Line #51 Main/MooseAreIdiots


1	[[quoteright:241:[[WebAnimation/HappyTreeFriends https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lumpy-1198271dac_2875.jpg]]]]
2	[[caption-width-right:241:Never trust a moose with a toaster, a knife, and a [[ElectrifiedBathtub bathtub]].]]
3
4	->''"Dumb like a moose, Dib. DUMB LIKE A MOOSE!"''
5	-->-- '''WesternAnimation/InvaderZim'''
6
7	In RealLife, moose, ''Alces alces'', are at least moderately intelligent as far as animals go, and there's nothing to say they aren't at least as smart as other deer species. In fiction, however, they can be shown as very dumb. At best, they are a bit slow on the uptake, and at worst, they can even be portrayed as TooDumbToLive. They very often speak with a SimpletonVoice.
8
9	Likely due to the [[InherentlyFunnyWords inherently funny]] name and rather goofy appearance, moose are the only species of deer portrayed as stupid in fiction rather than [[{{Bambification}} graceful]] or [[TheMarvelousDeer marvelous]], including ''themselves'' under the older name "(Eurasian) elk" [[note]](not to be confused with ''Cervus canadensis'', the large deer species referred to as "elk" or "wapiti" in North America)[[/note]]. And no, there's absolutely no difference. [[CallARabbitASmeerp "Moose" is just the Abenaki name, which caught on in the East around the same time the Lewis and Clark expedition found the similar-looking Northwestern "elk"]]. They are also the largest extant species of deer which, paired with their enormous antlers, often translates into "big and clumsy". More negative portrayals of moose will have them be TheBrute with DumbMuscle tendencies, like AngryAngryHippos.
10
11	See DogsAreDumb, DoofyDodo, UnwiseOwl and DumbDinos for other animals portrayed as having similarly low intelligence.
12
13	----
14	!!Examples:
15
16	[[foldercontrol]]
17
18	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
19	* Played with in ''Anime/KemonoFriends'': Moose is more HotBlooded than stupid, but she always uses the same strategy of [[LeeroyJenkins charging directly at the battle without ever thinking how.]] TruthInTelevision, as normal moose will exactly do that in Real Life with its antlers.
20	[[/folder]]
21
22	[[folder:Comic Books]]
23	* Downplayed with the title protagonist of ''ComicBook/SuperAgentJonLeBon''[[labelnote:*]]Although he [[InformedSpecies looks more like a deer]], which is even pointed out [[LampshadeHanging in-universe]].[[/labelnote]]; while Jon understands basic concepts and his responsibilities at the Agency, he's got a [[AdultChild childlike mindset]] and [[{{Cloudcuckoolander}} isn't quite all there]]. It's attributed to the fact that the other agents were too busy to raise him frequently after he [[DoorstopBaby was left on their doorstep]].
24	[[/folder]]
25
26	[[folder:Films -- Animated]]
27	* Rutt and Tuke, the moose brothers from ''WesternAnimation/BrotherBear''. [[HowIsThatEvenPossible They managed to crash a mammoth in a mountain, if their idiocy means anything.]]
28	* The sequel to ''WesternAnimation/{{Bambi}}'', ''Bambi 2'', had an old grouchy porcupine insult Bambi's father, the Great Prince of the Forest, by calling him a "big moose".
29	* ''WesternAnimation/BaltoIIIWingsOfChange'' offers a darker take on the trope, tying back into real-life moose behavior. The bull moose the heroes encounter on their journey to save Boris and Duke is clearly not the brightest bulb but he’s still a hulking and highly territorial beast whose answer to everything is to [[UseYourHead charge at it]]. Balto and co only escape him once a rival moose shows up and the two lock antlers. [[TheMafia The two moose also talk and act like stereotypical mobsters]].
30	[[/folder]]
31
32	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
33	* Inverted in the [[FunWithSubtitles opening credits]] of ''Film/MontyPythonAndTheHolyGrail'', where the subtitler's sister was the idiot, "Karving" her initials into the moose, causing a violent reaction from said moose.
34	--->'''Subtitle:''' A møøse once bit my sister...
35	[[/folder]]
36
37	[[folder:Literature]]
38	* ''Literature/BlueMoose'': Averted. The titular moose not only speaks English and French, he is not tame and he resents any implication that he is.
