They wouldn't restore it off a non-master print. By the 30s, the negative would go to a master positive, then a few dupe negs would be made to print the various 35mms sent to theaters. They either spent the time needed to go through the neg properly or restored off the master positive, it'll probably look really good regardless

For those who prefer amazon, their pre order is now active.  Jerry Beck also mentioned in the comments of today's Cartoon Research article that once it was active he'd write an article on the set. Expect that later this week or next week

Update: Jerry has now said on FB that said article will be published on Monday!

Warner Archive Collection on Facebook  has posted the following press statement with full contents

Coming from the Warner Archive Collection on May 30th!
LOONEY TUNES COLLECTOR'S CHOICE VOL. 1
From deep inside the Warner Bros. vault comes an anthology chock full of classic animation gold! Derived from 4K scans of the original successive-exposure negatives, each short has been remastered and restored for inclusion in the "Looney Tunes Collector’s Choice, Vol. 1". These Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons have been carefully curated for discerning fans. Enjoy some of the finest and funniest golden-era cartoons with the brilliance of high-definition audio and video. The collection highlights some of the most beloved characters in the pantheon of Warner Bros. cartoon history, including Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Tweety & Sylvester, Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote just to name a few. Even better, all 20 of the shorts included in the collection are making their Blu-ray debut!. Whether you grew up with them or you’re introducing them to a new generation, these timeless and iconic characters will keep fans of all ages young at heart.
This collection contains the following animated short subjects:
(in alphabetical order)
BEANSTALK BUNNY - Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck & Elmer Fudd (1954, Chuck Jones)
THE BEE-DEVILED BRUIN – The Three Bears (1949, Chuck Jones)
CATCH AS CATS CAN – Sylvester (1947, Arthur Davis)
CRACKED QUACK -Daffy Duck & Porky Pig (1952, Friz Freleng)
DAFFY DOODLES – Daffy Duck & Porky Pig (1946, Robert McKimson)
DOGGONE CATS – Sylvester (1947, Arthur Davis)
THE FOXY DUCKLING – (1947, Arthur Davis)
A FRACTURED LEGHORN – Foghorn Leghorn (1950, Robert McKimson)
GREEDY FOR TWEETY – Tweety & Sylvester (1957, Friz Freleng)
HIP-HIP-HURRY! – Road Runner & Wile E. Coyote (1958, Chuck Jones)
HIS BITTER HALF – Daffy Duck (1950, Friz Freleng)
HOT ROD AND REEL – Road Runner & Wile E. Coyote (1959, Chuck Jones)
LITTLE ORPHAN AIREDALE – Porky Pig and Charlie Dog (1947, Chuck Jones)
A MOUSE DIVIDED – Sylvester (1953, Friz Freleng)
PLOP GOES THE WEASEL – Foghorn Leghorn (1953, Robert McKimson)
STOOGE FOR A MOUSE – Sylvester (1950, Friz Freleng)
TALE OF TWO MICE – Babbit & Catstello (1945, Frank Tashlin)
TWO GOPHERS FROM TEXAS – Goofy Gophers (1947, Arthur Davis)
UNRULY HARE, THE - Bugs Bunny & Elmer Fudd (1945, Frank Tashlin)
WHAT’S BREWIN’ BRUIN? – The Three Bears (1947, Chuck Jones)

A very strong lineup in my opinion! Great selection of classics and a usually overlooked one off by Davis that's a favorite of mine! Looking forward to the set!

That is indeed a strong line-up. Very few double dips, even from the VHS era! What few were released on iTunes should look a lot better.

Jerry has posted some brief thoughts on the set on today's CR post , including some images shot from TV to iPhone. BEANSTALK BUNNY looks pretty good, and while colors look the same, it does look like they re-remastered the one initially done for streaming

Yeah, I'm back. I promise not to get that heated or as personal with you guys again.

On the one hand, this should be exciting. The Looney Tunes ball is in WAC's court at long last, the cartoon choices are mostly good, and there's a good chance this series could go on for a long time. I got my wish, and I shouldn't have gotten so heated about it.

In spite of all the assurances this will be "uncut", there's nothing in the cartoons that would warrant cutting; it's a very "safe" collection of cartoons. I hope that's not an indicator of what to expect for future volumes.

OTOH, that Cartoon Research post can basically be TL;DR'd as "Yeah, it's coming. Whatever. Stop complaining". Jerry's hard sell is angrier and more antagonistic than usual.

There's also a lot of stuff that doesn't add up here. Jerry on Stu's Show said that they were only beginning production and selecting elements and it would be coming out in the fall. But the week after that, he and George were on The Extras, with George saying the menus had been built and the pre-orders would be "going up soon'.

Jerry's official story is that WAC will be scanning and fully restoring 20 cartoons in the span of (give or take) six weeks, and that he had no idea he and George Feltenstein would be plugging pre-orders for the set the week at the end of March, and he's still sticking to that story now that the set is officially announced and up for pre-order. I know NDA's are a thing, but how much sense does that make>

There's also a lot of stuff that doesn't add up here. Jerry on Stu's Show said that they were only beginning production and selecting elements and it would be coming out in the fall. But the week after that, he and George were on The Extras, with George saying the menus had been built and the pre-orders would be "going up soon'.

