The Best Easter Eggs And Cartoon References In Chip 'N Dale: Rescue Rangers

When the first trailer for "Chip n' Dale: Rescue Rangers" dropped earlier this year, it was bursting at the seams with Easter eggs. Based on that, one could assume that there would be a good amount of cameos and references throughout the reboot/sequel/comeback. However, once it was available to watch on Disney+ and we got to see for ourselves, I don't think that anyone could have predicted the sheer number of Easter eggs contained within this movie directed by The Lonely Island's Akiva Schaffer and written by the team of Doug Mand and Dan Gregor. Every few seconds, there was something on the screen that made the viewer go, "How did they get permission to put that in there?!"

We could probably produce a plethora of articles that are each thousands of words long that discuss every single Easter egg in this movie. But if we did that, then we'd be here for more time than it would take to watch the movie again. Instead, we're going to spotlight a few of the best ones that are just too good to overlook and could use a little more attention than the few quick moments they appeared onscreen.

WARNING: From this point forward, there will be spoilers for "Chip n' Dale: Rescue Rangers." Please proceed with caution. 

Being a Walt Disney Studios production released on Disney+ starring characters from the Disney Afternoon block of programming and inspired by one of the greatest Disney movies (and movies in general) of all time, it's pretty obvious that there would be a ton of Disney references throughout "Chip n' Dale: Rescue Rangers." In fact, the film opens with one. Thanks to Sweet Pete's laser, the classic logo for the company featuring Cinderella's castle is altered to include pieces of other iconic castles from the Disney catalogue. I spy the Sultan's palace from "Aladdin," Elsa's ice castle from "Frozen," King Triton's palace in "The Little Mermaid," and possibly Sleeping Beauty's castle.

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Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella's castles are staples of the Disney theme parks. Fans can visit them in real life at Disneyland and Disney World respectively. But another thing that is ever present at a Disney facility is the ever-elusive Hidden Mickey. The company hides them everywhere from the parks to the hotels to the offices and beyond. In this scene, the rocket that was used to destroy Sweet Pete's toon-altering machine shoots up into the sky and creates a Hidden Mickey with fireworks.  

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Poor Flounder. He got in deep with the Valley Gang and ended up getting bootlegged. Here he is trying to get the debt collectors off his back with a "genuine dinglehopper" that is "worth a lot." Fun fact: In "Chip n' Dale: Rescue Rangers," Flounder is voiced by Rachel Bloom. She's probably best known for creating and starring in "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" on The CW, but she's also the spouse of Dan Gregor, one of the writers on this film. She also voices Insurance Sheep, Flower Girl, Black & White Reporter, Lost Boy, Stinsons Boy, Chip's Mom, and Cannon Ball.

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Officers Wynnchel and Duncan are certainly a long way from the "Sugar Rush" machine at Litwak's Arcade. A reference to donut chains Winchell's and Dunkin Donuts, these two donut cops were first seen in "Wreck-It Ralph" and returned for the sequel "Ralph Breaks The Internet." But in this movie where toons and humans live and work side by side, they work with J.K. Simmons' Captain Putty and Kiki Layne's Officer Ellie Whitfield at the Los Angeles Police Department. 

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Earlier when I mentioned one of the greatest Disney movies (and movies in general) of all time, I was talking about Robert Zemeckis' "Who Framed Roger Rabbit." The team behind "Chip n' Dale: Rescue Rangers" took a great deal of inspiration from that seminal film and they managed to get the titular star a cameo at the beginning of the movie doing the popular dance move named after him. However, there's also a reference to Roger's nemesis, the maniacal Judge Doom. Later on when Sweet Pete pulls out his torture kit, it contains a vial of Dip. Known to have the power to completely wipe a toon off the face of the Earth with a barrel, that stuff is extremely dangerous to any and all toons, which is something the terrifying judge played by Christopher Lloyd learned for himself by the end of that movie.  

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Thanks to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, many of us have been conditioned to wait for a post-credits scene. Luckily, that conditioning paid off while watching "Chip n' Dale: Rescue Rangers" because another fellow Disney Afternoon star made an appearance in the movie. As the Rescue Rangers reveled in their renewed popularity, Darkwing Duck lamented the fact that he's not enjoying the same sort of resurgence. However, thanks to the recent "Ducktales" reboot, the Masked Mallard may see his day in the sun yet thanks to a spinoff in the works. Or night in the sun? You know what I mean.

