The cast of the Tabaluga series.
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Heroes
Tabaluga
CD (left), Animated Series (middle), 2018 Movie (right)
Voiced by:
English: Jamie Oxenbould (animated series), Cameron Ansell (2018 movie)
The eponymous star of the series, a young green dragon who lives and protects Greenland. He's also the last dragon in the world.
- Badass Adorable: He's an adorable little dragon who protects his animal friends from evil.
- Delightful Dragon: A cute and heroic young dragon.
- Foil: He is this to Arktos. Whereas Arktos is deeply feared and unpopular with his subjects, Tabaluga is unanimously beloved by his and surrounded by friends. Whereas Arktos is mean to everyone around him and only things about himself, Tabaluga is a Nice Guy who likes helping others. Whereas Arktos is generally a Dirty Coward who usually only fights when he has an advantage and often relys on trickery, Tabaluga is brave and always protects others even if the odds are against him. Lastly, of course, while Arktos represents snow, ice and the cold, Tabaluga represents fire and warmth.
- Informed Attribute: The original German intro song, which is sung from his point of view, implies that Tabaluga, while still grateful for Tyrion's help, wants to step out of his father's shadow and do his own thing. He never talks about or displays any such ambitions in the actual show.
- Last of His Kind: After the death of his father, he is the the last dragon in his world.
- Nice Guy: He's very kind and cares a lot about helping his friends.
- Parental Abandonment: Due to the fact that his father is dead and nothing is known about his mother, Tabaluga is an orphan.
- The Power of Love: in the 2018 movie, his love for Lily is the source of his fire. He briefly loses it when he believes Lily to have died, only for it to return when this is not the case.
- Quest for Identity: Tabaluga spends much of the 2018 movie unable to breath fire, and suffers some angst because he feels without it he's not a "real dragon."
- Royals Who Actually Do Something: In the animated series, he is the prince of Greenland. As the main character, he is also the one helping others and defending Greenland the most.
- Save the Villain: In the animated series. This sometimes backfires on him.
- In the second-to-last episode of season 2, The Sands of Doom, Humsin asks Tabaluga to help him. The help turns out to be a trap with Humsin summoning a tornado, and Greenland ends up turning into a desert.
- In the season 3 episode Where is Winter?, Arktos is deathly ill, and Tabaluga has to go back in time to acquire a long-lost flower, which will cure the snowman.
- Single Line of Descent: Tabaluga is the only son of Tyrion. In the animated series, Tyrion was, the former protector and king of Greenland.
- Universally Beloved Leader: In the animated series, he is unanimously loved by his people.
Lilli/Lily
Voiced by:
English: Mackenzie Ziegler (2018 movie; American), Kristin Fairlie (2018 movie, International)
German: Yvonne Catterfeld (2018 movie)
Tabaluga's Love Interest, the artificial daughter of Arktos.
- Artificial Human: Lilli was created via Arktos sculpting her from ice and snow and bringing her to life via magic.
- Become a Real Boy: In Tabaluga und Lilli, she initially works like a clockwork doll and can only move when wound up. Tabaluga is able to use his fire to melt her heart, freeing her from this restriction and making her truly alive.
- Heel–Face Turn: In almost all works featuring her, she turns away from Arktos to live with Tabaluga in Greenland.
- Honey Trap: A G-rated version. Arktos created Lilli not only as a daughter, but to lure Tabaluga in to destroy him.
- Interspecies Romance: Lilli, a human sculpted out of ice and snow, and Tabaluga, a fire-breathing dragon.
- Locked Out of the Loop: In the 2018 film, Lilli was never told what her true purpose was by Arktos, knowing only that she should bring any dragon she met straight to him. When she overhears the truth from him, she pulls her Heel–Face Turn and resolves to stop the war between Iceland and Greenland.
- Love Interest: To Tabaluga himself.
- My God, What Have I Done?: In the 2018 movie, Lilli is distraught when she overhears Arktos gloating about using her to lure Tabaluga into a trap.
