Does Wile E. Coyote Ever Catch the Roadrunner?

The answer is yes! He caught him in the 1980 Chuck Jones produced special, “Bugs Bunny’s Bustin’ Out All Over” in a segment called “Soup or Sonic”. Of course just because the Coyote catches his avian nemesis doesn’t mean he got a meal. Instead the physics gods who rule the Looney Tunes Universe have their way with him.

It is a tragic turn that you should really see for yourself.

Watch Wile E. Coyote catch the Roadrunner

I must admit, I was always rooting for the Coyote. After so many misadventures and bad attempts, how could you not? Also, there is an arrogance to an un-catchable nemesis that I think we can all relate to. So while I love the Road Runner and Jerry from Tom and Jerry. Sometimes, I just want to see the predictable loser win for a change.

These two have been tangling since September 17, 1949. That was the day that their first cartoon, Fast and Furry-ous, was released. They would go onto make 49 shorts that followed the formula started on that day in 1949. The majority of these were directed by Chuck Jones, especially during the first two decades. They are standard cartoons for their day. Usually coming in at 6 to 7 minutes. Most are done in the traditional Looney Tunes style, but they also released a few more modern web cartoons during the new millennium.

Personally, I have always been a fan of the color palette and background work in these cartoons. In the first three Road Runner cartoons, Fast and Furry-ous (1949), Beep, Beep (1952), and Going! Going! Gosh! (also 1952), the desert backgrounds are more realistic. These were designed by Robert Gribbroek. In many of the later cartoons, the backgrounds would get more abstract. This was the work of Maurice Noble.