The arrival of Betty Boop as we know her!

Mask-A-Raid (1931)
Starring: Ann Little (Betty Boop and various voices) and Bill Murray (Bimbo and various voices)
Directors: Dave Fleischer and Al Eugster
Rating: Nine of Ten Stars

Betty Boop is the Queen of the Ball at a masquerade, and she becomes the object of love (and lust) by Bimbo the Bandleader and the dirty old man who's the King of the Ball. Although Betty is clearly more attracted to Bimbo, she declares they must duel tor her heart. Insane antics ensue.

 "Mask-A-Raid" is a turning point for the most famous original characters to come out of the Max Fleischer-operated animation studios, Bimbo and Betty Boop.

First, this is the moment when Bimbo was permanently reduced from the headlining character to supporting character status. While he would continue to be a presence in the series for a few more years, he had been replaced as the star by Betty Boop, who had originally been introduced as a nameless supporting character with appearances like this. In some, he'd be a co-star (like he is here), but in others he'd barely be present.

Secondly, this is the point at which Betty Boop's transformation from an anthropomorphic poodle into the big-headed sexpot we all know and love. The change had been taking place over several cartoons, but this is the first time when her floppy poodle ears have been fully replaced by hoop earrings and the last vestiges of her dog snout are completely gone. 

As for the content of "Mask-A-Raid", this is one of the most risque Betty Boop cartoons I've seen so far, with Betty leaving no confusion about her desire to get hot and sweaty with Bimbo, with the dirty old man leaving no confusion about his desire to get hot and sweaty with Betty, and there's no doubt that Bimbo is not particularly interested in defending Betty's virtue but rather his own desire to get hot and sweaty with her. I think it's clear that these cartoons were directed at an adult audience--or at least older teens.

All that said, there is a sense of fun about everything in this very charming cartoon. In some of the Betty Boop installments, Bimbo comes across a demented stalker (like this one) or the proceedings are tinged with horror (as illustrated here), but here Bimbo is just a horndog and Betty is willing to engage him. The sense of fun (and perhaps even joy) intensifies as the cartoon progresses and gets stranger and stranger as it goes, and the duel for Betty Boop's--um... companionship--escalates into a major brawl for no apparent reason. I think if you watch "Mask-A-Raid" without at cracking at least one smile, you're dead. Not just dead inside, but clinically dead.

In addition to lots of zany visuals and escalating craziness, "Mask-A-Raid", like many of the Boop cartoons from this period, is an animated mini-musical... and the music and songs are just as nutty as the animation. There are Betty Boop cartoons that feature better music but I've yet to see one that manages to be as completely chaotic and perfectly graceful at the same time as this one.

But don't just take my word for it. Why don't you take a few minutes to have some fun right now? Click below, sit back, and get ready to laugh! (And if I have steered you wrong, let me and the world know in the comments section.)