everything you have heard about this movie is true.

In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

It's the Natural Thing to Do (1939)*** (out of 4)Popeye and Bluto are involved in a violent fight when Olive receives a telegram from the Popeye Fan Club. The telegram asks the three to quit fighting so much and act more mature. The three decides to give it a try.I'm sure there were some complaints from people back in the day. I'm sure there were some who thought these cartoons were a bit too violent and sent the wrong message at times so it's pretty funny seeing this short address that issue. Of course, it's all done in a funny way as the three characters were really stupid when it came to acting normal. The title song is certainly the highlight of the film as Olive really gets to shine. The rest of the film is certainly entertaining but the laughs aren't as big as the sarcasm.

With this episode, the Fleischers were, in effect, flipping the bird at those saying their pictures were "too violent." When Popeye, Bluto and Olive receive a pointed telegram, then comically show up as "proper" society types, they're saying, very sarcastically, "Maybe you'd rather have THIS, you sissies?" As the three realize they're making idiots of themselves, give in and hilariously revert to the violence, the viewer understands that without some fisticuffs tossed in when needed, the Fleischer tunes might as well have gone down the Disney path and sacrificed humor for beauty.Make no mistake, both humor and beauty have always had their place in animation, but the Fleischer 'toons and, later, those of Warner Brothers (to whom many of Max and Dave Fleischer's best writers went after Paramount took over and ruined Popeye), were far funnier than Disney's. And yet, with their meticulously crafted backgrounds, Fleischer pictures had a unique beauty of their own. I love both the Fleischer and Disney creations from the 1930s, but given the choice of either, I'd take the Fleischer creations in a heartbeat.All this installment lacks is the far-better voices of Gus Wickie as Bluto and Mae Questal as Olive, but Max lost both when he moved his studio to Florida. Such is life.

Here's a different twist from the normal Popeye cartoon: we see a telegram delivered to Popeye, Bluto and Olive Oyl after the first minute of the cartoon. It reads: "We like your pictures but wish you'd cut out the rough stuff once in a while and act more refined. Be ladies and gentlemen. That's the natural thing to do. Signed, The Popeye Fan Club. P.S. Now go on with the picture."Bluto and Popeye had been beating the you-know-what out of each other while Olive was inside in the kitchen when the telegram arrived. All three of them read it outside in the backyard where the boys were going at it tooth-and-nail.Olive tells the boys to come back later as gentlemen. From that point, the cartoon is hilarious, a real hoot. I begin to mention all the sight gags in here, right from the opening scene with the two boys, dressed in tuxes and top hats strutting up the walkway to the insane, wild finish. Olive is dressed to the hilt, too, and actually looks good! How long everyone can stay on their good behavior is the big question here and you just know they are all going to snap any minute. This is a very good cartoon....the Fleischer brothers at their zaniest. It even incorporates the title as a song as all three people sing a verse or two of it!

This is a Max Fleischer Popeye cartoon. As such, there is a lot more inventive humor than in the more formulaic Famous Studios ones from many of the same animators. I guess the real difference is in the presence of Max and his brother Dave, as usual credited as director. The short begins with Popeye and Bluto fighting outside. Olive Oyl, washing dishes inside, gets a telegram that she passes to the boys that says in essence to stop fighting and act more civilized as signed by the Popeye Fan Club. So they do while getting some food service that results in the three of them trying to balance various food and drinks literally on their hands! They then try to make conversation about conversing and language. Eventually, it ends with a gradual slapstick scene that ends with them all singing, "It's the Natural Thing to Do!"...Hilarious from beginning to end, it's a shame that perhaps because of the black-and-white imagery, this and other Fleischer cartoons have not been seen by many of the public in nearly 30 years. Perhaps this will be rectified when Warners finally releases a Popeye collection later this year. Anyway, if you're interested in seeing Popeye outside of the formula plots of the Popeye/Bluto/Olive triangle then It's the Natural Thing to Do is as good a start as any...