Milt Kahl animated this Bagheera scene early on during production. There is still some experimentation going on here with facial features. The jaw line going to the ear is something Milt simplified later.
I find the asymmetrical shapes of the panther's muzzle, nose and eyes just beautiful.
Every expression is inventive and has the essence of a big cat.
Incidentally, it is in THIS scene, when Bagheera asks Mowgl to get up the tree: "Go on, up you go!", not in the previously posted long shot with both of them.
Years ago Milt's assistant Dave Michener let me xerox the copies of Milt's rough animation he had kept. And it is a real treat to see these drawings before an assistant cleaned them up.
(#16 and #19 are examples of tied down versions.)
A few rough animation drawings from the tree climbing scene.
I don't think anybody else can draw and animate a panther with so few lines, and make the situation come off as believable and entertaining.
