Line #49 WesternAnimation/HeavenlyPuss


1	[[quoteright:220:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/220px_heavenly_puss_poster.jpg]]
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3	''Heavenly Puss'' is a 1949 ''Franchise/TomAndJerry'' cartoon directed by Creator/HannaBarbera.
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5	After getting squashed by a piano while chasing Jerry, Tom finds himself ascending to Heaven. Unfortunately, due to his record of tormenting Jerry his entire life, the Gatekeeper can't let him pass. With only an hour before the Heavenly Express leaves, Tom must get Jerry's signature on a Certificate of Forgiveness in order to get access, otherwise he'll be condemned to eternal torment at the paws of a devilish dog.
6	----
7	!!Tropes:
8	* AfterlifeExpress: Tom has to ride the Heavenly Express to Cat Heaven, but they won't let him board until he makes up with Jerry, and he only has an hour before it leaves.
9	* AllForNothing: Despite Tom successfully convincing Jerry to forgive him, Jerry is unable to sign the Certificate of Forgiveness in time and Tom ends up getting banished to FireAndBrimstoneHell. Fortunately for Tom, it's AllJustADream.
10	* AllJustADream: At the end, it turns out that Tom is not really dead, but he was just asleep and the whole thing was a very vivid nightmare.
11	* AsideGlance:
12	** After the escalator disappears while Tom tries to race up it and a fiery pit opens up under him, Tom is in midair for a moment before finally waving bye-bye and [[GravityIsAHarshMistress falling into the pit]].
13	** At the end, a relieved Tom embraces Jerry and kisses him. A perplexed Jerry looks at the camera and gives the audience a shrug for the IrisOut.
14	* BigRedDevil: The Devil is basically Spike colored red and given horns and a pitchfork.
15	* CatConcerto: One of the recently deceased cats boarding the Heavenly Express was struck with a flatiron while doing this, leaving him with [[CranialEruption a large lump under his tophat]].
16	* CassandraTruth: Tom attempts to pantomime his situation to Jerry to get him to sign the certificate, complete with angel fluttering and devil horns. Jerry naturally gives a rather unconvinced look, though eventually submits after Tom begs persistently.
17	* CelestialBureaucracy: The entrance to Cat Heaven is depicted as a train station gate, where recently deceased cats wait in line to board the Heavenly Express.
18	* DissonantSerenity: Apart from Butch, the cat who lost a fight with a bulldog and was seen frowning over it, all the cats seemed to be eerily okay with being either struck with a flat iron, run over by a steamroller, and drowned.
19	* DraggedOffToHell: Or rather "[[GravityIsAHarshMistress have a trap door open under him]]", but once Tom's time runs out, down he goes immediately.
20	* DrowningUnwantedPets: There's a shot where a soggy bag begins bouncing and Fluff, Muff, and Puff ([[EarlyBirdCameo who would later appear in]] ''[[EarlyBirdCameo Triplet Trouble]]'') emerge from the bag. That's one [[ParentalBonus today's kids wouldn't figure out]]. [[note]]In former times, especially on farms, they would; it was often a child's job to drown unwanted kittens.[[/note]]
21	-->'''Gatekeeper:''' "What some people won't do."
22	* EveryoneHasStandards: Jerry is completely horrified at the fact that Tom may spend an eternity in Hell, even if he earned it by his enmity with Jerry. He signs the Certificate of Forgiveness [[MyGodYouAreSerious once he sees proof of Tom's claims]].
23	* EyePop: Tom's eyes get huge as he's shown a glimpse of Hell.
24	* TheFinalTemptation: When Tom tries to attack Jerry after the latter tears up the Certificate of Forgiveness, the Devil appears behind them and tempts Tom to finish the job.
25	-->'''Spike (Devil):''' Attaboy, Tom! Hit him and let's go! Come on!
26	* FoeRomanceSubtext: At the end, Tom (happy that he's still alive and he just had a bad dream) hugs and kisses a confused Jerry.
27	* FoodAsBribe: Tom offered Jerry a huge wedge of cheese in exchange for signing the certificate. An offended Jerry rips up the certificate, nearly dooming Tom.
28	* ForgedMessage: At one point, Tom tries to cheat by forging Jerry's signature on the certificate. Unfortunately, he gets caught by the Gatekeeper before he could sign it.
29	-->'''Gatekeeper:''' Thomas, uh, uh, uh, uh.
30	* GuiltInducedNightmare: Tom is [[ReroutedFromHeaven denied access to Heaven]] for constantly chasing Jerry. He needs to have Jerry sign a contract saying that he forgives him or else he will be sent to hell. Jerry signs it [[YouAreTooLate too late]] and Tom is promptly [[StewedAlive shoved into a boiling pot]] by a demonic version of Spike the Bulldog. It's then revealed that this was AllJustADream, and when he wakes up, Tom gives Jerry a big hug, much to the latter's bewilderment.
