Alright, I used to absolutely adore this when I was little, and I still find it great to this day. The music really takes me back... When I used to watch this back then it never really necessarily seemed a story about being ugly or not, but more a matter of wanting someone to love you. The tale is so classic and timeless: believing that you belong nowhere when in reality you belong to something grander and more beautiful than you ever thought possible. Some of the striking emotional images like the teary blue eyes and the final reunion between mother and child were clearly later used to just as great effect in the brief, but classic Dumbo. Considering that this is the last ever Silly Symphony, you could say that it is the series "swan song" in more ways than one! The background scenery, while being very picturesque and well done, also looks a little misty to me. There's also a weird abundance of toadstools that I don't really care for. Something that I do find pretty amazing is how realistic the splashing and rippling of the water looks. The animation of the duck decoy is also very impressive as it almost looks like a three- dimensional object. Now how the hell did they do that? When I was little that thing used to really scare me for some reason!:::2::: Love the comical bickering of the duck couple at the start. He's accusing her of cheating-my goodness, the stuff you fail to pick up on as a child! I love the way the animals are made so expressive that you immediately see them as people. Aww, that poor little guy! Everyone treats him so mean! It sure makes for a great emotional payoff, though. It's not really that he's "ugly" it's just that he doesn't look or sound the way they do. It's actually a pretty good reflection of how the world really is. If you're different, you're singled out. As wonderful as the little honker is, and he really does carry the entire short on his cute little shoulders, I think the design of the Ugly "Duckling" could have been made to look a little less toony. Not at all that he looks silly or anything, but he looks kinda gawky. His head is a little too big, and he really should have had a black beak and feet. The signature sound he makes does render it a bit hard not to give a guilty little chuckle when he's honking his little heart out in abject despair! Not to be too insensitive, but ya gotta admit it is pretty funny when he peers at his wavey, clownish reflection a second time and gives out one almighty honk-why me!!! In all seriousness though, that is such a heartbreaking little sequence-between when the decoy bonks him on the head and he gets discovered by his own kind. I honestly can't remember if it used to make me cry or laugh, but knowing myself,I'd have to opt for the latter. A whole lot of people out there cried when they watched this as children. I like how the duck family cheer him on at the end, but he ignores them, as he's now a bigshot! He's become the Smug-ly Duckling! Oh it's okay, they were mean!:::2:::It's such a strong and uplifting moment when the cygnet meets the mother swan. The feeling as she tenderly embraces him with her beautiful wings is simply priceless. It's the perfect antithesis to all the earlier harshness, and as they all swim away and the animation draws to a close, so does the series, and it does so on a very satisfying note indeed. A pure delight for the ages. Thank you.