In addition to cameos from assorted Disney characters, there are also a ton of familiar faces from across animation history that appear in "Chip n' Dale: Rescue Rangers." If you look closely throughout the movie, you can spot He-Man, the cast of "My Little Pony," MC Skat Kat from Paula Abdul's acclaimed music video for "Opposites Attract," and much more. However, there's a pretty deep cut at the convention that Dale is attending as a guest. Across the aisle from him in Retro Alley is the Marvel Comics superhero Tigra. But specifically, this is the version of the character from "Avengers: United They Stand." 

Predating the huge boom of popularity for Earth's Mightiest Heroes that came with the MCU and animated shows like "Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes" and "Avengers Assemble," this series only lasted for one season of 13 episodes from October 1999 to February 2000. Bearing similarities to the 1984 team of West Coast Avengers from the comics, the show's roster consisted of Ant-Man, Wasp, Wonder Man, Tigra, Hawkeye, Scarlet Witch, Falcon and Vision as they fought the likes of Ultron, Kang the Conqueror, and the Masters of Evil. But the most notable part of "Avengers: United They Stand" was the unusual battle armor worn by members of the team that greatly differed from their signature looks. It was a real weird choice, but the new millennium was filled a lot of weird fashion choices. 

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When Chip and Dale infiltrate the Russian bath house to retrieve Sweet Pete's step tracker to find his secret hideout, they come across a number of recognizable faces. But one in particular came quite a long way to enjoy the services of the spa. Next to the pigs in the sauna, you can see Randy Marsh from "South Park." Considering the family-friendly nature of the movie, this is probably one of the most tame appearances of Stan and Shelley's dad on television to date.

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Thanks to the Ad Council and the National Crime Prevention Council, McGruff the Crime Dog has been taking a bite out of crime since 1980. When he first hit the scene, he would warn kids about the dangers of child abduction, robbery, drugs, and bullying. In the modern day, he's added messages about cyber-bullying, stopping online fakes, and elder-crime to his repertoire. But in Chip and Dale's world, it looks like he works at the Los Angeles Police Department when he's not appearing in the PSAs that have made him wildly recognizable to generations of children. 

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Seth Rogen stars in "Chip n' Dale: Rescue Rangers" as Bob the Warrior Viking, one of Sweet Pete's minions and a character that would look right at home in the 2007 Robert Zemeckis film "Beowulf." But Bob isn't the first animated character that the "Pam & Tommy" and "This Is The End" star lent his voice to. In fact, this isn't even the first Bob he voiced. So, in a fun homage to some of his more family friendly roles, Rogen's Warrior Viking runs into Mantis from "Kung Fu Panda," B.O.B from "Monsters Vs. Aliens," and Pumbaa from the live-action version of "The Lion King" while he's chasing Chip and Dale through the convention floor.  

The cameos in "Chip n' Dale: Rescue Rangers" aren't limited to beloved characters making appearances in the flesh. (In the ink? In the pixels?) A number of the popular animated stars from throughout history appear in the background of the film as spokespeople for businesses and products. One of the first big instances of this in the movie is in Chip's freezer. After he gets from home from a long day of selling insurance, he's ready to crack open a frozen meal. In his freezer, we find "Ice Age" ice cream, a "Looney Tunes" branded Tyson frozen dinner featuring Foghorn Leghorn, and a "Frozone Food" vegetable medley. I don't know about you, but I think it's hilarious that Samuel L. Jackson's character from "The Incredibles" found a frozen food product endorsement.     

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When Chip leaves Monterey Jack's apartment after an unexpected reunion with Dale, he walks past a few of the stars on the world-famous Hollywood Walk of Fame. But rather than names like Kelsey Grammer, Whoopi Goldberg, or James Hong, he walks past the sidewalk adornments belonging to Squidward, Yogi Bear, and Chun-Li. And as fun as those name drops are, the real highlight of this scene is when Chip stops walking and we see a Gucci ad behind him featuring Dobby the House Elf from the "Harry Potter" franchise. Clearly, his wardrobe has come a long way from that one sock he got with Harry's help.    

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That blustery Southern chicken isn't the only "Looney Tunes" alum landing endorsement deals. Based on the magazine that Sweet Pete's henchman Jimmy the Coca Cola polar bear is reading, Pepé Le Pew has stayed busy despite being excluding from "Space Jam: A New Legacy."  The love-obsessed skunk looks to have a new fragrance on the market called Pepé. However, I don't know how well a perfume endorsed by a skunk will sell among your average consumers.  

