Episode 1 (PATB): Das Mouse
"Das Mouse" is the first episode of the Pinky and the Brain spin-off series. It originally aired on September 9th, 1995. It is the mice duo's second overall half-hour narrative outing after the Animaniacs episode "Spell-Bound."
Das Mouse[]
Animation by Wang
Plot[]
Pinky and the Brain go on an undersea mission to the wreck of the RMS Titanic to gain white crab meat for the final ingredient in a pancake that has a hypnotizing serum in it. The two set-sail in the DSV Alvin submarine. When Pinky sets the submarine's call-sign to "N-A-R-F," it is identified by the CIA as "Nuclear Attack Readiness Formation;" and they assume the mice are out to attack. They send CIA agent Jonsey and discharged cold-war-obsessed Captain Jack Maguire after the mice to take them down.
Crew[]
- Written by Peter Hastings
- Directed by Liz Holzman
Trivia[]
- This was the first episode of Pinky and the Brain to air as part of their spin-off series.
- The title parodies the 1981 German war film Das Boot.
- This particular episode is a spoofs the technothriller stories The Hunt for Red October and Raise the Titanic! (specifically their film adaptations).
- The character of Jack Maguire is a parody of of Jack Ryan (featured in Red October), and Dirk Pitt (featured in Raise the Titanic!).
- Brain's plan for raising the Titanic is similar to the one used in Raise the Titanic! In addition, the design of the Titanic in this cartoon resembles its depiction in the story (being intact save for a lost second funnel).
- The DSV Alvin and its ROV Jason Jr. are actual submergence vehicles used in the 1986 exploration of the Titanic wreckage.
- This is the second time the RMS Titanic was referenced in the Animaniacs franchise. The first time was in the Animaniacs episode "Moby or Not Moby." Subsequent references would follow in Hooray for North Hollywood Part 2, "Patty Ann" (coincidentally, the pilot episode of Pinky, Elmyra and the Brain), and the 1999 video game Animaniacs: A Gigantic Adventure.
- A running gag in this episode involves Brain questioning Pinky on what exactly "Narf" means. Later on, when Brain instructs Pinky to change the call-sign of the Alvin (DSV-2) submarine from W-H-O-I (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution), Pinky changes it to N-A-R-F. The mice fail to realize that the call-sign N-A-R-F stands for Nuclear Attack Readiness Formation, which gets them in trouble with the CIA.
- Additionally, both W-H-O-I and N-A-R-F are valid radio callsigns for US-registered ships (N-A-R-F in particular is normally assigned only to US Navy ships).
- Brain attempts to imitate Jacques Cousteau, specifically his narration from the 1966 documentary television series The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau.
- Pinky inquires to Brain if he can be Queequeg, a reference to the character from Herman Melville's 1851 novel Moby-Dick.
- The "Rise and be free" scene is a reference to the 1993 film Free Willy.
- When Brain rages near the end of the episode, a few notes from Modest Mussorgsky's "Night On Bald Mountain" from Fantasia play. This also echoes a similar gag from the Animaniacs cartoon "Puppet Rulers."
- The episode is later mentioned in "Brain Drained."
- The episode is also referenced in "The Really Great Dictator" during the eponymous song number.
Goofs[]
- The radar transponder in the Alvin is first seen with two knobs while Pinky scrambles it. Later on, it is seen with three knobs.
- The Jason Jr. ROV was actually lost at sea in 1991. It ironically outlasts the Alvin itself in this cartoon.
- During the airbag sequence a large, curved stairway that is shown briefly in the Titanic's First Class Entrance. In actuality, the stairwell was long-gone and destroyed after the sinking.
- On iTunes, this episode's audio track is slightly compressed and subsequently, lower-quality than other outlets.
Cast[]
References[]
Special thanks to Brian Norman's "Bunches of References Accumulated In a Nutshell" (B.R.A.I.N) reference guide for aiding in documenting this episode's references.