Bosko the Speed King (1933) User Reviews

This short is probably better than I found it to be, because I can't look at it fresh

[llltdesq · 7/10 · 6 October 2006]

This is actually probably a very good short, but I can't help but view it with a bit of a "ho hum" attitude for reasons I'll discuss below. There will be spoilers:

Bosko is getting ready for a race as Honey reads the papers about the race. While this is a nice short and it looks very good visually in a number of spots, I can't muster the enthusiasm for it that it probably deserves, because I've seen the basic premise executed much more effectively in other shorts (most notably in Porky's Road Race) by Warner Brothers and by Fleischer Studios in a Betty Boop short, the title of which escapes me at the moment.

So while there are some nice gags, like Bosko "tuning" his car with the aid of a piano and later on his changing of a flat by first using a cat as a make-shift jack, unzipping the tire and swapping out inner-tubes, too many of the gags are similar to other gags I've seen in other shorts, where they were more effectively done.

I like this cartoon very much in any case and think it most definitely deserves to have an audience. I hope it comes out on a future Looney Tunes Golden Collection. Recommended.

Bosko and the race

[TheLittleSongbird · 7/10 · 10 June 2017]

The Bosko cartoons may not be animation masterpieces, but they are fascinating as examples of Looney Tunes in their early days before the creation of more compelling characters and funnier and more creative cartoons. There are some good cartoons, as well as some average or less ones.

'Bosko the Speed King' is another one of the better later Bosko cartoons as was said with the previous cartoons 'Bosko in Person' after seeing three forgettable efforts in a row. Sure, as usual, the story is thin and more of an excuse to string along the gags and music scenes. Occasionally the pacing lags slightly and Bosko is still a pretty limited character if never an annoyance.

Honey is very charming however. As always for a Bosko cartoon the animation is good. Not exactly refined but fluid and crisp enough with some nice detail, it is especially good in the meticulous backgrounds and some remarkably flexible yet natural movements for Bosko. The music doesn't disappoint either, its infectious energy, rousing merriment, lush orchestration and how well it fits with the animation is just a joy.

Sound quality has clarity and the synchronisation isn't sloppy and has imagination. The way Bosko is animated is well done and remarkably natural.

Most of the gags are amusing, though a couple of them are also too familiar.

In summary, good fun. 7/10 Bethany Cox

Warner Bros. obviously is giving we Americans of Today . . .

[oscaralbert · 7/10 · 23 January 2017]

. . . some advice on how to fight the Bully Boy Billionaires now in power thanks to their victory in the First Battle of Bull Run-Off-Your-Mouth commencing the Second U.S. Civil War (and, of course, there's bound to be a Second Battle of the Bull coming up soon!). As Warner advised us again since the Debacle of the 2016 Rigged-by-Russia Election--in the live-action feature LIVE BY NIGHT--we can only best the serial finger-raping bullies and blowhards by surprising them FROM BENEATH. That's exactly how Warner's always prophetic Animated Shorts Seers division (aka, the Looney Tuners) suggest as they depict Bosko's tactic in passing the Big Bully's gargantuan vehicle by taking the low road and passing UNDERNEATH it! (This is the corollary to "When they go low, we go high.") The obviously filthy rich Bozo piloting the lead car has already keyed Bosko's modest ride and strewn the race track with tacks to sabotage all his competitors. However, Bosko demonstrates that cats make the best tire jacks, and bubbles up from below, just as Joe's guys (those loyal to Ben Affleck's character) wipe out the Corrupt Capitalists as LIVE BY NIGHT concludes. So, America, it's high time we got with it, Warner warns, and percolate up from the Bottom (where most of us 99 Per Centers already reside) to take back what's rightfully ours while we still can!