Rabbit Seasoning

Plot synopsis:
The cartoon finds a row of signs saying it's rabbit season. It is revealed that Daffy Duck is the one putting up the signs, stating that while he knows it's unsporting, he has to have some fun "and besides, it's really duck season."
Elmer Fudd then appears and notices rabbit tracks that Daffy left, leading to Bugs' hole. He pokes his gun into the hole, threatens to blast him out if he doesn't come out, and then follows through on his threat. Bugs Bunny, however, appears out the other side and begins a conversation with Elmer about rabbit season. When Elmer fails to realize that Bugs is a rabbit, Daffy emerges from his hiding spot, disgusted by this, and points out that Bugs is a rabbit, which the latter confirms, asking if Elmer would prefer to shoot him now or wait until he gets home. Daffy eagerly shouts for the first option and Bugs rebukes him, "You keep out of this! He doesn't have to shoot you now!" Daffy angrily asserts, "He does so have to shoot me now!" and outright demands that Elmer do so. Elmer looks confused for a few seconds, but complies as Daffy sticks his tongue out at Bugs. The shot dislocates his beak to the back of his head, and Daffy replaces his beak before requesting to run through what they just said again. Bugs complies, and upon reaching Bugs' word swap, Daffy calls him out on "pronoun trouble", saying "It's not 'he doesn't have to shoot you now.' It's 'he doesn't have to shoot me now.' WELL, I SAY HE DOES HAVE TO SHOOT ME NOW!" Subsequently, Daffy commands Elmer to shoot him again, which he does. Daffy fixes his beak again and is about to rant at Bugs before realizing that he may fall into the trap again. He decides to speak to Elmer instead, confirming that he is a hunter and that it is rabbit season. Bugs interjects, asking what Elmer would do if Daffy was a rabbit. Daffy repeats the question angrily, and has enough time to realize what he said (looking towards the camera and piteously saying "Not again") before Elmer shoots him. Daffy fixes his bill once more and laughs sarcastically at Bugs for his trick.
At that point Elmer grows impatient and begins firing at them both. Bugs and Daffy hide in Bugs' hole, and the latter checks to see if he's gone at the former's behest. He is shot again, and in a daze rejects Bugs' suggestion of being a decoy, whereupon the former dresses up as a woman (wearing a Lana Turner-style sweater). He manages to fool Elmer briefly, but a peeved Daffy demands that he reveal his identity out of sheer honesty. When he prods to ask if Bugs has anything to say out of sheer honesty, "she" replies that she would love a duck dinner. A lovestruck Elmer shoots Daffy, who removes his beak by hand as he is shot and replaces it afterwards. The duck approaches the rabbit, briefly apologizes for suspecting him, and then removes his wig to expose him and commands Elmer to shoot him. Bugs responds by asking, "Would you like to shoot him here or wait till you get home?" Daffy attempts to escape any more tricks by choosing the latter option, whereupon he joins Elmer on a walk to his cabin. One gunshot later, Daffy walks back to Bugs, fixes his beak, and tells the rabbit, "You're despicable."

Tags: psychedelic

Review:
While other people have said this is the weakest of the Chuck Jones "hunting trilogy," I actually think this one's the best.
I always get a kick out of that "Would you like to shoot me now or wait till you get home?" gag.
It's funny how no matter what, it's always Daffy that gets shot, not Bugs.
Oh, and I liked Daffy's line at the beginning, "Awfully unthporting of me, I know, but hey I gotta have some fun!".
Like most Looney Tunes, I could watch "Rabbit Seasoning" over and over.
The "wabbit season/duck season" argument between Bugs and Daffy is comparable to Abbott and Costello's "Who's on first" routine.
Classic Looney Tunes.
This is my all time favorite Looney Tunes cartoon.
It's a common plot: Daffy Duck tries to convince Elmer Fudd that it is really rabbit season and shoot Bugs.