Here is what I suspect (but cannot prove, so don't spread this on twitter or discord as fact) may of happened based on the careful reading:

If the set was in SDS' system in January, then clearly it had been approved and in production for some time before. It looks like they are at the very least, reusing the scans for the 18 done for streaming, but it looks like Jerry is right that they were redone (notice that HIS BITTER HALF's photo is far more vibrant than what we've seen before, TV image couldn't do that alone). What Jerry may of been referring too when "pulling the masters" was likely in reference for the 2 that are entirely new for the set (and perhaps audio rescans too, hopefully). I also suspect that Jerry, given he is a consultant, may not of been given an update as to progress, so perhaps he was referring to a volume two?

I feel like you noting Jerry's "hard sell" is because of an FAQ he didn't write at all, that is purely in Nelson's tone and honestly, I understand. People are asking the same few questions to the point of annoyance for a few that want the set to have more volumes (which it probably will). Given this is a volume 1, the set being entirely "safe" choices is a pretty good idea, given the fact that it makes the set more accessible to casual watchers, ensuring more sales. The only reason people have to be told it is uncut is because numnuts who don't buy the sets are shouting about it, not knowing Warners hasn't ever censored a Looney Tunes release

When the HBO Max restorations started popping up, Jerry mentioned that WB was doing a complete 4K preservation scan of their whole library.

It would make sense if the Collector's Choice restorations are using those 4K scans as a basis for the relevant cartoons, while doing redoing the cleanup and color correction on them.


Jerry may not have written that FAQ, but he quoted it with his tacit approval. Even Porky 101 didn't get an FAQ like that, and that was when the WAC cartoon situation was more precarious

While asking the same questions over and over might be annoying, the WAC was very nearly shut down for good, and it's been a very long time since their last release (Tex #3). We also had a year of merger slaughter.

Given that Jerry was quoted by news sites saying that Warner was getting out of home video forever, some unease about future volumes I think can be understood and forgiven. Nelson's FAQ and Jerry's comments definitely make it sound like animation at the WAC is on shaky ground and we're not out of the woods yet, so maybe instead of berating and scolding cartoon fans, they should be taking that into account.

I still regret not having taken a screenshot of Jerry's 2020 (pre-pandemic) comment about Tex Avery, stating that "Nothing was going to be skipped".

Afterwards, he declares "we never promised all of them".

There is no reason to believe that most problematic un-PC WB cartoons will show up in this new collection. It's a GREAT selection nonetheless.

---

I get that WAC wants to hook casual buyers for the first volume. But it says a lot about their priorities that the first disc is all-color and Avery, Clampett and Norm McCabe are all no-shows.

Hopefully that doesn't persist for subsequent volumes or Looney Tunes discs. If there's any audience that would be receptive to black and white cartoons or non-series shorts, it's the Warner Archive clientele.

For Clampett more than likely as all of his color cartoons besides the two Censored 11 cartoons he directed are already on Bluray, probably only his Porkys then

But there are key Clampetts that remain unreleased on Blu.

Something like Porky's Hero Agency could have been included.

That's true, but you have to remember that the late-40s/early-50s Warner cartoons are perhaps the most famous. It makes total sense to me that they would highlight this era in Volume 1, so as to reel in more casual buyers.

Maybe if (or as) the series progresses we'll go further down the line with more obscure yet essential picks. I could see some of the Clampett Porkys, and even Avery and McCabe being showcased in Volume 2 or even 3.

---

But the set is called Collector's Choice, and WAC animation discs already have a track record and past performance of selling well. Why do they need to appease "casual buyers"?

I guess logic is asking too much of WAC, given that they restored the Happy Harmonies without checking to see if they'd be allowed to release them.

anything with more than one tashlin and/or davis cartoon included is a "collector's choice" by me

Yeah, I agree it's a pretty solid line-up. It doesn't really matter to me that some directors' work is not included in the list.

I still regret not having taken a screenshot of Jerry's 2020 (pre-pandemic) comment about Tex Avery, stating that "Nothing was going to be skipped".

Afterwards, he declares "we never promised all of them".

There is no reason to believe that most problematic un-PC WB cartoons will show up in this new collection. It's a GREAT selection nonetheless.

I also wish I could find the Stu's Show where he said the lack of controversy or complaints over the Popeye discs was going to make clearing un-PC cartoons easier.

Apparently WB Legal is still giving them a hard time, and Collector's Choice must have set things back to square one.

Most of these cartoons are so good, they wouldn't be out of place in the first LTGC at all. It's strange stuff like "A Fractured Leghorn", "Daffy Doodles" (two of the greatest McKimson shorts), "What's Brewin' Bruin", "The Bee-deviled Bruin" (totally overlooked 3 Bears masterpieces, which IMHO are necessary to watch before seeing the series conclusion in "A Bear for Punishment") or overlooked cartoons like "Unruly Hare", "His Bitter Half" and "Doggone Cats" were in exile for so many years without proper recognition. I hope this release will get big media hype.

I'm probably unpopular with my opinion, but I actually dare to like John Seely's stock music in the included Road Runner cartoons. I think they have a pretty different, but still authentic feel. Hopefully vol. 2 will include "Henhouse Henery" and "Of Rice and Hen", two other great Foghorns. Fingers crossed.

Sadly, Blu ray's review is in , revealing that they did just slap the HBO Max transfers on Blu ray with two new titles and called it a day

Ughhhhhh