The Bookwatch (January, 1999)
Michael Mallory's Hanna-Barbera Cartoons is a winning tribute to a studio which has long created classic cartoons for kids. Nearly 60 years of Hanna-Barbera cartoon characters are relished in a title which tells the stories of their cartoon associations and characters, blending full-page color illustrations with insights on cartoon history. An impressive achievement results.
Michael Mallory's well-written and beautifully illustrated "Hanna-Barbera Cartoons" offers readers a great chance to brush up on their knowledge of Yogi Bear, Scooby-Doo, Fred Flintstone, and the rest of Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera's colorful creations.
Chronicling the achievements of the animation team from its first cartoon, 1940's "Puss Gets the Boot," through the MGM years, the classic shows of the '60s and the brave new world of "Dexter's Lab" and "Powerpuff Girls," the book includes a handy catalogue raisonne and episodic details of the TV series.
Bottom line: Yabba-Dabba-Doo!--if you're crazy for cartoons.
Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera, who worked alongside [Warner Bros. Tex] Avery at M-G-M in the forties, have often been accused of diluting the quality of animation. But as Michael Mallory's appropriately eye-popping Hanna Barbera Cartoons makes evident, Hanna-Barbera redefined the look of animation in the Jet Age and led cartoons straight into prime-time television with "The Jetsons" and their Stone Age counterparts, "The Flintstones."