"Tell me more about my eyes!"
"Bugs Bunny and the Three Bears" is a 1944 Merrie Melodies cartoon, directed by Chuck Jones. Besides starring Bugs Bunny, this short also marks the first appearance of Jones' dysfunctional version of The Three Bears.
The Three Bears are hungry and want something to eat, and plan on luring Goldilocks to them with porridge. But since they only have carrots, they make carrot soup instead and then pretend to go on a walk through the woods.. The aroma of the carrot soup literally brings the nearby Bugs Bunny out of his rabbit hole and into the Bears' home. A story parodying the Goldilocks and the Three Bears tale unfolds as Bugs deals with the trio of bears.
"Bugs Bunny and the Three Bears" provides examples of:
- Abusive Parents: Played for Laughs. Papa Bear acts violent and nasty towards Junior, but given how dumb yet durable the latter is, it comes off as funny instead of disturbing.
- Abhorrent Admirer: Mama Bear becomes one to Bugs after he compliments and kisses her in an attempt to save himself from the Bears. Unlike most individuals of this trope, she actually succeeds in having her way with her object of affection, even if it is against his will.
- Affectionate Parody: Of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears".
- Anticipatory Lipstick: Played with. At the end of the short, Mama Bear is shown wearing a thick layer of red lipstick, after Bugs is shown with his face covered in lipstick marks after she kissed him off screen.
- Awful Wedded Life: Henry and Mama Bear seem to have no love between them, which explains why Mama Bear was quick to pursue Bugs when the rabbit feigned interest in her.
- The Bad Guy Wins: Mama Bear. After developing a crush on him, she abandons her goal to eat Bugs, and starts to pursue him romantically. In the end, she has her way with him, subjecting the rabbit to multiple kisses against his will.
- Bathtub Scene: When trying to seduce Bugs, Mama Bear dresses up in various outfits when he opens a door in their home. The third door Bugs opens, Mama Bear is in the bathtub, innocently feigning embarassment, when clearly wanting him to take a peek at her.
- Black-and-Gray Morality: There isn't any good side in this story. The bears reenact the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears so that they can eat her, and aren't too bothered when they end up drawing Bugs Bunny's attention instead. Meanwhile, Bugs doesn't have any problems trespassing into a house that isn't his, eating food that doesn't belong to him, and sleeping in a stranger's bed even though his burrow is a stone's throw away.
- Breaking the Fourth Wall: Bugs does this as he tries to fight of Mama Bear's advances.Bugs: Now cut it out! Stop it! Hey, people are looking at us!
- The Cat Came Back: Bugs just can't shake Mama Bear; she even waits for him at his own burrow.
- Covered in Kisses: When Bugs escapes to his burrow, he is cornered by the smitten Mama Bear, who proceeds to kiss him multiple times off-screen. Seconds later, Bugs emerges from the burrow, with his face, neck, and ears covered in red lipstick marks.
- Covert Pervert: Mama Bear is presented as a basic housewife throughout the short. However, once she becomes smitten with Bugs, she slowly reveals herself to be this when she tries to seduce Bugs with revealing outfits and even tries to let him sneak a peek at her in the bathtub!
- Dirty Old Woman: Old is pushing it, but a mother with a child, Mama Bear has shades of this. While seemingly an innocent bystanding member of the Bear family, her crush and pursuit on Bugs leads her to reveal herself to be this, as she attempts to seduce Bugs by wearing a nightgown, evening gown, or being in the bathtub.
- The Ditz: Junior is as stupid as he is big. He can't even get his lines right, such as saying how someone's been sleeping in his bed while eating his carrot soup.
- Door Roulette: Bugs tries to escape the bears' house after his plan to seduce the Mama Bear works too well, but finds her behind every door dressed in different lingerie. "Tell me more about my eyes!"
