Official Synopsis:
Just who is "America's secret weapon against crime?" As his catchy theme informs, he's a "number one super guy, quicker than the human eye!" Disguised as a mild-mannered police station janitor, Penrod transforms into the powerful pooch who the girls love to smooch by leaping into the bottom drawer of a filing cabinet - and emerging as Hong Kong Phooey in a bright red karate outfit! He gets most of his criminal tips from Rosemary, the mini-skirted dispatcher with a New York accent straight out of a '40s screwball comedy. And starting with his very first episode (Car Thieves), he uses his Phooeymobile - and Kung Phoo dumb luck - to dog, collar and put his famous Hong Kong Phooey karate chop on crooks. With all 31 series episodes in this cool 2-disc set, it would be a crime not to take it home!
Our Take:
Warner Brothers' excellent Hanna-Barbera collections are not only terrific DVD sets of classic cartoons, but they're also a great way to judge how well an animated property holds up over the decades. For example, I was a huge Hong Kong Phooey fan when I was a wee little one, but I wasn't sure if it would hold any appeal for me as an adult. As I expected, the show's appeal at this point is largely nostalgic; it's still a certain amount of fun, but the limited animation style (and plot lines) have more of a negative impact than they used to.
Of course, I never get tired of hearing Scatman Crothers's voice, and Hong Kong Phooey is a show that manages to be funny and pack in a certain amount of "action" at the same time. The DVD set also manages to pack in a certain amount of bonus features:
* The Phoo-Nomenon (12 minutes) - A retrospective look back at the show, featuring lots of great conceptual artwork.
* Commentaries - Creative producer Iwao Takomoto, layout unit manager Willie Ito, and Hanna-Barbera historian and Warner animation producer Scott Jeralds talk about three episodes.
* Complete Storyboards - For the episode The Batty Bank Gang.
Hong Kong Phooey is a great piece of nostalgia and a decent cartoon. Fans should be pleased with this DVD set.
Overall Picture:
Show: B-
DVD: B
- Mike Spring
Editor
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