- Nice Girl: Is sweet, caring and friendly - the complete opposite of her father.
Happy
Voiced by:
English: Robyn Moore
Tabaluga's best friend in the animated series.
- Best Friend: She is Tabaluga's best friend being the one he turns to the most when he is unsure and going with him on most adventures.
- Canon Immigrant: She was created exclusively for the show.
- Number Two: She is Tabaluga's best friend, constand companion and often times acts as the more cautious and rational of the two. She is also the one to take charge of the situation if Tabaluga is in trouble.
- Undying Loyalty: To Tabaluga. She always stands with him, no matter the situation.
Digby
Voiced by:
English: Robyn Moore
A mole who is one of Tabaluga's closest friends.
- Canon Immigrant: Like many characters, he was exclusively created for the animated series.
- Smart People Wear Glasses: He is a mole who wears a pair of glasses.
Nessaja
Animated Series (right), 2018 Movie (left)
Voiced by:
English: Robyn Moore (animated series), Elizabeth Hanna (2018 movie)
And old and wise turtle who acts as an advisor to Tabaluga.
- Wise Old Turtle: Nessaja is a giant turtle with an elderly appearance. She acts as a mentor to Tabaluga.
Shouhu
Voiced by:
English: Keith Scott
Tyrion's friend who was taken captive by Arktos and forced to serve him. He gets released at the end of season 1 and acts as and advisor to Tabaluga from then on.
- Canon Immigrant: He was created exclusively for the animated series.
- Forced into Evil: He was taken captive by Arktos and forced to work for him. However, he is still loyal to his home Greenland.
- The Owl-Knowing One: A wise, sorcerous owl who is also a seer.
- Seers: Shouhou has the ability to see to faraway places using his crystal ball.
Tyrion
Animated Series (right), 2018 Movie (left)
Voiced by:
English: Keith Scott (animated series), Rick Miller (2018 movie)
Tabaluga's father. In the animated series, he's the former king of Greenland.
- Killed Off for Real: Every incarnation of the character dies. His orginal version is killed by the Lord of Hate Deimon, while in the animated series and movie, he is killed by Arktos. However, he still guides Tabaluga as a Spirit Advisor.
- Nice Guy: Like his son, he likes helping people. In the animated series, Arktos uses this to his advantage to lure him into a trap which ends up with him weakened enough to be kill by the snowman.
- Royals Who Actually Do Something: In the animated series, he is the king of Greenland and acts as Greenland's protector actively helping others.
- Spirit Advisor: Tyrion acts as a guide to Tabaluga even after his death. The ways they communicate change between the works:
- In music albums and season 1 of the animated series, Tyrion visits Tabaluga in his dreams.
- In season 2, Tyrion appears in a cloud on the sky.
- In season 3, Tyrion talks with Tabaluga only once in the Crystal Cave in series finale.
- Universally Beloved Leader: In the animated series, he is remembered as a good king by his subjects.
Villains
Arktos
CD (left), Animated Series (middle), 2018 Movie (right)
Voiced by:
English: Keith Scott (animated series), Benedict Campbell (2018 movie)
The main antagonist of the series, a living snowman who rules Iceland and wants to fill the entire world with ice and snow.
- 0% Approval Rating: In the animated series, due to his attitude towards others, he is disliked by majority of his subjectsnote ; they are quick to abandon him if given the opportunity. Lampshaded by Arktos himself:Arktos (to Bilingua): Don't make me laugh! Nobody is loyal to me! My 'loyal' subjects would boil me in hot water if they had half a chance!'''
- Achilles' Heel: Heat. As a snowman, the hotter it is, the more he is in danger of melting - yet, he does not die. Does not apply to season 3 of the show.
- Adaptational Villainy: In the movie, he is a lot more evil than his original counterpart where was more of an Ineffectual Sympathetic Villain where in the film he is He is responsible for killing Tabluga's parents and the rest of the dragons.
