Chuck Jones's 'The Awful Orphan' features one of the lesser known recurring characters in the Warner Bros. repertoire; Charlie Dog. Unlike the more unusual antics of lesser known characters like Hubie and Bertie or The Goofy Gophers, Charlie's gimmick is heckling in the classic Warner tradition. However, unlike the unprovoked anarchy of early Daffy Duck or the justice-meting of Bugs Bunny, Charlie's heckling is given a bittersweet edge by the fact it is motivated by his homelessness. In 'The Awful Orphan', he attempts to persuade an unusually hot-headed Porky Pig into adopting him. Charlie is a fairly likable character but you also feel for Porky as his home is invaded by the smart-alecky mutt. Still, much of what Charlie puts Porky through is very funny indeed. The jokes in this cartoon, while mostly falling short of riotous, are largely unpredictable and amusing. Only a nonsensical gag involving a stack of mattresses misfires. For all its rib-tickling gags, however, 'The Awful Orphan' leaves me feeling a little unsatisfied, probably due to the fact it is almost entirely set in a bland apartment which means it is less that exciting to look at, unlike many of Jones' sumptuous creations. It's always interesting to see one of these less frequently shown Charlie Dog cartoons and I always enjoy them but when they're over I can't help but conclude that it's easy to see why he never became as big a star as his contemporaries.
Review of Awful Orphan
