#34 -- Devil May Hare


Title - Devil May Hare
Director - Bob McKimson
Released - 1954

Interesting Fact -- First appearance of the Tasmanian Devil

Reason for Placement --

When it came to antagonists for Bugs Bunny, you really couldn't get a whole lot better than the Tasmanian Devil. Elmer and Yosemite have their guns, Wile E. has his wits, but Taz... he's just hungry! I mean, he's essentially a stomach with legs, he has no motivation and no desire but to eat; he doesn't set traps like the others, he just comes in, spinning through the boulder, then the tree, then the ground, then another tree, and there he is. Bugs was the master at outwitting his opponents and escaping their traps, but McKimson gave us a new type of character, one that relied on strength and bite alone.

Making his Looney Tunes debut, the Tasmanian Devil decides to add Bugs to his menu, but the rabbit offers to give Taz a gourmet feast instead. I always loved that Taz, while easily the dumbest villain Bugs ever faced, was also probably the hardest to get rid of. In one scene, Bugs offers to cook up some groundhogs, so he and Taz start digging for them... only for Bugs to completely bury him! He thinks he's gotten rid of the menace, when Taz appears behind him and asks, "What for you bury me in the cold, cold ground?" I loved that line when I was younger, but when I watched this short again as a teen (with all of my friends), this was the moment we all started laughing.

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