A World Without Fences

Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp’s Adventure is the first direct-to video Disney sequel from an era older than the Disney Renaissance. Lady and the Tramp is one of the most beloved Disney movies of the Silver Age. Deciding to make a sequel 46 years later meant needing to recreate the 1955 animation and recast the film with sound-alike voice actors. It’s honestly impressive how close they come, but the story can’t keep up. Like The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride, the four puppies teased at the end of the first movie are given names and personalities. Lady’s three lookalike puppies are Annette, Collette, and Danielle. Tramp’s one lookalike puppy is the titular Scamp. Jim Dear and Darling’s baby starts to talk and Aunt Sarah only briefly drops by with her cats Si and Am. They barely speak for obvious reasons.

Like The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea, Scamp’s Adventure is basically Lady and the Tramp in reverse. This time it’s a male dog who ends up falling in love with a female dog from the wrong side of the tracks. They even attempt to recreate the iconic spaghetti scene. It wouldn’t be so bad if Scamp was a more likable lead. I get that he wants to be wild and free, but the disregard for the family who loves him gets really annoying after awhile. Although he looks like a puppy, Scamp has the grown up voice of Scott Wolf. Even when my brother and I watched the sequel as kids, we noticed how distracting it was. Scamp’s love interest is an adorable Pomeranian Husky mix “Junkyard Dog” named Angel. She’s much more likable since she sees the value of home life. Although Alyssa Milano was the inspiration for Ariel, she ended up voicing Angel instead of Melody.

The new dogs are really where the big names come in. Chazz Palminteri is the untrustworthy Rottweiler Doberman mix who leads the motley crew of interchangeable Junkyard Dogs. A large stray dog and a Don Knotts inspired dogcatcher also act as villains. Lady stays behind with the puppies while Tramp, Jock, and Trusty attempt to find Scamp. The original isn’t known for it’s music, but Scamp’s Adventure doubles down on songs. “Welcome Home” takes us back to 1912 on the Fourth of July. “World Without Fences” is Scamp’s selfish “I Want” song and “Junkyard Society Rag” doesn’t make the best argument. “I Didn’t Know That I Could Feel This Way” is supposed to be the love song and “Always There” is the sad version. Fortunately “Bella Notte” plays at the end. Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp’s Adventure was only barely worth the wait.

Scamp and Angel meet in a junkyard

Preceded by: Lady and the Tramp