Adventures of Captain Vrungel (Season 1)

Adventures of Captain Vrungel (1980) — watch online on iFILM — is a Soviet animated series by director David Cherkasskiy, based on Andrei Nekrasov's satirical novel. Captain Vrungel, first mate Lom, and sailor Fuks enter an international sailing regatta aboard a yacht they have named Beda — Russian for "Trouble." The name turns out to be accurate almost from the first episode.

A small-time thief accidentally boards the yacht, bringing along a stolen statuette of Aphrodite from the Louvre. What follows is a round-the-world chase through tropical ports, disguises, and run-ins with organized crime. Zinoviy Gerdt voices the captain with perfectly calibrated self-confidence; Semyon Farada and Veniamin Smekhov round out the ensemble. The animation has a loose, hand-drawn quality that sets it apart from the more factory-produced Soviet cartoons of the period. Stream all episodes of Adventures of Captain Vrungel online on iFILM.