Rabbit Transit is a 1947 Looney Tunes short directed by Friz Freleng.
Title[]
The title is a play on the phrase "rapid transit."
Plot[]
While relaxing in a steam bath, Bugs reads about the original fable of the tortoise beating the hare and becomes incensed at the idea of a turtle outrunning a rabbit. Cecil, also in the steam bath, claims that he could outrun Bugs, prompting Bugs to challenge him to a race. This time, Bugs and Cecil agree to no cheating. Cecil, however, quickly reveals that his shell is now rocket propelled, allowing him to go a surprising combination between fast and slow. Enraged by Cecil's lack of commitment to a fair challenge, Bugs speeds up as best as he can until he receives a telegram from his rival. When he reads it, the greeting card says, "At this joyous time of year, I wish you loads of Xmas cheer" signed by Cecil. Bugs pauses for a second to realize how neighborly Cecil is and decides to do something to return the favor. So he rushes over to the post office.
At the beach, Cecil is seen relaxing with his shell off. He receives a present from the delivery man. When he opens it, Bugs pops out of the gift box and gives Cecil a kiss on the lips before resuming the race. Annoyed, Cecil puts his shell back on and continues racing against Bugs while claiming that he doesn't like that character at all. Bugs manages to steal and wear Cecil's rocket-propelled carapace. Cecil took notice of this and runs after his rival.
Bugs does his best to steal, dismantle, and destroy the device, but all to little effect. Cecil then tricked Bugs into repairing his shell before zooming off. Bugs roasts a hot dog over the afterburners of the exhaust pipes, and then pours into Cecil's shell to slow the turtle down. Cecil quickly scoops all the water out of his shell and continues racing against the rabbit. Bugs paints a short tunnel on a tree to try and trick Cecil into running into it. But when Cecil actually passed through it, Bugs tries to do the same only to knock himself out cold. Then the hallucination of himself wakes him up and Bugs continues racing against the turtle. Cecil slows down as soon as he saw Bugs catching up at high speed. Bugs tops Cecil and crosses the finish line first. Nevertheless, it is Cecil who has the last laugh when he rooks the rabbit into confessing to "doing a hundred easy" in a thirty-miles-per-hour zone. Bugs is taken away by the police. Cecil says, "Ain't I a...um...stinker?"
Availability[]
Cartoon Moviestars: Bugs!
Cartoon Moviestars: Bugs! and Elmer!
Bugs Bunny Collection: Bugs Bunny's Zaniest Toons
The Golden Age of Looney Tunes, Vol. 1, Side 10: The Art of Bugs
The Golden Age of Looney Tunes, Vol. 10: The Art of Bugs
Looney Tunes: The Collectors Edition Volume 9: A Looney Life (1995 Turner dubbed version)
Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 2, Disc One
Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 2, Disc 2
Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 2, Disc 2
Looney Tunes Spotlight Collection: Volume 8 Disc 1
Looney Tunes Bugs Bunny Golden Carrot Collection Disc 2
The Man I Love
Streaming[]
Goofs[]
- When Bugs agrees with Cecil to not cheat while saying "Okay, mac. It ain't that I don't trust you, BUT-" before tipping Cecil upside-down, his mouth does not move properly in sync to what he is saying.
- Bugs' front and back views do not match up when he smashes into the tree, as when Bugs smashes into the tree, he hits it face first. Yet when he slides to the ground, his back is facing the tree instead of his front.
Notes[]
- The painted tunnel gag in this cartoon would become a recurring gag by Chuck Jones in his Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote shorts, starting two years later in 1949. Mike Maltese, who wrote the early Road Runner cartoons, also wrote this short.
- Cecil Turtle and Bugs Bunny had previously raced each other in "Tortoise Beats Hare" (1941) and "Tortoise Wins by a Hare" (1943). This cartoon was their final encounter. Unlike "Tortoise Wins by a Hare", this cartoon presumes that Bugs and Cecil have never met before.
- This is the second time Cecil is seen without his shell, the first time being in "Tortoise Beats Hare". Unlike that cartoon, where Cecil is seen wearing underwear underneath his shell, here Cecil is seen wearing a bathing suit underneath his shell.
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