Noah's Outing: A weird, bouncy trip through the flood

Is it worth the time?

Honestly, you either love these vintage Terrytoons or you find them a bit headache-inducing. If you're into that jittery, 1930s style where everyone moves like they've had ten cups of coffee, you'll have a blast. If you want a coherent story, well, maybe skip this and go watch Alice's Egg Plant instead.

Farmer Al Falfa is the star here, acting as our stand-in for Noah. He’s got that signature grumpy face that never really changes no matter how much water is pouring down. It’s a bit funny how he just stands there, totally unbothered by the apocalypse.

The animation style

The animals are just weird, man. They’re all sort of noodly and long. There's a moment where a pair of giraffes try to cram into the ark, and their necks just twist like wet pasta. It’s not smooth, but it has this raw energy that modern stuff just misses.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Noah's Outing (1932) through its definitive frames.

The background art is surprisingly dark in a few spots. The rising water looks a bit more threatening than you’d expect for a cartoon about a jolly farmer. It gives the whole thing a weirdly grounded feeling, even when a cow is playing a fiddle on the deck for no reason.

• The fiddle-playing cow—why?
• The way the rain sounds like static.
• Farmer Al Falfa’s eyebrows do all the heavy lifting.

It reminds me a bit of the frantic pacing in Wide Open, where things just happen because the animators thought it would look cool. There’s no buildup. You’re just in the flood immediately. The whole thing goes by so fast you barely realize it’s over.

Is it a masterpiece? No. Is it a fun way to waste seven minutes? Sure. It’s got a chaotic, messy charm that I usually find missing in stuff that’s too polished. Sometimes, just watching a cartoon boat bounce around on screen is enough to clear the head. 🌊