Nevermind That Sabbatical...

I explain it all below in my review for the first Stooge short of 1939: Three Little Sew and Sews.

(Short # 36 in Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk: The Columbia Shorts of The Three Stooges)

So, that sabbatical I was going to take… that has already concluded. In short, February hasn’t started off as the best month so far, and well—the reason why there was no Internet or phone for me for almost 24 hours: something literally exploded! It knocked out power to parts of the neighborhood also, although not where I live. There was zero faith (for good reason) that this issue would have been fixed anytime soon. I was incredibly irritated and frustrated yesterday afternoon but now I feel much better. Besides having those luxuries returned, the other unfortunate moments aren’t that big a deal.

Barring any other calamities in February, my schedule should be back to normal.

The Stooges enter the world of political intrigue. They are in the Navy of a fictional country, albeit as tailors-explaining the title. Curly wears the uniform of the Admiral, leading to him agreeing to lock up Moe and Larry after they attack him. Once Curly orders their release, the trio attend a soiree with a male-female duo of foreign spies, who desire to steal their submarine.

Three Little Sew and Sews was fun as it had the trio in different scenarios and different laughs were earned between the slapstick in those settings and the typical snappy patter. It was funny seeing Curly get revenge on his pals for their prior abuse. This was a nice spotlight for Curly, from a pantomime routine early on, getting seduced by the female spy at the party, another instance of him struggling w/ a couch spring, etc. He also was unforgettable in the sub, which itself was a new playground for gags.

As the submersible went out of control and even flew out of the water at one point, it was a nice bit of visual humor. The ending was unusual yet morbidly hilarious; thus, this piece devoted to international intrigue still entertained audiences at the time even if later in the year, World War II would begin. Naturally, during those years the Stooges would appear in more than a few war-themed shorts during those years, as will be reviewed in the future.