The long running era of the Saturday morning cartoon has officially ended, but no one can stop you from fulfilling your true weekend calling. Cartoons and Saturday mornings were made for each other and no one can tell us otherwise. It is to that end that we maintain vigil, bringing you animated selections each Saturday morning until the internet dies, or until we run out, good thing there’s always reruns.
“Disney’s Goof Troop” Episode 1.3 “Axed by Addition” (8 out of 10) Created by Peter Montgomery; Directed by Robert Taylor; Written by Marion Wells; Starring Dana Hill, Rob Paulsen, and Jim Cummings; Originally aired September 7, 1992.
In “Disney’s Goof Troop” Goofy moves back to his home town of Spoonerville and into a house next to his old friend Pete. The series centers on Goofy’s attempts at raising his son Max as a single father and Max’s relationship with Pete’s son PJ. The series was later adapted into “A Goofy Movie” which involves the same characters but takes place a few years later.
In the episode “Axed by Addition” Pete threatens PJ with a lifetime grounding if he fails an upcoming math test. The following day PJ blanks during the test after staying up all night studying with Max. Having no memory of the test he assumes he failed and at Max’s suggestion, decides to do everything he’s ever wanted to do in the next 24 hours before his report card arrives.
He and Max make a bucket list and plan to fake sick to stay home from school to get it all done before the mail comes at 3:30. Max does PJ up to look like he has two obscure diseases in order to convince Pete to let him stay home. Pete takes the bait but Max and PJ were too convincing so Pete calls an ambulance when he sees the severity of the illness.
Max follows Pete and PJ to the hospital and sneaks in pretending to be a doctor, and sneaks PJ out wrapped in bandages. The doctors come back and find PJ’s bucket list along with the broccoli and mush they used to simulate the diseases. When the doctors try to explain what they’ve discovered Pete runs out of the hospital thinking that PJ is dying and has snuck out to go out with a bang before he dies.
Max and PJ hit the town at warp speed to check off everything on the list with only a few hours remaining. With the help of a skateboard, a wheelchair, and an unlimited supply of childhood moxie they do it all: 400 pounds of burgers, twelve slasher movies all at once, down a hill in a shopping cart, kissing Cynthia, and the three scariest rides at Terrorland.
Pete chases him through town going down the list the doctors retrieved from the hospital. If he were as smart as he wants PJ to be he might have skipped to the end and cut him off but instead wreaks havoc through the city.
Pete gets home just in time to see PJ passed out on the floor, thinking he’s dead he cradles his son in his arms and apologizes for all the mistakes he’s made raising him. Just then the doctor calls to tell Pete that PJ isn’t really sick. Just when PJ thinks his life is really over his report card comes in the mail and he discovers he earned an A in math afterall.
This cartoon served as a daily before school ritual for most of junior high and I have fond memories of it. I was glad to see that it holds up well even after more than twenty years. “Disney’s Goof Troop” earns seven stars out of ten because it’s a hell of a lot of fun, it captures the fears and excitement of being a kid, and it features the talents of some of my favorite actors.
Bippity-bop-bop-ba-doo-wop. Yeah!