DVD Review: Popeye 1938 - 1940

For Americans mired in the Great Depression of the 1930's, Popeye the Sailor was their saviour. The muttering seaman wasn't exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer (Wimpy outwitted him on numerous occasions) and he was inexplicably devoted to the gangly Olive Oyl, who regularly dumped him for Bluto and various other villains. However, once Popeye swallowed his spinach, he was an unstoppable force: beating up the bad guy, saving the day and winning back the girl.

The wish-fulfillment inherent to these shorts made Popeye one of the most popular cartoon characters of the Twentieth Century. By 1935, the Fleischer brothers' cartoon adaptation of E.C. Segar's creation had become one of the most popular series of theatrical shorts, easily surpassing Disney's Mickey Mouse. Unfortunately, legal struggles between King Features Syndicate and Turner Broadcasting have kept Popeye off home video for more than 20 years.

Well, 'better late than never' and Warner Bros. has finally put Popeye on DVD, with the 2nd volume, Popeye the Sailor 1938 - 1940, about to be released in stores.

Is Popeye any good?

The shorts were fairly formulaic. Here's the standard plot: Popeye gets into a situation, Popeye gets pummeled, Popeye somehow scores a can of spinach (either he has it in his shirt or, in the case of "Bulldozing the Bull," an enraged bystander throws it at his head). Popeye guzzles the spinach and turns into a super-hero. Rinse, and repeat.

But what makes these shorts classics is the invention going on in the animation. Fleischer's animators took ruthless advantage of the medium's "anything goes!" credo to violate the laws of gravity, time, space, and even the constraints of film (at one point, the characters slip out of a broken reel, and direct a pair of live-action hands to stitch it back together). There were also instances where characters broke the 4th Wall between screen personality and audience (at one point, Popeye leans out of the screen and asks, "Has anybody got any spinach?").

In addition, the fact that Jack Mercer, Mae Questel and Margie Hines voiced their dialogue after the animation was created gives these shorts an unusual edge (usually with animation, it's the other way 'round). That situation gave the voice actors a virtual license to kill when it came to responding to what was happening onscreen, especially with Popeye's hilarious ad libs. Some jaw-droppers include the salty sailor muttering "I've lost my sexual appeal!" after Olive dumps him in "I Yam Love Sick."

Extras and Commentaries

Unlike the first box set, which had 4 DVD's, Popeye the Sailor 1938 - 1940 is a relatively bare-bones affair, spanning only two disks. However, there are still some great extras to this set.

The documentary "Out of the Inkwell: The Fleischer Story" talks about the two brothers who adapted both Popeye and Superman for theatrical animation, while "Men of Spinach and Steel" makes the case that Popeye influenced Segel and Schuster's famous creation. That's especially ironic, considering that several later Popeye sequences lifted tropes from the Superman mythos.

A Popular Science short from 1938 takes the viewer behind the scenes at Fleischer Studios while the animators produce the final colour short "Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp" (also included on the DVD). There's also an extremely rare pencil test for "Females is Fickle" (the Fleischers strongly discouraged the practice) as well as an audio interview with the voice of Popeye during this time, Jack Mercer.

Final Analysis

Granted, the Popeye the Sailor cartoons haven't aged well. The Depression-era plotlines are simplistic and repetitive, and feminists will gag at the depiction of Olive Oyl, who often gets herself into trouble and squalls for her "Popeeyyyye!!!" to bail her out. Titles like "Females is Fickle" and "Wimmin Hadn't Oughta Drive" pretty much say it all.

But the constant invention within these shorts saves them from boredom and admit it: who among you hasn't dreamed about chucking back some spinach, and turning into a one-person vengeance machine on everyone who ever did you wrong? This box set is well worth buying for the animation fanatic in your family, but kids might get bored.

Major kudos to Warner Bros. for putting these legendary shorts on DVD. The WB hasn't given these classic cartoons the care and respect that Disney regularly gives their animated heritage, but sets like Popeye the Sailor 1938 -1940 should go a long way in rectifying that sad situation. A solid 8 out of 10.

Popeye the Sailor 1938 - 1940 hits the streets on June 17th.

Popeye the Sailor 1938 - 1940 DVD cover

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