Bubs

One of the Chapman Brothers' strongest merits is their meticulous eye for character development. Homestar and the gang, after appearing in many cartoons together, interacting with one another, and forming relationships, have become a cohesive whole, despite the fact that they were created at a disparity of times with different roles and ideals. However, few characters clash with every aspect of their fellows quite so much as Bubs. This is ironic, as Bubs is easily one of the most affable of all the characters.

Visually, Bubs fringes on the edge of abstraction. His ovoid face is light blue, his eyes are different sizes, and his mouth is simply a tight thatch of large teeth covering the bottom of his face. When Bubs speaks, his mouth does not open; his teeth merely shift slightly. The top of Bubs' body is an orange lump with rudimentary arms, no hands or fingers. A green sash of some sort covers his waist, and his bottom half is uniformly black, including his ridiculously undersized feet. Indeed, his four main components (head, upper body, sash, lower body) do not appear to be part of a uniform whole so much as four unrelated elements assembled together as well as they can fit. So effective is his design that he has gone virtually unchanged since his first appearance.

Despite this wild incongruity of form, Bubs has a conversely down-to-earth personality. Were he as offbeat as his appearance, he would be almost completely inaccessible. His approachability is aided by the zestful quality of his dialogue, and certainly his voice, which sounds curiously like Louis Armstrong. The dialogue and voice mesh perfectly to create such a believable character that his bizarre appearance is forgotten. Indeed, it is only while one is looking at stills of the character that one realizes how odd he truly looks!

Like Coach Z, Bubs is one of the few characters that the audience registers as a full-fledged adult. A large part of this is the fact that Bubs has a permanent job. He is the sole proprietor of the concession stand where the characters visit for all of their necessities. The exact location of this stand is unclear, but it never seems far from where the current scene is taking place. Being a private businessman has also made Bubs the character the most likely to pursue the Almighty Dollar. Keeping his business thriving always seems to have priority over most other things, but this hasn't driven a wedge between Bubs and his friends, as they need his services just as much as he desires their money.

But Bubs is no miser, nor is he a recluse. Like his form, Bubs is larger than life. Everything he does and says carries a true sense of ebullience and the sheer joy of being alive. His love of singing and dancing accentuates this; Bubs may not be the most graceful of creatures, but he puts his heart and soul into every moment. This enthusiasm is contagious; most of the other characters seem generally happier in his presence. Bubs is not immune to anger or disappointment, and is occasionally short with people, but it seldom seems to last, and these moments of negativity only strengthen his character. Were he perpetually jolly, he'd merely be a two-dimensional buffoon. Bubs' dialogue is another facet of his character: he joyfully alters the English language towards his liking, changing and creating words as he sees fit, and creating a dialect all his own.

Bubs has boasted that he can "fix anything what needs fixin'", and when he is not running the concession stand, he is often using his mechanical skills to aid his friends in some gambit. The quality of his inventions is suspect, but there are seldom any complaints. Bubs seems to define who he is by the services he provides; the only times he is ever at a loss for words is when he is required to talk about himself personally. This is a common trait among gifted individuals.

Bubs is such a forcefully portrayed character that it is only in retrospect that one realizes that he never impacts the main thrust of a story in all but the most trivial ways. Bubs neither moves nor shakes, simply acting as a loyal companion while simultaneously going through life in his own inimitable way. It is no mystery why Homestar and friends consider him a reliable ally; one could easily imagine meeting Bubs in real life and being drawn to him in the same way. Bubs may have little purpose other than to swell the ranks, but nobody could call him superfluous or flat. Bubs is a true original, in every sense of the word.

The Cheat

Owing something by design to E. C. Segar's Eugene the Jeep, The Cheat (the creature's name as well as his species) has long been established as the Brothers Strong's partner in crime, appearing alongside Strong Bad in their mutual first appearance. This relationship has remained ever since, and is as old and entrenched as the friendship of Homestar and Pom Pom. And while there are some similarities (like Pom Pom, The Cheat is more intelligent than his friend, but unable to communicate it properly), Strong Bad and The Cheat have a complex relationship all their own.

The Cheat is a zoological anomaly. His body is not square so much as parallelogram-shaped. There seems to be no distinction between his lower lip and stomach, made odder by the fact that he never opens his mouth (although he is known to smile on occasion to display his prized gold tooth). His feet (or perhaps simply one solitary foot) are actually the bottom of his body spreading and flattening at its base. His arms are simple tapered fins. His snout is an extension of the top of his head, and his eyes appear to be placed on his cheek. Like most of his fellows, The Cheat is seen virtually exclusively from the 3/4 perspective, either front or back, and never directly from the front or in profile. This curious design has changed not one whit from his first appearance. The Cheat's body is covered in golden-yellow fur, and his back is decorated with dark spots, which, as expected, make him resemble a cheetah. His voice is a mishmash of indecipherable gibberish in a child-like tone.

As can be inferred from his name, The Cheat likes to cheat. This trait is obviously what attracted Strong Bad to his company, but unlike Strong Bad, The Cheat is not especially out for personal gain. Unlike the alleged villainy of Strong Bad, which is based on greed and overachieving, and Strong Mad, which is based on brute stupidity, The Cheat enjoys breaking rules, conning, and other manner of subterfuge out of an innocent sense of mischief. This is why The Cheat's untrustworthy nature is not repulsive; The Cheat acts, above all, in the manner of an innocuous child. We may not approve of The Cheat's actions, but we do not hold them against him, because, in some way, we feel a sort of empathy for his childish misbehaviour; we have all acted similarly heedlessly in our own lives. The Cheat's machinations seldom bring about any positive gain for himself or those he is aiding, so it is hard to begrudge the little troublemaker the temporary happiness he gets from his minor misconduct. Were The Cheat presented as more mercenary and actively malicious, he would be far less loveable.

The Cheat has been acting as an accomplice far less often since Strong Bad has moved away from being an out-and-out villain. Their partnership, therefore, has been altered, subtly yet meaningfully. Strong Bad fluctuates between enlisting The Cheat to do him a favour or support him on some misadventure or other, and sternly giving The Cheat instructions to carry out for what is perceived to be The Cheat's own good. The Cheat, despite the occasional grumbled protest, acts obediently and tirelessly. While this could be written off as Strong Bad relishing the power that he exerts over a smaller entity (The Cheat is the only character smaller than Strong Bad himself), it seems that the reality is more convoluted. Strong Bad usually seems to be, in his own peculiar way, expressing some sort of loving paternal authority over The Cheat, and is genuinely interested in what he considers to be the best for The Cheat. This is a side of Strong Bad that is seldom, if ever seen outside of The Cheat's presence. While Strong Bad would never admit it, he is totally devoted to The Cheat, and despite the occasional kick or verbal insult, wants The Cheat to turn out well. Granted, Strong Bad's methods are hardly orthodox, but the sincerity of his affections, however misguided, is admirable. The Cheat definitely strengthens Strong Bad as a character in areas that would otherwise go unchecked.

