Though Tom and Jerry are best known for being enemies, there are times when they can team up against a greater evil. Though this formula had first been done in Dog Trouble (1942), it had been a while since this kind of team up was last done. This helps make Triplet Trouble a delightful change of pace.
In this short film, Tom's owner adopts three little kittens. These kittens may look cute on the outside, but they do everything they can to make Tom and Jerry's lives miserable. The two foes team up to stop these kittens.
After the cat and mouse duo's first misfire with Smitten Kitten (1952), they can back with a truly delightful short here. There is something always delightful about seeing these two enemies work together to fight a greater evil and this cartoon is one of the best examples. The kittens prove to be perfect foes for our heroes. The idea of these cute little kittens being complete monsters is a delightful one. It is also a very well executed one. Much of the reason it works so well is the character animation. The way they go from being cute to evil so effectively. Not only are their actions completely different but so is the way they move. They move much quicker and sneakier when their true selves come out and that makes it even funnier. Also, the evilness of these kittens makes us root for Tom and Jerry all the more and enjoy the very satisfying ending. This whole film is full of great slapstick that is truly laugh out loud funny. Once again William Hanna's comedic timing here isn't near perfect, it is perfect.
The kittens look exactly like Fluff, Muff and Puff, the three kittens who appeared briefly in Heavenly Puss (1949). It can be debated whether or not they are the same characters (The Tom and Jerry Wiki argues that they are). If they are the same characters, this is their second and last appearance in a theatrical short.
The credited animators on this short are Ray Patterson, Ed Barge, Kenneth Muse and Irven Spence. The name of the film would later be reused for a 1975 episode of The Tom and Jerry Show. However, that episode's plot was not even slightly similar to this short. This short film is available on the DVD sets Tom and Jerry Spotlight Collection, Vol. 2 and Tom and Jerry: Classic Collection Volume 3.
Below is the movie poster for this film.
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