In addition to usual cartoon comedy, this cartoon is supported by great word play that will keep you rolling on the floor..
The "Hunting Trilogy" of Rabbit Fire (1951), Rabbit Seasoning (1952), and Duck!
(1953) should be considered the comedic high water mark of the Chuck Jones-Michael Maltese collaboration.
Michael Maltese never got the credit that directors like Jones, Freleng or Avery got, but it's his dialogue and situations that make Warner Bros.
cartoons, and these three in particular, some of the FUNNIEST ever made..
We see more and more signs pointing exactly to Bugs Bunny's hole.
Daffy Duck!Daffy puts the last sign up, tiptoes away and says to us, the audience, "Awfully unsporting of me, I know.
Besides, it's really duck season."From that point, we now see Elmer Fudd, shotgun in hand.....and a war of semantics between Bugs and Daffy with Bugs winning every time.
Only in cartoons, thankfully, can we see someone getting shotgun-blasted in the head five times and keep going!.
Once again Elmer is faced with the dilemma of who to shoot.
Bugs of Daffy.
He's unsure of what season it is and Bunny and Duck arguing help matters not.
Though Bugs proves he's the smartest once more by repeatedly using reverse psychology on Daffy in increasingly subtle ways.
Daffy freaks out and demands the bunny be shot.
Though Elmer is too stupid he is hopelessly in love with the girl bunny thing.
If he weren't so dumb he'd know it REALLY is duck season and just blast Daffy.
Daffy is so shocked that he even goes home with Elmer to be blasted in his living room.Poor Daff.
What's funny about this classic cartoon starring Bugs, Daffy and Elmer?
Daffy Duck has signs hanging from every inch of every available tree announcing that it's rabbit season.
But, you guessed it - it's really duck season.
Elmer Fudd appears: he's the only hunter dumb enough to fall for the gag.He's even dumber than that.
When Bugs Bunny strides up to him and asks how the rabbit hunting is going, Elmer admits that he hasn't seen a rabbit yet.
He emerges from his hiding place and immediately points to a rabbit: Bugs Bunny.
"Shoot him now!" Daffy screams.
"He doesn't have to shoot you now." Daffy insists that he does.After Daffy returns his blasted-off beak to his head, he is doomed to more arguments infected with "pronoun trouble" which all have the same result.
Later, Bugs dresses as a sexy woman and flirtingly asks Elmer for a duck dinner.
Ha, ha, ha!"What's funny about this classic cartoon?
Bug recoils in fright as Daffy screams in his face.
Bugs Bunny says "Yes?" while dripping with self-satisfaction.
Daffy Duck stands on tiptoes demanding to be shot.
Elmer Fudd whines that he "can't wait any wonger." Daffy sees Bugs in women's clothes and makes that little noise with his tongue.
Carl Stalling plays "You Must Have Been a Beautiful Baby" during Bugs's drag act.
Daffy demands "sheer honesty" out of Bugs.
Daffy tells Bugs he's "desthpicable."In five words: every detail of this film.NOTE: This short is available on "Looney Tunes Golden Collection, Volume One," Disc 1.
This is the middle cartoon of the three (between Rabbit Fire and Duck!
Rabbit, Duck!) and is the weakest of the three, while still being quite funny.
Still a good cartoon.
Daffy is so clearly overmatched that it almost becomes painful to watch at times.
Good cartoon in an excellent series.
Bugs Bunny almost always gets the last word, and this cartoon really promotes that.
In this one, Daffy Duck has convinced Elmer Fudd it is rabbit season to deflect the fact that it is really duck season.
Since Elmer is no Rhodes Scholar himself, he falls for every verbal trap put forth and Daffy ends up paying for it with buckshot dismantling him.
On several occasions, the clumsy hunter shoots the poor duck, usually rearranging his head in some way.
There is the obligatory scene where Bugs dresses up as a Southern Belle and Elmer goes bonkers over him/her.
