Mickey, Goofy and Donald are working on a tugboat when they hear a distress signal for a sinking ship in the Walt Disney Animation Studios short, “Tugboat Mickey.” The trio are working to get the tugboat in the best shape possible when they go out to help. Along the way, they end up destroying the tugboat before learning the sinking ship was part of a radio drama and their efforts have been for naught.

This was not one of my more liked Disney animated shorts. Sure, there were some funny moments like when Mickey accidentally intoxicates a pelican and ends up losing part of the brush, he’s using to seal the ship. But, overall, I just found this short to be rather average.

Goofy and Donald are up to their usual hijinks that end with the trio in some sort of trouble. There’s the obvious radio misunderstanding that, in hindsight, should have been visible to the viewer from a mile away. I really enjoy these older shorts overall, and I enjoyed watching this one, but nothing from it makes me want to rewatch it.

I am excited to keep watching these shorts in release order, and I can’t wait to see more interactions between the trio, as well as interactions with Minnie, Pluto and Daisy. There is definitely some enjoyable moments and I bet this will be someone’s favorite older animated short. It may not have been great for me, but give it a shot, you may like it more.

Rating: 2.5 stars

What did you think of “Tugboat Mickey?”

Jeremy Brown

Jeremy has been a big Disney fan since he was a kid growing up during the Disney Renaissance. One day he hopes to go to every Disney Park in the world.

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