Customer Reviews

Top Cat - The Complete Series

5 star:		(59)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Not taking anything away from "The Flintstones" or "The Jetsons" or any of the other great Hanna Barbera cartoons, but "Top Cat" may just be the funniest, hippest, smartest show HB ever put out. From the writing, the backgrounds, setting the show in a real (as opposed to fictional) city--New York--and Gershwin-esq music ques, every episode of "Top Cat" is quality comedy from the first frame to the last. I absolutely loved this show as a kid, and now that I'm an adult I can watch it with a new appreciation for the talent that went into making it.

Seven characters voiced by six great actors (The wonderful Leo de Lyon pulled double duty as the voice of both Brain and Spook), each with a distinct and endearing personality. Arnold Stang is brilliantly cast as Top Cat, bringing a sensitivity and vulnerability to the role of this "hukster." Maurice Gosfield is hilarious as the delightful Benny the Ball, as is Marvin Kapland as Choo-Choo. And Allen Jenkins is perfect as officer Dribble, er, I mean Dibble. Really, the only character who doesn't do much for me is Fancy-Fancy, but the episodes tend to leave him and Spook (whom I do like) a bit more in the background than the other characters.

Combine great characters with great actors and great writing and you get some great comedy. In the first episode, "Hawaii Here We Come," the opening shot of little Benny hula dancing and singing "Aloha Hoyiiiiie!" is just one of the funniest things I've ever seen. And in that same episode they seem to take a swipe at Disney with a line about Davy Crockett and "that song," which Dibble tries to remember but comes up with "Daaaavy Crockett, with the googlie eyes . . . no, that's not it."

This is most definitely a show for all ages. Kids will like the funny cats, and adults will appreciate the more subtle aspects of the humor. On that basis alone I'd recommend this DVD, but wait! There's more!

This DVD package has some great extras. The documentary Back to Hoagy's Alley, hosted by Leo de Lyon (Spook and Brain) is very nice, and I really love the interview with Mr. T.C. himself, Arnold Stang. I have watched one of the commentaries so far, and that's very good as well, and I look forward to watching the other two. Video quality is excellent and holds up even on my 42" plasma. My only complaint (just a nit-pick, really) is that disc 4 is two sided so you have to flip it over. Couldn't they have made it single sided, dual-layered instead? Oh, well, not really important.

In short, if you are a fan of TV animation from the 50s and 60s then you must get this set. It's a shame that T.C. only got 30 episodes (though they were shown for years on Sat. mornings). This show should have gone on much longer. But maybe with this DVD release T.C. will get some new fans and the show will get the broad recognition it deserves.

During the 70's and 80's Mexican television (Televisa) was too cheap to buy any new programs, so they kept on showing the same shows OVER and OVER, Pink Panther, the first Spiderman series, Here Comes the Grump, Señorita cometa and others became cult classics to my generation. Among these shows stands out Top Cat (Don Gato), particularly because of the genius of the dubbing artists who gave regional Mexican accents to the different cats, and would often insert off-color humor into the show (some of which only now, upon seeing these again) I'm finally getting. I was a bit worried when I bought the set because I didn't know if the spanish dub was included and original, but I was not dissapointed.
Now, if I can only get a DVD of Señorita Cometa or Here Comes the Grump I'll be really happy reliving my childhood.

This cartoon was a highly entertaining one both for kids and adults. I remember watching some of its many re-runs after school and enjoying the sharp wit and great voice work.
I have since found out it was heavily based on the Sgt. Bilko series with a schemer and his cronies striving to stay one step ahead of the authorities.
The extras are good considering many of the people who worked on the show are dead. It was good to see and hear some of the voice actors.
The Hanna Barbera animation is admittedly greatly inferior to classic golden age movie animation (Warner, MGM, Disney etc..) because of the restrictions of the tv medium but the shows as a whole still stand up well today as pieces of family entertainment without an ounce of mawkishness. The animation is superior however to plenty that is issued these days.
The cartoons are presented in impeccably clear copies and it's great to watch them without the ads I was subjected to all those years ago.
A recommendable set which has got me interested in some of the other HB releases (Magilla? Jetsons? Huckleberry?).
Congratulations to Warners for their thorough work in releasing these and the Looney Tunes Golden Collections in a quality condition as befits these entertaining works of popular culture.

With the exception of The Honeymooners, this is probably the best comedy that was only on for one season. Top Cat is consistently funnier than The Jetsons and even, dare I say it, The Flintstones. The cityscape of Top Cat is brilliantly done. Strong storylines provide a good foundation for Hanna-Barbara's tribute to "You'll Never Get Rich" (aka Sgt. Bilko). The rich color of the animation was not to be experienced in 1962 as ABC broadcast the show in black and white. Few of us had color TV back then anyway. Top Cat became a Saturday afternoon staple, so more of a newer generation were able to enjoy the show in color.

The strength of Top Cat lies in its characters. Arnold Stang, actually playing against type, provides T.C. with an indomitable spirit. Maurice Gosfield IS Benny the Ball and Marvin Kaplan turns Choo Choo into Chooch. Veteran actor Allen Jenkins as Officer Dibble is about as prototype as it gets.

