This turned out to be the second Laurel & Hardy short to be nominated for an Oscar after The Music Box which actually won. It's also the only one of their films that could be called a sequel as the couple played by Charlie Hall and Mae Busch are revealed to be the same one Stan & Ollie previously encountered in Them Thar Hills. The boys are opening an electrical shop while Hall and Busch have a grocery store next door. Through a Stan mishap, Ollie winds up having to go through the bedroom of Mae and as they go downstairs, Ollie says to her in front of Charlie, "I've never been in a position like that before!" which arouses suspicion to the point of Hall telling Hardy he'll do something to him of he even looks at his wife. His feelings hurt, Ollie demands an apology which isn't forthcoming so what then happens is what the title implies. And, oh, what retaliation between the boys and Charlie that builds and builds to great hilarity! This is one the funniest of the L & H shorts, that's for sure! So as we leave Stan & Ollie out of one sequel, we''ll next visit Abbott & Costello in their only one as well, Buck Privates Come Home.
Review of Tit for Tat