- Downer Ending: Played for Laughs. While Bugs does manage to avoid getting eaten by the bears, he unfortunately ends up becoming the object of Mama Bear's affections. Despite his attempts to escape her, he is inevitably cornered by the smitten bear, who has her way with him courtesy of an off-screen smooching. Bugs is left traumatized by the experience, and is last seen running towards the horizon, screaming. It's implied he'll have to leave his burrow and find a new home.
- Also, due to her crush, Mama Bear prevented her husband and junior from hurting Bugs. After having had her way with him, she let Bugs go, essentially letting her family's meal escape when they have nothing else to eat.
- Early-Installment Weirdness: Jones' Three Bears characters have some of their trademark characteristics: their sizes reversed (with Papa Bear's Napoleon Complex), Junyer wearing a diaper, and the family dysfunction. However, their design is rather crude. Also, this is the only short where Mel Blanc would voice Papa Bear (in future shorts, Pa would be voiced by Billy Bletcher, aka Disney's Big Bad Wolf.)
- Earn Your Happy Ending: Mama Bear kind of gets hers in the end. Clearly stuck in a loveless marriage with an abusive husband, she succeeds in getting a chance to make out with someone who actually liked her (at least in her eyes). Her content look at the end of the short says it all.
- Fan Disservice: Mama Bear flirting with Bugs, and all of the sexy outfits she puts on for him. Just look at the page image!
- Follow Your Nose: The aroma of the carrot soup lifts Bugs out of his burrow and carries him to the bears' cottage.
- Forceful Kiss: While it is not shown, Mama Bear catches Bugs in his burrow, and gives him multiple kisses all over his face, all against his will.
- Bugs Bunny also initially does this to Mama Bear full on the lips, though she enjoyed, which caused her to develop a crush on him.
- Gag Lips: Downplayed: At the end of the short, Mama Bear emerges from Bugs' rabbit hole, now shown wearing a thick layer of red lipstick.
- Impact Silhouette: Bugs leaves the bears house this way after Mama Bear scares the crap out of him.
- Interspecies Romance: Mama Bear develops a crush on Bugs who is a rabbit.
- Looking for Love in All the Wrong Places: Mama Bear. She fails to see that Bugs was only complimenting her in order to escape getting hurt from the bears. And she refuses to listen to Bugs when he tries to explain that he doesn't like her that way.
- Manchild: Junior is a massive bear in a diaper who acts like a baby. Subverted since he is actually seven years old.
- No Name Given: Unlike her husband and son, Mama Bears name is never mentioned.
- Old Maid: Mama Bear is way past her prime, as Bugs finds out when she attempts to dress in a slinky way for him.
- Schmuck Banquet: The bears specifically lay out food so they can lure someone and eat them. Since they didn't have any carrots, they opted for carrot soup, which is how they got Bugs instead of Goldilocks.
- Show Some Leg: Mama Bear attempts to seduce Bugs as he tries to escape the bears home. This includes wearing a see-through nightgown(!), dressing up as Veronica Lake, even letting him take a peek at her in the bathtub.
- Simpleton Voice: Junior, famously performed by the great Stan Freberg.
- Smitten Teenage Girl: upon developing a crush on Bugs, Mama Bear begins to act and talk like a smitten schoolgirl around him.
- Smooch of Victory: Mama Bear gets hers when she forces several kisses on Bugs at the end of the short.
- Standard Snippet: When Papa Bear is thinking, Raymond Scott's "In an 18th Century Drawing Room" plays.
- The Triple: When they get to the porridge part.Mama Bear: My soup— I mean, my porridge is too, hot.
Papa Bear: [Doesn't even bother to taste the soup] Oh, my soup's too hot.
Junior: [Drinks the whole bowl and belches] Eh, uh, duh— Somebody's been sleeping in my bed!
[Papa Bear hits Junior] - Too Dumb to Live: The oafish Junior, of course.
- Villain Protagonist: The episode mostly plays from the bears' point of view, who this time deliberately try to bait Goldilocks into invading their home so they can eat her.
