| 1 | [[quoteright:300:[[Literature/{{Cheburashka}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/cheburashka.png]]]] |
| 2 | [[caption-width-right:300:...What ''is'' that thing?]] |
| 3 | |
| 4 | ->''"No! What ARE you kidses? Look at you! With those ears and those tails... That's not normal! I mean what ARE you?"'' |
| 5 | -->-- '''Dr. Scratchansniff''', ''WesternAnimation/{{Animaniacs}}'', "What Are We?" |
| 6 | |
| 7 | A non-human drawn or animated character of ambiguous species. |
| 8 | |
| 9 | There are several cartoon characters who are certainly not human. They are popular in cartoons and can be cute, funny, or have unique traits that make them interesting However, they are also clearly not any species of readily identifiable animal either. |
| 10 | |
| 11 | Some of them appear to be MixAndMatchCritters, but usually they don't combine obvious elements of any real animals. They don't really have a species, they're just... [[RuleOfCute cute]]. |
| 12 | |
| 13 | Not to be confused with InformedSpecies, where the character ''is'' supposed to be a specific animal, but doesn't look like that animal. [[labelnote:Examples]] [[Franchise/LooneyTunes The Tasmanian Devil]] and [[WesternAnimation/{{Arthur}} Arthur]] don’t look like any real-world species in particular, but In-Universe, they are still called a [[ADogNamedDog Tasmanian Devil]] and an aardvark respectively, so they don’t count towards this trope since they’re still labeled a specific species, even if it seems incorrect.[[/labelnote]] If the character is clearly meant to be a (normally) inanimate object, then the trope is AnimateInanimateObject. If they fall more on the humanoid side, this can overlap with AmbiguouslyHuman. |
| 14 | |
| 15 | Many are either {{Ridiculously Cute Critter}}s or UglyCute Critters. Compare the WaddlingHead and {{Cephalothorax}}. See also BeastMan, FunnyAnimal, {{Kaiju}}, LionsAndTigersAndHumansOhMy, OurAlebrijesAreDifferent. |
| 16 | |
| 17 | ---- |
| 18 | !!Examples: |
| 19 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 20 | |
| 21 | [[folder:Advertising]] |
| 22 | * One of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvNyqU5DArw&feature=player_detailpage#t=17s the Sci-fi Channel's ads]] features a woman playing with her [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter pet]]. Said pet—presumably extraterrestrial—looks vaguely like a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphynx_cat hairless Sphynx cat,]] with large batlike ears, huge expressive eyes, an extremely long striped tufted tail, and a long forked tongue that it uses to daintily touch the tongue of its owner. |
| 23 | * Advertising/TheNoid is often known to fall in this trope, He seemed and suggested to be a human in a red rabbit-like rubber outfit but he differs from the actual size of a human, despite having his own house and lab. The fan game The Noid 2 also brings up the question. |
| 24 | * Advertising/MAndMs: While its obvious the characters represent the candy, some characters don't have specific kinds of variety of M&M they are such as Green, Blue, and Brown. Also of note is they have flesh-colored limbs indicating that they're human-esque. |
| 25 | ** Green is suggested to be a peanut M&M but they also depict her as Dark Chocolate and Mint M&M to associate with her erotic persona. |
| 26 | ** Blue is often associated with Almond, but he is also associated with Raspberry, Hazelnut Spread, and Dark Chocolate (also). |
| 27 | ** Brown is often associated with Dark Chocolate and Milk Chocolate (despite red being associated with that variety). |
| 28 | ** Orange is currently associated with Pretzel but formerly represented Crispy. Crispy was discontinued and his role became Pretzel, but once Crispy was brought back, he kept his Pretzel role with Crispy being represented by no one in particular. |
| 29 | [[/folder]] |
| 30 | |
| 31 | [[folder:Anime and Manga]] |
| 32 | * Chiyo's dad in ''Manga/AzumangaDaioh'', who looks like an elongated, vaguely anthropomorphic cat, most likely pulled from an in-show plush toy by Sakaki's cuteness-obsessed mind. |
| 33 | * ''Manga/CardcaptorSakura'': Kerberos spends much of his time as a winged teddy bear like creature. His true form looks like a mane-less male lion with armor and wings. He's a creation of Clow, so he may be the only one of his species, assuming he's not a lion. It's never made clear what exactly he is supposed to be. |
| 34 | * ''Franchise/{{Digimon}}'' has many designs that are clear cut and have profiles to go with that describe what they're supposed to be as further proof. Several examples include animals, plants, monsters, demons, angels, and loads and loads of dragons... and then there are others who look like [[http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zVgnlumM0qM/S70WMlRuiII/AAAAAAAABIY/fVK1pFso2gI/korosuno.jpg these]]. |
| 35 | * While most people assume Puar from ''Manga/DragonBall'' is a cat, it actually supposed to be a fictional species of animal (a mixture of a rabbit and cat, to be more precise) and Puar is actually the name of said species. |
| 36 | * [[https://flintthetimedetective.fandom.com/wiki/Lovelove Love-Love]](Named Getalong in the dub) from ''Anime/FlintTheTimeDetective'' looks like...Some sort of kappa-furby thing with wings. |
| 37 | * Moochi from ''Anime/MonsterRancher'' looks like some vague mixture of a penguin and a duck made of bubblegum, which has some sort of armadillo-like shell on its back. |
| 38 | * ''Manga/MyHeroAcademia'': |
| 39 | ** The Principal is small, white, and fuzzy, and simultaneously resembles a rat, a very small polar bear, and a lot of other mammals. He himself has never identified what he is, and it seems to be a touchy subject for him if anyone tries to press him about it. |
| 40 | ** "Ordinary Woman" is a civilian with a mutant quirk that makes her resemble an anthropomorphic animal woman, but just what kind of animal she's supposed to be is ambiguous. Her ears and the placement of her tufts of fur bring to mind a fox, but the teal color of the fur on her head and her snout shape bring to mind a shark. And then there's the matter about [[GiantWoman her unnaturally tall stature]]. |
| 41 | * Q-chan from ''Manga/PetShopOfHorrors'' is some sort of rabbit-devil creature with a cream-coloured pear-shaped body and rabbit ears, little white horns, black bat wings, a black devil tail, and black duck feet. [[UnusuallyUninterestingSight No-one ever really asks what he is]]. Q-chan may be loosely based on the wolpertinger, a Bavarian hybrid creature. [[MixAndMatchCritters Essentially, it looks like a bunny, but has wings and antlers.]] |
| 42 | * Kyubey from ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'' has a tail like a ferret or fox, but a head more like that of a cat, only with an extra pair of ears. According to WordOfGod, he was designed without any real animal in mind. [[spoiler:He's actually an alien, so it's probably a moot point anyway.]] |
| 43 | * Mr Boobrie from ''Manga/{{Radiant}}'' looks like some kind of weird bird-like creature which also has bat wings and ram horns. And it also has an imp-like tail. |
| 44 | * Plue from ''Anime/RaveMaster'' is something like a snowman crossed with a dog. The theme song identifies him as a "carrot-nosed" dog. By WordOfGod, Plue was actually an old drawing of the manga's creator from when he was a kid. ''Rave'' was made out of desire to draw a shounen manga starring said creature. Even then, the creator can't remember if he intended to draw a dog or what. |
| 45 | ** In ''Manga/FairyTail'', from the same writer of ''Rave Master'', Plue is the [[GratuitousLatin Canis Minor]] [[WesternZodiac Zodiac]] summon. What this means is debatable, since ''nobody'' but himself and the summon system believes he's a dog, and he doesn't even trigger the cynophobia of Happy. Happy himself falls into this trope, being a blue-furred, tuft-tailed, flat-toothed, oft-bipedal winged cat. Happy belongs to an entire race of cat-like magical beings, as well as Carla, Lily, Nichiya, Frosch and Lector: the Exceeds. |
| 46 | * Played with in ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena'', Chu-Chu the monkey resembles a cartoon mouse but seems otherwise like a regular monkey, so fans assume he's some kind of marmoset/tariser/lemur thing, despite not looking quite like that either. Utena rightly points out Chu-Chu as a name makes him sound too much like a mouse, due to that being the Japanese onomatopoeia for a mouse's squeaks. |
| 47 | * Viral the beastman in ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann''. While the Beastmen generals have much more recognizable AnimalMotifs (gorilla, scorpion, peacock/owl, armadillo), he looks like a human with shark teeth and paws, or as WordOfGod describes him, "a shark with cat genetics" which may make him some sort of [[MixAndMatchCritters Mix-and-Match Critter]]. |
| 48 | * Ryo-Ohki from ''Anime/TenchiMuyo'', when it's not a spaceship, looks like what some fans refer to as a "cabbit"; pretty much a lop-eared bunny with a cat's face. It's actually a crystal-blob creature/spaceship that assimilated a (dying)kitten. Later, she assimilates another crystal-blob creature with a humanoid form and gained the ability to turn into a FunnyAnimal version of herself in a child or adult form. |
