Superior Duck Reviews

Does anyone remember the 1996 Tom Arnold vehicle Carpool? No, I didn’t think so. Well, another year, another Chuck Jones Looney Tunes short, and at least this one premiered before a family film.

“Superior Duck,” as implied by the title, find Jones returning to Daffy Duck, and his fevered imagination. Here we find Daffy operating under the delusion that he is a superhero, with an amusing cameo from Superman for good measure. The back-and-forth between Daffy and the narrator does go on for a few beats too long, but there’s still some quiet chuckles to be had with it. Even at this late stage in his career, Daffy couldn’t get any respect.

What makes “Superior Duck” stand from the two prior shorts is a background that combines Art Deco curves with a pristine, futuristic angularity, this type of world feels completely like the creation of Jones. The myriad of cameos are quite pleasing, but there’s just something sluggish about “Superior Duck.” The others captured a piece of the manic energy and magic of the originals, and this one feels a bit like a wheel spinning exercise. Still, it’s Chuck Jones bringing Daffy Duck to life, and sometimes that’s good enough.