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After serving up a soundtrack full of bangers and leading her people back to the sea, Moana is now serving up a delicious snack. At the Russian bath house, once Sweet Pete takes off his step tracker and puts it in his locker for Chip and Dale to steal, we see a jar of macadamia nuts adorned with the face of the Motunui chief and wayfinder.

Once Chip and Dale retrieve the step tracker, Ellie uses the information contained within to find Sweet Pete's secret hideout where he's been surgically altering toons so they can appear in his bootleg movies. The chipmunks find themselves in another bind when they accidentally get trapped in the machine that makes these alterations. Before making the programmed adjustments, it scans the duo and offers a series of renders for the potential animation style conversions. This sequence goes by very fast, but each possibility is as fun as the next. You know, if the subjects were getting the procedure done willingly like Dale when he got his CGI surgery. 

After the scan, we see Chip and Dale as if they were drawn in the style of possibly "Family Guy" or "American Dad"

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Kawaii Japanese anime

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"Rick and Morty"

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"The Simpsons"

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"Rugrats: All Grown Up" by way of "Riverdale" 

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"The Ren & Stimpy Show"

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And as seen in the header image of this section, there's also dark, broody superheroes. There are a few others that I couldn't quite put my finger on the references or styles, but seeing Chip and Dale as Batman and Deapool look-a-likes is very amusing. They definitely look like they'd have a "Swat Kats: The Radical Squadron" or "Biker Mice From Mars" vibe if that show ever happened.

When we first learn about Sweet Pete and the Valley Gang, it's said that they erase their victims' mouths so they can't scream for help. What they initially forgot to mention was that they also strip the captive of some of their most recognizable parts. This becomes evident when Chip and Dale get out of the surgical machine relatively unharmed and come face to face with the parts wall. Not only do they spot their pal Monty's moustache, but there's a ton of other notable pieces of fan favorite cartoons hung up in bags all over the wall and labeled like they were ready to be sold at a second hand store. 

At a quick glance, you can see Robin Hood's hat from the 1973 animated Disney classic, Jiminy Cricket's umbrella and top hat, the lips and teeth of Ickis from "Aaahh!!! Real Monsters," the Pink Panther's mouth, Jimmy Neutron's hair, Sora's hair and Keyblade from the "Kingdom Hearts" video games, a Smurf's hat, Rocky the Flying Squirrel's flight helmet and goggles, Mighty Mouse's mouth, and Shenron the Dragon's tail from "Dragon Ball Z." We only get four panning shots of the wall, but there's a lot to unpack here. On one hand, it's a fun game of "I Spy" for animation fans. But on the other hand, Sweet Pete's nefarious scheme is pretty dark. 

At the end of the movie, Chip and Dale manage to track down all the bootlegged toons and are able to set them free. When they open the shipping crate, all of Sweet Pete's prisoners start pouring out. Among the bootlegged toons are Bigfoot from "A Goofy Movie" with Fred Flintstone's shirt, an amalgamation of Woody Woodpecker and Casper the Friendly Ghost, Abu from "Aladdin" with N64 Donkey Kong's body, Samurai Jack as a cat, Launchpad McQuack, Patrick from "SpongeBob SquarePants" mixed with what looks like a Fraggle, Phinneas from "Phinneas and Ferb" as a bird, Princess Tiana as a frog with wings, the Rescue Rangers' fellow Disney Afternoon staple Bonkers as a walrus, and comparatively minimally askew versions of the Cheshire Cat from "Alice in Wonderland," Bambi, a Snork (from "The Snorks," which arguably has a theme song that's just as memorable as Chip and Dale's), Dipper Pines from "Gravity Falls," Mighty Mouse, and a Care Bear.

Seeing the lineup of those who got mixed up in Sweet Pete's business, one has to wonder what exactly these seeming sweet and wholesome characters got into when they weren't on our screens in their celebrated cartoons. But rather than getting into the complications of the lasting effects a prolonged celebrity lifestyle can have on the human condition and the vices that could come along with that, it's probably better to take solace in the fact that Chip, Dale, and the Rescue Rangers have reunited to save the day once more and all the victims were able to get the medical attention they needed by the end of the credits. 

"Chip n' Dale: Rescue Rangers" is currently streaming on Disney+.