This is an early Mickey Mouse cartoon produced by the Disney studio. There will be spoilers ahead:This is a very good short, with Mickey playing a wandering minstrel, Minnie a princess and Goofy (here named Dippy Dawg) as a prince, of all things.The king announces Minnie's impending wedding to Goofy, to which she objects strenuously by slapping him repeatedly. He should have run after the first slap. Minnie is banished to the attic by the king. Mickey sees this and goes outside the attic window to vow (in "song") that he'll rescue her, then floats up to her window and into the attic, asking her if she has a rope! If she had a rope, she wouldn't need rescuing.While king and court are pigging out at the banquet (at which the guillotine is put to a creative use) Mickey and Minnie are escaping out the window on an improvised rope made from Clarabelle Cow's clothing (don't ask!). They get caught because the short needs a stirring ending, so Mickey gets introduced to the guillotine in its traditional form of usage. Minnie pleads that she loves this complete stranger and the king suggests a duel, in the form of a joust. This takes up most of the last two minutes and is hilarious. The outcome is obvious and the ending is cute.This short is available on several DVDs and is well worth tracking down.

This Disney cartoon is a treat for buffs: it's a clever mini-musical with a fast-moving plot, good "production values," and cute gags, made when the enormous popularity of Mickey Mouse was reaching the level of a worldwide phenomenon. Walt's animators were really hitting their stride by the early '30s, and were continually developing new techniques and promptly improving them. In the best Mickey entries, and even in the routine ones, the filmmakers achieve a level of finesse that is pleasurable to experience, in and of itself. These shorts still look great, even after all the decades of technological advances that have taken animation to new realms. Ye Olden Days may not be the funniest or most dazzling cartoon from this rich period, but it wins the day on sheer charm.The opening credits set the tone: we're in the age of Ivanhoe, and the familiar Disney characters are all playing roles in a Medieval pageant. "Ye Caste" includes Mickey Mouse in the lead as "Ye Wandering Minstrel," Minnie is "Ye Princess," etc. It's also notable that Goofy hasn't yet evolved into the character we know; here he's playing a Prince and is billed as Dippy Dawg, the name for his earliest incarnation. As it turns out he's Mickey's nemesis and rival for Minnie's hand—which would be unthinkable later on, once his persona was fully established. Minnie's father, "Ye Olde Kinge," is a large furry creature who seems villainous at first, in part because he resembles Peg Leg Pete. In the opening scene it's established in fairy tale style that the King has decreed his daughter must marry a Prince from a neighboring kingdom this very day. Unfortunately, the Prince is a fool and the Princess refuses to follow her father's wishes. So the King has his daughter locked in a jail cell in the tower, along with her lady-in-waiting (a nice character role for Clarabelle Cow). Mickey the wandering minstrel shows up riding his humble mule at this juncture, and immediately sets about to rescue the Princess.In this film Mickey is endowed with almost magical powers, suggestive of Felix the Cat. For instance, once he reaches the castle he effortlessly shinnies up a tree alongside the tower, pausing only long enough to serenade Minnie and win her heart. That accomplished, Mickey steps onto a branch which bends down and then swings slowly upward, sending him smoothly through Minnie's window. It's like he's flying. Things like this only happen in our dreams, or in the movies. Complications set in when Mickey attempts to spirit the Princess away and is caught, and nearly guillotined. Soon he must fight a duel with the Prince, and this event is celebrated with a peppy song. It wasn't until I saw this cartoon a second time that I caught all the lyrics: "We're gonna have a duel, we're gonna have a duel/Which ever one survives the slaughter, wins the hand of my fair daughter!" That's a little surprising for a Disney cartoon, and so is a quick sight gag towards the end, involving a portrait of a horse. But this was still the early '30s; the Production Code wasn't being enforced yet, and filmmakers could get away with things that would be red-penciled a year or two later, even in cartoons.In any case, Mickey and Goofy (or "Dippy") engage in spirited combat with lances, while their steeds duke it out with their hooves. It's quite a rousing finale, even if we're pretty sure that Mickey is ultimately going to prevail, and when the fight is over another cute gag wraps up the show. Anyone who wants to know why Mickey was a folk hero in the 1930s should give Ye Olden Days a look. There's a reason the Disney studio became such a powerhouse: these films made a lot of people happy at a desperate time, and in the best ones the magic still works.

"Ye Olden Days" marks the first major role for 'Dippy Dawg'--a character who soon became known as Goofy. However, Dippy is not one of the good guys in this cartoon. And soon it's Dippy versus Mickey--something that wouldn't happen later--once they became goof friends in later cartoons.This one is set in the Middle Ages--making it a nice change up from the usual time and place. Minnie is a princess and her father, the king, has decided she must marry Prince Dippy. However, she is horrified of the idea of marrying him and he locks her in the tower when she refuses. There, she and Clarabelle cry their eyes out--and are overheard by a wandering minstrel (Mickey). Mickey is caught trying to rescue them and the crowd insists that Mickey must fight a duel with Prince Dippy--the winner take all.The animation is great and the story quite charming---what more could you want?!

This short is my favorite Mickey Mouse shorts from 1933; I am quite terribly particular about that (a favorite cartoon short from which year). Now this cartoon is set like a stage-theatre play, and it shows Mickey in a medieval setting as a wandering minstrel, saving Princess Minnie from having to marry Prince Goofy of Poopoopadoo. Yep! Prince Goofy, a villain, strange but true. Here is a note I like to point out: This short is the first Mickey short that is set in a medieval setting. The second short is the popular colored short The Brave Little Tailor.I don't have any particular scene I like, because I love this cartoon from beginning to end.