39	* The ''Morris and Borris'' books, starring Morris the Moose, a scrawny-looking moose who for some reason [[BlatantLies has the tail of a unicorn]]
40	* ''Moostache'', which is about a moose who is very clumsy because his extremely huge mustache constantly gets in his way. He eventually ends up falling in love with a female moose with an extremely large hairdo.
41	* ''If You Give a Moose a Muffin'', a sort-of sequel to ''Literature/IfYouGiveAMouseACookie''. In the animated series, he doesn't really see all that dumb, but still has the typical stupid-sounding voice associated with a dumb moose.
42	* In fact, since the moose is the largest wild animal in both Norway and Sweden, and the antlers remind people of a crown, in those two countries the moose is often called "King of the Forest." Consequently, any moose who shows up in Norwegian or Swedish fiction is likely to be portrayed as regal and stoic, or at least aspiring to be -- though the Norwegian ones might sound a little silly because they're imitating the speech patterns of King Harald V of Norway. The idea of moose being idiots as a whole, though, is pretty alien to Norwegians and Swedes.
43	* ''[[Creator/DrSeuss Thidwick the Big-Hearted Moose]]''. Though Thidwick isn't so much of an idiot as he is a total pushover.
44	* In the online version of Literature/DiaryOfAWimpyKid, Greg writes a report on moose. His only true fact is one he recalls from reading a book called ''Dumb Animals''.
45	[[/folder]]
46
47	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
48	* Semi-subverted with Mr. Moose on ''Series/CaptainKangaroo''. Not the brightest puppet a hand could control, but he could still trick the Captain to say something that will have ping pong balls raining down on him.
49	[[/folder]]
50
51	[[folder:Music]]
52	* The campfire song "There Was A Moose" or "The Moose Song" concerns a moose who has some trouble drinking juice.
53	[[/folder]]
54
55	[[folder:Pinballs]]
56	* The moose in Creator/{{Capcom}}'s ''Pinball/Breakshot1996'' has a goofy, Bullwinkle-esque voice that certainly sounds the part.
57	* Bullwinkle J. Moose from ''Pinball/TheAdventuresOfRockyAndBullwinkleAndFriends'', of course.
58	[[/folder]]
59
60	[[folder:Web Animation]]
61	* Lumpy from ''WebAnimation/HappyTreeFriends'' is the [[TropeCodifier absolute epitome]] of this trope, and provides the current page image. He frequently does stupid things that [[LethallyStupid endanger the lives of the other cast members]] ([[TooDumbToLive often even himself]]), and tends to do very incompetent things. As a matter of fact, he's LethallyStupid to the point that he's killed more characters than Flippy (who has an AxCrazy SuperpoweredEvilSide), some cases including Flippy himself.
62	[[/folder]]
63
64	[[folder:Webcomics]]
65	* In ''Webcomic/StrawberryDeathCake'', Winston is very eccentric and has a quirky personality, often coming off as a simpleton, or at least absent minded, but at other times displays a vast knowledge of the supernatural. A possible explanation lies in the fact that he is a weremoose and was originally a full human. The full details of his curse have yet to be revealed.
66	[[/folder]]
67
68	[[folder:Western Animation]]
69	* Bullwinkle J. Moose of ''WesternAnimation/RockyAndBullwinkle'' is the TropeCodifier, if not the UrExample.
70	* In ''WesternAnimation/CampLazlo'', Scoutmaster Lumpus is a moose. He is an extremely incompetent, apathetic JerkassWoobie who doesn't even like being a scoutmaster. As a RunningGag, he has trouble identifying Clam's species (a pygmy rhino). On the other hand, as a nature lover, he is useful to the scouts because he fights the system to keep the camp open.
71	* The WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse short ''Moose Hunters''. "Kiss me!"
72	* Inverted in the short-lived animated series ''Frootie Tooties,'' by Honeycombe Animations, where Strawberry Moose is explicitly described as the most intelligent of all the animals and has a rather large vocabulary.
73	* WesternAnimation/{{Franklin}} had the titular turtle working together with a new student who, despite being the same age as Franklin and his classmates, easily towered over them. Initially frightened of his appearance, Franklin befriends the new student and learns of his creativity as an artist despite his awkwardness. Of course he's [[ADogNamedDog a moose named Moose]].
74	* Despite only looking like a moose, WesternAnimation/YakkityYak is a TooDumbToLive yak for fits in this trope.
