Release Date:

January 19, 1952

Main Character(s):

Bugs Bunny, Wile E. Coyote

Summary:

Wile E. Coyote, self-proclaimed “Super Genius”, attempts to catch Bugs Bunny, only for his schemes to backfire in various spectacular ways.

That’s Not All, Folks:

The production number is 1189 and was released as a Looney Tune.

Since Eddie Selzer had disliked the first Roadrunner cartoon, “Fast and Furry-Ous” from over two years prior, he wanted no more of that series. In the meantime, for this cartoon, Jones gave Wile E. a second life as a talking and very prideful “Super Genius” (with Mel Blanc giving him a snooty pompous-sounding voice) going up against Bugs. A few months later, Selzer had lifted his ban on Roadrunner cartoons since they were popular with the Air Force and the second Roadrunner cartoon, “Beep Beep” was released four months later.

This is the first of five cartoons where Wile E. goes after Bugs. The other four include (all directed by Jones) “To Hare is Human” (1956), “Rabbit’s Feat” (1960), “Compressed Hare” (1961), and “Hare Breadth Hurry” (1963). The latter cartoon is also the only one of these where Wile E. doesn’t talk as in that one, Bugs actually substitutes for the Roadrunner.

The title alludes to what Wile E. names his schemes as (for example, “Operation Rabbit Plan 1”).

The cartoon was used in the 1979 compilation movie, “The Bugs Bunny-Roadrunner Movie”.

American rapper Kendrick Lamar used a part of this cartoon for his 2012 song, “Cartoon and Cereal” (personally, I’m not a fan of rap, but this is definitely interesting).

The cartoon is in the 100 Greatest Looney Tunes Cartoons book.

“The Penguin” plays during the scene where Wile E. uses a “lump massager” on his head while he comes up with his second plan and says, “Genius! That’s what it is! Sheer genius!”

In the end, where a charred and defeated Wile E. groggily says, “Allow me to introduce myself. My name is ‘Mud’” before collapsing, Bugs’ ending line is “And remember. ‘Mud’ spelled backwards is ‘Dum’!” While true in how they sound, it’s actually spelled “dumb”. Of course, the misspelling is what makes it funny (indeed, “B-Mud” wouldn’t sound right).

Favorite Scene:

The scenes with the double-fused dynamite stick (“fountain pen”) and the explosives shed.

What Happens in This One:

Wile E. sneaks out of his cave hideout with a portable door and folds it in front of Bugs’ hole before knocking on it. Bugs rises out of his hole via an elevator in his hole and after giving the audience a confused look as to how a door is suddenly there, he opens it and asks, “Eh, what’s up, doc?” Wile E. pulls out a card, “Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Wile E. Coyote, Genius. I am not selling anything nor am I working my way through college”. Bugs starts to talk, “I-”, but Wile E. interrupts, “So let’s get down to cases. You are a rabbit and I am going to eat you for supper”. Bugs gives him a faux-shocked look as Wile E. boasts, “Now don’t try to get away. I am more muscular, more cunning, faster, and larger than you are, and I’M a genius. While you could hardly pass the entrance examinations to kindergarten”. Bugs yawns at Wile E. advising him, “So I’ll give you the customary two minutes to say your prayers”. Bugs only responds, “I’m sorry, mac. The lady of the house ain’t home, and besides, we mailed you people a check last week!” before slamming the door on him and descending back down into his hole. Wile E. folds up the portable door and takes it back to his cave with him as he wonders aloud to himself, “Why do they always want to do it the hard way?” (animated by Ben Washam)

After planning “Operation Rabbit Plan 1”, which is a pressure cooker, Wile E. proudly tells himself, “Wile E.! You genius! You’ve done it again!” Believing Bugs to be in his hole, Wile E. starts making a salad in there and then puts the pressure cooker atop it. Bugs comes out of another hole and walks up to an oblivious Wile E. Bugs asks him, “Eh, what’s cookin’, doc?” Wile E. chuckles, “Rabbit stew. Gad! I’m SUCH a genius!” to which Bugs comments, “Mmm. Smells mighty good. But, uh, there’s only one little thing wrong with it”. Bewildered, Wile E. asks, “There is? WHAT?” Bugs’ answer is “No rabbit”. Wile E. unscrews the pressure cooker to look into the hole but Bugs kicks Wile E. headfirst into the hole and re-screws the pressure cooker over him before going down the other hole with a club and singing a variant of “I’m Looking Over a Four-Leafed Clover”: “I’m looking over a three-leafed clover, that I overlooked be-three!” After Bugs hits Wile E. in the head with the club offscreen, Wile E., with a lump on his head, decides, “Well, back to the old drawing board” (animated by Ken Harris).

