How's It Hold Up?

Jaksot

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  Song of the South 09.09.2026 1t 37min

  (Spoiler Section Length: 6min 36sec)In Disney's long history of filmmaking, there are some movies the company would prefer you forget. Of these, perhaps none is more infamous than Song of the South. Frequently derided for being racist and boring, today we finally tackle it to find out, is it really as bad as everyone says? Should it be included on Disney+? Does this thing hold up, even a little bit? Let's find out!
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  Shorts! Donald Duck: The Hockey Champ & Officer Duck 03.09.2026 30min

  The end of the 30s marks the fall of Mickey Mouse and the rise of Donald Duck, who would be Disney's predominant cartoon star throughout the 40s and 50s. In these two shorts we see increasing refinement of the Donald vs. the Nephews formula, and the first instance of Mickey's villain Pete showing up in a solo Donald effort. Do these cartoons show why Donald ended up becoming such a huge success? Let's discuss!
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  Disney's Hunchback of Notre Dame Stage Musical (feat. Ryan) 27.08.2026 1t 53min

  (Spoiler Section Length: 19min 16sec)So after a hit Disney movie has been made, and people are clamoring for more, what options are there to give them that? There's sequels, obviously, a very popular choice. There's remakes, a current trend that some people hope will die at some point. And there's the even less common tv spinoff maneuver. But what about... the stage? There's actually quite a few Disney stage musicals made over the last few decades, many of which made it to Broadway! This one did not. Is that because it's bad? Let's talk about it!
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  Shorts! Merrie Melodies: Bars and Stripes Forever & Porky's Breakdowns (feat. Ryan) 27.08.2026 35min

  Among the various Warner Bros cartoon directors, many are well-remembered today even by casual fans, and even more are remembered by those obsessed with the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series. But also some are rightfully forgotten. Generally speaking, Ben Hardaway and Cal Dalton are among that latter group, even if they do deserve some recognition for their contributions to Bugs Bunny. But what about their original cartoons? Are any of those good? Let's see one of their best and determine if it's actually worth watching! Oh also we hear Porky Pig curse.
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  The Hunchback of Notre Dame II (feat. Ryan) 12.08.2026 1t 5min

  (Spoiler Section Length: 6min 13sec)When it comes to Disney animated sequels, there's an accepted canon when it comes to which ones are half-decent and which are the bottom of the barrel. In that canon, Return of Jafar is often considered the latter, but this podcast doesn't exactly agree with that opinion. What then of Hunchback II, which is also often considered among the worst? It's often derided for how different in tone it is from the original, for how boring the plot is and for how awful the animation is. Do we agree? Is it truly the worst of the worst? Let's find out!
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  Shorts! MGM: Seal Skinners & Mad Maestro (feat. Ryan) 12.08.2026 37min

  We've checked in once before with Friz Freleng while he's away from Warner Bros, with a Captain and the Kids short. Today we watched another short in that series and also another solo short. Is his output getting any better than his early Warner Bros days? Let's find out!!
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  Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame (feat. Ryan) 29.07.2026 1t 48min

  (Spoiler Section Length: 10min 18sec)Of all the many Disney adaptations over the years, one of the most divisive is Hunchback of Notre Dame. Lauded by many for its darker tone compared to most Disney works but derided by others for Disney-ifying the source material with additions like the gargoyles or changes like the ending, it's a work whose reputation is hard to easily quantify. So what did we think? Let's find out!
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  Shorts! Merrie Melodies: Daffy Duck and the Dinosaur (feat. Ryan) 27.07.2026 29min

  Chuck Jones is given a lot of the blame for Daffy Duck's personality shifting over the years, and I don't think it's entirely fair to lay that all upon his shoulders. That said, he is PART of the equation, and we see some signs of what Daffy would become even in this very first cartoon directed by Jones that features him. So okay, sure, it's got historical value, but is it any good for a modern viewer? Let's find out!
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  Digimon Adventure 02: Hurricane Touchdown!! 15.07.2026 55min

  (Spoiler Section Length 7min 20sec)Well we've watched the first two Digimon movies, we've watched the English Digimon Movie, so it only makes sense that we finally wrap around to watching the third Digimon film—which is actually the 3rd and 4th films, technically—so we can finish this whole Digimon saga off cleanly. And admittedly, this is the part of the English Digimon Movie that I was always most curious about, since it was the part that made the least sense and therefore seemed the most damaged by the heavy editing of the English film. So now that we've finally seen it... does it make more sense? And more importantly, is it any good? Let's find out!
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  Shorts! Betty Boop: Musical Mountaineers 10.07.2026 17min

  She's had a... well a sometimes-good run, but Betty Boop's time in the classic cartoon theatrical shorts era is coming to a close. In this episode we look at the final Boop cartoon that we'll be covering on the podcast, and talk a little about the remaining shorts in the series. And then we answer the question of if this is a decent way for Betty to go, and whether this or the shorts that come after are worth watching. Are they? Let's find out!
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  Digimon: The Movie (2000) 01.07.2026 57min