Despite his reputation for misconduct, The Cheat is well liked among the rest of the gang, and they generally speak highly of him. But nobody is more entirely in The Cheat's thrall than Strong Mad. The big lug, in a manner similar to Of Mice and Men, is The Cheat's closest companion, as well as his fiercest protector; woe be unto anybody who abuses The Cheat, including Strong Bad in his lapses of judgment. It is unknown as to whether The Cheat returns Strong Mad's affections, but he clearly relishes the invulnerability he has in lieu of his massive bodyguard. The Cheat has also shown a proficiency with computers, and considers himself an accomplished animator (the hilariously amateurish animation is reminiscent of the Chapman Brother's earliest works). Strong Bad is on hand to honestly appraise the quality of these creations.

For all his flaws, The Cheat is certainly an appealing character. However, his true appeal is the oddly sentimental side he brings out of his friends, which is visible only in his company. The Cheat is clearly loved, by both his fellows and his audience.

Coach Z

The ages of Homestar and his friends are never supplied, nor are they especially needed. While most of the characters are at least physically in some form of adulthood, the interaction between Homestar, Marzipan, Strong Bad and the rest are analogues to the playground hierarchy of irresponsible children. In order to play on this dynamic further, it was therefore necessary for a more grownup character to be around, delineating the contrast between the irony and foibles of adulthood and the fecklessness and selfishness of childhood. This role ultimately went to Coach Z.

Like most of his companions, Coach Z is an anthropomorphic oddity. His head is a simple white sphere marked only with two vacant eyes. On top of his head is a blue and purple baseball cap, the peak facing backwards. Coach Z's body, which can be accurately described as "beanpole", is green (the issue of whether his skin is green or whether he is wearing a green tracksuit has been addressed, but never satisfactorily concluded). His hands are simple lumps with thumbs, resting on his pipe-stem arms, and his feet are large and long, giving him a clumsy look in addition to his bent knees and squat lower body. He has a large golden medallion on his chest, on which his initial is engraved.

Coach Z's expressionless face is contrasted with the fact that he is an extremely vocal character. When one sees stills of Coach Z, one is mildly disturbed at how empty and featureless his visage is. All factors of Coach Z's character hinge exactly and precisely on his voice. Fortunately, his voice is strong enough to carry his bland exterior, and there is never the unsettling feeling that image and sound are two separate entities. The voice itself is definitely working class and colloquial, but high and quirky enough so as to not sound rough. Coach Z's voice meshes with his curious diction; he constructs all of his sentences as though they are mere fragments of one continuous sentence, broken only by the necessity of another party speaking. Perhaps the most important (and certainly the most memorable) aspect of Coach Z's voice is his indecipherable accent. Its origin is definitely North American, but it is difficult to pinpoint an exact locality; it seems partly Canadian, partly north-eastern United States, and a muddling of several other dialects. The accent generally hinders Coach Z's attempts to pronounce vowel sounds, although how thick it is depends on how vital it is to the story that he speak clearly or not. Coach Z also claims to be an accomplished rapper (which, in a way, explains his name), and he is a constant source of rap history and trivia to all that do not wish to hear it. Most recently, he has enthusiastically performed some of his "chart-topping" hits from the days gone by, the most notable being the oft-referenced "These Peoples Try to Fade Me". The most charitable thing one could say of these performances is that they do not lack enthusiasm.

Coach Z is, of course, a coach. The sport he coaches, and the firm that employs himself and the team, are never defined. The sport seems to combine elements of football, basketball and soccer with an incomprehensible scoring system. This occupation is what formed Coach Z as a character: when he was originally conceived, Homestar was still a stalwart if slightly gullible athlete. It was therefore fitting that there would be a de facto father figure to counsel him and aid him during moments of indecision; a coach would be the perfect candidate. As Homestar grew away from this personality, however, Coach Z was forced to either make further attempts to advise the now imbecilic Homestar, or simply abandon all traces of his wisdom, becoming as out-and-out eccentric as the rest of the characters in the process. Ultimately, the latter was chosen. This was a wise decision for two reasons. Firstly, Homestar and friends gradually abandoned structured set-up-and-punchline style of humour in favour of a more edgy and anarchic view of the world, and a level-minded coach would be out of place. Second, and more important, the original incarnation of Coach Z was a very bland character.

With a fresh slate, Coach Z was free to grow as a character in new ways. The aforementioned accent grew more pronounced. His rambling speech patterns became ridiculously drawn out. His venerable nuggets of advice were replaced with long, pointless stories. In short, Coach Z had become a self-caricature, but a very funny self-caricature. Where he would have given Homestar meaningful advice about relationships, he now babbles idiotically, and even a simpleton like Homestar knows not to rely on him.

There is some wickedly dark humour lurking beneath Coach Z's benign façade. He seems harmless enough at a cursory glance, but a closer examination reveals some downright disturbing details. Coach Z has been intoxicated more than once, and he seems to react quite forcibly to different substances, including alcoholic mouthwash. Coach Z also has an unhealthy interest in Marzipan, and while their relationship is platonic at best, there are times when Coach Z seems to have more long-lasting intentions. So engaged is Coach Z to his job that he lives in the locker room, sleeping on a bench at night.

Of course, all of these disturbing habits are wisely kept subtle, leaving Coach Z an ineffectual but likeable character. And while his days of being a surrogate parent to the gang are over, he often is the organizer of several of Free Country's community events. Coach Z appeals to us, not only because he is very funny by design, but because he is an accurate caricature of the way a rebellious child views adulthood: a time where people can excuse their character flaws and vices, even as they make fools of themselves time and again.

Homestar Runner

"Everybody loves the Homestar Runner. He is a terrific athlete."

Perusing the above statement, the opening sentence from a modest, low-circulation children's book in the late 1990s, one would never guess that the character described would go on to have a beloved following by a decidedly different audience. And while Homestar Runner has evolved considerably since his genesis in both image and personality, his essential appeal has remained. Over the years, Homestar's role has changed from hero and protagonist to dolt and comedic foil, and as such, Homestar's cartoons in his earlier role are viewed almost as artifacts from a long-forgotten era. But in all of the cartoons, the identity of the character is never in doubt.

Homestar's appearance is as simple as his character. There is no need for resemblance to reality; Homestar is drawn in a basic, iconic style. His countenance is something human and simultaneously something not. But Homestar's facile demeanour is so non-threatening that his appearance never strikes the audience as odd or alien. Homestar was not designed to resemble anything on a physical level so much as on an emotional level. In this respect, as in the case of many cartoon characters, Homestar's actual mien is irrelevant.

