Wonderful character development!

Too many fans seem to be blown away

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

PLAYERS: Foghorn Leghorn (voiced by Mel Blanc), Elvis Buzzard, Pappy Buzzard (both voiced by Daws Butler).Director: ROBERT McKIMSON. Story: Tedd Pierce. Animation: Ted Bonnicksen, George Grandpré, Warren Batchelder, Tom Ray. Lay-outs: Robert Givens. Backgrounds: William Butler. Film editor: Treg Brown. Voice characterizations: Mel Blanc. Music director: Milt Franklyn. Color by Technicolor. Producer: David DePatie. Copyright 1960. A Warner Bros "Merrie Melodies" cartoon. U.S. release: 24 September 1960. 1 reel. 6 minutes. COMMENT: "THE DIXIE FRYER" is a pleasing entry in the Merrie Melodies cycle, thanks to some really attractive visuals and fairly amusing gags. The chicken hawks are nicely characterized, and we are tenaciously treated to all the usual southern dialect humor. Alas, two very important thing missing though are Foghorn's usual delightful asides and outrageous similes.

It's very refreshing to see a 1960 Bob McKimson cartoon that's on a par with the concurrent work of his directing colleagues. The generally average-quality artwork takes nothing away from the great comedy in this short.Elvis and Pappy make far better adversaries for Foghorn Leghorn (that foolhardy ignoramus) than they did for sly ol' Bugs in "Backwoods Bunny." Here they're chicken hawks, rather than buzzards, and as birds of prey they are quite formidable adversaries for the rooster. As characters, Elvis and Pappy make superior chemistry as their losses are shared (somewhat) equally with Foggy. The greatest moment is when Foggy (almost) tricks them into a duel, but they turn around and blast his beak off, prompting him to exclaim, "First time somebody shot MY mouth off!"

I must say I am quite a fan of the Foghorn, but sadly in this 6-minute cartoon from 55 years ago, he did not impress me too much. Or maybe he did impress me too much and that was the problem. He is more fun to watch when he is the one losing to a small chicken hawk for example, but here he has pretty much no problems dealing with two fairly incompetent grown chicken-hawks who want the rooster for dinner. Some running away, some mind games, an explosion and that is basically it in this little movie. McKimson, Pierce, Blanc and Butler made this one, but something's missing for me to recommend it. Maybe it's Foghorn getting his ass kicked. Not a bad watch by any means, but among the weakest Foghorn Leghorn cartoons in my opinion.

When it comes to Foghorn Leghorn cartoons, The Dixie Fryer in my opinion is towards the top end. I had seen Youtube comments pulling the PC card, so I wasn't sure whether that would affect my adult perspective viewing in any way. But it didn't, and I'm glad it didn't. True, it does "poke fun" at southerners, and doesn't do it in the most subtle of ways, but I personally saw nothing insensitive or racist about how they were depicted or about the chicken hawks' final lines. If there is anything that is as much as a nit-pick about The Dixie Fryer it's that as with most Foghorn Leghorn cartoons the story is somewhat routine and predictable and the ending also isn't much of a surprise. At the same time on the other hand, there is much to enjoy about The Dixie Fryer.For one thing, it is very Foghorn Leghorn, meaning that what is a Foghorn cartoon feels like one too with all the components that make his cartoons work. For those that don't like Foghorn- I've not met that many actually but I'm sure there are some out there- this mayn't seem like a good thing. For those who like him, The Dixie Fryer will be a treat. I myself am in the latter camp, and actually appreciate him more now as I did as a child. The animation is very good, there is lots of vibrant colour and detail with Robert McKimson's style all over it. As I've said many times before, the music with Looney Tunes has always been a major part of why they're so appealing, and the upbeat catchiness and beautiful orchestration in The Dixie Fryer is no exception to that.No matter how unsurprising Foghorn's cartoons may be, they are still very fun and entertaining. Seeing as that's what you'd expect from any cartoon(and not just Looney Tunes)that makes them winners, if not quite among my favourites, in my book. There is plenty of fun and entertainment in The Dixie Fryer. The dialogue has the usual sharp wit and freshness with nothing coming across as corny, Foghorn has a tendency to repeat himself but that has always been part of his appeal. The gags are similarly clever and imaginatively timed, and the lively pace helps things too. The characters instantly engage. Pappy and Elvis are good foils for Foghorn. But as always it is Foghorn who steals the show. He may not be my favourite Looney Tunes character, either Bugs or Daffy, but he is one of the most distinctive ones(with Pepe LePew perhaps being the most unique) and is always interesting and funny while managing to command everything easily.Last but not least, Mel Blanc's voice work. Aside from the music and humour, Blanc's vocals are the life and soul of the Looney Tunes cartoons. He was one of few to be able to voice three or more characters in the same cartoon and make them completely different, and brilliantly. Yet at the same time you could tell it was him without it being too obvious. The voice-work of the popular recurring characters has always been remarkably consistent. In The Dixie Fryer he voices all three characters and does the above attributes, that made him as great a voice actor he was, without any flaws at all. All in all, entertaining and one of Foghorn's better outings despite the racism claims. 8/10 Bethany Cox