Using a “lump massager” on his head, Wile E. works on “Operation Rabbit Plan 2” and is pleased with what he’s come up with: “Genius! That’s what it is! Sheer genius!” He attempts to fire a cannon with a long pipe into Bugs’ hole but Bugs uses an extension pipe to go out another hole, resulting in the cannonball blasting Wile E. instead (animated by Phil Monroe).

As Wile E. is coming up with his next plan, he hears a knock on his door. It’s Bugs who has apparently surrendered himself: “I have come to give myself up, on account of I cannot fight no more against such genius”. Wile E. replies, “A wise decision, my friend. You have just saved yourself from a fate worse than the frying pan”. Bugs continues, “I have only one last request. I have made out my last will and testament, but I need a witness to make it official. Would you sign it with this fountain pen?” Said fountain pen is actually a dynamite stick. Wile E. takes it, “Certainly, my boy. Delighted to be of service” before chuckling, “Very amateurish attempt on my person” as he puts out the fuse. He then tosses it in his hand as he boasts, “Being a genius certainly has its advantages” but doesn’t notice until too late that this dynamite stick has another fuse on the opposite end, which explodes on him (animated by Lloyd Vaughan).

“Operation Rabbit Plan 3” is an explosive female rabbit decoy that he refers to as “Brilliance! That’s all I can say! Sheer unadulterated brilliance!” After sending the decoy walking off, he gets a knock on his door, which is revealed to be a similar female coyote decoy that he immediately falls in love with. He romances “her”, “Ah, my darling. How beautiful you are. How devastating. How lucky. Little did you dream that one day you would marry a genius”. He fails to notice the wires behind “her” back, leading towards a TNT plunger next to Bugs’ hole. Bugs confides, “Fight fire with fire, I always say” before pushing the handle with the coyote decoy exploding offscreen. A charred Wile E. starts groggily singing, “Here comes the bride, all dressed in-”, only to notice the rabbit decoy ringing, indicating that it’s about to blow up. Wile E. lets out an “Oh No” before attempting to throw the rabbit decoy out his cave’s window, only for it to explode before he can do so (animated by Monroe).

Having come up with a flying saucer that blows up a specific species for “Operation Rabbit Plan 4”, Wile E. chuckles evilly, “Now, my masterpiece!” He sets the flying saucer’s “Radarscope” dial for “Rabbit” and sends it to Bugs’ hole. Bugs confuses it by wearing a chicken mask, causing it to turn around. While it’s distracted, Bugs writes “Coyote” on it with a red colored pencil and changes the dial to there. The flying saucer zooms back to Wile E.’s cave, where it explodes on him, blasting his cave to oblivion and leaving him standing there looking at the audience awkwardly while completely black (animated by Harris).

In an explosives shed, Wile E. is seen filling some fake carrots with nitro-glycerin while chuckling evilly. Unbeknownst to Wile E., Bugs drives a tractor to haul the explosives shed onto the nearby train tracks. Wile E. is too busy putting on the carrot tops and bragging, “Wile E. Coyote. Super Genius” to notice that he’s moved. After hearing an approaching train whistle, he says, “I like the way that rolls out. Wile E. Coyote. Suuuper Geniusssss”. Upon hearing the train approaching from behind him whistle even louder, he turns around and only has time to silently react to the oncoming train and pull the shade in the shed’s window down before the train hitting him and the shed causes an explosion that ends with him hanging on a branch hanging off a cliff. Charred once more, Wile E. repeats in a groggy tone, “Wile E. Coyote. Super Genius” (animated by Washam).

Later, a still-charred Wile E. sets up the portable door again in front of Bugs’ hole. After Bugs ascends the elevator in his hole and opens the door, he is visibly annoyed to see Wile E. again. This time, Wile E. greets him groggily, “Allow me to introduce myself. My name is ‘Mud’” and collapses (animated by Monroe). Bugs reminds the audience, “And remember, ‘mud’ spelled backwards is ‘dum’!” (animated by Washam)

Where Can I Watch It?

At archive.org!

Carrot Rating:

🥕🥕🥕🥕🥕