Movie Review: Disney Treasures - Chronological Donald Volume 1

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Restored picture and sound on 36 classic shorts

Cons: Leonard Maltin's repeated sermonizing (fortunately you can fast forward through them)

The Bottom Line:

Donald's early shorts

Anger can be so funny

Track down if you can

Not Exacerbating at All

The Walt Disney Treasures series has been a gold mine to Disney lovers who want to own the old classics from the early days. Having previously focused on Mickey and Goofy, the series now turns to Donald Duck for the first of what promises to be many volumes.

This set focuses on his early solo career with 36 cartoons from 1934-1941. It actually starts with "The Wise Little Hen," a Silly Symphony retelling of the classic fable where Donald only plays a small part. He's a co-star in "Donald and Pluto," and finally gets solo billing in the third short, 1937's "Don Donald." That short also introduces an early version of Daisy, who only shows up again one other time in this set, "Mr. Duck Steps Out" on disc two. His nephews, Huey, Dewey, and Louie, make many appearances in this set in such shorts as "Donald's Nephews" (their first), "Hockey Champ," "Good Scouts," and "Truant Officer Donald."

I must admit, Donald has always been my least favorite of the Disney characters. My first complaint has been that I never could understand a word he's saying. I watched every cartoon in the set with the closed captions on, and let me tell you, it made quite the difference. Unfortunately, sometimes it spoiled a joke by letting you guess something was coming, but it was still worth it.

My other problem with Donald is more fundamental. He gets provoked way too easily and has a mean streak. There are some cartoons where I find myself rooting for him to fail, like when he tries to drown a bee for fun in "Window Washers." Of course, I find myself sympathizing with him more often then not, such as when a fly buzzes him for no reason in "Old MacDonald Duck." And sometimes it's just a case of funny bad luck, as is "Donald's Lucky Day" or "Chef Donald."

Leonard Maltin continues to host this series. As usual, we get an informative introduction on both discs. He also gives us a warning before any cartoon that might be considered offensive today. Like many, I find his breaking in more annoying then anything in the cartoons itself, but if that's what it takes to get these cartoons released, I'll live with it. The cartoons have obviously been restored as the picture is sharp and the sound is wonderful. Still in mono and nothing spectacular by today's standards, but you can easily hear everything. The bonus material seems a little light. Disc one has a photo gallery of stills, books, and other merchandise featuring Donald from the period. Disc two features a five-minute mini-biography on Clarence "Ducky" Nash, the voice behind the duck for over 50 years. There are some fun Easter Eggs to hunt for as well.

Ultimately, this set won me over to the exacerbated Duck. No matter your feelings on Donald, you'll enjoy meeting him anew in Chronological Donald, Volume 1.

Included Cartoons:

1934 - The Wise Little Hen

1936 - Donald and Pluto

1937 - Don Donald, Modern Inventions, Donald's Ostrich

1938 - Self Control, Donald's Better Self, Donald's Nephews, Polar Trappers, Good Scouts, The Fox Hunt, Donald's Golf Game

1939 - Donald's Lucky Day, Hockey Champ, Donald's Cousin Gus, Beach Picnic, Sea Scouts, Donald's Penguin, The Autograph Hound, Officer Duck

1940 - The Riveter, Donald's Dog Laundry, Bill Posters, Mr. Duck Steps Out, Put-Put Troubles, Donald's Vacation, Window Cleaners, Fire Chief

1941 - Timber, Golden Eggs, A Good Time for a Dime, Early to Bed, Truant Officer Donald, Old MacDonald Duck, Donald's Camera, Chef Donald