The following contains spoilers for Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers, now available to stream on Disney+.
Disney's creators breathed new life and a whole new level of humor into the Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers via their new movie, available on Disney+. With a plot centered around criminal bootlegging -- in a kid-friendly way -- the film is peppered with humorous ads for made-up bootlegs and reboots.
Audiences and parents who grew up watching the original Rescue Rangers television show are now sitting down to watch with their kids. And as Disney has done for a long time, it tossed in a bit of humor to help keep the adults entertained beyond just the nostalgia. Since Easter eggs like the billboards in Rescue Rangers can pass in the blink of an eye, let’s pause to look at some of the best.
Before diving in, it's worth noting that Disney managed to round up an impressive number of on-screen references to fill out its Roger Rabbit-esque world where animated characters and humans live side by side. And Disney didn't just stop at spoofing its own massive library of material. Speckled throughout, viewers can catch pop-ins from MTV characters, Nickelodeon, DreamWorks and DC Comics, to name a few.
The references come so fast and furious in places that keeping track can distract from watching the movie. So those interested in seeing the details might want to watch it twice, once to see the main story and again to enjoy all the little tidbits tucked inside.
One such Easter egg is an ad for a Fast and Furious Babies movie, where "babies take the wheel." There's a plethora of material out there making fun of the horrors of driver's ed and teenagers behind the wheel. Babies would be exponentially worse, though arguably cuter, while they plow through unsuspecting motorists. However, they'd better run hard as there's undoubtedly a massive time out waiting on the other side of their joyride. The poster even goes into enough detail to show babies resembling the Fast and Furious cast.
Another franchise spoofed in a poster at a fan convention is Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean. Evidently, said pirates got tired of being chased around by the East India Trading Company and the British military because they will now be Pirates of the Great Lakes, according to the Rescue Rangers' poster -- and they're coming for Christmas. The pirates might have to tackle blizzard conditions rather than fighting their battles against the dramatic backdrop of hurricanes. Hopefully, their swordsmanship is just as sharp when wearing a parka.
In Rescue Rangers, Chip watched a streaming movie, Batman vs. E.T, as if E.T. has an aggressive bone in his squishy little body. Batman v Superman must not have been good enough for The Dark Knight because he needs to take on someone else from another planet. Maybe Batman should stop getting into fights with aliens.
Paul Rudd makes a guest appearance at Dale's FanCon, signing headshots and advertising his flick, Aunt-Man. He says his character's superpower is "being really charming to Aunts." If viewers stick around to watch the beginning of the Rescue Rangers' credits, which are packed with additional Easter eggs, his movie poster gets a moment, and a gaggle of Aunties snuggle Rudd. Aunt-Man would be a completely different type of movie than the real-life Ant-Man, in which Rudd's superpowers are insect-related.
Meryl Streep also gets a shout-out in the Rescue Rangers movie for a new film, Mr. Doubtfire. It suggests the movie maven would be doing the flip of Robbin Williams' role in Mrs. Doubtfire. The concept of Streep dressing up as a male nanny to spend time with her children is ridiculous alone, but paired with the poster of her doing so, it is delightful.
Honorable mentions go to Waze - The Movie because who wouldn't want to watch a movie based on a navigation app? Pooj - The Fat Honey Bear is worth a chuckle, too. And while they aren't ads for faux films, the package of Frozone food in Chip's freezer, the Gucci ad featuring Dobby the house-elf modeling clothing, and the "Vote for Senator Butthead" poster are too funny to leave out.
