Droopy
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 "Hello, all you happy people."
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Droopy is a series of animated short subjects created by Tex Avery at MGM. Ever since his debut in Dumb-Hounded (1943), he appeared in 24 theatrical short films. The character is best known for his intelligent, yet calm and collected attitude in contrast to the more hyperactive and zany characters around him such as the Wolf and Spike (later renamed Butch the Irish Dog). He was meant to be a departure from the screwball characters that Avery had worked on at Warner Bros.. In future media, he appeared in the Tom and Jerry direct-to-video movies.
Why It Rocks
- Phenomenal animation, which is MGM's animation in one of its purest forms just next to Tom and Jerry.
- In stark contrast to Tex Avery's other well-known MGM cartoon character, the loud and wacky Daffy Duck/Yoyo Dodo/Babs Bunny/Gogo Dodo/Yakko, Wakko and Dot-esque Screwy Squirrel, the titular character is calm and collected, but proves to have intelligence and hidden strength. He speaks in a monotone voice, similar to Bill Thompson's character Wallace Wimple. Despite his calm and mild-mannered nature, he is no pushover either and also proved to be a clever karmic trickster (ala Bugs Bunny, Slappy Squirrel ( from Animaniacs ) and the Pink Panther) at the same time, such as his notable ability to randomly appear right in front of various characters at various places where it is least expected, as demonstrated in cartoons such as Dumb-Hounded, Wild and Woolfy, Caballero Droopy and most notably, Northwest Hounded Police.
- Characters such as the Wolf and Spike (later renamed Butch the Irish Dog), make hilarious and interesting foes to the titular character.
- As with Tex Avery's other cartoon shorts at MGM, the series has some of the funniest and wackiest cartoons ever produced by the MGM cartoon studio with the wildest and zaniest slapstick comedy gags, sheer lunacy, breakneck pace, clever use of squash and stretch to to create exaggerated wild double takes, and a penchant for playing with the medium of animation and film in general that few other directors dared to approach, almost rivaling those of Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies.
- Plenty of the gags and expressions are funny, such as Droopy attacking his foe after making him mad (albeit in Tranquil Fury).
- His ironic catchphrases "Hello, all you happy people." and "You know what? I'm happy." which he says it despite having a drooping sad look on his face which is hilarious and iconic.
- The animation is fluid, fast-paced and energetic (typical of the style of the Golden Age of Animation).
- Two particular cartoons, The Shooting of Dan McGoo and Wild and Woolfy, also co-starred both the Wolf and Tex Avery's iconic sexy redheaded showgirl Red from Red Hot Riding Hood, which not only proved that both Droopy, Red and the Wolf form a great comedy trio altogether, yet those two have clever adult jokes hidden within. In fact, Droopy, Red and the Wolf would later co-star altogether on a regular basis in Tom & Jerry Kids, albeit joined together with Droopy's young son Dripple (who originally debuted in Homesteader Droopy, albeit unnamed in that short) and with Red unofficially given the name of Miss Vavoom.
- Scott Bradley's music scores can range from somber to lively, including his famous twelve-tone technique.
- A handful of great cartoons (before Avery's departure):
- Dumb-Hounded (the character's debut)
- The Shooting of Dan McGoo
- Northwest Hounded Police
- Senor Droopy (the first cartoon which the character is officially named)
- Wags to Riches (the character's first pairing with Spike (a.k.a. Butch the Irish Dog))
- Out-Foxed
- The Chump Champ
- Daredevil Droopy
- Droopy's Good Deed
- Droopy's Double Trouble
- The Three Little Pups
- Great voice talents from Bill Thompson, Tex Avery, Don Messick, Paul Frees, Frank Graham, Sara Berner and Daws Butler.
- Droopy later spawned a comic book series of his own in the 1990s, as well as an underrated spin-off series, entitled "Droopy, Master Detective".
- Like it's "sister series" Tom and Jerry, the theme tune used for these cartoons (as well as the rest of the Tex Avery MGM cartoons of the period) is catchy and memorable for kids and adults alike.
- Like many Tex Avery shorts, Droopy's films were released on VHS, DVD, Blu-ray and HBO Max.
- Droopy made appearances in Cartoon Network promos during its heyday, along with Tom and Jerry and other Hanna-Barbera characters.
- He made a few cameos in two theatrical Tom and Jerry movies (both the 1992 and 2021 versions), as well as numerous Tom and Jerry direct-to-video movies and TV revivals.
- He is more popular and famous than Avery's other series characters at MGM: Screwy Squirrel and the bear duo George and Junior, who were both attempts at creating a series to rival the Tom and Jerry series. The latter two weren't as successful as the character and were dropped as a result.
Bad Qualities
- Like many other American cartoons from the '40s-'50s, some shorts have racist stereotypes, where two particular Droopy cartoons "Daredevil Droopy" and "Droopy's Good Deed" are notable to have scenes involving blackface gags which results from Spike (later renamed Butch the Irish Dog) getting into TNT explosions as comedic effect which is seen frequently in many Tex Avery cartoons. These are often removed when they are shown on TV after segregation against black people in America had come to an end in 1965 with the help of Martin Luther King Jr. in the time.
- The cartoons suffered a major drop in quality when Michael Lah took over as director after Tex Avery's departure. Budgets were downsized, the animation became weirder and subpar at best and the gags started to fall flat, with "Blackboard Jumble" as the worst offender of such during this era.
- "Droopy Leprechaun", while still a decent short, wasn't the highest note for a final short to end the series.
- Unlike Tom and Jerry, he was never given his own series of video games, but his only game is Droopy's Tennis Open (aside from his long career of animation and comic books).
Trivia
- Droopy returned in The Tom and Jerry Comedy Show, Tom & Jerry Kids, Tom and Jerry Tales, and the 2014 version of The Tom and Jerry Show.
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