Homestar's head is skull-white, with inquisitive yet naïve eyes and a rounded scalp. The only physical feature that truly keeps Homestar from looking entirely childish is his lower jaw, which protrudes in a lunkish manner, accentuating the general obtuseness of his form. To contrast this, a ridiculous propeller-beanie perches on his head, which he obviously wears with desire to be jaunty, but it only adds to his general look of childish ignorance. Homestar's body is covered with a red jersey, which resembles a small skirt, as Homestar possesses neither arms nor sleeves. A surprisingly bold-looking star is affixed to his chest. This is presumable part of the origin of his name. Homestar's legs are lengthy and thin, and his feet are large and cumbersome. There are soles at the bottoms of his feet, indicating that he is wearing boots, the tops of which must be hidden underneath his shirt. As one might guess, Homestar's physiology does not bear close examination!

Above all else, this must be said: Homestar is dumb. He is obtuse and gauche to the extreme, and is entirely oblivious to the frustration his friends show at his continual falsehoods, ignorance, and unwitting insults. However, Homestar is not an idiot because of a lack of effort or willingness to achieve equivalence with his fellows. Instead, Homestar's stupidity comes from the untested mind of a child. It is this juvenility, and indeed, innocence, that lets Homestar affect his audience so well. As well, part of Homestar's gullibility is due to his innate kindness and trust in the honesty in his friends, despite the many times that trust has been betrayed. Were Homestar portrayed as an adult, someone who should know better, the humour would wear thin. Adults who never outgrow their period of childish self-indulgence are often depressing and irritating, but Homestar, despite his physical maturity, still hasn't gained the ability to see how his words and actions affect others, and we forgive him, as we forgive children in similar stages of development. To be certain, Homestar considers himself a grown-up; he has a somewhat glib way of speaking, considers his relationship with Marzipan to be a triumph (in truth, it is a cacophonous farce), and generally thinks that he is on top of everything. The truth, however, can't be denied; he's nothing more than a big kid, with a sincere love for simple things such as marshmallows and "melonade". A great part of this is due to his voice: while it has been torn slightly by the strains of adolescence, there is an unadulterated curiosity and exuberance that only exists within a child's psyche. And of course, Homestar endears us further with his speech impediment, pronouncing his every "r" as "w".

Homestar's role, as noted, has changed considerably since his creation. Initially, he was an eternal do-gooder, always ready to help out in a crisis, stand up to injustice, and embark on an adventure. His heroic status was somewhat romanticized by his status as a star athlete. In short, he was a prototypical protagonist, one-dimensional and dull to the extreme. While Homestar has always had a sort of passive blandness to his character, in his early years he was literally defined by the blandness. For a brief period, he was also something of a shape-shifter, altering his form, mass and constitution depending on how it fit the scene. This, of course, was before the animators began their standard practice of reusing frames. Homestar, while not an intellectual by any means, at least had some semblance of competence, and often explained his contentions with a chalkboard, whilst wearing a graduate's cap. This aspect of Homestar's early years especially rankles with his modern persona. Above all, there was nothing especially funny about Homestar. He advanced the plot, but there was nothing about his demeanour to make the audience especially care about him. Changes were needed, and while it took a relatively long time before his evolution was complete, the resulting character was well worth the wait.

Gradually Homestar grew away from his role as a hero. He became passive; not one who does things rather than one who has things done to him. His mental dexterity eroded, and his affability and unquestioning trust in the decency of his fellows became stronger than his common sense. His athleticism, while retained, was pushed aside, likely to avoid the inevitable "dumb jock" jokes. It cannot be stressed enough that Homestar's acquisition of genuine comedy was in tandem with Strong Bad's definition of character; while Strong Bad is capable of being humourous on his own, Homestar absolutely needs another party to act as his foil. Indeed, Homestar and Strong Bad are both at their best when playing off each other, something they never could do when they were nominal arch-rivals. Strong Bad's eventual succession of the best role has meant that Homestar can no longer rely on his own strength of character, but that is hardly a detriment. Homestar is infinitely funnier and thus more affecting when he is idiotically reacting to things, rather than attempting to change them.

Why are so many fans in the thrall of this bungling half-wit? Everybody has his or her own reason, but the truth of the matter is that he is so delightfully innocent of his own stupidity, so unaware of how little respect he has, that one is attracted to him as one would a small child. Homestar occasionally recognizes a blunder on his part, often with a self-effacing laugh, but he never learns from his mistakes, and continues to bungle his way through life, time and time again, with unrepressed cheerfulness and a genuine wonder about the world around him. All of his flaws on endear him closer to his audience. Truly, everybody loves the Homestar Runner.

Homsar

A typographical error by an e-mail author, one Vinnie C., became the inspiration for a new character, who has gone on to be one of the website's biggest success stories, even though he was originally conceived as a one-off joke.

Vinnie C.'s e-mail suggested that Strong Bad end his long-standing rivalry with Homestar by killing him. However, Homestar's name was ridiculously misspelled "Homsar". Following his unerring literalness, Strong Bad went out straight away and killed a character named Homsar. That was as far as Homsar was intended to grow, but he proved so popular that the character was resurrected beyond his seeming death and his career continued. He has since become a member of the main gang, in addition to the long since established eleven, which no other character introduced since has been able to do. This is even more incredible when one bears in mind what kind of character Homsar is. Visually, Homsar is conceived as a grotesque caricature of Homestar. His face is similar, but his lunk-jaw is exaggerated and his eyes are empty and devoid of emotion. A disreputable little derby is perched on his head, giving him a clownish vaudevillian look. A shapeless blue jersey, his name engraved on the front, covers the majority of his body. This is a good thing, as it helps disguise his figure. His legs and feet are stubby and ungainly, in contrast to Homestar's. Adding to his discordant appearance is the way he is animated. Compared to the smooth and precise movements of his fellows, Homsar is deliberately animated in a jerky, disjointed fashion. Homsar's voice lilts and wavers as he speaks, matched by the spastic contortions of his face.

Homsar's demeanour is just as random and unstructured as his appearance. He has no emotion, no personality, and no comprehension of anything. Homsar's sole purpose in life is to show up at inopportune times, completely oblivious to everything, and cry out absurd non-sequiters. When utilized properly, Homsar's abrupt appearances are killingly hilarious, and indeed, his demented exclamations seldom fail to entertain. However, the Chapman brothers have wisely determined that Homsar would become unbearably rebarbative and irritating with excessive exposure. Homsar could hardly carry a cartoon on his own, or even a full scene. Random and spontaneous humour are best when used in a similarly random fashion. Therefore, Homsar has remained elusive, leaving his fans to anticipate his next appearance, rather than becoming a regular performer, which would surely destroy his status as a wild card.