  When one thinks back on the era of anime localization that existed in the 90s and eary 2000s, several things come to mind: a desire to remove all Japanese cultural references. A need to never let the soundtrack be silent. A desire for extra jokes. Any and all edges sanded down, no matter how much the script must be rewritten to make it happen. And all of those issues appear in this particular film! So... is it any good? Let's find out!
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  Shorts! Merrie Melodies: Prest-O Change-O & Hare-Um Scare-Um 29.06.2026 38min

  At this point in our viewing of Warner Bros shorts, two classic Looney Tunes stars have fully appeared (Porky & Daffy), one is nearly arrived (Elmer Fudd) and another inches ever forward, but still eludes us. That upcoming star is of course the biggest of them all: Bugs Bunny. In these two shorts we see bits and pieces of the rabbit who will one day charm the world, but the hare in these shorts is still a far cry from that beloved character. That said, are these shorts still enjoyable in their own right? Listen to find out!
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  Pokemon the Movie: Mewtwo Strikes Back (Japanese Version) 17.06.2026 39min

  When movies in one language are brought over to another, whether through subtitles or dubbing, something is always lost, to at least some extent, even when translated with the best of intentions. But sometimes things are translated with less than good intentions, with more of an eye toward making them palatable to another audience than faithfully representing the original work. This sort of translation was especially common before the mid-to-late 2000s, and thus it should be no surprise that the first Pokemon movie was affected. We watched the English version last year so now let's compare and see... how much was lost, and how do they hold up against one another?
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  Shorts! Silly Symphonies: The Ugly Duckling (1939) 16.06.2026 24min

  Remakes are a tricky thing, especially nowadays. If the original was already good, what does remaking it offer? But when the original was already an adaptation of another work, there's always the possibility that a remake could be more faithful to that work, or even just interpret it differently. Such is the case with this final Silly Symphony, which adapts a classic fable that the series had already very loosely adapted earlier in the decade. This new adaptation not only hews closer to the source material, but boasts not only more detailed animation but also color, in comparison to the original's black and white. Does this automatically make it better? Not necessarily! Let's see how this thing holds up and determine which Ugly Duckling Silly Symphony reigns supreme!
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  Animal Farm (1954) 04.06.2026 53min

  With a recently-released new adaption of this classic novella stirring controversy, we decided to take a look at the original adaption, the one often used in classrooms. While it has its deviations, it overall sticks much closer to the source material, though it also has a notably small budget that effects the quality of the animation and the size of the vocal cast. Is this version of Orwell's story still worth viewing today, or is it best left to history? Listen to find out!
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  Shorts! Popeye: It's the Natural Thing to Do 27.05.2026 16min

  The Popeye cartoons tend to fall into something of a pattern: Popeye and Bluto are both interested in Olive Oyl, and they fight about it. But what if they... didn't? This self-aware cartoon comedically interrogates the violence at the heart of your typical Popeye cartoon, with the iconic trio being tasked to avoid brutality for the day. Does this result in a good cartoon, or is this one best skipped? Let's find out!
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  The Muppets Take Manhattan 20.05.2026 1t 13min

  (Spoiler Section Length - 6min 6sec)The final film in the original Muppets trilogy is one that is frustratingly difficult to find, compared to the two before it. It's not available on the same streaming services as the other two! It's in fact had weird distribution rights for a long time, and that combined with the lack of a digital soundtrack and a more grounded tone than the others has made it one of the least talked about of the Muppets films. But should it be talked about? Or does it deserve to fade into history? Let's find out!
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  Shorts! MGM: Goldilocks and the Three Bears / Terrytoons: The Three Bears 15.05.2026 37min

  When it comes to classic fairytales, they're often used as fodder for cartoon shenanigans, so much so that you can compare multiple versions of the same fairytale from the same studio over the years. But in this case we're focused on two different studios making a cartoon based on the same source material in the same year, but with wildly different budgets and directorial styles. Do either of these shorts still hold up in the modern day? And regardless, how do they compare to one another? Let's find out!
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  The Great Muppet Caper (feat. Vaughn) 06.05.2026 1t 15min

  (Spoiler Section Length - 6min 50sec)One might expect the second Muppet Movie to follow in the tracks of its predecessor, another tale about the Muppets origins, perhaps them forming the Muppet Show or something like that. But instead Henson opted to create a genre film, a heist film combined with a full-blown musical, tap-dancing and water ballet galore. Does this unexpected direction yield enjoyable results, especially so many years later? Let's find out!
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  Shorts! Mickey Mouse: Society Dog Show 30.04.2026 19min

  We start the year off with the final Mickey Mouse cartoon to feature him in his original design - after this one he'll start looking like he does in Fantasia! Unfortunately, though, this short is also part of the trend that would only get worse of making Mickey Mouse cartoons glorified Pluto cartoons. Do either of these aspects affect the quality of the cartoon, and is it still worth watching today? Let's find out!