Sometimes what is viewed as acceptable subject matter for a silly comedy can change over time. Today if a cartoon centers around suicide, the subject would either be treated as very dark comedy (ala Futurama's suicide booths) or with the upmost seriousness. It definitely wouldn't be used as the basis for slapstick gags and satirically center around such a cutesy character as Quacker the duck.
In this short film, Quacker reads Hans Cristian Anderson's The Ugly Duckling. He then becomes convinced that he is ugly. This idea gets him so downhearted that he decides to kill himself. As a way to kill himself he tries to have Tom eat him. Jerry sees this and tries to stop Quacker from doing this horrible thing.
Even though the subject matter may be dark, this is a pretty good cartoon. Quacker is quite likable here (even if I personally find his voice to be too cutesy at times) and it is hard to not feel for him. For any who has ever struggled with self-confidence (which is pretty much all of us), the pathos here are very effective. Yet at the same time there are some great gags here. There may not be as many great gags as there are in the 1940's Tom and Jerry shorts, there are a couple really funny moments here. The gag where Jerry tries to give Quacker a beauty treatment is laugh out loud funny. There is also some wonderful character animation here, especially Tom's reaction when Quacker first asks Tom to eat him. The background art may not be as elaborate here as in the earlier Tom and Jerry shorts, but it is still very pleasant to look at in a way that looks forward to the backgrounds in Hanna and Barbera's early TV cartoons.
The credited animators on this short are Irven Spence, Ray Patterson, Kenneth Muse and Ed Barge. Robert Gentle is the credited background artist. This is the 87th Tom and Jerry short. The film is available on the DVD set, Tom and Jerry Spotlight Collection Vol. 3. The little girl duck at the end only appeared in this one theatrical short. She would however later appear in two episodes of TV's The Tom and Jerry Show, Wing Nuts (2018) and Novel Idea (2018). In that series the character was named Fifi. In this original short she is voiced by Red Coffey, who also voiced Quacker. The 2006 album, TOM AND JERRY & TEX AVERY, TOO! Volume 1: The 1950’s, features musical scores from various MGM cartoons. Included here is Scott Bradley's score for Downhearted Duckling.
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