Scrappy's Auto Show: A cartoon ride through 1933

Is this thing worth your time?

If you have a soft spot for weird, rubbery 1930s animation, sure. It’s a seven-minute time capsule of a world that feels like it’s vibrating on too much caffeine. But if you’re looking for a coherent story, you’re in the wrong place.

This is strictly for people who find the history of cartoons fascinating or anyone who enjoys watching early, twitchy animation styles. If you hate that frantic, bouncy movement that defines early Columbia shorts, stay away.

The whole premise is basically: Scrappy builds a car. It’s not a good car. It’s a pile of parts that probably shouldn't be on the road. Yet, they roll up to the Auto Show like they’re debuting a Rolls Royce. There’s a strange charm to how they just sort of ignore the laws of physics.

There’s this moment where the car literally breathes. Like, it has a pulse. It’s not explained, it’s just there, pulsing away while they try to act like serious inventors. I think it’s supposed to be funny, but it’s mostly just kind of unsettling.

It’s nowhere near as clever as Limousine Love, which actually knew how to use a car for a gag. Scrappy just kind of wobbles around until the short ends. The pacing is frantic, which is fine, but it lacks that real punchline energy.

Bits and bobs:

• The wheels on the car change size about four times. Nobody bothered to check the continuity.
• The sound design is just high-pitched squeaks and honks. My cat was very confused.
• I really wanted to know where they got the engine parts. Did they rob a junkyard?
• The Auto Show background art is actually pretty neat if you stop and look at it. It’s all Art Deco lines and weird, sharp angles.

Everything in the movie moves at a hundred miles an hour for no reason. It reminds me a bit of the chaotic energy in Singing Saps, where things just sort of explode because the animators were bored. You don't watch this for the plot. You watch it to see how they drew a radiator that looks like a grumpy face.

It’s not a classic. It’s not even really a 'good' cartoon by modern standards. But it’s got that specific, odd flavor of the 1930s that you can’t really replicate today. Worth a look if you’re already watching old stuff, but don't go out of your way. 🚗💨