This is one of those cartoons that had an edge to it, even as a child I knew there was something different about it (the same feeling I had about The Beatles' song "I Am The Walrus.") As a child I remember being fascinated by the 3D realism of the robot,the sarcophagus, and the bottle, in contrast to the equally beautiful2D image of the green Evil Scientist, which is a caricature of Vincent Price, and the fire engine red Gossamer, here named "Rudolph." I also thought it was somewhat disturbing with the it-was-a-dream!/"That's-what-YOU-think!" ending, especially after watching Bugs and the scientist drift around on ether to a less famous, slow section of the "William Tell Overture." Trippy. "Come... back... here... you... rab... bit. "

Water, Water Every Hare (1952) *** 1/2 (out of 4)A great imagination is really what pushes this Looney Tunes short into the classic territory. A flood forces Bugs Bunny out of his hole when he ends up in a strange castle where a deranged scientist puts Rudolph, a red headed monster onto him. This is one of the more famous shorts in the series and it's easy to see why because of the brains known as Chuck Jones. Not only is his animation of Rudolph, the scientist and the robot monster all perfect but he also does plenty of small things that many might not notice. One of my favorite moments is when the hole is flooded and Bugs gets up to get a drink of water. While walking back the top of his ears are outside the water and while many might not see the comedy here I see it as a small, magical moment by Jones. There are plenty of laughs from start to finish as Bugs is in classic shape and he's got two great villains to work with.

Sort of playing off of "Frankenstein", a Boris Karloff-resembling mad scientist sends a big, hairy monster after Bugs Bunny, whose brain he wants to give to a robot. Sure enough, Bugs isn't gonna take it lying down, especially since he can turn into a (seemingly gay) hair stylist, and then make himself invisible.I gotta wonder how they came up with such hilarious, twisted stuff. But the point is: they did it. And they went all out here. I'm especially surprised that they were able to sneak in what could have been a reference to homosexuality (isn't it a stereotype that hair stylists and people like that have to be gay?). But whether or not he was supposed to be, the cartoon's still a hoot. I guess that even floods can have neat results!

The colors, the sound, the humor - everything clicks in this one. Not a sequel to "Hair-raising Hare" with it's Peter Lorre-voiced mad scientist, but clearly a slow quiet revision. The Peter Lorre voice has been replaced by a sinister Vincent Price imitation (obviously not intended to be Boris Karloff). The same orange monster (name changed from Gossamer to Rudolf) repeats his comic routine, but it's now more focused and funny. Besides the humor and artwork, the cartoon is memorable for the overall sense that Bugs is out of control. The "natural" perils (the waterfall Bugs approaches, the realistic alligators, the ether fumes and dream states) feel more threatening than the evil scientist and monster - we know Bugs can handle those two characters, of course. He does his usual wacky antics to outwit them, but we also see him drugged and performing an ethereal nocturnal dance. Near the end, he frantically wakes, trying to regain control. Seemingly never having left his burrow, he tries to deny the reality of what has happened, and assumes it "Must have been a nightmare." But it's a waking nightmare we saw, rather than just another multiple-mad-chase, shoot-up story.