Buckaroo Bugs

Plot

The film is set in a small town of the "San Fernando Alley" (San Fernando Valley). According to the narration, "Our story begins when the West was young, and early pioneers settled down to never more roam, and made the San Fernando Alley their home." Despite its Western setting, the short makes references to World War II rationing. A pretend train robbery, lists as "valuable cargo": butter, gasoline, sugar, shoes, and tires – all of them items for which there was a shortage in the War due to rationing. The short also has Bugs stealing all the carrots from a victory garden, which is another World War II reference.

Unlike in most shorts, Bugs Bunny serves as an antagonist. In the cartoon, he plays a carrot thief called the Masked Marauder, whom Brooklyn's "Red Hot Ryder" (a parody of Red Ryder) must bring to justice. The cartoon portrays Red Hot Ryder as a dimwit who cannot distinguish Bugs Bunny from the Masked Marauder, and his good-natured slowness is consistently mocked: When Bugs Bunny as the Masked Marauder threatens to shoot Red Hot Ryder, saying, "Stick 'em up, or I'll blow your brains out," the latter treats it like a choice, replying, "Well, now, that's mighty neighborly of you." In the end, Red Hot Ryder catches on, but is unable to catch the Masked Marauder. Bugs tricks him into jumping into the Grand Canyon, and when underground Red Hot Ryder finally figures out that Bugs is the Masked Marauder. Bugs pops up from beneath the ground with a lit candle and says "That's right! That's right! You win the $64 question!" (a reference to the "big prize" on the famous radio quiz show Take It or Leave It). He then kisses him and blows out the candle.

Cast

Availability

The cartoon has been released on laserdisc in The Golden Age of Looney Tunes by MGM/UA Home Video. It is also featured on the Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 5 DVD set, released on October 30, 2007 and the Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 2 DVD & Blu-ray sets, released on October 16, 2012.