| 49 | ** Fuku in ''Anime/TenchiMuyoGXP'' is essentially another model of Ryo-Oh-Ki with a built-in potential to take a humanoid form. |
| 50 | * Kuriboh from ''Manga/YuGiOh'' has zero resemblance with any living creature, looking basically like a a furball with paws and eyes. |
| 51 | * Yusuke's spirit beast in ''Manga/YuYuHakusho'', [[https://i.pinimg.com/736x/9d/77/e1/9d77e1de7568f417272ede34f1807f6c--the-teacher-yuyu-hakusho.jpg Puu.]] [[spoiler:Its adult form is a phoenix.]] |
| 52 | [[/folder]] |
| 53 | |
| 54 | [[folder:Art]] |
| 55 | * When making ''[[https://static.todamateria.com.br/upload/cu/ca/cucadetarsiladoamaral-cke.jpg?auto_optimize=low A Cuca]]'' (The Cuca, a mythical [[ChildEater child-eating witch]] from Myth/BrazilianFolklore), Brazilian artist Creator/TarsilaDoAmaral described the painting to her daughter as "a weird animal in the middle of the woods, with a frog, an armadillo and another invented animal". |
| 56 | [[/folder]] |
| 57 | |
| 58 | [[folder:Asian Animation]] |
| 59 | * Downplayed in ''Animation/PleasantGoatAndBigBigWolf''. Weslie is clearly either a sheep or a goat, but Creator/CreativePowerEntertaining can't seem to decide what species they should go with in English translations. Most ''Pleasant Goat'' materials say he's a goat, though. |
| 60 | * ''Animation/YoYoMan'': Kube, Fefe, and Qiube are meant to look like a dragon, an elephant, and a rabbit respectively, and Nika's bat wings may be an indicator of what she's based off of, but it's more ambiguous what [=YoYo=] Man, Yamy, Mobe, and Hake are supposed to be. Hake looks like he could be some kind of rhinoceros or dinosaur, but Mobe's species is even less pinpointable, and [=YoYo=] Man and Yamy don't seem to resemble anything in particular. |
| 61 | [[/folder]] |
| 62 | |
| 63 | [[folder:Comic Books]] |
| 64 | * The Bone creatures from ''ComicBook/{{Bone}}''. Big-nosed, [[HalfDressedCartoonAnimal half-dressed]] cartoon humanoids in [[LionsAndTigersAndHumansOhMy a setting that has both normal humans, talking animals, normal animals, and everything in between]]. |
| 65 | * Max of ''ComicBook/SamAndMaxFreelancePolice'' is rabbit-like in shape, but with sharp, carnivorous-looking teeth and a highly aggressive attitude. He's referred to as a "rabbity-thing" by other characters but prefers the term "lagomorph" himself (which is Greek for "rabbit-shaped"). [[WebAnimation/HomestarRunner Strong Bad]] refers to Sam and Max as "Rabbit-dog and Bunnyman". |
| 66 | ** Furthermore, ''[[VideoGame/SamAndMaxFreelancePolice Moai Better Blues]]'' reveals that he's amphibian, and a workplace sexual harassment chart seen in ''What's up, Beelzebub?'' has a question mark placed over Max's body. |
| 67 | * Erica of ''ComicBook/{{Hepcats}}''. While the other principal characters are clearly identifiable by species, Erica is just... "[[WordOfGod an Erica]]." |
| 68 | * ''Franchise/{{Marsupilami}}'', the eponymous species has the build and general behavior of an ape, yellow fur with spots like a big cat, a name derivative of the word “marsupial”, and they lay eggs like monotremes, on top of having a very long and dexterous tail. Darwin would be stumped. |
| 69 | * The main character of ''ComicBook/{{Frank}}''. |
| 70 | * ''ComicBook/SonicTheComic'': |
| 71 | ** The comic often had some sort of generic pseudo-{{Dogface|s}} animal that looked strange compared to other characters, that would appear to populate city areas. |
| 72 | ** Grimer is..Something. He looks like a Goblin, or at least something non-animal; how he came to be on Mobius is never explained. Well, Grimer started out as an expy of Grima Wormtongue from ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'', so...magically corrupted human? |
| 73 | * ''ComicBook/TheSmurfs'' are close to being an UrExample. They are vaguely humanoid, but not quite at the same time. |
| 74 | * The Isz from ''ComicBook/TheMaxx'' are some weird, eyeless {{Cephalothorax}} creatures which at one point are described as looking like some sort of "marshmallow with teeth". |
| 75 | [[/folder]] |
| 76 | |
| 77 | [[folder:Comic Strips]] |
| 78 | * ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'': In-universe example. [[https://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1989/06/17 One strip]] has Calvin draw some sort of creature, vaguely resembling a potato-shaped robot with no arms and two stumpy lower appendages, which is so crude that not even he knows what it is. His mom thinks it's "some kind of helicopter". |
| 79 | * Eugene the Jeep from ''ComicStrip/{{Popeye}}'' comics, as seen [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugene_the_Jeep here]] looks like a dog sized, yellow, spotted, ambiguous looking cat-thing with a big, light bulb-looking nose. Meanwhile, the animated cartoons define him as some sort of dog. |
| 80 | * The Shmoo from ''ComicStrip/LilAbner'' is this pure white thing best described as looking like a bowling pin with legs and whiskers. |
| 81 | [[/folder]] |
| 82 | |
| 83 | [[folder:Eastern Animation]] |
| 84 | * Literature/{{Cheburashka}} from Russian cartoons, pictured above. He appears to be part teddy bear, part koala, and part monkey. Cheburashka is the name of his species they agreed on. Originally his name was translated into English as "Topple". Cheburashka, according to the book, is "a funny little creature, unknown to science, who lives in the tropical forest". Some people say that he is reminiscent of lorids. His true origin is that he's a flawed toy, hence the unconventional appearance. |
| 85 | * ''Animation/{{Booba}}'': Just what is Booba meant to be exactly? Perhaps the best way of describing him is that he looks like a cross between an old man and a rat. |
| 86 | [[/folder]] |
| 87 | |
| 88 | [[folder:Films -- Animation]] |
| 89 | * ''WesternAnimation/The3LittlePigsTheMovie'': The species of some of the predatory dinner guests aren’t clearly defined, with one in particular looking vaguely cat-like, but has a pig-like nose. Some of them being AmazingTechnicolorWildlife (the aforementioned guest has yellow fur and black stripes) does not help. |
| 90 | * Many of the Blue Meanies from ''WesternAnimation/YellowSubmarine'' are non-descript furry humanoids with [[SinisterSchnoz big noses]], though while the Chief Meanie and his second Max have long, floppy ears, a number of minions sport what looks like purple Mickey Mouse ears. |
| 91 | * Hugo from the Danish film series ''WesternAnimation/JungledyretHugo''. He is often described by fans to be a bear/koala-like thing like Cheburashka. |
| 92 | * Another non-animal example would be ''Franchise/{{Cars}}''' Lightning [=McQueen=], who isn't based on a real car model unlike most of the other characters. According to his toy bio, he is actually "a 2006 all-new, one-of-a-kind race car." |
| 93 | * Ralph in ''WesternAnimation/TwiceUponATime'' is an "[[VoluntaryShapeshifting All Purpose Animal]]". His ShapeshifterDefaultForm is a generically cute little animal of... some sort. With nerd glasses. |
| 94 | * Kevin from ''WesternAnimation/{{Up}}'' is a large, colorful bird of a mysterious species who's modeled after the [[AnimalGenderBender male Himalayan Monal pheasant, despite apparently being female]]. |
| 95 | * In ''WesternAnimation/SleepingBeauty,'' [[BigBad Maleficent]] has an army of {{Mooks}} whose species is never defined--they're small, brownish-gray, and different individuals have various animal features like beaks, horns, fangs, etc. Fans tend to call them "goblins", "trolls", or just "goons". |
| 96 | * The two main characters from the film ''WesternAnimation/AllCreaturesBigAndSmall'' belong to two different fictional animal species: The Nestrian and the Grymp. While The Grymp look like some type of canine creature, the Nestrian don't even remotely resemble any specific kind of animal. |
| 97 | * Wild Mike from ''WesternAnimation/{{Barnyard}}'' is some kind of a large hairy ball with limbs. He is described by Bessy to be a mutant hairball that Otis found. |
| 98 | [[/folder]] |
| 99 | |
| 100 | [[folder:Films -- Live Action]] |
| 101 | * The big-eared, fuzzy Mogwai from the ''Film/{{Gremlins}}'' movies most closely resemble a small prosimian primate, like a bushbaby or tarsier, minus the tail (and stubby limbs). In the [[Film/Gremlins2TheNewBatch second film]], Gizmo is tentatively identified as some sort of rodent by a pair of scientists. |
| 102 | * Nobody knows what [[OldMaster Master]] [[LittleGreenMan Yoda]] from Star Wars's species is called. |
| 103 | [[/folder]] |
| 104 | |
| 105 | [[folder:Literature]] |
| 106 | * Creator/IsaacAsimov and Creator/JanetAsimov's ''Literature/TheNorbyChronicles'': The "All-Purpose Pet" is described as [[ShapeshifterDefaultForm normally looking like a cat]], but is capable of [[EmpathicShapeshifter shifting shapes]] to appear more "cute" to their owner. She is essentially a pet that is [[BioAugmentation designed]] to [[ShapedLikeItself look like a pet]], no matter who the "owner" is. |
