Ice Age: Scrat Tales is the latest addition to the Ice Age franchise, released on Disney+Hotstar on April 13, 2022. The series includes 6 all-new animated series starring Scrat, a sabre-toothed squirrel experiencing fatherhood. The episodes have a runtime of about 4 minutes each. It is directed by Lisa Allen Keane & Donnie Long and produced by Anthony Nisi.
The characters are given voices by Chris Wedges as Scrat and Karl Wahlgren as Baby Scrat. It is the first series in the Ice Age franchise after Disney’s takeover of Fox studios.
-Ice Age: Scrat Tales Review Does Not Contain Any Spoiler-
The Plot of the Tales
The main character of the series is Scrat, a prehistoric squirrel/rat creature, a mascot character from the long-running Ice Age franchise. In the franchise, he desperately tries to carry out his only mission in life which is to get the acorn nut – which leads to calamitous events, think ice sheet cracking out to infinity.
In the 2002 film, Scrat’s character was used as a tertiary character or a comic relief. He is set apart from the main characters and their quest. Scrat Tales is an extension of his struggle in pursuit of an acorn but there’s a new addition of Baby Scrat which adds joy as well trouble to his life.
In the series, Scrat finds mischievous Baby Scrat while chasing after his acorn. The cuteness of Baby Scrat melts his heart & he decides to look after him as a parent. While bonding with each other, Scrat experiences the ups and downs of fatherhood and ultimately battles for ownership of the highly treasured Acorn.
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Scrat Tales: Dilemma of a Parent
The short videos have a 90s Cartoon Network-style intro that tells the theme of the episode. Each episode has a different theme like Nuts About You or Lofi Scrat Beats to Sleep/Chill to etc. I know, it sounds like the thumbnails of an amateur youtube channel trying all the trending/clickbait things to get viral or in this case different quests to get the acorn nut.
Scrat is a beloved character from the Ice Age franchise for his never-ending chase which leads to life dangering situations or becomes the cause of the disaster. Meanwhile, in Scrat Tales, our crazy-for-nut character is torn between choosing what to prioritize. Whether do anything to achieve his lifetime obsession with chasing after nuts or being a good parent.
Looking at Baby Scrat will make you want to protect this precious life at all costs but at the same time, it is the only roadblock to Scrat’s goal. This dilemma leads him to walk into his own traps instead of Baby Scrat & the result is a violent yet funny slapstick comedy. He is stretched and thrown around in prickly places but at least it makes our Baby Scrat happy.
Final Thoughts: Stream it or Skip it?
Disney+ Original’s Ice Age: Scrat Tales is exactly what you would expect from the short series – more of Scrat’s goofy antics – now with a child thrown into the mix. It only means double trouble for the father & Baby Scrat duo on their nutty adventure. I wish it were a bit longer than 4 minutes and had more than six episodes.
Out of all the Ice Age characters, Scrat is the one that definitely left a long-lasting impression on all the viewers with his single-minded chase to disaster. It is good to see the character being recognised & given the limelight it deserves. The animated series is pure comedy and can be watched with your whole family.
Ice Age: Scrat Tales is streaming on Disney+Hotstar.
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