Triplet Trouble (1952) Online

It's not often in Tom and Jerry cartoons where you see our adversaries team up to be on the same side against a common enemy! That's what happens here, and we root for them!

It starts when the doorbell rings and Beulah winds up taking in three cute little kittens. They make look like angels but these furballs are "the kittens from Hell." (my quotes). They are sadistic, evil and....well, poor Tom has to watch them while Beulah goes out shopping.

The sight gags involving involving these kittens are hilarious and have to be seen rather than described. They may be young but immediately you can tell these rascals are not new in acting up and looking innocent at the same time. They have experience at this somewhere, which is why they were left at the front door by the previous owner.

Anyway, they ruin Tom, which spectator Jerry thinks is funny until they go after him, too, making him into a waffle and then a hot dog. As I said, one can't properly describe all the mayhem - almost all of it very cleverly-done - in this seven-minute animated short.

This, then, turns out to be one of the rare T&J 'toons, as mentioned, where Tom and Jerry wind up on the same side to give these kittens a little dose of their own medicine.

A fabulous cartoon.

At first glance, it looks as though Triplet Trouble might well be one of those irritating T&J cartoons to feature cloyingly cute supporting characters, the action beginning with Mammy Two Shoes agreeing to look after three little kittens. However, this trio of tiny felines turn out to be far from adorable; in fact, they're so troublesome that Tom and Jerry have to team together to try and get rid of them.

Rather than the saccharine sweet episode I had anticipated, Triplet Trouble proved to be quite unexpected delight, with lots of great gags, the three young cats providing plenty of hilarious mayhem once Mammy turns her back. The most painful moment comes when Tom swallows an umbrella and it pops open, but my favourite scenes have to be where Tom uses a hostess trolley as an airplane, flying around the house dropping pies and a melon onto the little kitties.

The chaos ends with the naughty kittens landing on a rotary clothes dryer, Jerry giving them a much deserved hiding with a carpet beater.

7.5 out of 10, rounded up to 8 for IMDb.

As a huge Tom and Jerry fan, springing from a very early age, I love Triplet Trouble. The animation I cannot fault, not surprising since we are talking about the animation from a cartoon that came from Tom and Jerry's best overall decade. Everything is very crisp and smooth and lusciously coloured. The music, as it is as well with the Disney and Looney Tunes shorts, is typically catchy and always enhances the action. The story is fast and furious in pacing, and not predictable. In fact, the idea to have Tom and Jerry on the same side as they get their own-back on the kittens by giving them a taste of their own medicine is very interesting and is a touch I don't think I've seen before in a Tom and Jerry cartoon. Triplet Trouble is more violent than the usual (entertainingly that is) slapsticky standard, but this is done in a clever and funny way rather than the sickening way seen in the abominable Gene Dietch Tom and Jerry cartoons. The gags are thick and fast and all hit the mark. Tom and Jerry are still the likable characters we know and love, and the triplet kittens, not being what they seem and that's an understatement, are great counterpoints. In conclusion, have the characteristic mayhem multiplied by three and you have a hugely entertaining cartoon. 10/10 Bethany Cox

This is one of the best Tom and Jerry cartoons - a hilarious and exciting one as we see the two team up together to take on three mischievous kittens, who were brought to Mammy Two-Shoes to babysit. The seemingly innocent kittens made life miserable for Tom and Jerry; they were absolutely ruthless, and it was refreshing seeing Tom and Jerry giving them a good taste of their own medicine!

Grade A