| 107 | * ''Literature/TheChroniclesOfPrydain'': [[NonHumanSidekick Gurgi]]'s species is [[AmbiguouslyHuman never specified]], only that he's a wild, hairy forest creature, somewhere between a beast and a man. In [[WesternAnimation/TheBlackCauldron the film]], he has a more doglike appearance. |
| 108 | * ''Literature/DisgustingMcGrossface'': The titular character is humanoid, with green skin, big ears, and yellow eyes. |
| 109 | * ''Literature/HopOnPop'': The majority of the characters are vaguely-defined humanoids. |
| 110 | %%* ''Literature/JungledyretHugo'' The main character (which was originally a children's book, and [[WesternAnimation/JungledyretHugo then a movie]]).%%ZCE |
| 111 | * Creator/MercerMayer's ''Literature/LittleCritter'': The titular creature looks a bit like a hedgehog or a hamster, but is technically just a "little critter". |
| 112 | * ''Literature/TheMoomins'': Many of the characters but mostly the titular Moomins (and the Snork Maiden). According to Tove, they're a kind of troll, they just don't look like what you'd think of trolls (they're cuter), actually, they look like either hippos, horses, cows, or somewhere between all three, depending on who you ask. In that vein, what exactly is Sniff? He looks like's a combo between a chihuahua or a deer and a kangaroo and, at one point, Tove didn't know what to call him. |
| 113 | * ''Literature/OtisAndRaeAndTheGrumblingSplunk'': The main characters of [[https://studioespinosa.com/otis-and-rae this book]], who are "little creatures" with pale skin, star noses, and small upward ears near the top of their heads. |
| 114 | %%* Creator/DrSeuss: Many, if not most, characters. %%ZCE |
| 115 | * ''Literature/SomethingElse'': The main character known only as "[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Something Else]]" is a blue-furred creature with a big dark nose, drooping ears and humanoid fingers. Likewise, the deuteragonist, "Something", has orange fur, a lion's mane, an elephant's trunk, and three-fingered hands. |
| 116 | * ''Literature/ToyAcademy'': Grumbolt is a mishmash of different animals. Justified because he's the result of a make-your-own stuffed animal kit gone wrong. |
| 117 | * ''Literature/TheWombles'': The first two books describe the Wombles as "living teddy bears" with long, mole-like claws and dense, fluffy fur coats matched to a bipedal form and a height only slightly shorter than a typical human man. The 1970s AnimatedAdaptation, ''WesternAnimation/TheWombles'', presented them more as [[RatMen bipedal hedgehogs]] with dense coats of fur instead of quills, having round, floppy ears and long pointy snouts, and much shorter, averaging about knee-high on a human -- this bled back into the books, where the art was subsequently adapted to resemble the cartoon version. Only the original printings of the first two novels possess art resembling the original description, with the subsequent stories and reprints instead adapting to the more iconic style. There are also a number of Womble subspecies, including the water-adapted Water Wombles, and the Yeti, which are huge Tibetan Wombles. |
| 118 | [[/folder]] |
| 119 | |
| 120 | [[folder:Live-Action TV]] |
| 121 | * [[Franchise/TheMuppets Muppets]] tend to be this whenever they're not humans or specific animals, most notably the [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin "Anything" and "Whatnot" Muppets]]. There are also specific characters, like Animal, Beauregard, and Gonzo the Great, the latter of whom was revealed to be an [[spoiler:alien]] in ''Film/MuppetsFromSpace'', and is defined as a "Weirdo" in ''WesternAnimation/{{Muppet Babies|1984}}'', or a ".... whatever" in most of his other appearances. In ''Film/TheMuppetMovie'', Kermit described him as [[{{Dissimile}} "sort of like a turkey, but not much."]] In one episode, he believed he was an anteater. |
| 122 | ** In Creator/JimHenson's early 1950s shows, ''all'' the puppets were fairly abstract. Even Kermit (one of his earliest characters) was only declared to be a frog in the mid-60s, and only consistently one following his role as {{Narrator}} of ''[[Film/TalesFromMuppetlandTheFrogPrince The Frog Prince]]'' in 1971. |
| 123 | ** ''Series/SesameStreet''[='=]s Anythings often resemble cartoon humans. ''Series/TheMuppetShow'''s Whatnots tended to look like Series/{{Fraggle|Rock}}s. |
| 124 | ** Fraggles themselves, as well as Doozers and Gorgs. And all the other weird stuff that lives down there. |
| 125 | * ''Series/KamenRiderAmazon''. He is... some sort of reptile. |
| 126 | * It's not certain if the Whammies on ''Series/PressYourLuck'' are actually red-skinned or are wearing red costumes (as they have a yellow cape and are fronted with a "$" shield). Whatever they are, they stand out as possibly the game show genre's most famous penalty. |
| 127 | * The titular group from ''Series/{{Tweenies}}'' are [[AmazingTechnicolorPopulation colorful puppet creatures]]. Those at times they come to the human world, [[ElephantInTheLivingRoom no human being question their existence]]. |
| 128 | [[/folder]] |
| 129 | |
| 130 | [[folder:Mascots]] |
| 131 | * Th mascot of the open source image editor [[http://www.gimp.org GIMP]] is a coyote-like animal called [[http://www.gimp.org/images/frontpage/wilber-big.png Wilber]]. No one is sure exactly what he is. |
| 132 | * Nobody, [[ShrugOfGod not even its creator]], knew what Whatizit, the mascot of the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics was. Nobody really liked the character as it was meant to define the many sports of the Olympic games but had zero personality. (This prompted a sci-fi club newsletter to feature [[WesternAnimation/TheRenAndStimpyShow Ren Hoek]] seeing the creature and ask "Whatizit, man?" with Mr. Horse below commenting "No sir, I don't like it.") The character was changed slightly, renamed Izzy, and was featured in a prime time animated special. |
| 133 | * While most sports mascots are pantomime humans, specific animals or [[AnimateInanimateObject anthropomorphic objects]], a certain number are hard to describe except in terms like "nonhuman bipedal thing." The [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phillie_Phanatic Phillie Phanatic]] is supposed to be something from the bird clade and [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gritty_(mascot) Gritty]] is possibly mammalian, but both look more like oversized Muppets than anything else. |
| 134 | [[/folder]] |
| 135 | |
| 136 | [[folder:Music]] |
| 137 | * Music/CrazyFrog, AKA The Annoying Thing, is a blue gremlin-like creature whom the creator, Erik Wernquist, explicitly claims is ''not'' a frog. He has a belly button, for starters. |
| 138 | * The titular characters of the Patricia Taxxon album [[https://patriciataxxon.bandcamp.com/album/pix-bit Pix & Bit]] have their species listed as "generic mammal" and "generic reptile" respectively on their official refsheet. |
| 139 | [[/folder]] |
| 140 | |
| 141 | [[folder:Myths and Religion]] |
| 142 | * The deity Set (or Seth) in Myth/EgyptianMythology is, to put it short, one of the most infamous subjects in Egyptology in terms of [[WhatTheHellAreYou who he's even supposed to be]]. He has the head of an unknown and mysterious creature that resembles a composite of an aardvark, a donkey, a fox, and a jackal. Modern Egyptologists usually refer to it as the "Set animal" or "sha". Since Set was identified with the Greek Typhon, the animal he is suppose to base himself off of is also commonly known as the "Typhonic beast" and "Typhonian animal". |
| 143 | ** A few also theorize that the head isn't an aardvark, but rather some species of gar or other pointy-faced carnivorous fish; whatever they are, they were the ones that ate Osiris' willie when Set cut him up and threw him in the Nile. It can't just be a fish, though, since statues show it as some sort of emaciated hyena-looking thing. However, according to one account he is apparently supposed to have head of a hippo and others say he has the head of a giraffe, though the latter was ruled out on the grounds that the Egyptians made the distinction between a giraffe and a donkey. Let's just say that it's...not exactly clear. |
| 144 | ** ''The Book of the Faiyum'' depicts Set with a [[FeatheredFiend flamingo]] head, so there's also this to take into consideration since the sha creature's rostrum is curved. |
| 145 | ** At least one Egyptologist suggested that the Set animal was actually a stylized saluki: the dog was native to Egypt, has a curved snout, and when running, its ears and tail become vertical like the Set animal's (and its ears were often cropped for hunting). This theory has never seen a lot of circulation, though. |
| 146 | * The behemoth in Literature/TheBible ([[Literature/BookOfJob Job 40:15-24]]) is a large animal said to eat grass and live near a river. Most historians today believe it was meant to be some sort of large mammal, possibly a hippo or a Cape buffalo, but the description of a tail "like a cedar" has led some Young Earth creationists to suggest that it was actually a dinosaur. Other people (in keeping with the mammal theory) have postulated that the "tail" refers to an elephant's trunk, or that the comparison could be likening an elephant or hippo's brush-like tail to a cedar ''branch''. "Tail" could also be a euphemism for, um, [[TheBodyPartsThatMustNotBeNamed something else]], considering that the same passage (Job 40:15) mentions that "the sinews of his stones are wrapped together", and the preceding passage asserts that "his strength is in his loins." |
