Disney Deep Cut: Oswald the Lucky Rabbit

These days it’s pretty impossible to escape exposure to a Disney product. They own the lion’s share of today’s biggest themes and properties. (Was that an oblique Lion King joke? You bet it was.) But, before they owned Marvel…and Star Wars…and everything else, Disney created their own in-house characters, too. Like Mickey Mouse. You’ve heard of him, right? Cool. But how about Oswald the Lucky Rabbit?

…Yeah, that one stumped me too. It turns out Oswald starred in 27 animated shorts back in 1927 or so. He made a return in 2010’s Epic Mickey video game. Still managed to fly under my radar, though. Luckily, Bruce Lowell didn’t overlook Oswald. And, as a result, we get an amazing LEGO recreation of this possibly-not-quite-iconic character. The expert use of rounded tiles recreates the distinctive facial styling. Even if you don’t know the character, you know this guy has to be part of the Mickey Mouse Club.

Oswald the Lucky Rabbit

Bruce was inspired by Paul Lee’s 2010 Mickey Mouse build. Paul was inspired in that build by Bruce’s sphere technique. What goes around comes around! (Get it? Round? Like a sphere? Oh, nevermind…)

2 comments on “Disney Deep Cut: Oswald the Lucky Rabbit

  1. Purple Dave

    I’m actually somewhat familiar with Oswald. Yeah, even though I never played the game, I remember seeing ads for Epic Mickey and wondering what was up with the cheap, Mickey Mouse-looking knock-off, so I looked into it just for curiosity’s sake.

    Given all that Walt and Ub put into the character, I wonder if Mickey would have even been possible without Oswald serving as a spiritual parent. I doubt it’ll happen, but it would be awesome if they actually made a CMF of Oswald. Unfortunately, I think the character is just too obscure for that to be likely.

  2. Håkan

    As an old cartoon buff, I have to add that Oswald actually was bought up by Walter Lantz. (The studio behind Woody Woodpecker, a character which would keep them from being ‘completely’ forgotten today, I guess.) And after a while, Oswald was redesigned into a 50’s middle class family man looking nothing like his old self.

    http://static4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110625115342/walterlantz/images/2/20/Comic_Oswald-1-.jpg

    https://comicvine1.cbsistatic.com/uploads/scale_medium/11/119838/2577817-fourcolor549.jpg

    https://comicvine1.cbsistatic.com/uploads/scale_medium/2/26751/537899-894_1.jpg

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