75	* The moose in the WesternAnimation/HeckleAndJeckle cartoon "Moose On The Loose" is pretty bright, getting the best of the two at the cartoon's end.
76	* The Cartoon Network original short "Ignoramooses" stars two dense moose who give a hunter a hard time after convincing themselves they're his new pets.
77	* [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]] on ''WesternAnimation/MackAndMoxy'', with Mack, the [[AmazingTechnicolorWildlife blue moose]] partner of Moxy, a pink raccoon. He's smart enough to take a lead role in the adventures on the show and be generally helpful. That said, official descriptions for the program also describe him as having "two left feet" as well as being a "lummox" and he's also something of a LiteralMinded BigEater. He also speaks with the slow, SimpletonVoice typical of the characterization.
78	* ''WesternAnimation/MollyOfDenali'': In "[[Recap/MollyOfDenaliS1E6CultureClashPartyMoose Party Moose]]," Layla attempts to scare the moose off the runway by buzzing it with a low pass. The moose doesn't even notice the enormous "bird" swooping down on it, and just continues to graze.
79	* ''WesternAnimation/NumbChucks'': Inverted with Hooves, a decently smart NeatFreak moose who actually ''suffers'' from the stupidity of the two woodchuck protagonists. Though admittedly, he once tried to limit contact with bathroom germs by [[InsaneTrollLogic wrapping himself in toilet paper]].
80	* ''WesternAnimation/WorkItOutWombats'': Inverted again with Ellie. Ellie is a moose, but she's clearly smart enough to be an EMT.
81	* ''WesternAnimation/YinYangYo'': Ultimoose, the first villain faced by Yin and Yang, is TestosteronePoisoning incarnate, [[DumbMuscle but not much else]]. This is actually more of a conscious choice for him, as he considers books and smarts to be too girly for his tastes.
82	[[/folder]]
83
84	[[folder:Real Life]]
85	* It's apparently not unusual in autumn in Scandinavia for elk to become inebriated by eating fermenting apples. In 2011 a Swedish moose made [[http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-14842999 international]] [[http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/europe/09/08/sweden.drunken.moose/index.html headlines]] after getting drunk and stuck in a tree.
86	* Moose eat plants that grow in streams, some of which contain a parasite that attacks the brains of the moose. Infected moose are mostly aggressive and unpredictable, though, not stupid per se.
87	* A full-grown bull moose weighs over half a metric tonne, and they very frequently run across highways in the rural forested regions of the northerly countries where moose are common. This produces very-often-fatal results for the moose and often-fatal results for the occupants of the vehicles that collide with them (to say nothing of the condition of the vehicle itself), because a moose is so tall that when its legs are knocked out of the way, the rest of the moose just skips over the hood and crushes the people inside. Of course, the moose -- like the drivers that run into them -- are just trying to go somewhere. Just as the driver might not expect a sudden obstacle when rounding a bend, the moose doesn't expect an object to appear out of nowhere coming toward them at dazzling speed. Paired with the prominent notices of animal crossing, it is more often human complacency than the animals' fault -- especially if the driver is driving over the speed limit around blind corners at dusk or dawn when the moose are most active. Road engineering mitigates this with cleared road shoulders, gigantic fences, and/or special underpasses for the moose to walk through, although these are obviously expensive and installed only on major roadways and freeways.
88	* In addition, unlike many other prey animals, moose don't avoid conflict. They are large and have no problem fighting off predators, meaning they aren't afraid of much of anything. This can cast them as TooDumbToLive when they're outmatched and seem to be acting in opposition to their own best interests. This is particularly apparent in the above-mentioned vehicular collisions. Deer will often startle and jump out of the way...moose will not. It's recommended by many municipal driving departments to aim for a moose's rear end if you are unable to avoid a collision, both to minimize the amount of moose through your windshield, and because the moose just might continue walking, and you'll avoid it completely.
89	[[/folder]]
90	----
91	->'''[[JustForFun/StatlerAndWaldorf Statler]]:''' Moose sure are stupid, aren't they?\
92	'''[[JustForFun/StatlerAndWaldorf Waldorf]]:''' Not as stupid as the shows they're in!\
93	'''[[JustForFun/StatlerAndWaldorf Both]]:''' Doh-ho-ho-ho-ho!

Context Main / MooseAreIdiots