Scrappy's Relay Race: A chaotic, rubber-hose fever dream

Is this thing worth your time?

If you have a soft spot for 1930s animation that feels like it was drawn by someone who drank way too much coffee, sure. You will probably enjoy it if you like looney-tune-style antics. If you prefer storytelling that makes actual sense, you might want to skip this one.

The whole premise is just an excuse to have Scrappy move from one vehicle to another without ever explaining how he got a pilot's license. It is just go, go, go from the second the starting gun fires.

The rhythm is... something else.

Watching this felt a bit like looking at a flipbook that’s missing half its pages. One second Scrappy is running, and the next he is somehow piloting a plane that looks like it is made of cardboard and hope. ✈️

The Champ is your classic bully character, the kind who exists solely to be outsmarted in the final act. It’s a trope, but it works fine here because nobody is coming to this for a deep character study.

Little things that stuck out

• The way the characters stretch like rubber bands whenever they get startled.
• The background art is surprisingly detailed for something that only exists for a few seconds.
• The sound effects are very sharp, maybe a bit too sharp? It made me jump once or twice.

I couldn't help but compare the pacing to something like The South Pole Flight. That one had a bit more of an adventurous spirit, whereas this is just a pure, unadulterated race to the finish line.

There is a specific moment where the car just kind of... poofs into existence? It is classic, early-day animation logic. It barely makes sense, but you just go with it.

Is it a masterpiece? Hardly. It is a brief, energetic blast from the past that doesn't overstay its welcome. It is not trying to be Mickey the Detective or anything substantial. It is just a Saturday morning cartoon before those were even really a thing.

Sometimes you just need to watch a small cartoon guy win a race against a jerk. Mission accomplished. 🏁