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Top Ten Looney Tunes of All Time

Warner Bros. started their Looney Tunes series in 1930. At first, they focused on lesser known personalities, but eventually the big stars were introduced in the likes of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, Tweety, Road Runner, Foghorn Leghorn and so many more. As I am going to be making a top ten list for each big Looney Tunes character, this list will instead focus more on the series as a whole as I tried to cover most of its eras with at least one representative flick, so here we go.

10. Daffy’s Inn Trouble

Daffy Duck vies with Porky Pig in the Western frontier hotel business. Porky has more success, attracting hordes of customers with a live-action saloon party. So, Daffy decides to “undermine” Porky’s good fortune by planting a bomb beneath Porky’s inn. Daffy’s Inn Trouble isn’t just superbly crafted in plot and dialogue, but it benefits from some of the best uses of both these classic characters with Porky being quite conniving here and Daffy being hilariously hysterical as always.

9. High Note

High Note is one of those classic animations that focus on no dialogue, but rely on visuals and music to tell a story. It follows various musical notes as they prepare to play The Blue Danube. However, one note is missing and they find it being drunk. The booze jokes are surprisingly mature and all the funnier for it while the mixing of its classic animation and music was superbly realized. It’s a rare 60s Looney Tunes short that is iconic.

8. Porky Pig’s Feat

Porky and Daffy try to escape from the hotel manager as they do not want to pay their bill, but they mostly fail at that effort as the manager simply is impossible to leave behind. This is the cartoon where the two work together instead of being rivals and it’s one of the best such entries because the action is stupendous and the staircase scenes are particularly authentic. It’s a very stylized, fun film with a particularly effective cameo from Bugs Bunny.

7. All Fowled Up

All Fowled Up is a very nostalgic cartoon that I remember watching countless time as a kid. And the good news is that it still holds up! It is a fantastic Foghorn Leghorn short that features his iconic rivalry with Barnyard Dawg. The two are terrific here. The standout is Henery Hawk himself. Just listening to his many hilarious lines of dialogue spoken with so much determination makes me laugh every single time.

6. Knighty Knight Bugs

In this Oscar-winning short, Bugs is the court jester of King Arthur and he must recover a singing sword from Yosemite Sam and his fire-breathing, sneezing dragon. Bugs is superb here, Sam is very funny in his exceeding incompetence and the dragon is another interesting addition. Knighty Knight Bugs is a fantastic period piece with so much energy in its execution and vibrancy in its animation and score.

5. Rabbit Fire

Elmer Fudd is hunting the duck and the rabbit and both try to convince him to hunt the other one instead. Unlike similarly plotted Merrie Melodies from this period, Rabbit Fire is fantastic through and through and clearly the best version of this storyline. Daffy’s evolution into a more complex character is in full emphasis here while Bugs himself is reliably extremely smart in his ploys. The vegetarian twist itself is quite memorable in its silliness. It’s an unforgettable classic that features scenes between the three characters that are absolutely timeless.

4. Show Biz Bugs

There have been films about the rivalry between Daffy Duck and Bugs Bunny, but this one is among the best of this bunch. They are theater stars in this cartoon, but Bugs receives much more attention, so it is up to Daffy to resort to drastic measures in order to impress the crowd. The animation is gorgeous, the movie is very well paced and structured, and the final moment was both brutal and a great case of black comedy for the series. This was the beginning of Daffy’s switched personality from just loony to greedy and obsessed.

3. The Blow Out

In this classic cartoon, it is up to Porky Pig to chase and stop the mad bomber. The juxtaposition of the bomber and Porky’s childlike persona definitely led to such a great scenario perfectly played out for terrific laughs. The villain is very memorable and of course the ending stole the show for me. This film is perfectly executed from start to finish and it ranks among the finest Looney Tunes shorts from their thirties period.

2. You Ought to Be in Pictures

Porky Pig asks from Leon Schlesinger himself to go to live-action feature films instead of cartoons on Daffy Duck’s recommendation, but of course the duck’s plan is to replace Porky and take his job. This live-action/animated hybrid is a spectacular piece of filmmaking where the plot is very intricate and true to its characters with Daffy being particularly conniving and Porky being so likable. It offers a precious behind the scenes look at the studio that feels truly timeless.

1. Rabbit of Seville

The Barber of Seville by Rossini accompanies the number one cartoon on this list which is the most iconic in its barber sequences, though the rest is also superb. The weapon chase was brilliant here and the action is among the series’ best. The animation is gorgeous and the score is just fantastic and perfectly incorporated into the action. The mostly silent approach and its crescendo quality really differentiated this highly original movie from others in the series. Released in 1950 at the height of the studio’s golden age of cartoons, Rabbit of Seville remains by far the most iconic and best Looney Tunes movie of all time.

Honorable Mentions:

Another Froggy Evening – Another Froggy Evening is the best modern Looney Tunes short that served as a phenomenal, funny and memorable sequel to an iconic original.

Boobs in the Woods – An excellent setup and a great utilization of both Porky and Daffy made for an instant classic in 1950’s Boobs in the Woods.

Porky in Wackyland – This is a wonderfully artistic 30s short that was unique in its approach and featuring a very memorable Porky.

Fast and Furry-ous – Fast and Furry-ous is a terrific first installment in the Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner series thanks to great animation, sound and humor.

Sinkin’ in the Bathtub – I had to include one Bosko movie on this list and this early short was the best of the bunch as it featured some crazy gags and a great use of both Bosko and Honey.