Top Five Australian Cartoon Characters
Fired up and ready to go!
So. I had the pleasure of taking Kat to the Denver airport yesterday, where she began her trek to Australia! She was pretty nervous, though if she knew I told you my life would be over, so keep it on the DL, OK?
In honor of this great opportunity for her, and a flimsy attempt at saying I’m doing ‘research’ for my upcoming webcomic, Howefitz Sequential, here is a list of the top five Australian cartoon characters:
5. Felix the Cat
Felix, Inky, and Winky in 'April Maze'. image via Wikipedia Commons
According to Wikipedia (What? How do YOU do research these days?), there’s some controversy surrounding the creator of Felix the Cat. Many historians believe it was American animator Otto Messmer who created the first cartoon character able to draw movie audiences. But the owner of the character, Australian cartoonist Pat Sullivan claimed he was the creator. Since Felix started in silent films, no one has heard his accent to know for sure…
4. Wolverine
'G'Day, Bub!'
Wait a minute, Justin! You’re supposed to be some kind of expert at these things. Everybody knows that Wolverine is a canuck! Epic fail, bro.
Not so fast. In the animated television pilot, Pryde of the X-Men, Wolverine is heard speaking with an Australian accent and calling random characters ‘dingo’. He was also played by Australian actor Hugh Jackman in the films, giving him more ties to the Land Down Under. PLUS since Weapon X messed up his head with all those memory implants, can we ever know for sure where Logan came from? ‘James Howlett’, indeed…
3. Dingo of ‘The Pack’
Who didn’t feel a thrill of excitement when the Gargoyles would tussle with the Pack? And any time Dingo was involved, you knew that the Gargoyles were going to have a tough time getting out of that one!
When he turned against the Pack and decided to fight for law and order in Australia, you couldn’t help but sympathize with the guy for all he went through with his crazy Pack teammates. Good on ya, Dingo!
2. Tasmanian Devil
Getting humiliated by rascally rabbits isn’t the only danger the Tasmanian Devil faces. The real Tasmanian Devil, found in Australia, suffers a rare cancer that causes contagious facial tumors and threatens to eliminate the species. In May of 2009, they were declared endangered.
Taz IRL
According to an article in the Independent entitled ‘Taz: How A Cartoon Character Has Come To The Rescue Of A Threatened Species’, Warner Bros. Studios are working with Australian scientists to help save the inspiration for their beloved Looney Tunes character. With any luck, the Tasmanian Devil can escape the fate of it’s cousin, the Tasmanian Tiger.
…And the number one Australian cartoon character in this blogger’s humble opinion?
1. Rocko
Who wouldn’t love to hang out with a comic book reading wallaby? Plus, his dog Spunky eats fingernail trimmings. Rocko goes to amusement parks featuring elevators to Hell and shows no fear. (Well, maybe a little fear…) Rocko is the embodiment of everything an animated nerd hero can be.
Related articles by Zemanta
- Tasmanian devil colony shows immunity to cancer (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
- Kat Flies Out For Australia Tomorrow! TOMORROW!!! (howefitz.com)
- ‘Wolverine 2′ Screenplay Finished, 2011 Filming Confirmed (splashpage.mtv.com)
Popularity: 14% [?]
Tags: Australia, Felix the Cat Felix, Hugh Jackman, Looney Tunes, Otto Messmer, Tasmanian Devil, X-Men (film), X-Men Origins Wolverine