Homsar's relationship to the rest of the group is tenuous at best. After he makes his appearance, he is quickly ignored or forgotten. The only character who attempts to form an actual friendship with him is Strong Sad, although it is unclear whether this is a product of Strong Sad's desperation for any sort of companionship, or Homsar's latching onto somebody who he can speak to who will not attempt to ignore him. In any event, communication between the two is trite, and it is difficult to tell who is tolerating whom.

Homsar has a loyal following, and in some respects he matches Homestar and Strong Bad in popularity. But unlike them, Homsar is not personable or sympathetic. To infuse anything deeper into his character would be to burden him and thus kill him. He forever will be nothing more than a clown, albeit a very funny one. And that, bearing in mind how he was designed, is exactly how it should be.

The King of Town

As a character and as an individual, the King of Town is a relic from another era. Rather than letting this become a detriment to the character, his obsolescence has been used as a marvellous source of comedy, which is infinitely funnier than the King himself is by design.

The King's design conjures memories of fairy tales of old (particularly Tenniel's illustrations in Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland), as well as the kings from playing cards. He is a facile Santa Claus figure, with a round head and an even rounder body. He has no discernible arms or legs, and his entire body is shrouded in frumpy red robes with white trim. His head is white, and his face is adorned simply with perpetually squinting eyes, a thick white moustache, and a series of scroll-shaped curls forming a beard. An undersized crown is perched on his bald scalp. His voice is that of a precocious child grown old, full of odd ditherings and silly mutterings.

Food is the King's raison d'être. His entire life seems to consist of finding sustenance, eating it, and ensuring that more food will continue to be available. Such is his privileged upbringing that he eats any edibles he comes across without hesitation, whether or not said edibles are even rightfully his. Perhaps this is his interpretation of the Divine Right of Kings. At the core of everything the King does is an innate selfishness. This excessive self-indulgence, however, is not the cruel, bitter greed of adulthood, but the unquestioning self-service of a child who simply does not know better. Things such as sharing and sacrifice are alien to the King simply because he, in his decadent lifestyle, has never had to consider them. This is precisely why the King's personality, which would be unbearably repellent in person, does not offend the audience. The King clearly enjoys the privileges of royalty far more than the responsibilities; when anything disrupts his peaceful existence, he panics and must rely on others to aid him. Indeed, aside from his dress he hardly makes any effort to act in a manner that could be considered regal. For all his flaws, the King is a rather likeable fellow, and this amicability is only strengthened when it becomes obvious that the King's life is not as altogether pleasant as it appears.

When the King made his debut, the world in which Homestar and his friends lived was undefined, and it was therefore not an issue that Homestar and Pom Pom could be summoned to a 16th century-era castle to solve a mystery for a King and his retinue of servants. Shortly thereafter, however, it was irrevocably established that Free Country was somewhat suburban and definitely modern. Rather than writing the King and his world off as apocryphal, however, the Chapman brothers decided to transport the King, medieval mindset and all, into this world. The formerly unfunny King has now become a source of great humour as he struggles to maintain his regal dignity in a world that sees him as little more than a gluttonous old man. None of the other characters consider the King to have any semblance of rule over them in any way, aside from the King's previously established servants. The King is routinely belittled, ignored, and disregarded. And while he attempts to remain cheerily oblivious to his impotence, there are moments where the King quietly laments the fact that nobody seems to take him seriously, or even likes him that much. Even the friendlier characters like Homestar seem to have a blind spot when it comes to the King's feelings. This definitely provokes sympathy for a character that would otherwise be reviled, and rightfully so.

An interesting piece of trivia is that early documents named the King as Marzipan's father, obviously in an effort to forge a link between the King and Homestar's more contemporary companions. This gambit apparently didn't have the impact it was intended to have and was discarded, as Marzipan has never acknowledged the King as her father and vice versa. Without any true friends among the gang, the King's obtrusive impact on the proceedings is only made funnier, and a vintage character has been preserved, rather than claimed by obscurity.

Marzipan

A cursory glance at lists of characters from any classic animation series reveals an interesting trend: original cartoon characters are, by and large, a "boys' club", with room for very few female characters. Most female characters either take familiar roles as matrons or siblings, and the most memorable female characters have generally been created to keep the series from excluding females as a whole, with the added bonus of being a love interest. Popular tastes, unfortunately, have changed very little in 80 years, and this trend continues to this day, with the rare exception (most of which, however, go too far in the opposite direction and patronize females in a manner that is even more insulting than ignoring them). It is therefore no surprise to see that among Free Country's citizens, only one of them is female. However, Marzipan is far from a token female in any respect.

Marzipan's anatomy is a curiosity, to say the least. Her general physique resembles a straw broom, bristles downward, or perhaps a bell (a "Southern belle" reference, perhaps?). The structure of the handle is pink, and serves as her head, and possibly her neck (it is hard to tell). Her face is gently rendered with small but lively eyes, and a smile, which was initially insipid but has gradually evolved into a myriad of expressions, which are impressive considering the simple lines of her face. From the top of her head sprouts a ponytail of blonde hair. The broom's bristles, her lower body, is a half-sphere covered with some sort of purple skirt, decorated with a simple frill segmented with baubles. No arms or feet are visible. It is a triumph of the animators that, despite lacking most of the familiar cues of femininity, Marzipan immediately registers in the mind of the audience as very feminine, and nothing less.

Marzipan's personality is defined by her various dualities of character. One might write this off as self-deceiving hypocrisy, but in truth it makes Marzipan one of the more deeply layered characters. Such traits are, after all, fairly common in the real world.

One of her main discrepancies is her temperament. There is a genuine tenderness to a lot that Marzipan does; it is no coincidence that she shares her name with an almost unbearably saccharine confection. The easiest way to illustrate this is her affinity for nature. Marzipan is deeply connected to the plant and animal kingdoms, to the point of being oblivious to everything else at times when this connection is the strongest. Only Marzipan would go to the trouble of holding a "concert for birds", or adopt an anthropomorphic sandwich. This facet of her character definitely grates with most of the other characters, who have little patience for her strict dietary habits and constant reprimands when they fail to accommodate nature in some way. To call Marzipan a bohemian would not be inaccurate, or particularly unkind, especially bearing in mind her penchant for performing syrupy, lightweight songs on Carol, her acoustic guitar. Despite this gentility, however, there is a certain steel deep within Marzipan. She is very opinionated and strong-minded, and does not let any of her assertions be shaped by anybody but herself. She also has no qualms whatsoever about pointing out when her companions say or do something idiotic. She is by far the character who has come the closest to diffusing the imbecility of Free Country at large. Strong Sad has some of this ability, but is too gentle to say anything about it, and Strong Bad, like Marzipan, is just a little too self-absorbed to work through the process, preferring to ignore the greater issue in favour of minor annoyances. Marzipan's blunt frankness can sometimes come across as downright mean, but this duplicity of disposition makes her all the more identifiable.

