An action-packed Mickey cartoon and where and Minnie face off with regular villain Peg-Leg Pete and a host of spear-throwing henchmen in an Arab country. Some catchy music, but the usual running around. At least the fighting part was a bit exciting. Grade C-

This is an early Mickey Mouse short produced by the Disney studio. There will be spoilers ahead:This is really two cartoons in one. Mickey and Minnie are having a pleasant trip, being tourists (in the middle of a desert). For roughly the first half of the short, it's calm and tranquil. They arrive at their destination and there are lots of caricatures of the local inhabitants, most of which will offend somebody. Minnie is taking pictures, as tourists do. The best bits here are their camel sticking its head in a barrel labeled Beer and a juggler with an atypical technique.Then Pete (the version with two legs) spots Minnie and grabs her and sets up the second, more action-packed half of the short, similar to The Gallopin' Gaucho in tone. Mickey learns the perils of driving a drunken camel, Pete heads for his hideout and the fight starts.Round one ends in Mickey's favor, only to have Pete's henchmen pop out everywhere. Pete starts firing pistols blindly and scatters everyone, leading to some nice animation of everyone trying to hide. Pete manages to catch Mickey before he can get away with Minnie and they start fighting with blades, Mickey predominantly unarmed.In the end, Mickey successfully rescues Minnie, Pete winds up just getting it in the end and the now sober camel has the last laugh.This short is available on the Disney Treasures Mickey Mouse In Black and White, Volume Two and it and the set are worth getting.

Mickey in Arabia is a lot of fun, which is what you expect above all in a cartoon short. The stereotypes are rather crude, even by Mickey Mouse short standards, and the story is standard, adopting the Mickey rescuing Minnie from Pete formula that you see a good deal in Mickey shorts around this time, and reminiscent of Galloping Gaucho(which is actually not that bad a thing). However, the animation is fine, it is crisp and clean with the characters drawn well, and the music, always a major component of the success of the Disney shorts, is energetic and characterful enhancing every scene and gag. The gags are right on the money including the camel getting drunk, the scenes in Pete's lair,- the gunshots and the diving into pots- Minnie trying to take photos of a juggler and the balls being juggled with his bottom. The rooftop chase was thrilling and the ending was funny and sweet. Mickey is wonderfully expressive here, while Minnie is just as likable, once again you can definitely see their chemistry and what they see in one another. Pete is an appropriately antagonistic foil. Overall, a very good short if not one my favourites. 8/10 Bethany Cox