| 147 | * The [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolpertinger Wolpertinger]] of German mythology (which Q-chan from ''Pet Shop of Horrors'' might be based on). All that's clear about it is that it's a hybrid animal but we do know it can either look like a jackolope with wings to however you describe [[https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Wolpertinger_%282014%2C_Z%C3%BCrich%29.jpg/800px-Wolpertinger_%282014%2C_Z%C3%BCrich%29.jpg this]]. |
| 148 | * The [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pictish_Beast Pictish Beast]] is an ambiguous creature that frequently appears in ancient Pictish carvings found across Scotland. People have speculated it to be a representation of a horse, a dolphin, a seahorse, a dragon, an elephant, the mythological kelpie, and even the Loch Ness Monster. |
| 149 | * The [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bunyip Bunyip]]. The descriptions suggest it looks something like a seal, dog, or some combo, while others say it looks something like a emu (in a close but no cigar sense) and some sayin' it looks something like [[https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/ff/Bunyip_%281935%29.jpg this]]. The most consistent things about it is that it's aquatic and lives in or near waterways. |
| 150 | [[/folder]] |
| 151 | |
| 152 | [[folder:Pinball]] |
| 153 | * ''Pinball/TimeFantasy'' is infamous for its psychedelic theme, centered around a green and yellow creature with spindly limbs, bulbous eyes, and a large snail-like shell on its head and back. |
| 154 | [[/folder]] |
| 155 | |
| 156 | [[folder:Puppet Shows]] |
| 157 | * Many of ''Franchise/TheMuppets'' are this. While many of them tend to be based on real world species (Kermit being a frog, Fozzie being a bear, etc). A great deal of them are largely strange, fictional creatures with no real world basis and are often give the broad term "monsters" at most. This tends to be a frequent trend in Creator/JimHenson's Muppet creations to the point of being an AuthorTract of his, with other Muppet productions involving him such as ''Series/SesameStreet'' and especially ''Series/FraggleRock'', featuring all sorts of random, bizarre and entirely fictional creatures and monsters in all different shapes and sizes. |
| 158 | ** Gonzo is a particularly noteworthy case, as he is a strange blue bird-like creature, who in contrast to most of the main Muppets, lacks a real world species. His ambiguity is frequently lampshaded and touched upon in ''Muppet'' productions, with Creator/JohnCleese describing him as being "the ugly, disgusting little blue creature who catches cannonballs" in episode 223 of ''Series/TheMuppetShow'', Kermit remarking that he looks a little like a turkey to his conscience in ''Film/TheMuppetMovie'' and in ''Film/TheGreatMuppetCaper'', is classified as a "whatever" on his crate during the plane flight to London. ''Film/MuppetsFromSpace'' would even make this a plot point and attempt to finally answer who he is by stating that he's an alien (which he has been hinted as being in previous ''Muppet'' productions, such as his song in ''Film/TheMuppetMovie'', "I'm going to go back there someday"), but this has since fallen into CanonDiscontinuity, with Gonzo's species having gone back to being vague since. When Gonzo's puppeteer, Dave Goelz, was asked about Gonzo's species on the Ask Henson website, he has remarked, "[[ShrugOfGod Nobody knows except his parents, and they're not talking. It was always one of those taboo subjects around the dinner table]]." Snarl, Gonzo's prototype from the 1970 TV special, ''The Great Santa Claus Switch'', was described as being a "frackle" in the special, but this aspect would not carry over to Gonzo himself. |
| 159 | [[/folder]] |
| 160 | |
| 161 | [[folder:Tabletop Games]] |
| 162 | * In the first edition of ''TabletopGame/ChangelingTheLost'', all changeling characters have a Seeming (a type of power), but having a Kith (specific aesthetic) within that Seeming is optional. A sourcebook notes that members of the Beast Seeming who don't have a Kith just look generically animalistic, with features too vague or [[MixAndMatchCritters varied]] to match a species. It also suggests that characters could ''grow'' a Kith where none existed before as a result of gameplay events or CharacterDevelopment, tying this trope to FlashyProtagonistsBlandExtras. |
| 163 | [[/folder]] |
| 164 | |
| 165 | [[folder:Toys]] |
| 166 | * Enigma from ''Toys/SuperThings''. In a world filled with [[AnimateInanimateObject easily identifiable living objects]], Enigma, while ''representing'' top hats, isn't one. This is purely because he can remove his top hat: everyone else with a hat-based head has their head fully a hat. Instead, Enigma is a blue-skinned creature that stands out from the rest. |
| 167 | [[/folder]] |
| 168 | |
| 169 | [[folder:Video Games]] |
| 170 | * Nobody can figure out what kind of animal ''VideoGame/ArdyLightfoot'' is supposed to be, although "fox cat" is the best guess. |
| 171 | * The title character of ''VideoGame/BabaIsYou'' is, at the most specific, a white quadruped creature with pointed ears that looks more like a bean than any particular animal. That said, many fans consider Baba to be a sheep due to their name. |
| 172 | * The hero of the UsefulNotes/SegaSaturn game ''VideoGame/{{Bug|1995}}''. Besides being a FourLeggedInsect, he doesn't seem to be based off any real-life bug- he's a green bug with the head of a praying mantis, the body of a grasshopper, and the stinger of a bee. |
| 173 | * Fidget is the only non-humanoid (well, ''less'' humanoid at least; she's about the size of a real fruit bat, doesn't wear clothes, and has paws instead of hands) animal in ''VideoGame/DustAnElysianTail''. Dust has no idea what she even is until an NPC identifies her as a "nimbat". |
| 174 | * ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'': |
| 175 | ** Many characters from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'' are either [[BeastMan people with various animal parts]] or [[FunnyAnimal anthro-animalesque creatures]]. |
| 176 | ** Moogles in general. Yeah, you [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXI look after my place]] and [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI help save the world]], but seriously, what the hell are you guys? [[note]]A Japanese pun -- ''mogura'' (mole) + ''koumori'' (bat) = moguri.[[/note]] |
| 177 | ** The Nu Mou in the ''VideoGame/IvaliceAlliance'' games are small and hunched over creatures with long droopy ears, a snout, no nose and with just nostrils at end of their face, rough and wrinkled elephantine skin and a long furry tail like a Kangaroo. They are described as looking similar to dogs, but [[InformedSpecies they hardly look like them]]. ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' has the Nu Mou act like humanized dogs where they're compelled to obey if you use certain trigger words like "fetch" and "heel" and they are always eager to please. |
| 178 | * ''VideoGame/FireEmblemEngage'' has Sommie, who Alear can interact with through a VirtualPet minigame in Somniel, and no one in Elyos has any clue on what it's supposed to be other than the fact that it's an ancient spirit. At best, it looks like some sort of pudgy canine or quokka wearing a scarf. |
| 179 | * Mr. ''VideoGame/GameAndWatch'' definitely qualifies based on his portrayal in the ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' games, seeing that he is an anthropomorphic... something. And two-dimensional. |
| 180 | * ''VideoGame/AHatInTime'': The Conductor doesn't really look like any creature out there, with a face that looks like a cartoonish, eyeless dog-dragon-axolotl thingy with a really big mouth full of sharp teeth. Made rather funny by the fact the chapter he's in, which features DuelingMovies between his own and DJ Grooves (a clear penguin), is called Battle of the Birds, while the Conductor himself clearly doesn't look like ''any'' avian except maybe a sharp-toothed [[ComicStrip/{{Peanuts}} Woodstock]]. Generally, the fans agree that his species is "Bird(?)". |
| 181 | * ''Franchise/{{Kirby}}'': |
| 182 | ** The main character is essentially a sentient pink orb with a face, arms, feet, [[ExtremeOmnivore and a bottomless abyss for a stomach]]. |
| 183 | ** King Dedede may or may not be a penguin. Nobody can seem to agree. |
| 184 | *** This gets a LampshadeHanging in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosBrawl'' with [[VideoGame/MetalGear Snake's]] codec call regarding the king, which has him initially refer to him as a penguin, only to question it when the Colonel doesn't acknowledge whether or not he actually ''is'' a penguin. |