The other main disparity of her character is her intellect. As mentioned before, Marzipan is smart enough to see that every endeavour of her fellows is sheer folly. Her dealings with Homestar accentuate this: emotionally and maturity-wise he is definitely her junior, and her tone when addressing him is patronizing and condescending to such an extent that we wonder why she puts up with him, and vice-versa. Why, then, does she never put an end to the foolishness? The simple answer is that Marzipan is not nearly as intelligent as she thinks she is and appears to be. A main factor of this is her stubborn belief in her own infallibility. Everything Marzipan says and does is executed secure in the knowledge that she is absolutely right. So content is she in her self-inflation that when she is finally put in a position where she can no longer deny that she was at fault, she acts with a revealing lack of maturity and self-control. This aspect is helped immensely by Missy Palmer's marvelous characterization of Marzipan's voice, which is crisp and resolute, even as she makes some laughably ignorant statements.

Serious-minded yet capricious, loving yet candid, highly mentally developed yet childishly arrogant, this seeming dichotomy of character does not diminish Marzipan as a character in our eyes. In fact, it is refreshing to see a cartoon take an honest viewpoint and observe that sometimes females are just as thick and petty as males. That Marzipan is not made faultless solely on the grounds that she is female is an admirable decision. While she is cute in most conventional senses, Marzipan does little to adhere to the stereotypes of other perfunctory female characters. She is nominally Homestar's girlfriend, but we see little in their dealings that indicate any developed form of romance, or even affection. Summarily, they seem to be in a relationship because it is felt that it simply must be that way. This, combined with Marzipan's infinite patience with Homestar's juvenile stupidities and Homestar's bemused reaction to Marzipan's fastidiousness, makes for humour far greater than that of typical sitcom romance shtick.

Marzipan is lovable by design, but a great amount of her appeal derives not in spite of her flaws but because of them. Were she flawless, she would clash horrendously with the down-to-earth vices of her colleagues, and they would likely have as much reason to resent her as the audience would. Instead, she is revealed to be just as addled as they are, and because we realize that, we forgive her the occasional haughtiness and irrationality. Few people count Marzipan as their favourite character, but even fewer find reason enough to hate her. Not bad for the "only girl"!

Pom Pom

Of all the characters, Pom Pom has endured the fewest alterations. In part, this is due to the simplicity of his design: Pom Pom's body is a simple sphere, with rudimentary cones forming stubby limbs, and a simple ellipse for a head. His face is adorned with nothing more than two simplified eyes. This simplicity of form could easily be interpreted as simplicity of character, but nothing could be further from the truth. Pom Pom is an intriguing and complex character, but the constant enigma that surrounds his true nature deliberately keeps him at arm's length from establishing a true emotional bond with his audience.

Pom Pom, it is established, is a Pom, hailing from the island of the same name. Little is known about Pom Pom's life in his birthplace, however. In the transition between his home and the world of Free Country, Pom Pom has lost his sense of belonging to his own kind and become an alien, living among those who are alien to him. This sense of detachment from his society is supplemented by the language barrier: when Pom Pom speaks, the only sounds he emits are curious bubbling noises. Homestar and the rest respond to what he says, but since the viewer is not given a translation, it is not certain whether or not they accurately understand his words. Constructed schematically as he is, Pom Pom is the least human-looking of the gang, and thus seems an outsider to them, and by extension, to the viewer. One suspects that, were one to encounter Pom Pom in his element, surrounded by his fellow Poms, he would come across as a rather different individual altogether. But Pom Pom, for his own unfathomable reasons, has chosen to walk among those who are different from him, and at times he paradoxically seems something less than what they are, and something more.

This needn't indicate that Pom Pom has no connection with his fellows. He is Homestar's best friend, as the latter is quick to point out. And while Homestar is genuinely and enthusiastically in Pom Pom's thrall, the Pom, while a true friend, keeps a detached and cool attitude about their relationship. In fact, Pom Pom is just as often seen enjoying the company of Strong Bad as he is with Homestar. Curiously, this rebounding does not seem to constitute disloyalty or betrayal on Pom Pom's part. At times, the Pom seems to be everybody's friend. At others, he is nobody's. While the other characters have frequent contentions with one another, nobody has any reason to resent Pom Pom, and he likewise has no ill feelings towards them.

The relationship between Pom Pom and Homestar has evolved as Homestar's character has changed. In the beginning, when Homestar was an insipid do-gooder, Pom Pom was always at his side, not in the spirit of a tagalong or, even worse, a sidekick, but providing genuine companionship at times when Homestar would have been very much alone. Indeed, it is difficult to imagine what Homestar would be doing, left to his own devices. As Homestar grew away from his role as protagonist and gradually became less mentally adroit and more child-like, Pom Pom's role in their relationship became more like a parent-guardian; watching over Homestar and keeping him out of serious trouble without necessarily leading him around by the nose. This transition is obvious in the similar plots of "The Strongest Man In The World Competition" and "A Jumping Jack Contest". In the first, Homestar discovers Strong Bad's treachery and forfeits so Pom Pom can win. By the latter, Pom Pom is the one who learns the truth and surrenders his chances of winning. One can hardly imagine the latter-day Homestar being so self-sacrificing.

There is more to Pom Pom than his bland exterior indicates, and several hints of his true nature are exposed from time to time. Pom Pom, despite his unimpressive physique, is an accomplished athlete, even in the wrestling ring, despite the seeming fragility of his form. His only link to his home is via cell phone, where he is often seen conversing with one of his storied seventeen girlfriends, a trait which Homestar admires but in no way resents. Pom Pom is also reportedly very intelligent, and is possibly the smartest of all of his friends. This intelligence comes in handy when acting as a guardian for Homestar, of course.

Pom Pom has no memorable dialogue and generally is content to be in the background and let the more strongly portrayed personalities shine, and thus he is often overlooked when viewers recall their favourite characters. But with the use of hindsight, it soon becomes clear that Pom Pom is never far from the goings-on of his friends, always watching. The constant enigma surrounding him makes Pom Pom a character the audience constantly wants to know more about, ensuring his continued appearances in the years to come.

The Poopsmith

In his first appearance, the King of Town was given a small collective of servants for Homestar to encounter as he solved the mystery of the missing sheep. The Bugler, the Knight, the Blacksmith and the Chef have since appeared in bit parts at best and disappeared at worst, but only one servant was destined for greater things.

