Was very fond of Woody Woodpecker and his cartoons as a child. Still get much enjoyment out of them now as a young adult, even if there are more interesting in personality cartoon characters and better overall cartoons.
That is in no way knocking Woody, because many of his cartoons are a lot of fun to watch and more and also still like him a lot as a character, agree completely that neither him or his cartoons should ever be forgotten. As far as the Woody Woodpecker/Wally Walrus cartoons go, there are better, like one of my favourite overall Woody Woodpecker cartoons 'Ski For Two, but it's still great. Woody since being partnered with Wally has been much more appealingly designed from when he was still evolving and feels fully formed in terms of personality as a character.
Perhaps there are characters with more interesting personalities, but Woody is still at his best incredibly funny, never obnoxious, increasingly manic and very lovable self. Agree with the impish child comparison summing up Woody's behaviour here.
Wally is a great foil and works so well with Woody. One also feels sorry for poor Wally, but at the same time one cannot hate on Woody.
As ever, the animation is great. Woody's character design and physicality have changed/evolved for the better. Even more impressive are the rich and vibrant colours, the meticulously detailed backgrounds and the quite smooth drawing.
Can't praise the music enough either, characterful energy, dynamic, action enhancing and lushly orchestrated.
Nor the razor sharp and witty dialogue, the bright and breezy pacing without being rushed and some hilarious gags. Plus some typically good voice acting. All of which more than make up for a story that's on the slight and formulaic side.
Overall, another great Woody Woodpecker effort. 9/10 Bethany Cox