a rope or Oswald riding the word "Help" like a horse, is noted here. Particularly funny is Oswald imagining the bully with a beat-up face – as he holds a brick in his hand! "Ham" Hamilton's simple face work on Oswald perfectly captures the various emotions he feels when confronted by the bully.

Great Guns (1927) (6:50)
Oswald joins the Army, and when the enemy bombs a picture of his sweetheart, he seeks his revenge.
A clever edit links Oswald kissing his girlfriend back home, to his kissing her picture on the front lines. The dog fight in the air is quite well done, and I laughed out loud when they show a cannonball caroming around inside the elephant.

The Mechanical Cow (1927) (6:11)
Oswald the local milkman is having difficulty getting his mechanical cow out of bed. Once on his rounds, he tries to make time with a pretty girl, but his cow keeps interrupting. When she's kidnapped, Oswald gives chase.
The picture quality is noticeably inferior to the previous Oswalds, since this was taken from a 16mm print. An early example of Walt's fascination with mechanical animals and people. The recalcitrant cow is quite funny when he refuses to get out of bed.

The Ocean Hop (1927) (6:11)
Oswald wants to win the $25,000 prize to be the first person to fly over the Atlantic. But can his rickety little wooden plane make it that far?
More use of punctuation marks as physical props, a la Felix the Cat, in this short clearly inspired by Walt's admiration for Charles Lindbergh's solo Atlantic crossing. The little mice blowing up the balloon are hysterical.

All Wet (1927) (6:46)
Oswald is running a beachside hot dog stand, when a pretty girl catches his eye. Becoming a lifeguard, Oswald saves the girl when a big fish and a big wave threaten her.
Oswald spanking the little hot dog when it tries to run away is classic Ub Iwerks weirdness, and the wave animation is excellent. Note all the coy, innocent sexuality of the girl, particularly when Disney teases the audience with her changing into her bathing suit in the boat. Some print damage here.

Rival Romeos (1928) (6:26)
Oswald and Putrid Pete race to see who will get to a pretty girl's house first, but once there, a hungry goat eats Oswald's sheet music and banjo, and soon the boys are fighting each other over who will take out the girl.
The film image shows quite a bit of print damage here. The boys' cars are funny; Oswald's shakes like a dog when it's muddy, and Pete's daintily pulls up its pants to avoid the water. The goat used as a hurdy gurdy would be a familiar Disney motif.

Bright Lights (1928) (7:40) Mlle. Zulu, the Shimmy Queen, is performing on stage, but besotted Oswald doesn't have the 50 cents (over five-and-a-half bucks today) to get in, so he has to sneak past the stage door guard.
Lots of funny gags from this thought-to-be long lost short. Mlle. Zulu's shimmy is marvelously rubbery, and watch how Oswald takes a moment to laugh at his handiwork when he ties the stage door guard's legs up like a pretzel.

Ozzie of the Mounted (1928) (5:12)
Canadian Mountie Oswald must get Pegleg Pete, but his mechanical horse isn't cooperating. Soon, an angry bear, awoken from his hibernation, chases both Oswald and Pete.
Remade later at Warners as a Bosko cartoon, Ozzie of the Mounted has a welcome change of environment (the frozen tundra) that's quite evocative. Another mechanical horse, no doubt from Walt. And the look of fear on Oswald's face when the bear chases him is priceless.

Oh What a Knight (1928) (5:49)
Oswald the singing minstrel serenades a pretty girl in a castle, but Putrid Pete has other ideas, and Oswald fights a duel to win her back.
Quite amazing shadow effects by Ub Iwerks during the sword fight, as well as the spoofy treatment of Oswald impersonating Douglas Fairbanks (watch Oswald proudly stick out his chest every time he stops the sword fight to kiss the girl). More pants dropping.

Sky Scrappers (1928) (5:35)
At a construction site, Oswald meets a pretty girl who sells him a box lunch. But Putrid Pete kidnaps here, sending Oswald to chase after them.
Another funny Iwerks hot dog gag, when Oswald demands the hot dog get into the mustard on his own. The belly button gag to get Oswald's head out of his shoulders still shows up in cartoons today. A nice spoof of the Harold Lloyd thrill comedies that were popular at the time.

The Fox Chase (1928) (5:24)
Oswald wants to run to hounds, but his ornery horse won't cooperate. Oswald chases him with a ladder in a futile attempt to mount him.
Lots of stretching and pulling of the animal characters, with the standard "fox hiding as skunk" gag used here. Remade later by Disney, and still quite funny.

Tall Timber (1928) (7:41) Oswald, on vacation in the great wilderness, tries to canoe down the rapids, as well as duck hunt. But some bear cubs and their mother have other ideas.
The canoe down the rapids sequence is impressive even by today's standards, and the bear plot reminds me of so many of the coming Disney True-Life Adventure shorts.

The Video:
As Leonard Maltin states at the beginning of the Walt Disney Treasures: The Adventures of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit collection, these shorts are lucky to be around at all; don't expect pristine prints. That being said, they're actually quite good looking, with generally bright, sharp images. I was expecting far worse, honestly. A more detailed analysis of the prints and transfers can be found above, in the review proper.

The Audio:
The Dolby Digital English 2.0 stereo mix for the new Robert Israel musical tracks is strong and clear (aiding the reception of these cartoons enormously, I might add). English subtitles are available (which obviously is limited, considering these are silent, although they work, too, for the commentary tracks).

Bonus Features

Introduction by Film Historian Leonard Maltin
Oswald Comes Home
Audio Commentaries
Sagebrush Sadie (Fragment)
Still Frame Galleries
8-Page Booklet with Notes
Color Photo Card
Certificate of Authenticity