The Poopsmith is constructed so freakish and idiosyncratic that merely looking at him is often enough to provoke laughter. His chalk-white head is elliptic, but his jaw is slightly slung forward. His eyes are different sizes, shapes and colours, and four scraggly hairs sprout from atop his skull. His most defining facial feature is his protruding lower lip which, combined with his ovoid body, makes him look curiously avian, like some sort of deformed duck. His body, in contrast to his head, is a curious flesh tone. His arms are completely contained in large orange work gloves, and his legs are two gnarled stripes. And in his hand he likely as not is holding a shovel.

Although all of the characters skirt around the issue, the Poopsmith's unenviable occupation is the handling and management of bodily waste; the origin of this bodily waste is unknown, but perhaps it is better that way. It therefore is a curiosity to note that the Poopsmith is not a repellent personality, as one might expect. Perhaps this is because the nature of the Poopsmith's job is not played up or exploited for cheap shock humour. It is merely portrayed as a job that needs to be done by someone, and nobody could say that the Poopsmith does not do his job well. He is almost always seen at his designated pile, tirelessly shovelling away without complaint or resentment. Nothing is known about his character beyond his job, but one suspects that he is defined solely by his trade. He has no identity, no personality, and no ambition to be anything but a Poopsmith.

On occasion, the Poopsmith socializes with the rest of the gang, but he seldom contributes much to the proceedings. His powerful stench understandably keeps him at arm's length, and he is also unable to communicate. The Poopsmith is mute; he reportedly has taken a vow of silence, but it is obvious that no voice could ever match his character. The Poopsmith's humour derives purely from visual slapstick, and a voice of any sort would be unnecessary. On rare occasions, the Poopsmith communicates via signboard in the classic cartoon tradition.

Like the King of Town, the Poopsmith is not especially funny because of what he says and does. His biggest laughs come from the sheer discrepancy of his presence among Homestar and the others. While it is hard for a medieval-era king to fit in among modern-day characters, it is equally difficult for a mute abnormality who shovels excrement for a living. But he tries, and by all accounts it appears that the Poopsmith is here to stay.

Strong Bad

Listing Strong Bad's attributes - he is selfish, dishonest, conniving, rude, and motivated entirely by his own interests; one would suspect that the character would be utterly unsympathetic and totally unlovable. In truth, the exact opposite is the case; Strong Bad has become the most personable, likeable and strongly portrayed characters on the website, and his popularity eclipses all of his cast-mates, including Homestar himself. Strong Bad is not the star of the show so much as the supernova; his presence holds together the plots of the cartoons he is in, he galvanizes the rest of the cast one way or another, and he is the most consistently funny character. Even in the event that everything else could be forgotten, Strong Bad places an indelible image on his audience.

Visually, Strong Bad is no beauty; he is ostensibly a Mexican wrestler, in the tradition of larger than life characters such as Santo. Although Strong Bad lacks a cloak, he is topless and clad in the requisite costume of a mask, pants and boots. Strong Bad's mask is adorned with a jewel in the centre, framed by a forked protrusion. His eyes are a deep green and shine like emeralds (the colour blending technique of his eyes is unique; virtually every other character is given "flat" colours). His mask is predominantly red, with a pair of black crests spiking downward from his forehead to his cheeks. His mouth is simply a rectangular hole in the mask, through which flesh can be seen. Strong Bad's mouth appears to be open even in repose. Mexican wrestlers of the days gone by have often been so intimately intertwined with their wrestling personas that they were never seen in public without their masks. Strong Bad takes this ideal one step further; he never takes his mask off because the mask is his face. Another link to his wrestling roots is his name; only a few would remember the archaic, woefully translated Nintendo game Tag Team Pro Wrestling, in which the benevolent "Ricky Fighters" fought the villainous "Strong Bads".

The rest of Strong Bad's body is hardly impressive; his torso is nothing more than a potbelly, and his arms and legs are short and stubby. His hands are a pair of boxing gloves (as with his mask, they are a part of his body rather than a costume), although this has not hindered him from performing fine manual skills with surprising dexterity. Another physical blow against him is his lack of height. Strong Bad is short and squat, and is smaller than any of his friends, The Cheat excluded.

His diminutive form is contrasted by the sheer size of his voice, which is unabashedly loud, coarse, and candid; clearly his bark is much worse than his bite. Strong Bad's voice is a masterpiece of voice acting: in total contrast to the stilted delivery of the rest of the cast (who often speak as though by rote), Strong Bad speaks in an entirely realistic manner, albeit in a humorous tone. Strong Bad's voice is deep, gruff, hoarse, and fluctuates between gruffly muttering and flamboyantly self-aggrandizing. Strong Bad has an accent; while this accent was once unashamedly Spanish, it has altered to a dialect not readily identifiable. However, the accent, as with the voice, is immediately realized as uncouth and disreputable, as is his habit of affixing the word "crap" to sentences. All of Matt Chapman's voices are brilliant creations, but Strong Bad's voice requires the most acting skill to pull off successfully. It is a fine piece of work.

The smallness of his stature also helps to build up Strong Bad as what theologians deem the "Little Man". Strong Bad is the weakling who charges blindly into battle against giants, the fool who considers himself a genius, the self-absorbed boor who considers himself irresistible to the opposite sex. Strong Bad is infinitely secure that he can handle anything that comes his way, and that anything he does is incontrovertibly right. Strong Bad's philosophy seems to be that if he doesn't do things for himself, nobody else will, and that if he fails to go for the gusto, the best things in life will only end up in somebody else's hands.

In short, Strong Bad boldly demonstrates every character flaw and selfish behaviour that the rest of the world frantically attempts to keep hidden. There are many times in which everybody would like to act as Strong Bad does, if they thought they could get away with it! Strong Bad, however, has no such fear of retribution; he lives the way he pleases, and if anybody has a contention with that, it's their problem, not his. It is notable that, despite the carefree hedonism of Strong Bad's life, he does not especially have a better existence than the rest of the cast. Many of Strong Bad's gambits fail, and the gains of his few victories are so trivial that his effort is hardly worth it (although Strong Bad would certainly claim it to be a moral victory). Through it all, however, Strong Bad continues undaunted and unchanged.

There is some stupidity and stubbornness to this determination, of course, but Strong Bad's strength of character and mettle, however misguided, are admirable. In this sense, Strong Bad is an analogue of a Jack of all trades; while no different from the rest of us, an Everyman, a Jack finds the courage to do things that most of us will not or cannot do. While Strong Bad is rather more skewed for comic effect than most Jacks, the dynamic still works; if we are not like Strong Bad we would like to be, and in the act of watching him and experiencing what he endures, we can, for a short time, become him. This is the most important aspect contributing to Strong Bad's endurance of character; audience identification never occurs with such a broad character such as Homestar, for example. But a small piece of Strong Bad exists within the psyche of humanity at large: to call Strong Bad a personification of id would be simplistic, if not inaccurate, but Strong Bad carries with him not only the joy of hedonistic existence but also the folly. Strong Bad is truly a tragicomic character, speaking to something fundamental in the human mind, while still being richly funny. This complexity, however, was a long time in coming.

