Jerky Turkey

[7.3/10] Quite fun! I’ll admit, some of the contemporary 1940s references went over my head, but the general cartoony tomfoolery didn’t. Classic bits like the “end of the pavement”, a sap trying to catch a bird by painting a brick wall only to become the victim of his own ruse, and physics defying dives and tree-cuttings all bring the yuks. There’s a great energy to the short, with the titular turkey playing a good smart alecky jerk as the counterpart to the dopey pilgrim. And the running gag of the bear with a sandwich board reading “Eat at Joe’s”, only for this seemingly random joke factoring into the ending in a clever twist, makes for a fun surprise. The only downside, as is too often the case in these classic cartoons, is that there’s some racism toward American Indians here. The depictions are unfortunate, as expected, and I cringed when they used the term “half-breed.” But it’s thankfully only a brief part of the short. Overall, a fun bit of Thanksgiving mayhem from Tex Avery!