The First 60 Popeye the Sailor Cartoons Are Collected on a Four-DVD Set

Popeye the spinach-eating sailor is an animation icon known the world over for his adventures, many of which involve fighting his arch-nemesis Bluto over the hand and honor of Olive Oyl, who didn't always deserve it due to her occasional two-timing ways.

The cartoon series is finally getting the treatment it deserves with Warner Brothers' impressive Popeye The Sailor, Volume One, a four-disc set that not only presents the first 60 Popeye cartoons from the original masters, but after watching the extensive and informative Special Features, the viewer might qualify as an animation historian.

Popeye first appeared in 1929 in Elzie Crisler Segar's comic strip Thimble Theater. He then made the jump to the silver screen through the talents of Fleischer Studios, run by the brothers Max and Dave. It was a perfect match as Popeye went on to become Fleischer's biggest star.

At the time all the other animation studios' stars were anthropomorphic animals while Fleischer's popular characters were humans, Koko the Clown and Betty Boop. In fact, Popeye's screen debut in 1933 was billed as a Betty Boop cartoon although she only appeared briefly recreating her hula dance from Betty Boop's Bamboo Isle.

Fleischer's animation was great. The images are well drawn and the animators were able to create depth in the shots by painting the backgrounds slightly out of focus. There's a lot of movement on screen as well as plenty of gags. Three Technicolor two-reelers adapted from stories from Arabian Nights showed off their skills as Popeye and the gang were drawn into three-dimensional models. The creative team consistently made a lot of terrific choices and did exceptional work.

William Costello was the first voice of Popeye, but for reasons unclear animator Jack Mercer replaced him on King of the Mardi Gras in 1935 and performed the voice until 1978. He brought the character to new comedic heights. The audio was recorded after the cartoons were drawn, so actors would improvise lines that weren't lip-synched. Mercer's improvisations were funny while Costello's were straightforward.