The Bodyguard (Tom and Jerry)

The Bodyguard is an American 1944 Tom and Jerry cartoon and is the 14th short produced and directed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera.

Synopsis
When Jerry frees Spike from a Dog Catcher truck, Spike thanks him by becoming his bodyguard and asks Jerry to whistle whenever Tom is around.

Why It Became The Bodyguard

 * 1) This is the debut of Jerry and Spike becoming friends.
 * 2) When Jerry whistles, this will call Spike from danger.
 * 3) Spike makes a great foil for Tom.
 * 4) Tom, Jerry, and Spike are still likable characters.
 * 5) Spike's character is more developed here than in his first appearance in Dog Trouble Instead of the stereotypical feral, vicious bulldog who attacked both Tom and Jerry for no discernible reason whatsoever as in his previous appearance, this is the first time Spike speaks, and doesn't hurt everyone around for no valid reason.
 * 6) Funny Moments: Tom basks in his victory by laughing menacingly - in the same evil voice, he utters "In me power!" Unfortunately, the cat's attraction to the opposite sex gets the better of him when he soon spots a cute female cat and loudly wolf-whistles at her, momentarily forgetting that this will lead to Spike attacking him. The dog pops up behind him and use two garbage can lids as cymbals on Tom's head.
 * 7) Great animation and voice acting, much like the other 40's cartoons.
 * 8) The backgrounds are beautiful and fluid and looks like great as others cartoons at it's time.

The Only Bad Quality

 * 1) Bad Ending: A long, shrill whistle is emitted by the released air and Jerry's cleared mouth, and Tom pleads with Jerry to stop whistling, but he keeps going. "Knowing" Spike will completely whale on him, he digs his own grave, but Spike doesn't appear. Tom then writes his will, which says "I Thomas leave all to charity". As Tom finishes writing, both cat and mouse look up in puzzlement at the dog's disappearance, and once more find him locked up in the back of the dog catcher's truck again. This time, a padlock keeps the door shut so that Spike will no longer be able to escape the same way again and can no longer help his friend. Still whistling, Jerry chases the truck down the road with Tom chasing him, which means both Jerry and Spike lose in the end while Tom, whom is the antagonist of the episode, coming off as the victor.
 * 2) *But luckily there are sequels to the episode, Fit to be Tied and The Karate Guard (both of which enabled both Jerry and Spike to give Tom his much-needed comeuppance).

Reception

 * It holds a rating of 7.9 out of 100 on IMDB.