Very funny Bugs & Daffy cartoon.
The second of their hunting trilogy with Elmer Fudd.
The cartoon starts with a series of signs Daffy has put up to direct Elmer to Bugs' home, telling him it's rabbit season.
He's hoping Elmer will shoot Bugs.
Needless to say, things don't go as Daffy planned.
The rest of the short is Bugs outsmarting Daffy and getting him to say or do the wrong things, which usually results in dimwitted Elmer shooting him.
Classic comedy from Chuck Jones and Michael Maltese.
One of the best Looney Tunes ever made..
Besides it is really duck season!".
If you overlook the fact that the plot has been done many times, this is a hilarious and gleefully enjoyable Looney Tunes cartoon.
The animation is wonderful, the backgrounds so detailed and a lot of audacious colouring too.
The writing is razor sharp, and the sight gags especially Daffy constantly getting his head blown off are brilliantly timed.
I really did love the arguments between Daffy and Bugs, and that Bugs wins every time.
I also love it that Daffy is really greedy and nasty while being uproariously funny.
Bugs is still his charming and rascally self, and Elmer is funny if rather dumb too.
In short, this is absolutely brilliant, and actually my personal favourite of the Hunting Trilogy for sheer entertainment value.
10/10 Bethany Cox. The most finely honed script in the Hunting Trilogy.
Chuck Jones's 'Rabbit Seasoning', the second in the much beloved hunting trilogy, is often considered to be the best of the three.
While I find it almost impossible to choose between this trio of fantastic cartoons, I would have to concede that 'Rabbit Seasoning' is the most finely honed script.
Here, the emphasis is placed on language as Bugs and Daffy run through a series of complex dialogues in the grand tradition of Abbot and Costello's 'Who's on next' routine.
As a long term Daffy fan, I have always been delighted by the hunting trilogy because it is consistently Daffy who gets all the best lines (the famous "Pronoun trouble" being one of the all time classics) and does most of the work.
Bugs plays the role of cool manipulator while Elmer, as always, is the befuddled dupe.
Part of what makes the hunting trilogy so much fun is that Daffy and Elmer pose so little threat to Bugs that he is basically just kicking back and having some easy laughs.
Elmer falls into every trap that is laid for him but it is poor old Daffy who comes off worst, being shot in the face again and again, his beak ending up in more and more ridiculous positions.
As intricate an example of Chuck Jones's impeccable timing as you'll come across, 'Rabbit Seasoning' is a true classic..
Not my favourite episode of Daffy, Bugs and Elmer....
I do not like this cartoon as much as many others, partly because it was made in its period.
I much prefer cartoons with Daffy and Bugs which are fifteen or so years before-hand.
Many people will like this, particularly people who always find violence funny, cartoon or not.The basic plot is a pretty well known one for Looney Tunes: Elmer goes out hunting, Daffy leads him to Bugs and Daffy ends up being shot instead.
Also inserted are quite clever and highly entertaining jokes (some do not enhance the episode), ugly shooting and animation which is slightly mediocre.
This way of plot-going is not all that unusual in Looney Tunes (of course if you are pretty much a Looney Tunes boffin - or an eager one - like me, then you'll know this already).For people who love everything about Looney Tunes and Daffy Duck and like the sound of what I have said about it, enjoy "Rabbit Seasoning"!7 and a half out of ten..
This is the second and best in the Hunting Trilogy!
What makes it the best is the clever dialogue!Bugs: Do you want to shoot me now or wait till you get home?It was kind of funny how they kept that going through out the short!.
a cartoon for all "season"s.
In one of the many Bugs Bunny-Daffy Duck cartoons, Elmer Fudd is out hunting, and Daffy tries to get him to shoot Bugs.
Moreover, "Rabbit Seasoning" makes interesting use of word order and pronouns (warning: it just might hilariously and royally mess up your speech).I think that probably my favorite aspect of this cartoon is the costumes worn by Bugs and Daffy.
