Warner Archive continues their excellent work in the field of animation with this second volume of 15 shorts from the 1940s era of Popeye the Sailor. This releases continues the early years of the “Famous Studios” era of Popeye that followed the beloved Fleischer-era. This was the era of Popeye that was fully in color, with very few clunkers to be found in this batch. Some of the standout shorts on the disc find Popeye making his way to Mars or causing a ruckus at an amusement park. Similar to the Tex Avery release, this disc opens up with a warning that some of these cartoons contain ethnic and racial prejudices that were commonplace in American society. Warner Archive thankfully presents these shorts as they were originally shown rather than locking these cartoons away or butchering them.
For those who are new to the world of Popeye, there is, for better or for worse, a pretty standard formula that makes up these shorts. At the core you have Popeye, Olive Oyl and Bluto, who always seem to end up in a violent love triangle no matter the initial situation. Popeye and Bluto always end up beating the living daylights out of each other in increasingly creative and amusing ways in order to win the heart of the beloved Olive. Though not as classically handsome, Popeye always comes out on top since he is not dastardly like the insanely problematic Bluto. Although Bluto may get the best of Popeye initially, you can always count on a can on spinach coming out of nowhere to give Popeye the strength to best his foe. The formula works well, but this is a series that might be enjoyed more if you do not binge it in one sitting. Below is a rundown of the shorts on this disc:
- House Tricks? (1946)
- Service with a Guile (1946)
- Klondike Casanova (1946)
- Peep in the Deep (1946)
- Rocket to Mars (1946)
- Rodeo Romeo (1946)
- The Fistic Mystic (1946)
- The Island Fling (1946)
- Abusement Park (1947)
- I’ll Be Skiing Ya (1947)
- The Royal Four-Flusher (1947)
- Popeye and the Pirates (1947)
- Wotta Knight (1947)
- Safari So Good (1947)
- All’s Fair at the Fair (1947)
Video Quality
Warner Archive brings Popeye The Sailor: The 1940s – Volume 2 to Blu-Ray sourced from a brand new 4K remaster of each short’s original nitrate negative. The quality of these shorts is visually dazzling with big, bright colors and nary a trace of damage to be found. There is the occasional softness with certain shots due to issues with the source material, but these issues are few and far between. There is a nice amount of natural film grain present with a remarkable amount of detail and clarity to the picture. The black levels hold up really well with no instances of black crush to be found. It is clear that Warner Archive has taken a great amount of care to restore these shorts to their most pristine condition.
Audio Quality
The audio quality of the Blu-Ray disc is likewise excellent with a DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio (mono) track that presents essentially no flaws or damage. While you may have previously seen some of these tracks on TV with all manner of age-related wear and tear, these tracks provide clarity to the dialogue, sound effects and music throughout. This track will blow you back even without the surround activity. This disc also includes optional English (SDH) subtitles during all 15 shorts.
Special Features
This one disc release does not contain any additional special features, but the quality of the main content of this disc is astounding and more than makes up for this.
Final Thoughts
This second volume of 1940s era Popeye The Sailor provides a solid amount of entertainment over these 15 shorts along with a top-notch audio and visual presentation. Warner Archive is one of the studios that animation fans have come to cherish for the amount of care they put into providing the best possible presentation of these beloved shorts. As long as they keep putting them out, I will keep recommending them to everyone. Highly Recommended
Popeye The Sailor: The 1940s – Volume 2 can be purchased directly through Warner Archive or various other online retailers.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Warner Archive has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.