| 185 | *** ''VideoGame/KirbyStarAllies'' seems to hang another lampshade with the king producing a roasted chicken should he get caught up in the Chef ability's cookpot, which tends to produce food that's thematically appropriate for what was used to create it (The obviously avian Birdon also produces a roasted chicken), which suggests that he's at least some kind of bird...or not. |
| 186 | ** A good number of recurring enemies count as well. Waddle Dees are shaped like Kirby, but lack a mouth and have faces resembling monkeys. Scarfies are flying orange blobs with ears and smiley faces that turn into cyclopses if you anger them. Waddle Doos are Waddle Dees, but with a giant eyeball where their face should be. And that's just a few of them! |
| 187 | * Some people say ''VideoGame/{{Klonoa}}'' is a cat. Others say he's a rabbit. Some people even call him a "cabbit". The only thing anyone can agree on is that he's [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter adorable]]. |
| 188 | ** He's not the only member of his species, though. There's also Grandpa, Balue, the King of Sorrow... |
| 189 | ** ''Klonoa: Empire of Dreams'' gives us Emperor Jillius, who looks like some kind of fox or koala, and Bagoo[[note]]Not to be confused with Balue above[[/note]], who appears to be some kind of reptile. |
| 190 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfSpyroTheEternalNight'': The Skavengers' precise species is left fairly ambiguous -- they look kind of like dogs, kind of like badgers and kind of like hyenas, and in the end mostly come across as generic humanoid mammaloids. |
| 191 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTearsOfTheKingdom'' introduces the Zonai to the setting. A first glance at Rauru, the first Zonai you meet, would tell you out of hand that he's some kind of goat or sheep, if not for his sharp clawed hands, mouth full of razor sharp teeth and paws for feet instead of hooves. It's then easy to assume he's some kind of furred dragon because there's also scales all over his features... and then you meet his biological sister Mineru in an early flashback, and she looks almost like a jackal with massive upright ears but an extremely rabbit-like face, and the third Zonai we see [[spoiler: which is heavily implied to be a previous incarnation of Link]] is a HalfHumanHybrid of a Zonai and a Hylian and has his features so muddled by his hybrid nature it's impossible to tell what animal he's supposed to look like, though he has a tail unlike the other two. General consensus among the community is to stick with "Dragon-like" because the draconic features are the most consistent between the Zonai we see. |
| 192 | * ''VideoGame/MagiciansQuestMysteriousTimes[=/=]Enchanted Folk and the School of Wizardry'': Several of the potential students don't have any readily identifiable species. While many of them are based on [[FunnyAnimal animals]] (or plants, or [[AnimateInanimateObject inanimate objects]]), some of them are just... ''things.'' Good examples include the "cupcake girls" (human-ish yet not all that human girls with cupcakes/ice cream/''something'' on their heads), Matthew the cat/dog/bear critter, and Matt the... the... err, alien? It's not very clear. |
| 193 | * Many ''VideoGame/MonsterRancher'' characters fit the bill. Many are based off plants, inanimate objects, mythological creatures, and animals (albeit rather loosely with most examples). |
| 194 | * The Unndergrounders in ''VideoGame/MrDriller'' are some kind of round, blue creatures with small arms and feet, and huge eyes; there's no way to tell what the hell are those things. |
| 195 | * The player characters and the babies in ''VideoGame/OffspringFling'' are only ever called 'forest creatures'. |
| 196 | * What are the "ghosts" in ''VideoGame/PacMan''? Are they living creatures made of flesh or ghosts? In the original game, one of the between-round cutscenes has a "ghost" catch and tear off one of the rounded bits at the bottom on a sharp point, implying it's a costume. "Ghosts" came into usage when the Atari 2600 PortingDisaster had them flicker (because there wasn't enough memory for more than one on the screen at a time), and later versions just blurred the line further. |
| 197 | * ''VideoGame/PaperMarioTheThousandYearDoor'': There are a few of these. Most of the characters are recognizably some kind of established Mushroom Kingdom creature, but some, such as the Glitz Pit security guards, just look like bizarre anthropomorphic ''things''. |
| 198 | * Many ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' are viewed as this, but a lot can be traced back to at least one real life species or object. Others, however, cannot, and have no clear basis beyond being "weird". |
| 199 | ** Bulbasaur and it's evolutions could count. Is it a toad? A lizard? A dinosaur? A cat? Bulbasaur's Japanese name [[LampshadeHanging even translates to "isn't it strange?"]] Its final evolution, Venusaur, hops like a frog when following the player in ''VideoGame/PokemonLetsGoPikachuAndLetsGoEevee,'' which led some to believe that it at least takes some inspiration from toads, but it does not leap like this in the [[Anime/PokemonTheSeries anime]]. |
| 200 | ** Clefairy, Jigglypuff and Chansey families: They're classed as "Fairy", "Balloon" and "Egg" Pokémon, but they're all pink, round, cute, vaguely mammalian... things. |
| 201 | ** It's not very clear what exactly the Nidoran families are. Their first stages vaguely resemble a mixture of rabbit with some reptilian creature. Their respective evolutions lack the rabbit-esque features, looking more like some kind of unidentified type of reptilian. The Pokédex merely refers to them as the "Poison Pin" species. |
| 202 | ** Eevee could be the king of this trope. Thanks to an UnstableGeneticCode, it has at least ''eight'' evolutions, and all of them are as indeterminate as it is. Even though Eevee is quite dog-based or fox-based, many people still see Eevee as more cat-, squirrel-, or rabbit-like than dog/foxlike. WordOfGod is that Eevee was deliberately given a generic design that doesn't look like any animal in particular, in order to reflect its ability to evolve into any number of forms. |
| 203 | ** Lugia, a gigantic dragon-bird-monster-thing, has been stated to be this via WordOfGod. It's been speculated by some that it might be based on an albatross, but the resemblance isn't really there. |
| 204 | ** A lot of Fighting- and Psychic-type Pokémon don't have any particular basis beyond "humanoid". The Abra and Tyrogue families stand out. |
| 205 | ** No one has been able to definitively figure out what Shuckle is, or if it's even based on an animal. Guesses have ranged from sea turtles to [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gymnosporangium_juniperi-virginianae cedar-apple rust disease]]. Japanese names for Shuckle's moves and abilities from the [[TabletopGame/{{Pokemon}} Trading Card Game]] often refer to pots and lids, however, suggesting it's fermentation given animal form that lives in a very unusual-looking clay pot. |
| 206 | ** Poochyena's and Mightyena's names suggest being based off of hyenas, and they have fur similar to the distinct body ruff of the brown hyena, but many people see lupine features in them, sometimes out of [[HeinousHyena preference,]] or lack of familiarity with brown hyenas, which are obscure. Mightyena's Pokedex entries does emphasize its pack behavior, and it can learn the move Howl, and hyenas can not howl. Maybe it's [[MixAndMatchCritters based on both?]] |
| 207 | * ''VideoGame/{{Pseudoregalia}}'': Sybil, the player character, has the horns of a goat, the ears of a rabbit, and the long tail of a cat, as if she's a combination of the three species. |
| 208 | * In ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyo'', Parara is a round, white humanoid thing with an undefined species. Bios mention he looks like a snowman, but have doubts that he actually is one. It's implied even ''Parara himself'' has no idea what he is. |
| 209 | * Pichin from ''VideoGame/ReachinPichin'' appears to be a combination of flan, a peach, and a bird, with evolutionary forms giving him plant, animal, and metal characteristics. |
| 210 | * ''VideoGame/{{Rimworld}}'': While most of the wildlife you can encounter consist of real life animals, there's a few made-up genetically engineered species thrown in for extra sci-fi flavour. In most cases, there are enough clues to determine what the animal is derived from, like the muffalos being buffalo descended, the boomalopes being some sort of modified antelope, and the megascarabs being giant beetles. The major exception are the thrumbos, giant, woolly, beasts with a ''Brachiosaurus''-like body shape and a sickle-shaped horn on their head. Their appearance is too vague to give any hint of their ancestry and their FlavourText simply says they're of "unknown origin". |
| 211 | * ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'': The Chao are small blue creatures with teardrop shaped heads, a connection to the ancient deity Chaos, and the ability to evolve based on what animals are around them. [[spoiler:''VideoGame/SonicFrontiers'' reveals that [[WasOnceAMan they used to be]] [[{{Precursors}} the Ancients]], with Chaos having been the only one to regain its Ancient heritage.]] |
