TheLittleSongbird
Chilly Willy's best cartoons were perfect examples of how a potentially one-joke character and concept could end up actually being a perfect mix of the cute and the funny with a lot of colour and good comic timing to go with it.Paul J. Smith's first Chilly Willy cartoon, the character's debut 'Chilly Willy', was great and among the best Chilly Willy cartoons, but generally his 60s-onward output (there are also cartoons from Alex Lovy, Jack Hannah, Sid Marcus and notably, in terms of being responsible for the two best of the series, Tex Avery) has been nowhere near as good. Some are decent, but generally they're average at best. 'Under Sea Dogs' is an example of the latter. Not awful, not particularly good either.The animation is scrappy and constantly looks like it was done in a rush, especially in the latter half of the cartoon, but even to start with it looks simplistic and careless with very flat colours and ugly character designs for the cartoon's antagonist (who is bland, less than threatening and lacks comic timing).Story is thin to the point of bare existence, a lot of it is very predictable and the lack of variety and sharp timing are obvious and hurt it. 'Under Sea Dogs' timing feels routine and tired.Walter Greene's music however is lively and rousingly, cleverly and beautifully orchestrated and fits very well. Love the opening title credits music. Occasionally the animation has some lovely colours and the submarine setting is fun if not exactly imaginatively used.Maxie is an amusing and likable supporting character who doesn't make one miss Smedley too much. He and Chilly work very well together, sparkling just as much as Chilly does with Smedley. A few of the gags are amusing, but none are amusing.Chilly is adorable and is also a lot of fun, with his actions speaking far louder than words. Prefer him when silent but he still makes an impression even when speaking sparingly. He may be a nuisance to his opponents but he wins the viewer over with his cuteness and timing. Voice acting is decent.On the whole, average and nothing more than that. 5/10 Bethany Cox
