Watching the 1935 Little Black Sambo short is... something.

Is it worth your time?

Honestly? Only if you are a total nerd for animation history or just really curious about how bizarre cartoons were back in the day. If you get uncomfortable easily, skip it. It's not for everyone, and frankly, it hasn't aged well in any sense of the word.

The whole thing kicks off with Mammy scrubbing Sambo on a washboard. Then she dusts him with black baby powder. Yes, you read that right. It’s a weirdly specific detail that makes you stop and wonder what exactly was going on in the room when they brainstormed this.

The dog looks like a total mess because he rubbed against a fence. He’s supposed to be a tiger, but he just looks like a dog having a bad afternoon. Sambo’s reaction is pure panic, which leads to this frantic chase sequence that takes up way too much of the runtime. It reminded me a bit of the frantic energy in Mickey's Gala Premier, though with way less charm.

The tiger shows up, finally.

When the real tiger enters, Sambo turns white from fear. It’s a very literal visual gag that hits like a brick. The animation is bouncy and fluid in that way only Ub Iwerks could pull off, but the actual story beats are just... uncomfortable.

The ending involves a molasses trap and a hot frying pan. It’s violent in a slapstick, cartoon way, but it feels meaner than usual. Mammy and Sambo dancing at the end? It feels like they’re celebrating a murder. Creepy.

• That black powder scene is going to stay in my head for all the wrong reasons.
• The dog’s face paint is actually more convincing than the real tiger.
• The pacing is just one long, frantic run-around.

It’s strange how this feels light-years away from the stuff in Todd of the Times. You can see the skill in the drawing, but the soul? Not so much. It’s a relic of a time when animators were just throwing things at the wall to see what would stick. Sometimes, things shouldn't have stuck.