| 212 | * ''VideoGame/SamuraiShodown'': Gen An. He specifically denies being a goblin. Some Western fans refer to him as a tengu, but he doesn't look like one. |
| 213 | * In ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'', [[VideoGame/YoshisIsland Yoshi]] is usually described as some kind of dinosaur, but other than sharing a basic body shape with dinos like {{raptor|Attack}}s, UsefulNotes/TyrannosaurusRex, and other theropods; there's not much resemblance. They're also referred to as dragons sometimes but don't resemble any typical designs. |
| 214 | * Yacopu from the Creator/{{Sunsoft}} game ''Trip World'' looks sort of like a rabbit, aside from being bipedal. His species is "Shabubu," whatever that is. |
| 215 | * ''{{VideoGame/Whiplash}}'': Spanx is officially a long-tailed weasel, but is mostly a thing. Redmond speculates wildly on what he is. |
| 216 | * The vaguely-named [[https://wildermyth.com/w/images/3/34/CritterStand.png Critter]] serves as an obtainable pet and unofficial mascot for ''VideoGame/{{Wildermyth}}.'' It resembles a griffin without wings, sporting enormous ears, clawed talons, and [[MouthyBird a beak in place of its nose]], just above its wide mouth. |
| 217 | * In ''VideoGame/{{Wunderling}},'' it's a running gag that no one is quite sure of the titular Wunderling's species. They come from a kingdom of [[PlantPerson living fruit and vegetable people,]] and they have a leaf growing out of their head, but they're otherwise a vaguely yellow WaddlingHead. [[HeroAntagonist Carrot Man]] guesses "...a tater?" a few times before ultimately deciding that's not right. |
| 218 | * A few {{yo|ukai}}kai from ''VideoGame/YokaiWatch'' are this. Komasan and his brother Komajiro are officially ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Komainu komainu]]'' lion-dogs, but look like a mix of a cat and a panda, and Komajiro gets referred to as tiger-like in the English version of the video game. |
| 219 | * ''VideoGame/ZniwAdventure'': Most of the characters are specific, real-life dinosaur species, but Zniw is a made-up, unnamed species of ornithopod. She has CartoonyEyes and a yellow-and-brown striped body. |
| 220 | * The title character of ''VideoGame/{{Zool}}'' has vaguely insectlike facial features, which led to the widespread misconception that he was supposed to be an ant. "Gremlin" is his official species, which is more a publisher's self-reference than [[GripingAboutGremlins anything else]]. |
| 221 | [[/folder]] |
| 222 | |
| 223 | [[folder:Webcomics]] |
| 224 | * ''Webcomic/FifteenMinds'': The fortune teller from ''Blue Moon Blossom''. The setting is a WorldOfFunnyAnimals, and all of the other animals depicted have very clear real-world animal inspirations, if they're not simply cartoony versions of real groups of animals outright. But the fortune teller appears to be some kind of abstract BlobMonster with at least one arm. Its upper face is completely obscured by a stereotypical fortune teller's decorated shawl, and it has a distinctly human-like nose with a long bridge, in a setting where there's no humans to be seen and everyone else either has no noses, species-accurate noses, or teeny cartoony noses. |
| 225 | * The wildlife from ''Webcomic/{{Cloudscratcher}}''. |
| 226 | * Angela from ''Webcomic/PunchAnPie'' owns a cat... dog... ''thing'' that acts like a cat but looks like a {{Mix and Match Critter|s}}. He is first seen in [[http://punchanpie.keenspot.com/daily/20090724.html this comic]]. |
| 227 | * Molly and Snookums from ''Webcomic/TheInexplicableAdventuresOfBob''. |
| 228 | * 3/4 of ''Webcomic/{{Matchu}}'''s cast consists of these, including the title character, who is described as a "Sulking Yellow Cat Thing". |
| 229 | * Species X from ''Webcomic/DNATheWebcomic''. They look like humans except for being covered in grey hair, having very large ears which may be round or triangular, sharp teeth, and black noses, and sometimes a short fluffy tail. The author has not yet revealed what animal or animals they are based on although she has confirmed several things that they are not, although because Species X was genetically engineered, they likely have DNA from multiple animals. |
| 230 | * ''Webcomic/{{Sparklecare}}'': Most characters are anthro animals, but with a few weird characteristics. Dr. Doom, on the other hand, is all ''over'' the place. He's a furry white creature with enormous round ears, four arms and four legs, and more. |
| 231 | * ''Webcomic/WhatNonsense'' has Roofadoodle. While most of the characters have clearly-defined species (for example, the protagonist is a boar), nobody knows what species Roofadoodle is. Even the site's character page leaves a "?" in place of his species name. |
| 232 | * Matcha from ''Webcomic/MilkAndMocha'' looks like a dinosaur/dragon crossover. |
| 233 | [[/folder]] |
| 234 | |
| 235 | [[folder:Web Original]] |
| 236 | * Most of the characters in ''WebAnimation/HomestarRunner''. Creator/TheBrothersChaps consistently refer to their creations as their "dumb animal characters". |
| 237 | -->'''Strong Bad:''' I was ''this close'' to finding out whether or not you were part elephant or part hippo or something. |
| 238 | ** Most often lampshaded with "The Cheat", who resembles a cross between a Pikachu, an anvil, and a block of cheese. Apparently he is a "The Cheat". Yes, "[[SpellMyNameWithAThe The]]" is part of his species name. |
| 239 | * Most characters from ''Webcomic/RiceBoy'' and ''Webcomic/OrderOfTales''. |
| 240 | * Vatsy the catlike character of ''Literature/VatsyAndBruno'' is a borderline case. |
| 241 | * ''Website/{{Neopets}}'': Downplayed. Most Neopet species are based on real animals, so those that aren't can give off the impression of this trope: [=JubJubs=], Kikos, and Chias are just heads with limbs, while Kacheeks and Acaras look mammalian but not much like any actual species. |
| 242 | * ''Literature/MadgieWhatDidYouDo'': According to Creator/{{Amoridere}}, [[http://tokiandcowiki.wikidot.com/wiki:toki Toki]]'s species started out this way, as she couldn't decide what to call it, until when she was typing in [[Franchise/TouhouProject "Eirin"]], she had misspelled it as "Erin", so she settled on that, pronouncing it "Ee-RIHN". |
| 243 | * In ''WebVideo/DontHugMeImScared'', Sketchbook is a notepad, Duck Guy's a bird, Yellow Guy's a human, and Tony is a clock, but... what is Red Guy supposed to be again? A squid? Spaghetti man? {{Cthulhumanoid}}? Just a red human with a stringy beard? It's hard to tell. [[WordOfGod Becky]] indicated that Red Guy is a personification of spaghetti on her [[https://www.instagram.com/p/BHM4v6OBmUY/?taken-by=becky.sloan Instagram]]. |
| 244 | * ''WebAnimation/DSBTInsaniT'': Frog. The Special Info Episode reveals this design was unintentional, he was supposed to look similar to [[WesternAnimation/OneFroggyEvening Michigan J. Frog]], but clearly came out wrong. |
| 245 | ** Psycho Man is actually a demon, but the other characters keep thinking he's things like a gremlin, a goblin, and a dinosaur. |
| 246 | * ''WebAnimation/BeeAndPuppycat'': No one can seem to agree on whether Puppycat is a dog or a cat. |
| 247 | * {{WebVideo/Petscop}}: We have this in two instances. |
| 248 | ** One is with a pet named "Pen", and, while we have a clue as to what a few other pets are (Amber is a ball, Toneth is a bird, Randice is a flower, Wavey is a cloud, and Roneth is some weird combo), it's hard to describe what Pen is. Her torso appears to be a closed umbrella, she looks something like a doll, or, given her connection with mathematics, she looks like a scale (see [[https://antiques.lovetoknow.com/antique-balance-scales here]]) but there isn't too much in real life one can compare her to, besides that she has a face. |
| 249 | ** Paul's player character, "Newmaker". It's pretty hard to say what he is. |
| 250 | * From Alasdair Beckett-King, we have [[https://twitter.com/MisterABK/status/1356595262114955268 "Corky the Non-Specific Animal"]], starring Corky, a [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin non-specific animal]] who looks like a dog. |
| 251 | * Some characters of this kind appear in ''WebAnimation/OtherworldlyRavenousBeast'' alongside the usual {{Animate Inanimate Object}}s usually seen in ObjectShows. Some of the Cartoon Creatures in the show do vaguely resemble objects (such as Clubs, who resembles a hut with a door) while others aren't so clear (Zo...what's she supposed to be? A bozu doll? A really strange-looking shuttlecock?). |
| 252 | * Finn of ''WebVideo/DubbedByStrangers'' is a blue creature with stick limbs called the Bean Boy. |
| 253 | * J.P. Holding uses some sort of mammal as his AuthorAvatar in ''WebAnimation/TektonTV''. |
| 254 | [[/folder]] |
| 255 | |
| 256 | [[folder:Western Animation]] |