One of them seems like it would have been risqué for 1952 (especially in a cartoon), but they pull it off perfectly, as they always did.
All in all, this just goes to show what geniuses the people behind these cartoons were..
Having just got the "Loony Tunes Golden Collection"(which i HIGHLY recommend, by the way), I'm going to try to comment on most if not all of the cartoons individually.
As such the starting statement might seem redundant for those whom read multiple reviews of them, for this i apologize.Rabbit Seasoning is the middle short in a trilogy of like-minded shorts (the other two being "Rabbit Fire" and "Duck!
Bags and Daffy argue about who Elmer Fudd should short.
It makes me laugh EVERY SINGLE TIME!!!
Great cartoon.
"Rabbit Seasoning" is the definitive example of the Warner Brothers "hunting" genre.
Probably the best movie for Daffy Duck or Bugs Bunny....
There is only one film I can think of that might be as good or better than this one when it comes to Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck--ALI BABA BUNNY.
However, determining which is THE best is irrelevant--just watch them both and enjoy.I compared this to ALI BABA BUNNY because both feature Daffy at his absolute worst--greedy, nasty and very funny in the process.
However, I think I prefer RABBIT SEASONING simply because Bugs is also pretty awful in this one--doing horrible things right back to Daffy every time Daffy tries a dirty trick.The film begins with Daffy leaving rabbit tracks right up to Bugs' hole in the hope that a hunter (naturally, it's Elmer) will blast the rabbit and leave Daffy alone!
Not to be outdone, Bugs time and again takes all of Daffy's tricks and turns them around--and in most cases it involves Daffy getting shot in the face!
It's all very, very clever and funny and I don't care how old you are, this cartoon will make you laugh unless you are a grouch.
I especially love the great and unexpected ending, but I won't say more, as I don't want to spoil the surprise..
Rabbit Seasoning (1952) **** (out of 4) It's duck season but Daffy puts up "rabbit season" signs so Elmer goes after Bugs.
Here's another classic from the series with the always wiser Bugs pulling several tricks, which get Daffy shot over and over.
There are countless classic scenes including Bugs mixing up Daffy where he asks to get shot, Bugs dressing as a hot woman to distract Elmer and the constant gag of Daffy's mouth being shot around to various sides of his head.
This short really features the three characters are the top of their game, which means plenty of laughs and great, violent action..
Strange enough, shorts like this get a 10.
They got to know that cartoons aren't just for kids.
The art in this is probabley the best non-Road Runner art of the 1950's Looney Tunes shorts.
Shorts like this one might have spawned witless LT rip-offs like Tiny Toons Adventures to try to squeeze out all the old comedy out over and over again, like how great movies like Scream spawned crap like I Know...
which was released just to squeeze out all the old horror from Scream, but like Scream, this is great alone.
Chuck Jones has had his faults with shorts once in a while but he does make up for them.
Bottom line: This is not as good as "Duck!
Duck!", but close.
Cleverly written by Michael Maltese and directed by Chuck Jones, "Rabbit Seasoning" is a classic Bugs Bunny/Daffy Duck/Elmer Fudd confrontation.
In any film in which Daffy tries to compete with Bugs, Daffy ultimately loses out and gets creamed, which only adds to his frustration and jealousy.
In this case, Daffy loses by repeatedly getting his bill blasted off by Elmer's shotgun.The most memorable gag in "Rabbit Seasoning" is the clever pronoun switch that Bugs pulls on Daffy.
But there are other memorable bits as well, all of which, of course, center around Daffy getting blasted by Elmer.
When Bugs disguises himself as a lady and woos Elmer, the popular song "You Must Have Been a Beautiful Baby" (which Carl Stalling used in quite a number of other Warner Bros.
cartoons) can be heard in the background.
