Plot: What’s it about?
It seems like fans have demanded to see Disney’s animated shorts on DVD since the studio began pressing DVDs, but the output has been slow, to say the least. But as part of their Walt Disney Treasures line, Disney has issued some wonderful collection of animated shorts, including this one, Mickey Mouse in Living Color, Volume Two. This two disc set is limited to 175,000 copies and is housed within a gorgeous silver metal tin, complete with removable lid and not hinges. But the case is just the frills and we all know what counts, the content on the discs themselves. This set delivers in that respect too, with all of the Mickey Mouse shorts from 1938 to now, including some timeless classics that I was overjoyed to finally own on DVD. Some of the shorts have been included on other releases as supplements, but most of the content here is exclusive and as such, collectors won’t want to miss this excellent, well priced release. So with quantities limited, don’t let this superb edition be absent from your collection. I’ve listed the contents of this two disc collection below, so that you can see what all is included.
Disc One
1. Society Dog Show & The Pointer (1939)
2. Tugboat Mickey, Pluto’s Dream House & Mr. Mouse Takes a Trip (1940)
3. The Little Whirlwind, The Nifty Nineties & Orphans Benefit (1941)
4. Mickey’s Birthday Party & Symphony Hour (1942)
5. Mickey’s Delayed Date (1947)
6. Mickey Down Under & Mickey and the Seal (1948)
7. Plutopia & R’Coon Dawg (1951)
8. Pluto’s Party & Pluto’s Christmas Tree (1952)
9. The Simple Things (1953)
Disc Two
1. Mickey’s Christmas Carol
2. The Prince and the Pauper
3. Runaway Brain
Video: How does it look?
The shorts on the first disc are presented in full frame, as intended, while the shorts on the second disc are shown in 1.66:1 anamorphic widescreen. As with the first volume of Mickey Mouse in Living Color, the shorts look excellent and you can tell a lot of time, effort, and resources went into creating the best possible treatments. The first disc’s shorts seem to have been cleaned up nicely, so grain and debris aren’t issued. The main improvement however are the colors, which come across here as vibrant and rich. The hues are bolder and brighter than I ever remember, so fans are in for a real treat here. The later shorts, the ones found on the second disc also look good, but show more worn spots and debris. These shorts still look better than ever, but when compared to the others, they’re not as impressive.
Audio: How does it sound?
The original mono soundtracks are used and the results are quite good, though some age related flaws surface, as expected. As we could anticipate from materials well over fifty years old, the audio is a little thin at times and some wear is evident, but I never noticed any serious errors here, even for a second. The more recent shorts have cleaner audio, but even so, don’t expect too much. The music is clear and comes through well, while dialogue is clean and while sometimes a little muffled, is still coherent. So aside from the expected age flaws, the audio is very good and shouldn’t disappoint even the most ardent fans. You can also enable English subtitles for the shorts, if you’re so inclined.
Supplements: What are the extras?
The extras on the first disc include the excerpts from The Sorceror’s Apprentice and Mickey and the Beanstalk, as well as deleted animation from the former. The second disc boasts even more extras, such as Mickey’s Cartoon Comeback, The Voice Behind the Mouse, Mickey Meets the Maestro, and Mouse Mania. This release also includes a behind the scenes look at Mickey’s Christmas Carol, two behind the scenes shorts found on other releases, and promotional & production materials such as storyboards, poster artwork, sketches, and the like. Leonard Maltin provides introductions on both discs as well, in case you’re a fan.
