Adults who were not able to see at least a couple of episodes of "Tom and Jerry" as children should be pitied. They missed out on a part of growing up that would have taught them that sometimes, the best way to deal with adversaries is by punishing them in the way that will cause them the most pain. Kidding aside though, "Tom and Jerry" is such a significant part of animation history that everyone ought to relive its best episodes by playing the games based on the famous cartoons.

The Cartoons From Which the Games Are Based

"Tom and Jerry", a series of animated shorts created by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, is actually the cartoon that has received the most number of Academy Awards in history, winning 7 and tying it with "Silly Symphonies" by Walt Disney. The series centers on a fierce rivalry between Tom, a cat, and Jerry, a mouse, that brings the two main characters to numerous ridiculous and hysterical confrontations.

In the later years of the 1930s, the period after MGM experienced financial disaster with the shorts they had released, Barbera was paired with Hanna, and Barbera's suggestion for the partnership's debut feature was a cat-mouse cartoon named "Puss Gets the Boot". The idea caused Hanna and other employees to complain that the idea wasn't original enough to succeed, but the short was still completed anyway in late 1939, being released to theaters in February of 1940.

The short was previewed and released quietly, but after a few weeks, the cartoon became the favorite of theater owners for its profitability. In fact, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences liked the film, too, as they nominated it for an Oscar. More importantly, though, the success of "Puss Gets the Boot" caused more of the cartoons to be made, and it was in these features that the characters got the names they use today: "Tom" and "Jerry".

Making use of slapstick comedy all throughout, Hanna and Barbera produced, wrote and directed a total of 114 "Tom and Jerry" shorts with the MGM cartoon studio from 1940 to 1957. Later, the series became a television staple garnering a worldwide audience and being recognized as among the longest-lived and most popular rivalries in the history of American cinema.

In 1961, MGM released 13 additional entries to the franchise, this time, produced by Rembrandt Films and led by Gene Deitch from central Europe. Later, between 1963 and 1967, Sib-Tower, led by Chuck Jones's 12 Productions, added another 34 entries, bringing the total of theatrical releases to 161.

Then, in the 1970s, "Tom and Jerry" resurfaced as a made-for-television series released by Filmation Studios and Hanna-Barbera Productions. A feature-length movie, "Tom and Jerry: The Movie" was later released in 1992, followed by the producers' first made-for-TV short, "Tom and Jerry: The Mansion Cat".

As of 2013, the newest "Tom and Jerry" theatrical short is "The Karate Guard", co-directed and written by Barbera and released in 2005.

Tom and Jerry as Characters in Outrageous Plots

Tom, who was actually named "Jasper" in his first appearance, is a grey and white domesticated cat with short hair. His life as a house cat is actually a very pampered one with his owners feeding him well and not making a big deal out of the fact that he cannot get rid of the house mouse, Jerry.

Jerry, on the other hand, is a small brown mouse that always stays in close proximity to Tom. The cute rodent actually holds a surprising amount of strength for his size, allowing him to lift such heavy items, including anvils and axes, with relative ease. Furthermore, the mouse is amazingly able to inflict a considerable amount of suffering on the much larger Tom through these tools.

Surprising also is that despite the fact that Jerry causes so much trouble for Tom, the cat hardly ever tries to eat the mouse. Instead, most of the encounters between the two involve each one trying to humiliate the other. However, because Jerry is so much more intelligent than Tom, most of the shorts end with the mouse triumphing over the cat.

There are rare occasions, though, when Tom is shown getting the best of Jerry, such as when Tom inherits a huge estate but would lose everything if he hurt any animal, the ending showing Tom losing his temper and successfully attacking Jerry. Then there are those "Tom and Jerry" episodes where both of them lose, such as the time when a shark gets the best of the two main characters.





One criticism that has often been hurled against "Tom and Jerry" is that the characters and the confrontations they engage in are extremely violent, causing many conservative critics to suggest that the cartoon is not suitable for viewing by children. However, throughout all of the violent scenes, including episodes showing the use of axes, firearms and poison, there is never any blood or gore shown. In fact, whenever one of the two characters finds himself in mortal danger, the other often exerts effort to try to save the endangered rival. Furthermore, there are even some episodes that portray Tom and Jerry enjoying each others' company and working together to achieve a common goal, such as overcoming another rival. These exceptions to the rule highlight the producers' view that the seemingly violent scenes are merely incorporated into the cartoon for comedic effect rather than to suggest that violence is an acceptable form of behavior.

Tom and Jerry Games

Just like the cartoon from which they were based, "Tom and Jerry" games feature the two main characters, along with some of their supporting cast, in various hilarious problematic situations, all of them providing several reasons for players to try out the games on this site:

1. "Tom and Jerry" games will remind anyone who was fond of the series about just how much fun Tom and Jerry, along with the outrageous situations they find themselves in, are. Playing the games is like taking a hilarious trip down comedy lane -- a definite stress buster.

2. The tricky scenarios in each of the "Tom and Jerry" games, played in increasingly difficult levels, will provide hours of challenging fun for players of all ages. It's almost impossible to get bored!

3. The games on this site are regularly updated. So if there's a new "Tom and Jerry" game out there, the site is more than likely to have it.

4. "Tom and Jerry" games can be played absolutely free!





So what are you waiting for? Go ahead and start enjoying our "Tom and Jerry" games!