While in drag, Bugs adapts a feminine voice and asks Elmer for a duck dinner; stupefied with a silly grin, Elmer staggers up to Daffy and - what else?
After Daffy peers out of a rabbit hole and gets blasted, his bill is bent out of shape and he resembles a drunkard as he tells Bugs, "No more for me, thanks!
I'm drivin'!" One final point: One particular animator found it difficult to watch Daffy in this cartoon and in his other pairings with Bugs and Elmer ("Rabbit Fire" [1951] and "Duck!
Rabbit, Duck!" [1953]).
Rabbit, Duck!" [1953]).
He actually feels sorry for Daffy, being a victim of Chuck Jones' direction and having no choice but to be a loser in these cartoons.
Hence, Daffy DESERVES to get his bill shot off by Elmer.
As Chuck Jones himself once explained, Daffy feels he deserves the best, not because he actually has EARNED it but because he simply FEELS he deserves the best!.
In this short film, which runs for the usual roughly seven minutes and is one of the more famous ones from the giant Warner Bros' body of work, Daffy Duck should have read the above Beckett play for his own safety.
It's duck season and he tries to distract trigger-happy hunter Elmer Fudd from him by putting "rabbit season"-signs everywhere.
Sadly, Fudd is not exactly a mastermind and needs help in figuring out that Bugs Bunny is, in fact, a rabbit.
Daffy leaves his safe hideout (oh no he shouldn't) to tell him so, yet Bugs Bunny's wit keeps teaching Daffy one thing over and over again: It's actually duck season.
Before it all ends we get to see Bugs dressed up as a desirable femme fatale.
Bugs / Daffy / Elmer Hunting Trilogy Part Two. With added pronoun trouble..
This is part 2 of the now-classic "Hunting Trilogy" pitting Bugs against Daffy and Elmer.
Word play, duck bill re-positioning, cross-dressing, and general mayhem are guaranteed.
As usual Bugs outwits both adversaries with great ease.One of the highlights of this particular cartoon is the famous "pronoun trouble" comment from Daffy during his battle of wits with Bugs.
No matter how many times I see this cartoon, it is impossible to make it through without laughing at least three times.
Rabbit Seasoning is another hilarious Bugs/Daffy/Elmer cartoon.
Rabbit Seasoning is one of three cartoons that feature Bugs Bunny/Daffy Duck/Elmer Fudd in a war of words and wits about whether it's rabbit season or duck season.
Love Bugs and Daffy stirring up "pronoun trouble" with Daffy always the victim of Elmer's shotgun resulting with his beak always getting dismembered.
Then there's the rabbit's cross-dressing that always gets Elmer in his love struck mode.
Chuck Jones and Michael Maltese are always favorites of mine in the writer-director team category because of these hilarious hunting trilogy cartoons I've laughed at since I was a kid.
And at least two of them end with Daffy's exclamation to Bugs: "You're despicable!" Can't get better that that!.
"Merrie Melodies" animated short from the early 1950s goes a long way toward providing the answer.
Because Warner producers also were pragmatists, they realized that they needed to have a "Plan B" in case their cautionary feature films were NOT enough to squelch a prurient interest in guns among ALL adult Americans.
Warner's animated shorts served this function.
Slob hunter Elmer Fudd shoots Daffy Duck in the face six times by the end of RABBIT SEASONING (among his 20 total shots).
Daffy bounces back good as new after each and every shooting.
During my brief time on this planet I've read and heard about 72,306 separate instances in which kids have found a loaded gun in their home and decided to play "Elmer and Daffy" with fatal results.
(I've probably missed one or two million other such "unpreventable" mishaps and I assume countless Woundings and near-misses never even make the news.) Though the Gun Nuts who run all branches of American Government have Out-Lawed any statistic-keeping more official than mine, I've seen enough to realize that Warner cleverly set out to thin the gene pool of Gun Crazy Families with "children's fare" such as RABBIT SEASONING.