Popeye Builds a Bridge and Bluto is a Total Jerk

Is it worth watching?

If you have seven minutes and like watching a large man get punched into the horizon, yeah, watch this. It is basically for anyone who misses when cartoons were just about building stuff really fast and eating spinach.

People who hate slapstick or the weird logic of old black-and-white shorts will probably find it annoying. But it's classic Fleischer stuff.

I forgot how much I liked the way these old Popeye shorts sounded. It is not just the music, but the constant muttering Jack Mercer does under his breath.

Popeye is just talking to himself the whole time. Half of it is probably ad-libbed because it doesn't always match his mouth movements perfectly.

The plot starts because Bluto is charging a dime to cross the river. Ten cents! In 1936, that was apparently a total rip-off.

I love how petty the conflict is. It is not about saving the world; it is just about not wanting to pay a bully for a ferry ride.

The Construction Montage

Popeye, Olive, and Wimpy start building a bridge out of nowhere. The way they do it is mesmerizing in a weird way.

Popeye uses a saw like it is made of rubber. The physics makes zero sense, but it looks so fluid.

Olive Oyl is actually helping, which is nice to see. Usually, she is just screaming on the sidelines, but here she is swinging a hammer.

Her legs are basically noodles. They bend in ways that should definitely require a doctor.

Wimpy is the worst, though. He just stands there holding a "Hamburger" sign while the other two do all the heavy lifting.

There is a bit where he tries to 'help' but he is clearly just looking for a snack. Classic Wimpy.

• The bridge looks like it would collapse if a breeze hit it.
• Bluto's ferry boat has a face and looks genuinely sad when it gets replaced.
• The sound of the hammers hitting the nails has a catchy rhythm.

Bluto being a menace

Bluto gets so angry that he starts using his boat to ram the bridge. He is such a hater.

The facial expressions on Bluto in this one are great. He looks truly unhinged when he realizes he's losing his business.

There is a shot where he is just staring at the bridge and his eyes are bulging out. It is actually kind of scary if you think about it too much.

The animation on the water is also pretty neat. It has that thick, inky look that you don't see anymore.

I noticed a small mistake in one scene. A piece of wood disappears for a split second when Popeye is nailing it down.

It doesn't really matter, but once you see it, you can't unsee it. Bridge Ahoy! isn't as polished as some of the later ones, but it has more soul.

Eventually, the spinich comes out. Obviously.

Popeye doesn't just eat it; he basically explodes with energy. The way his muscles move under his skin looks like there are live animals trapped in his arms.

He punches the bridge back together. He literally punches construction into existence.

It is way more fun than the stuff in Keep in Style which is fine but lacks this kind of raw energy.

If you like this era of animation, you might also want to check out A Sailor's Sweetheart for more nautical nonsense.

"I'm strong to the finich 'cause I eats me spinach!"

The ending is exactly what you expect. Bluto gets what is coming to him and the bridge is finished.

Wimpy still hasn't done a single lick of work. He's probably the smartest character in the whole movie honestly.

It is a short, fast, and loud cartoon. It doesn't try to be deep.

Sometimes you just want to see a guy turn his fist into a jackhammer. This movie delivers that.