Strong Bad's character history is as long as Homestar's, and is just as convoluted as well. He and Homestar both debuted in "The Homestar Runner Enters The Strongest Man In The World Contest", and both made their first full-length animated appearances in "Marshmallow's Last Stand". Physically, Strong Bad is recognizable in both stories, although his proportions are somewhat different. Personality-wise, however, the character is almost irreconcilable with his modern counterpart. In the book, Strong Bad comes off like a prototypical version of himself. He boasts, makes a big show of himself, and tries to win with the aid of The Cheat, and ultimately meets his comeuppance.

This version of Strong Bad, however, is much more appealing than the version seen in "Marshmallow's Last Stand". In this early cartoon, Strong Bad cruelly harasses Homestar and Pom Pom for no reason, calling them "babies". He constantly promotes himself and Strong Mad as the "greatest tag-team wrestlers in the world", and approaches the pals for a challenge (the early Strong Bad's obsession with challenges and fighting were later parodied by a rather different character). When Homestar refuses, Strong Bad steals Homestar's prized star, and refuses to return it until they are beaten in the ring. In the actual match, Strong Bad proves to be a pitifully incompetent wrestler, unable to lay even a single blow on his opponents. He is forced to rely on Strong Mad's strength, and when his larger brother is incapacitated by Pom Pom, Strong Bad is virtually impotent to avoid a further beating. Thrown out of the ring, Strong Bad resorts to actively malicious subterfuge (on his own: The Cheat is nowhere to be found), with intention of murdering Homestar. This backfires and a large portion of Strong Bad's head is blasted off. Even having lost, Strong Bad spitefully tears up Homestar's star, only to receive a further beating. It is clear that the character had some major overhauling to endure if he were to return; not only was he a villain without a cause, but he wasn't even a threatening villain in any way. Furthermore, there was no joy or humour in any of Strong Bad's actions. He was mean for the sake of being mean.

After this debacle, Strong Bad was largely absent from later cartoons, appearing only in guest shots. His next major role was in "A Jumping Jack Contest", which, while largely rehashing "The Strongest Man in the World Competition", was a step up. Strong Bad shows a more sophisticated villainy: gone are his sadistic and cruel streaks, replaced with a burning desire to prove himself to be the best. Little things, like Strong Bad resorting to elaborate costumes and psychological warfare to get his competitors to drop out, helped define Strong Bad as a character, and perhaps the most important addition was his improvising of a triumphant song when it appeared as though things were going his way. The journey was far from over, but it appeared as though the character could be salvaged. Strong Bad continued his role in bit parts, bullying and playing pranks, but not really altering the flow of the story, until the most important event of his character and, by extension, the entire website, took place.

When "Strong Bad E-mail" debuted, it was obviously an experiment: each week, Strong Bad would answer an E-mail from one of his fans (actual E-mails from real people), and each E-mail showcasing his response would be an animated short. Despite a few false starts, the Strong Bad E-mail became a runaway success story and the most popular segment of the website. This not only propelled Strong Bad into the starring role at last, but it also helped him make a connection with his audience. Part of this was Strong Bad's breaking of the fourth wall, and addressing the audience directly, but more importantly, he began reacting to his fans' entreaties in different ways. Frustration, curiosity, amusement, defiance, embarrassment; a gamut of hitherto untapped emotions soon became part of Strong Bad's oeuvre. This rapidly growing personality soon outshone the rest of the gang, and Strong Bad gradually moved to the role of the lynchpin. Now, it is difficult for anything of note to happen in Free Country without Strong Bad's involvement. He is the one that gets things happening, and the other characters truly shine when reacting to him. While this dynamic works well for most characters, Strong Bad and Homestar are truly at their funniest when reacting to one another, letting their divergent personalities and mindsets bounce off one another. The power of this relationship can be seen by comparing Strong Bad and Homestar's conversation at the marshmallow stand in "Interview" with their first conversation in the same locale much earlier, in "Marshmallow's Last Stand". Strong Bad is, above all, a reactor, and the E-mail has given him a near-infinite source of material to react to. There are many characters, songs, running jokes, and plot conventions that would not exist, were it not for the E-mail.

Strong Bad was once a villain of the darkest stripe, but those days have been left in the dead past. Today's Strong Bad, with his jokes, songs, schemes and creations, is not only a thoroughly three-dimensional character, but also a richly comic and even an affecting one. By being a fully formed personality, complete with highs and lows, loves and hates, desires and fears, Strong Bad is so identifiable that the audience feels as though they have met him personally. We may not want Strong Bad living in our homes, but we love every moment he is on screen.

Strong Mad

A monolith of muscle and hostility, Strong Mad is not an especially complex character, but his sheer physical presence leaves an impression on every scene he is in. He provides a welcome contrast within the group of villains. He adds a needed physical threat in addition to Strong Bad and The Cheat, who are hardly fear-inspiring, but he has none of their cunning or wit. Without them, one suspects, he would be lost.

Strong Mad is vast in both height and width, and his figure is virtually square. However, he is seen almost exclusively directly from the front and the back, and the few views of him from other angles suggest that he is not overtly broad. This subtly adds to the hint of fragility of character behind his strength, almost as though his image of power hides an inner weakness. This is not to say that Strong Mad lacks muscle; the majority of his body mass consists of his chest and arms, which are massive and powerful. Strong Mad has no true head to speak of; his facial features are placed roughly around his collarbone area. His habitual facial expression is a scowl of pure belligerence, made all the more unnerving by the fact that the scowl is usually focusing directly at the audience. His entire physiology reminds one of a gorilla, or perhaps a Neanderthal. This is ironic, in the respect that Strong Mad is the closest visual approximation to a human being out of the entire cast (notably, he is the only character to sport a nose). It is a good visual gag that characters lacking certain limbs and sporting odd tones of skin strike the audience as more "human" than the relatively more humanistic Strong Mad. Like Strong Bad, Strong Mad is dressed as a wrestler, but in a rather more American, if outdated, costume. He dresses in a dark blue leotard with his initial on the front.