| 257 | * The Warner Siblings of ''WesternAnimation/{{Animaniacs}}'', though often referred to as "puppy-children," insist that they aren't puppies. They even have a song about it. The page quote is what starts the Warners singing about what they are. In case you're wondering, they're [[spoiler:cute]]! ''Animaniacs'' [[WordOfGod creator Tom Ruegger confirmed in an interview that their species is]] ''[[CanisLatinicus Cartoonus characterus]]''. During the production process, they started out as ducks. Everyone thought they looked too much like three miniature versions of Plucky Duck from ''WesternAnimation/TinyToonAdventures'', so they added red noses, doggy ears, and kitty cat tails. |
| 258 | * Bosko and Honey from ''WesternAnimation/TinyToonAdventures'', who were antecedents to the Warners of ''WesternAnimation/{{Animaniacs}}''. He's a living blot of ink as shown in his premier "Bosko, the Talk-Ink Kid", and was vague enough that the creators were asked, at least once, what he was supposed to be ([[ShrugOfGod and even they claimed they weren't entirely sure]]). They look like either dogs, cats, or rabbits. The ''WesternAnimation/TinyToonAdventures'' [[AdaptationSpeciesChange redesign]] came about because the original design of Bosko and Honey owed a great deal to [[UncleTomfoolery blackface caricature]] -- when the characters' creators transferred to MGM, they were [[http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_cywg7wzfIBs/R78HknVsDiI/AAAAAAAADgI/UmqN90c9e_g/s1600-h/boskohoneycolor.jpg redesigned]] to look unmistakably like caricatured black children. Redesigning the characters to resemble the Warners was a less problematic option. |
| 259 | * Standard portrayal of WesternAnimation/{{Pete}}, [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pjfb8.gif Junior, and PJ]] from WesternAnimation/ClassicDisneyShorts and ''WesternAnimation/GoofTroop'' is that of a cat. In ''WesternAnimation/GoofTroop'', ''WesternAnimation/AGoofyMovie'', and ''WesternAnimation/AnExtremelyGoofyMovie'', WesternAnimation/{{Pete}} and PJ seem to be portrayed as {{Dogfaces}}, but are considered cats even in that show and those movies. |
| 260 | ** Originally (before he was pitted against WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse in 1928), Pete was depicted as a bear. In the early days when he was pitted against Mickey, he was a black cat with a white face, a modest looking chin, and a tail. Now he is depicted as an ambiguous looking hairy creature without a tail, a flesh colored muzzle, and a ''really'' big chin. |
| 261 | ** The ''WesternAnimation/MickeyMouseClubhouse'' version of Pete looks reasonably like the cat, but the ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' "present day" version of Pete, though still a cat, looks more like a French Bulldog. |
| 262 | ** In ''VideoGame/EpicMickey'', Small Pete says of Big Bad Pete, "My cousin over on Mean Street makes me seem like a cuddly little kitten." |
| 263 | * The main character in ''WesternAnimation/{{Chowder}}'' is, according to WordOfGod, [[MixAndMatchCritters part cat, part rabbit, and part bear]]. Most of the other characters count too. Panini looks like a rabbit with [[CuteLittleFangs some cat bits]]. They are apparently the same species. The show lampshades this trope from time to time, such as Chowder making a scene as a distraction, demanding that people "label him" as the appropriate animal. |
| 264 | * Uniqua from ''WesternAnimation/TheBackyardigans''. Nobody knows ''what'' she's supposed to be. WordOfGod says that Uniqua is "her own unique species". |
| 265 | * Name any character in ''WesternAnimation/WowWowWubbzy''. Chances are they are this, but it is easy to assume which animal they are based on (ex.: Wubbzy being based on a gerbil/cat, Widget on a rabbit, etc.). In a rare interview, Wubbzy states that he isn't an animal. |
| 266 | * Many of the characters from ''WesternAnimation/SonicUnderground'' don't have an established species. Sonic's still vaguely hedgehog-y and therefore so are his immediate family, Robotnik's still vaguely human-y... but what any of the sibling's foster-parents are meant to be is an open question.[[note]]Okay, Sonic's uncle Chuck is a hedgehog, but it still goes for the other two. Especially Manic's foster dad Farrell.[[/note]] |
| 267 | * Tico, "[[ExpositoryThemeTune the mascot]]", from ''WesternAnimation/AroundTheWorldWithWillyFog''. Is he a hamster? A mouse? A... rabbit? [[AvertedTrope The comic adaptation said he was a hamster]], but this didn't show up in the TV series. |
| 268 | * King from ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'' is actually a [[spoiler:Titan]], but there's still a fair bit of discussion about what animal he's supposed to be based on. He has characteristics of cats, dogs, and foxes, his head is hidden by a skull mask, and he has horns on said head. That being said, as Eda is a witch and King has black fur, the closest analogue would be [[AllWitchesHaveCats a black cat]]. |
| 269 | * Wooldoor Sockbat from ''WesternAnimation/DrawnTogether'' is described by the narrator in the first episode as a "[[SidekickCreatureNuisance highly annoying]] underwater whatsit". He's more of a [[ParodiedTrope parody]] of this type of character in general and WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants specifically. |
| 270 | * Kuma, the TeamPet on ''WesternAnimation/PolePosition.'' He's eventually revealed to have been [[MixAndMatchCritters bioengineered]]. |
| 271 | * WesternAnimation/{{Humf}}, the titular character from the cartoon series of the same name. Looks like a purple carnivorous lamb, but really, what exactly is he? The creators call him a furry purple thing, which is what he's referred as being in the show. One of his friends, Wallace, is equally ambiguous in design (resembling a WaddlingHead). At least his other friend, Loon, looks like a pink peacock. |
| 272 | * ''WesternAnimation/ThomasAndFriends'': |
| 273 | ** Rare non-animal example: Percy. While most other characters are based on real locomotive classes, Percy is a heavily hybridized mix of several other steam engine designs. [[AllThereInTheManual Supplementary material]] for [[Literature/TheRailwaySeries the original books]] indicates that Percy was acquired thirdhand by the Fat Controller, and [[JustifiedTrope was already extensively modified by the time he got to Sodor]] (he's ''mostly'' an Avonside engine with parts from other designers acquired along the way). |
| 274 | ** Perhaps the most egregious example in the series is Stefano the Super Cruiser from the "[[WesternAnimation/DigsAndDiscoveries Digs and Discoveries]]" special. Not only is he designed to carry cargo, road vehicles, and rail vehicles - both in his hull and on his deck - he's also able to move on water, drive on land, and operate a crane and winch all under his own power. The closest real-world match for him is the [[https://tanks-encyclopedia.com/ww2-usa-pelican-project-half-track-amphibian-cargo-carrier-t32/ Pelican]], a half-track amphibious transport developed by the US military during World War II, but it was never actually built and did not have a crane. |
| 275 | * The Snarfs from ''WesternAnimation/{{ThunderCats|1985}}'' are a species of intelligent cat-like creatures that are native to the planet Thundera. |
| 276 | * WesternAnimation/{{Bravestarr}}'s jurisdiction, the planet New Texas, is inhabited by little things called Prairie People...basically Snarfs with cowboy clothes. |
| 277 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Spliced}}'': |
| 278 | ** As his name suggests, Fuzzy Snuggums exists purely to be cute and the resident [[TheChewToy Chew Toy]]. However, what he is on an island of MixAndMatchCritters isn't ever explained.[[note]]WordOfGod revealed in 2019 (nearly a decade after the series ended) that he's supposed to be part baby seal, part kitten, and part fawn.[[/note]] |
| 279 | ** The species that make up Peri's DNA are never revealed either. He does seem to have some caterpillar DNA though (one episode had him going into a cocoon and coming out with butterfly wings. |
| 280 | * The people of Miseryville in ''WesternAnimation/JimmyTwoShoes'' have [[MultiArmedAndDangerous every]] [[MultipleHeadCase strange]] [[ExtraEyes body]] [[{{Cyclops}} trope]] [[HornedHumanoid possibly]] [[AmazingTechnicolorPopulation imaginable]] (and far more), and [[CastOfSnowflakes they're all completely different]]. Considering what [[{{Hell}} the setting is implied to be]], it's likely that they're supposed to be demons, in keeping with the portrayal of angels as totally unrecognizable in Literature/TheBible (although some Miseryvillians are more obviously demons than others, such as Lucius and Beezy). |
| 281 | * The characters in ''WesternAnimation/OutThere'' are pretty inhuman what with their clawed handstubs, round black noses and oddly coloured skin/fur but it's unclear what they are exactly as they never actually address this and refer to themselves as human. Even Chad's family are a different indeterminate species to the rest of the cast and resemble rodents of some kind but again, this isn't questioned and is more a source of FurryConfusion for the audience than anything. |
