Popeye may have been the most formulaic series in cartoon history, but some noteworthy episodes managed to buck the formula. In most of these cartoons, Popeye is put up against not a threat to life or love, but simply a nuisance. The most common source of irritation in these cases was a "funny animal," a small creature no match for Popeye physically, but unremittingly mischievous. Most of these "funny animal" cartoon were pretty bad, but a few stand out, "Insect to Injury" in particular.
The cartoon opens with Popeye putting the finishing touches on his new house. No sooner is it completed when it is threatened by a army of termites. Popeye is righteously alarmed, but counters the threat creatively and intelligently (in cartoon logic at least). And yet, the termites outwit him time and again, building a genuine sense of drama until the conclusion.
Overall, this story is character driven. Popeye's struggle is quite reasonable, and one cannot help but feel for him. His reactions are amusingly extreme, but never panicked, so he never becomes annoying. The termites, for their part, are genuinely menacing, a sense created by their too-clever to-be-real ways of fighting back. They are further enhanced by the simple (but very effective) theme music that follows them.
"Insect to Injury" is a very different kind of Popeye cartoon. None of the usual supporting characters are there, and the threat is a very different one from those Popeye usually faced. Often, attempts to change the series formula did not work, but in this case, it worked well.
The cartoon opens with Popeye putting the finishing touches on his new house. No sooner is it completed when it is threatened by a army of termites. Popeye is righteously alarmed, but counters the threat creatively and intelligently (in cartoon logic at least). And yet, the termites outwit him time and again, building a genuine sense of drama until the conclusion.
Overall, this story is character driven. Popeye's struggle is quite reasonable, and one cannot help but feel for him. His reactions are amusingly extreme, but never panicked, so he never becomes annoying. The termites, for their part, are genuinely menacing, a sense created by their too-clever to-be-real ways of fighting back. They are further enhanced by the simple (but very effective) theme music that follows them.
"Insect to Injury" is a very different kind of Popeye cartoon. None of the usual supporting characters are there, and the threat is a very different one from those Popeye usually faced. Often, attempts to change the series formula did not work, but in this case, it worked well.