Premiered October 10, 1981.
The Flintstones premiered 60 years ago today. It was the first primetime animated series and it aired on ABC at 8:30 PM.. This Halloween review is our celebration of that milestone!
It's Halloween Night and the kids of Bedrock are knocking on cave doors and asking for treats, including the door of Fred Flintstone (Harry Corden).
Fred's dogasaurus Dino (Mel Blanc) observes this and decides to put together a costume and go trick-or -treating.
Cavemouse, the rodent who lives inside the walls of the Flintstones' home, decides to put on a costume as well and follows Dino.
Dino trick-or-treats and is given an apple. However, Cavemouse cuts a hole in Dino's treat bag and takes the apple. When Dino sees this, he chases after Cavemouse, determined to get his treat. The chase takes them all over Bedrock and they wind up in a creepy old skull-shaped house...
...where they encounter a Venus Fly Trap plant!
Will Dino get his apple back from Cavemouse? Will they both be eaten by a giant plant? Will their Halloween be ruined?
J.A. Morris says:
The Flintstone Comedy Show was a series I watched occasionally during its run, but "Trick Or Treat" was new to me. This is a rather slight cartoon, with a running time of just over five minutes. It's basically a Tom and Jerry "chase" cartoon transported to a "Modern Stone Age" setting. That doesn't mean it's bad, it just doesn't have much of a plot.
However, I've always found Dino amusing and likeable (a dog I used to have reminded me of Dino). "Trick Or Treat" is an enjoyable Halloween short that's action-packed. Dino and Cavemouse's confrontation with the giant Venus Fly Trap was the high point for me.
Cavemouse chooses a costume that's exactly like Dino's, which is also a nice touch.
We try not to spoil endings in our reviews, but "Trick Or Treat" has a happy ending for all the principal characters. Their Halloween is not ruined.
A note about this series' title:
The Flintstone Comedy Show was called Flintstone Frolics when it was televised in other countries. I found it on Boomerang under the latter title.
"Trick Or Treat" should entertain any Flintstones fan, especially fans of Dino, but it's not exactly a classic that I plan to revisit every October.
J.A. Morris' rating:
.5
2 and a half jack-o-lanterns.
RigbyMel says:
Like my co-blogger, I watched this show sometimes when it was new, but didn't remember much in the way of specifics.
This little short in which Dino and Cavemouse fight Tom and Jerry style over Halloween treats is definitely short on plot, but what there is as well as the Halloween trappings make it fun. I wondered if the Frankenstones (spooky neighbors of the Flintstones a la The Munsters) were going to make an appearance in this short as it would fit thematically, but alas, they did not.
All in all, "Trick or Treat" is a cute little Halloween short, if not particularly "classic."
RigbyMel's rating:
2 jack-o-lanterns
