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            Accidents happen, and an edited or dubbed print of a cartoon here and there is understandable. But in looking at this DVD series as a whole, one comes to realize that accidents have happened way too often.

            Flaws aside, Volume 3 is still enjoyable,  and worth a look for the cartoons that ARE included. Favorites like “Hic-Cup Pup” and “Tennis Chumps” are here, along with some real gems you may not have seen in a while, like ‘A Mouse in the House” and “Tom’s Photo Finish”. Many Cinemascope widescreen shorts are presented in original format, and are also fully restored. They never looked this good. The restoration makes even the widescreen remakes of earlier cartoons worth a look. The wonderful series of “back yard” feuds featuring Tom and Jerry up against Spike the bulldog are included in all their bombastic, violent glory. It also includes two of my personal favorites: “Pup on a Picnic” and “Barbecue Brawl”, in which Tom, Jerry, and a troop of ground-shaking army ants ruin Spike and Tyke’s attempts at enjoying a father-son meal together.

            There are also a few bits I didn’t enjoy. Lots of “Little Quacker” cartoons are on here, particularly on Disc Two. I know these cartoons have their fans, and Jerry rescuing a cute little duckling from Tom has an appeal of its own for people who like that sort of thing. I personally can’t stand the character, and five cartoons with him is way too many for me. There are also a couple of “cheater” cartoons included here: “Jerry’s Diary”, “Life With Tom” and “Smarty Cat”. These have better framework than most “cheaters” of the era (nearly all the cartoon studios made them), but they’re still lame.

           The special features are a nice addition. There’s a great little documentary about the history of Tom and Jerry, which includes interviews with modern animators and historians as well as the late Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera. Ironically, it also touches on the censorship controversies over the years, illustrated via clips of the cartoons Warner decided to deprive us of seeing. If we can’t see “Mouse Cleaning”, we can at least see the only offensive gag in it. I’m sure the documentary was made before the set was compiled, but I just wish Warner Home Video’s double-edged sword didn’t cut THAT deep. “The Karate Guard”, a special short from 2005 directed by Joe Barbera (his last work with Tom and Jerry before his passing) is included as an extra. While it’s beautifully designed and animated, and the gags are great, it really misses the feel of Scott Bradley’s music, and its sound effects are also not quite the same. Still, it was not a bad way for Barbera to end a truly amazing career.

            The packaging also looks nice, with nice artwork and cool design. The only complaint I have is the darn “stacked” discs that have plagued multi-disc DVD releases recently…to watch disc 2, you have to remove disc 1, then put it back. It may save shelf space, but it’s annoying.

            Now that all is said and done, even if we animation fans have been cheated a little by this DVD series, we’ve still got less to complain about than we did before. “The 97 percent complete, 90 percent uncut, Semi-Restored Hanna-Barbera  Tom and Jerry” is still better than what we’ve seen available on TV and VHS in the past. The flaws and omissions are frustrating, and I sincerely hope that they’ll try again in the future and correct their mistakes. But for now, this is the best we’re going to get. We are presented with a tough choice: buy the set to enjoy its merits, or pass on it in hopes that Warner will realize that censorship is unacceptable.

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