HAVING SET THE bar extremely high, Director Jack Kinney had perhaps created a sort of tender trap for his subsequent product. As a fine example and prima-fascia evidence to present in support of this thesis, Ladies & Gentlemen of the Jury, we give you TEACHERS ARE HUMAN.
TO START WITH, there was definitely a change in the art style. At least in the area of character design and rendering to the screen, we sense a sort of dramatic departure from what has gone before. We cannot say if it is either better or worse; but it definitely different to what we had become used to watching in those Disney short subject cartoons.
THERE ALSO APPEARS to be a sort of midstream compromise of the children populating this apparently one room, "Little Red Schoolhouse" type of elementary school; which just happens to be located in modern day (for 1952) American Suburbia. We can't be sure if they are human, humanoid, anthropomorphic puppy dogs or some sort of mutants done up to order as in THE ISLAND OF LOST SOULS/ISLAND OF DR. MOREAU. (Take your pick, Schultz!)
THE STORYLINE BRINGS us up close and personal with the trials and tribulations* of the teacher in dealing with the children. All is pretty standard stuff, but is expertly handled and framed with a great deal of brevity. No gag situation is over used and the action as described by the voice over talents of narrator, Mr. Alan Reed (future voice of FRED FLINTSTONE over at Hannah-Barbera Productions).
WHILE THIS EFFORT was obviously not our favourite GOOFY picture, we did enjoy it and do recommend it to our many faithful, loyal and kindly readers.
NOTE * In retrospect, those problems encountered by the Academic community in 1950 would seem to be quite tame by today's standards. This is also prior to BLACKBOARD JUNGLE, a milestone in cinematic portrayals of Juvenile Delinquency.