Every episode is a lot of fun, but I particularly loved the extras. You'll enjoy the enthusiastic recollections of the aptly named Leo DeLyon (voice of The Brain and Spook) who makes it very clear how much he loved this gig. You'll almost feel like you can picture what the set was like with this great cast of voice actors. The process of doing the show in many ways seemed to resemble a live radio play from an earlier era.

Thank you, Warner Home Video, for bringing back this joyful show and treating it and us with "dig-na-T".

"Top Cat", Hanna-Barbera's best series, finally makes it to the DVD in a lovely box set containing all the original episodes... and more. "Like, groovy, baby!", to quote Spook the beatnik cat, my favorite of the whole bunch of meowing miscreants.

All the episodes sound and look lovely, better than when broadcast on TV. There are some minor compression artefacts in very few scenes, but they last literally milliseconds, and the set's better saturation and crispness make up for it.

There are numerous extra features, too - certainly more than in, say, the disappointingly stingy box set of "Dilbert". Featurettes, promotional material, interviews and storyboards allow for a deeper look into the furry world of Hoagy's Alley. There are commentaries, too - but, sadly, only for three episodes, i.e. the meager 10% of the whole series. Still, they're interesting and informative, even with the occasional gaps of silence.

The belated, uncalled-for movie "Top Cat and the Beverly Hills Cats" is not present in this set. Considering how awful it was and how rudely it violated the spirit and continuity of the series, its absence is actually for the better.

I have, in fact, only two actual complaints about this set:

- Primo, the Warners were apparently too cheap to invest in a fifth disc. Instead, they stuffed the final 11 (!) episodes onto one annoying dual-sided "flipper" (supposedly, a thing of the past...)

- Secundo, the printable spine of the disc case that slips into a protective plastic jacket should have been placed on the case's right, so that the title printed on it would be visible when the case is in the jacket. Instead, the spine with the title is on the left, so it's obscured by the jacket, while all that's visible on the outside is the blank, black right side with a cut in the middle.

Other than those two minor shortcomings, this set is, fittingly, tip-top.

(Now just give "Duckman" a similar treatment... but with commentaries for all episodes!)

this show is very different from other shows.though fictional this show can only be enjoyed to its core when we understand the wit he (T.C) expresses.I have been tracking this show from episode to episode and everytime i watch it i find a new intriguing word which adds on to my enthusiasm of exploring the wit and the urge to learn new words.Learning new words and additional boost we get from watching the show is quite different.
When will this show come back and i expect new episodes to come.i will be waiting.

Top Cat didn't get the same syndication action like the Flintstones or Jetsons in my area. I only saw it maybe twice while visiting Boston - and they only showed it on a Sunday morning. So this cartoon wasn't a big part of my childhood. But I bought the DVD set anyway since the price was right.

And I'm quite entertained by the show. Top Cat is a Manhattan feline version of Sgt. Bilko. His crew of cats are amazing.

There's a bunch of nice bonus stuff - including interviews with the voice actors that are still alive. Plus a couple Kelloggs ads - remember when a show's characters could push a product?

I do wish I could have seen this show as a 7 year old. But I'm enjoying it at my advanced age.

This is a great box set of a classic television show. The digital remastering process is superb and looks terrific. The audio is clear and crisp. The special features are well thought out with interviews with some of the voice actors and writers. There is even an interview with the voice of Top Cat himself, Arnold Stang. Also included are original Kellogg's cereal commercials with Top Cat.

If you enjoy classic Hanna-Barbera cartoons, then this is a must for any collector. It is fantastic! Order it today.

I did, but I didn't (remember it that is). The credits seemed familiar once I finally got up the courage to lay out the cash for this set. But little else jogs any memory for me, which is odd because I am a rabid Barberite (I made it up:). I figured hey, what the heck, it's Hanna Barbera, plus I have all the other sets... why not?? I cannot say I am blown completely away, but at the same time I am proud to own this set. I purchased the Wacky Races set (which I halfway remembered) and I can say this is far superior to that.

What strikes me most I guess is the uniqueness of the locale. This is obviously from the same makers of Scooby, the Flinstones, etc, but in some ways the location really sets this off and makes it feel "different." Above I said I wasn't blown completely away, but that only entails certain aspects of the show. The Dingle character bugs me a bit, but the packaging, and transfer are great. I would say this is a must for anyone who loves Hanna. Intially, I told people at work I felt this was a sort of second tier effort, but now I regret that because Top cat and the Gang are every bit as good as the Jetsons and Scooby... maybe not quite Flinstone "material" but then I'm only halfway through the set:) Lastly, I must say, you MUST buy the Tom and Jerry set to ensure a second!!

WITH ORIGINAL SPANISH VOICES!!!!!!!!!!

I know that probably there are more mexican fans of the series than americans but this is really something very important because if the series doesnt have the original spanish voices the series is nothing;the english voices arent that bad but they cant be compared to the spanish voices.

I just bought the complete series of top cat or don gato y su pandilla and i am more than happy and satisfied with the box set and with all the options and features.i was waiting for a 5.1 surround sound but still lets remember that the series are very very old.

To be honest i never was a big fan of the series but its a great pckge with enough features and 30 episodes and its not that expensive...



So dont think it twice and go and buy the series cause its a classic