31	* InstantBandages: One of the cats in line for the Heavenly Express was bandaged up due to losing a fight with a bulldog. As he passes the gate, [[FalseTeethTomfoolery the dog's teeth are still biting his tail]].
32	* JacobMarleyApparel: When we see cat heaven, there are several cats queuing for entry, starting with one who lost a fight to a dog and still had all his bandages (and even the dog teeth on his tail), one with a CranialEruption from being hit in the head, and one completely flat due to ben run over by a train.
33	* JudgementOfTheDead: The Gatekeeper won't let Tom into the Heavenly Express until he gets Jerry to sign a Certificate of Forgiveness. Otherwise, he's sent to FireAndBrimstoneHell, where a BullyBulldog Devil is waiting for him.
34	* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: A subtle example -- throughout the short, Jerry refuses to sign the Certificate of Forgiveness, at one point even tearing it to pieces seemingly out of spite. The minute he sees [[DraggedOffToHell the fate that awaits Tom if he doesn't forgive him]], however, he signs it without hesitation (although by then it's too late).
35	* OhCrap: Both Jerry and Tom have this reaction when they see the piano sliding down the stairs. Unlike Jerry, however, Tom isn't able to get out of the way in time.
36	* ThePearlyGates: The Heavenly Express has the motif of the pearly gates, but, rather than being the actual gate to Heaven, it's simply a train station for the train to Heaven.
37	* ThePenIsMightier: When Tom initially tries to get Jerry to sign the certificate, the mouse instead uses the pen to spray ink in Tom's face.
38	* PianoDrop: Tom is pulling on a stair rug to try to catch Jerry. He ends up pulling an upright piano down the stairs, [[HoistByHisOwnPetard which flattens him against the wall]].
39	* RaceAgainstTheClock: Tom has to get Jerry to sign the Certificate of Forgiveness before the Heavenly Express leaves in an hour in order to get into Heaven. Unfortunately, [[YouAreTooLate he runs out of time]].
40	* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: The gatekeeper. Even though Tom's name is not in the book of life due to his years of sadistically persecuting Jerry, instead of immediately sending him to eternal damnation like you'd expect, he agrees to let Tom on board the Heavenly Express if he can get Jerry to sign a "certificate of forgiveness" before the train leaves for Cat-Heaven in one hour. Given how Heaven is usually depicted as not offering a chance for redemption once you're dead, Tom ''really'' lucked out with this gatekeeper... too bad he still can't get the signature in time.
41	* RejectedApology: As Tom offers Jerry the Certificate of Forgiveness to sign, Jerry is naturally skeptical, and when Tom tries to bribe him with cheese, he gets insulted and ''tears the certificate to pieces''. Tom tapes it together, explains the situation to him and finally gets Jerry to sign, but it's too little, too late...
42	* ReroutedFromHeaven: The plot is triggered due to Tom's record of tormenting Jerry preventing him from boarding the Heavenly Express.
43	* SeenItAll: The Gatekeeper doesn't seem fazed by any of the fates of the cats he's processing, no matter how gruesome. Torn apart by a dog? Run over in the street? All the same to him. Only three kittens who were intentionally drowned as unwanted makes him pause for a moment and remark about the callousness of said practice, but he's quickly over it.
44	* SquashedFlat:
45	** The piano smashes Tom against the wall, leaving him flattened on the back of the piano. He drifts down to the floor and pops back into shape.
46	** One of the cats waiting in line for the Heavenly Express was run over by a steamroller. As he walks past the camera, he's revealed to have been [[PaperPeople left wafer thin]].
47	* StairwayToHeaven: Or in this case, an escalator to Heaven.
48	* StewedAlive: Tom's fate if he doesn't atone to Jerry is FireAndBrimstoneHell, where Spike as a BigRedDevil has a cauldron ready to put him into.
49	* ThatWasNotADream: When Tom initially wakes up after his accident and finds himself home, he's relieved to think going to Heaven was just a dream...until he sees the Certificate of Forgiveness in his hand. Subverted in the end when it's shown the whole thing ''was'' a dream.
50	* WholePlotReference: To ''Film/AMatterOfLifeAndDeath''.
51	* YouAreTooLate: Tom manages to get Jerry to sign the Certificate of Forgiveness, but by then the hour is up, the Heavenly Express is pulling out, and, when Tom tries to race up the escalator, it disappears and a pit to FireAndBrimstoneHell opens up in its place.

Context WesternAnimation / HeavenlyPuss