| 282 | * Keswick from ''WesternAnimation/TUFFPuppy'' is of a species that even the other members of T.U.F.F. can't name, though it's sometimes mentioned that [[ADogNamedDog Keswick is also the name of his species]]. Worth mentioning is his bizarre life cycle: his adult stage is a marsupial-like form with webbed feet, his adolescent stage is the same except with an ink-secreting reptilian tail that breaks off to become another Keswick that will fight the first to the death, his child stage is a platypus that shoots barbs out of its mouth, his neonatal stage is a tadpole, and his senior stage is a jellyfish. |
| 283 | * Alfe from ''WesternAnimation/TheProblemSolverz''. He's supposed to be part man, part dog, and part anteater, but he's basically a giant brown thing with a long nose. |
| 284 | * The titular Denver of ''WesternAnimation/DenverTheLastDinosaur'' is fairly ambiguous; he does have some dinosaur in him, and of course some typical FunnyAnimal elements as you might expect, but a whole bunch of [[DinosaursAreDragons dragon-like]] elements to his design make him a very odd-looking dino (at least to our knowledge). |
| 285 | * The titular Wander of ''WesternAnimation/WanderOverYonder'', who looks sort of like a fuzzy brown sock with eyes, a mouth, and limbs. The producers call him an "orange hairy spoon". Technically, however, he and all the other members of the cast are aliens. |
| 286 | * The titular character from ''WesternAnimation/BluesClues'' is obviously a dog, but aside from her [[AmazingTechnicolorWildlife blue fur]], her breed remains unknown. Same goes to Magenta. |
| 287 | * Most of the characters in ''WesternAnimation/TheWuzzles'' are obvious mixes of two real animals. The same cannot be said, however, for recurring antagonist Brat. He's a small hairy troll-like creature with a piggish snout, horns, and a spiked tail. |
| 288 | * Mr Sunshine from ''WesternAnimation/CatDog''. He's a green, humanoid looking man with a tail in a world where {{Funny Animal}}s and {{Civilized Animal}}s are the norm. Fans often believe him to be a shell-less turtle, sloth, or monkey. Lampshaded in one episode where Rancid Rabbit is arresting the residents of Nearberg for not having a license for whatever species they are. When he gets to Mr. Sunshine, he struggles to identify what he is before simply stating he’s under arrest for not having a license. |
| 289 | * Imaginary friends in ''WesternAnimation/FostersHomeForImaginaryFriends'' are anything children can think up. Many are {{Funny Animal}}s, MixAndMatchCritters, or {{Animate Inanimate Object}}s, but still others don't bear any clear resemblance to any creature in real life. Among the main cast, Bloo is a blue rectangle with a semi-circle on top, a face, and apparently retractable arms while Wilt is a super-tall red humanoid with a paint smear-shaped face and eyes on stalks. |
| 290 | * Fee and Foo from ''WesternAnimation/HarveyBeaks'', two red-furred human-like creatures in a WorldOfFunnyAnimals. [[WordOfGod C.H. Greenblatt]] has alternated between referring them as gremlins or imps, so most fans believe them to be one or the other. |
| 291 | * While most of the characters on the show ''WesternAnimation/TootAndPuddle'' avoid this, Commander Betty from the story "Astronaut Camp" falls into this trope. On one hand, she's most likely meant to be an alligator given the association with Florida where the episode takes place. On the other hand, her design doesn't look much like an alligator and some fans even think she resembles a strangely colored ''pike'' with arms and legs instead. |
| 292 | * The three main characters of ''WesternAnimation/ThePresentators'' are this. They resemble somewhat indistinct shapes with stick-thin arms and necks, along with hands of varying sizes. Notably, Stefan's face is shaped differently from his two co-presenters, having a noticeable (and asymmetrical) chin, while Dan and Brian have vaguely square-shaped heads and mouths right at the bottom. Since they're standing behind a table the entire time, we never get to see their lower bodies. |
| 293 | * Fritz from ''WesternAnimation/TimothyGoesToSchool'' appears to be some sort of mustelid, perhaps a badger, a skunk, or even a honey badger. Official sources (books, episode descriptions) have described as one or the other; not helping is the student teacher, Ms. Appleberry, appearing to be the exact same species. |
| 294 | * The main character in ''Moom'', the second animated short by Creator/TonkoHouse, pretty much resembles a Literature/{{Cheburashka}} but much cuter. |
| 295 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheAmazingWorldOfGumball'': Naturally, with the tendency towards MediumBlending and generally enormous amounts of characters, there's plenty of them with no identifiable species. Principal Brown's case is special in that even ''he'' doesn't know what he is, and so far has only learned that whatever he is doesn't hibernate in winter (he tried). |
| 296 | * The characters in ''WesternAnimation/TheCrumpets'' primarily differ physically from real humans by their pale skin, rounded pink or blue noses that squeak, and visible philtrums that give their faces the resemblance to some sort of mammalian creature. The youngest characters usually have paw-like feet; the others except Pa ([[OffModel usually]]) and Ma have human-like feet instead. |
| 297 | * Spike from ''WesternAnimation/{{Rugrats}}'' is revealed in the episode, "[[Recap/RugratsS3E19ChuckiesRedHairSpikeRunsAway Spike Runs Away]]" to be a fictional breed of dog called a Siberian Tiger Hound, which in-universe is an extremely rare and highly valuable breed of dog worth thousands of dollars. |
| 298 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Razzledazzle}}'': The eponymous main character Razzledazzle is an orange creature that has ears which are somewhat similar to those of a rabbit. Other than the ears, there are no other features on him that give him a definite species. |
| 299 | * Hoarse from ''WesternAnimation/PinkPantherAndPals''. It's not clear if he's a horse or a donkey and his appearance appears to be, however, it's settled that he's a horse. |
| 300 | * Glomer, from ''WesternAnimation/PunkyBrewster'', is a magical furry something whose species (a "glomley," as specified in the show) are leprechaun helpers in Chaundoon (a land within a rainbow). Glomer strayed from the rainbow and got stranded in Chicago until Punky took him in. He's actually a gopher. |
| 301 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Green Eggs and Ham|2019}}'': The majority of the cast are humanoids covered in fuzzy fur that are a Dr. Seuss staple. Some of them have floppy, dog-like ears while others lack any visible earlobes, and some of them go around naked while others wear at least one of two pieces of clothing, though they're occasionally referred to as humans. |
| 302 | * This Guy from ''WesternAnimation/TigNSeek''. While the other inhabitants of the Department of Lost and Found (sans Tiggy) are recognizable by their species (Gweeseek is a cat, Boss is a dog and Nuritza is a rabbit), he is a muscular human-like creature with a head that looks like a blue [[WesternAnimation/TheAmazingWorldOfGumball Principal Brown]] without glasses. |
| 303 | * The "Jakovasaurs" from ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'' are some strange, anthropomorphic duck-like creatures. With the sole exception of Cartman, [[spoiler:and the French people]], everyone finds them to be extremely annoying. |
| 304 | * ''WesternAnimation/LetsGoLuna'': Due to Joe Murray's trademark bizarre animal designs, it can be hard to tell the species of several of the secondary characters. For example, there are three round acrobats that are presumably bears, but they have human-like noses and black rings around their eyes. Also, the French clown twins are slightly humanoid, but they have mandril-esque masks. |
| 305 | * The titular Beast from ''WesternAnimation/MaggieAndTheFerociousBeast'' vaguely resembles some sort of horned dinosaur with a humanoid face and detachable spots. |
| 306 | * Skrawl, a recurring villain from ''WesternAnimation/ChalkZone'', has been called a "jellybean", "amoeba", "potato" and "bug" on several different occasions, though is not really clear what he is supposed to be. |
| 307 | * The titular ''WesternAnimation/SmilingFriends'' are clearly not human, considering that actual humans exist within this setting, but it's hard to tell what they ''are'' supposed to be. They have technicolor skin, with Charlie being yellow, Pim being pink, Alan being red, and Glep being green. With the exception of Pim, they have unusual body types, with Charlie having a semicircular head that curves into the rest of his body, Alan having abnormally long arms and legs, and Glep being incredibly small, having eyes on the sides of his head, and lips that jot out from the rest of his body. Pim also mentions that the little strand of hair on his head isn't hair at all, but rather, is an exposed nerve ending. |
| 308 | * In the ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'' episode "The Time Traveler's Pig", Dipper attempts to win a "stuffed creature of indeterminate species" in a carnival game to impress his crush, Wendy. |
| 309 | --->'''Wendy:''' I'm not sure if it's a duck or a panda, but I ''want'' one! |
| 310 | [[/folder]] |
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