A newsreel from Japan with updates on the war effort.A newsreel from Japan with updates on the war effort.A newsreel from Japan with updates on the war effort.
- Director
- Writer
- Star
Photos
Mel Blanc
- Nipponews Buzzard
- (voice)
- (uncredited)
- …
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAOL-Time-Warner refuses to release or air this cartoon.
- ConnectionsFeatured in ToonHeads: A ToonHeads Special: The Wartime Cartoons (2001)
Featured review
Difficult to rate and review
Love animation, it was a big part of my life as a child, particularly Disney, Looney Tunes and Tom and Jerry, and still love it whether it's film, television or cartoons. Actually appreciate t even more through adult eyes, thanks to having a broader knowledge of all the difficult animation styles and individual studios and directors.
Norm McCabe was overshadowed by very stiff competition when he was active, ones with more distinctive and imaginative styles, but he was a very capable director who never made it bigger (some of his work even relatively obscure), due to mainly never making colour cartoons and being responsible for some with racial stereotyping. While they weren't classics, some of his cartoons were actually pretty decent and more, they are a long way from terrible or must misses.
'Tokio Jokio' is one of his lesser cartoons and is a cartoon that will polarise, and has polarised, viewers, something that is apparent here. It is still interesting and watchable, but it is something that is very difficult to rate and review.
When it comes to the animation, 'Tokio Jokio' is very good. Much of it is fluid in movement, crisp in shading and very meticulous in detail. Ever the master, Carl Stalling's music is typically superb. It is as always lushly orchestrated, full of lively energy and characterful in rhythm, not only adding to the action but also enhancing it.
Mel Blanc as always provides terrific voice acting in multiple roles. Blanc shows an unequalled versatility and ability to bring an individual personality to every one of his multiple characters in a vast majority of his work, there is no wonder why he was in such high demand as a voice actor.
A few amusing moments, while far from subtle and may offend some the Hitler and Mussolini gags were two of the cartoon's funnier ones and pretty ballsy for a cartoon back then during that particular period. And it is interesting from a historical perspective, it is not too hard to judge it as a product of its time.
Even when not trying to judge 'Tokio Jokio' by today's standards, the cartoon is mostly not very funny and lacks wit and freshness. Some of the content may go over the heads of younger adults and those unfamiliar with the subjects (was unfamiliar myself with some). And a good deal of it (even from someone who actually is not easily offended) is not particularly tasteful, the stereotypes and caricatures, while not far off from the truth, are not for the faint hearted and would have been deemed offensive by some back then probably.
Pacing could have been livelier, some of it is limp, and too many of the characters/reels/gags are too come and go brief to properly connect.
That the story was going to be non-existent was expected by me, was hoping though that there would be more to it than an episodic stringing along of gags and such and in a way that's not always cohesive.
Overall, watchable but a difficult one to rate and review. Not many cartoons divide me this much, this is one of the strongest examples. 5/10 Bethany Cox
Norm McCabe was overshadowed by very stiff competition when he was active, ones with more distinctive and imaginative styles, but he was a very capable director who never made it bigger (some of his work even relatively obscure), due to mainly never making colour cartoons and being responsible for some with racial stereotyping. While they weren't classics, some of his cartoons were actually pretty decent and more, they are a long way from terrible or must misses.
'Tokio Jokio' is one of his lesser cartoons and is a cartoon that will polarise, and has polarised, viewers, something that is apparent here. It is still interesting and watchable, but it is something that is very difficult to rate and review.
When it comes to the animation, 'Tokio Jokio' is very good. Much of it is fluid in movement, crisp in shading and very meticulous in detail. Ever the master, Carl Stalling's music is typically superb. It is as always lushly orchestrated, full of lively energy and characterful in rhythm, not only adding to the action but also enhancing it.
Mel Blanc as always provides terrific voice acting in multiple roles. Blanc shows an unequalled versatility and ability to bring an individual personality to every one of his multiple characters in a vast majority of his work, there is no wonder why he was in such high demand as a voice actor.
A few amusing moments, while far from subtle and may offend some the Hitler and Mussolini gags were two of the cartoon's funnier ones and pretty ballsy for a cartoon back then during that particular period. And it is interesting from a historical perspective, it is not too hard to judge it as a product of its time.
Even when not trying to judge 'Tokio Jokio' by today's standards, the cartoon is mostly not very funny and lacks wit and freshness. Some of the content may go over the heads of younger adults and those unfamiliar with the subjects (was unfamiliar myself with some). And a good deal of it (even from someone who actually is not easily offended) is not particularly tasteful, the stereotypes and caricatures, while not far off from the truth, are not for the faint hearted and would have been deemed offensive by some back then probably.
Pacing could have been livelier, some of it is limp, and too many of the characters/reels/gags are too come and go brief to properly connect.
That the story was going to be non-existent was expected by me, was hoping though that there would be more to it than an episodic stringing along of gags and such and in a way that's not always cohesive.
Overall, watchable but a difficult one to rate and review. Not many cartoons divide me this much, this is one of the strongest examples. 5/10 Bethany Cox
helpful•10
- TheLittleSongbird
- May 29, 2018
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Looney Tunes #8 (1942-1943 Season): Tokio Jokio
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime7 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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