Strong Mad, understandably, has been cast in the role of a heavy. His towering frame, limited brainpower, and short temper make him the perfect backup for when Strong Bad and The Cheat are physically threatened. However, Strong Mad's only true loyalties are towards The Cheat, to whom he is fiercely devoted. Otherwise, Strong Mad's fury is expended in any direction he chooses, and almost every character has suffered somewhat at his hands. This is not a characteristic of evil, but merely an immature lack of self-control. Fortunately, this paucity of emotional restraint works both ways: usually a more verbal character (usually Strong Bad or Coach Z) is capable of temporarily pacifying him. However, Strong Mad can never be totally controlled, and most characters have a healthy fear of getting on his wrong side. It is interesting to note that Strong Bad, who doesn't suffer fools gladly by any means, is surprisingly patient with his hulking brother. He takes the time to calmly correct or reassure Strong Mad, to the point of almost being patronizingly kind. This is, of course, out of respect to the consequences of insulting Strong Mad, but there is also some genuine camaraderie between them.

Strong Mad's voice, while comparatively simple, has evolved considerably since his earliest appearances. Initially, he was only capable of wordless growls and grumbles. At a later point he developed a speaking voice, which was deep and ponderous. While he only spoke in monosyllabic fragmented sentences, his voice was curiously clear. Note how in "A Jumping Jack Contest" he is successfully able to do a passable imitation of Strong Bad's voice! Gradually, he developed a voice that, while still deep and loud, is considerably more throaty and slurred. This latter-day voice bears something of a resemblance to the speech patterns of the similarly muscular Lou Ferrigno and Andre the Giant.

Unlike most of the rest of the characters, Strong Mad is less defined by what he says than what he does. And while this does leave the consequence of him being outshone by the more complex and delineated characters, this should not be seen as a weakness. A more forcefully portrayed Strong Mad would have been a distraction and harmed the chemistry between the characters. Strong Mad's role is limited, but he plays it well and to its fullest, rather than becoming the shambling plot device he may have become under less skilled hands.

Strong Sad

The history of the Strong family is shrouded in mystery; little is known about Strong Bad and Strong Mad other than the fact that they hail from Parts Unknown and have an affinity for wrestling and evildoing in general. It wasn't long, however, that The Brothers Strong's secret shame made itself public: the disowned third Strong Brother, Strong Sad.

Strong Sad is so completely dissimilar to his brothers that on physical and behavioural evidence alone one would never believe they were related. Unlike his brothers, Strong Sad is not aggressive or dishonest, nor is he a wrestler, which is a pretty good indication of the reason for his siblings' abandonment. However, Strong Sad is also different in the fact that he is far less human-like in his appearance. Strong Sad's face is deathly pale, and the hollowness of his simplistic eyes and mouth give him something of a ghoulish aspect. The back of his hairless head sports an indeterminate curl, which only adds to his ghostly appearance. The rest of his body, however, is far from ghostly. His body is large and round; to call him chubby would be extremely kind indeed. Strong Sad's arms are large and thick, but they hardly appear threatening straddling his ponderous stomach. But the strangest aspect of Strong Sad's physique is the fact that his body below the waist is that of an elephant, complete with the stump-shaped, three-toed feet. It is notable that Strong Sad draws from his elephantine half all of the bulk but none of the might of his pachyderm counterpart. Indeed, the general paunchiness of his form softens his girth to such extent that we do not find it odd in the slightest that Strong Bad, who is a fraction of his size, is able to abuse and torment him regularly.

Strong Sad behaves in a way totally antithetical to his brothers. He is shy, guileless, and generally prepared to leave the world at large alone. An indication of his withdrawal from the turmoil of society is his hobby as an artist, as well as his soft, mellow voice, which, while sounding childlike, has a tone of gravity, and some sort of world-weary maturity. Strong Sad regularly writes poetry which, while slightly skewed for humorous effect, nonetheless speaks of despair and a lack of self-worth.

Of course, this mellow personality has put Strong Sad in the unenviable role of the "goat". His brothers and The Cheat routinely abuse him, of course, but such unthinking cruelty is part of their nature. These attacks are unprovoked, but Strong Sad does not make much of an effort to prevent or avoid them, either. He seems to have accepted his regular harassment as part of his life, and does his best to detach himself emotionally from the pain with a sense of resignation to the inevitable. Unfortunately, Strong Sad gets very little support from the rest of the gang, either. They do not actively mistreat him like his brothers do, but it is the fact that they have a tendency to overlook him and his feelings that truly discourages him. This is, in some ways, even worse - Strong Sad at least feels some sort of satisfaction that being tormented constitutes somebody paying attention to him.

However, Strong Sad does not hold his plight against the rest of the gang, assuming that it is part of his nature to be ignored, and indeed, sometimes his self-loathing becomes so much that one hardly blames Homestar and the rest for looking past him. But despite his many disappointments, Strong Sad has made an effort to make friends with the rest. He is often willing to associate with Homestar, but the latter's lack of reserve and tact usually results in Strong Sad ending up inadvertently insulted. Strong Sad has also looked to Coach Z for guidance, but seems mildly disgusted with the result. However, Strong Sad has occasionally bonded with Marzipan, the only other character who shares his penchant for artistic expression and comes close to matching his emotional maturity. This is a common dynamic among school-age children. Strong Sad's dealings with Marzipan are on a completely different level than those of the basically childish Homestar and Strong Bad. In fact, Strong Sad seems somewhat fond of her, but has the foresight to not set himself up for a disappointment. As it stands, the only character who offers Strong Sad unconditional friendship is Homsar. Strong Sad is sometimes frustrated by his dull-witted cohort, but he genuinely appreciates the companionship.

It took Strong Sad a surprisingly long time (relatively) to find his role. Initially, he was portrayed as a pessimistic complainer who whined and moaned at the prospect of doing just about anything. It was unclear as to why anybody would even bother to associate with such a bore. Wisely, the character was completely overhauled when it was decided that there is a vital difference between a character that complains and a character that has a reason to complain. Indeed, it was soon apparent that Strong Sad was funnier when, rather than complaining, he began patiently making profound observations on his plight (although he retained his bitter, whiny voice for some time). In this sense, Strong Sad bears a strong resemblance to the character of Charlie Brown (a relationship made explicit in the opening scene of "The Best Decemberween Ever"), as both characters are touchingly funny in a nonetheless sad way. This makes Strong Sad a difficult character to write, as he must be light enough to keep from being depressing, but serious enough to avoid being idiotic. But when the balance is correct, Strong Sad affects his audience in a way that the more broadly drawn characters never quite do.

Strong Sad constantly divides his time between our laughs and our pity, and there are always aspects of one response within the other. Strong Sad is reasonable, intelligent, and, despite his many hardships, never truly gives into his despair. Strong Sad, perhaps more than any other character, strikes an emotional chord with the viewer that can only be made by injecting a bit of the hardships of reality. Therefore, Strong Sad is not only the most affecting character, but also the most real.

from Aich-Star-Arr Compendium