- A God Am I: In his song "Der Schlüssel zur Macht," he explicitly claims "Ich bin ein Gott" ("I am a God.") In the English dub of the 2018 movie, this line is retained and translated literally.
- And I Must Scream: In the finale, after having his own powers rebound upon him, Arktos is frozen solid in a block of ice.
- An Ice Person: Has magical powers that let him freeze nearly everything.
- Ascended Extra: In the audio books he was a Plot-Irrelevant Villain but the fans liked him so much that the creators made him the main antagonist of the animated television series.
- Bad Boss: In the animated series, he's very demanding and both verbally and physically abusive to his subjects.
- Big Bad: Arktos is the main villain of pretty much every incarnation of the series.
- Butt-Monkey: Whenever he finds himself in a predicament he would get stuck in his castle's floors it have bad things happen to him.
- Can't Kill You, Still Need You: The reason Tabaluga doesn't kill him. Tabaluga realises at the end of season 1 that, as the avatar of winter, Arktos is simply too important to the balance of nature to be killed.
- The Collector: In season 1 he used to have a Living Museum Exhibit. He would freeze different species of citizens of Iceworld or Greenland and put them in a room called "The Hall of Fame". In the last episode of season 1 they all escaped because of Tabaluga.
- Control Freak: In the first episode of the 90's cartoon, he reveals that the reason he wants to freeze everything is because he hates the "mishmash of colors" in the world and wants to see nothing but white snow and ice. When he succeeds in freezing a nearby meadow, he freaks out when he sees one single tree left untouched.
- Dirty Coward: Zig-zagged. Despite his great power, he often times relys on trickery to get an advantage over his enemies. Further, he can be scared fairly easily. In those instances, his first instinct is usually flight rather than fight. However, once he understands the situation he is in, he can become quite brave and even start fights himself even without a clear advantage on his side.
- Dragged into Drag: In the last episode of season 1 he wears a purple girly apron, ruffle gloves and a purple flower on his hat. He probably had to dress like that to look more friendly to the Greenlanders while he served them ice-cream (the whole season everyone was afraid of him). James is also wearing a pink girly apron and a bonnet and he probably was the one who convinced Arktos to dress that way. It can also fall under Bad Job, Worse Uniform because Arktos works as an ice cream man now.
- Evil Is Deathly Cold: Arktos is a snowman leads an army of ice-dwelling animals. He wants to fill the world with snow so he can rule it all.
- Evil Is Hammy: He is a very vain guy who loves the sound of his own voice, and therefore he tends to use pretty much any occasion to launch into scenery-chewing speeches.
- Foil: To Tabaluga. Whereas Tabaluga is unanimously beloved by his subjects and surrounded by friends, Arktos is deeply feared and unpopular with his subjects. Whereas Tabaluga is a Nice Guy who likes helping others, Arktos is mean to everyone around him and only thinks about himself. Whereas Tabaluga is brave and always protects others even if the odds are against him, Arktos is generally a Dirty Coward who usually only fights when he has an advantage and often relys on trickery. Lastly, of course, while Tabaluga represents fire and warmth, Arktos represents snow, ice and the cold.
- Manipulative Bastard: One of his greatest strengths is being able to lie and trick people. His Villain Song, Der Schlüssel zur Macht, makes it quite clear through the second verse:My star role is the great seducer,
I'm acting as a friend to you, this has always worked.
You believe in me and become the loser.
Come, let us drink and celebrate your doom! - Freudian Excuse: It was revealed in "Tabaluga & Leo Christmas Special" that he thought his mother was melted by the Greenlanders when she tried to conquer Greenland for the last time and that was the reason he wanted to avenge her and continue to conquer Greenland for her. His father also had an influence on him.Arktos: Know your enemy. That's what my white haired father always told me.
- Hair-Trigger Temper: He can get angry really fast.
- Heel–Face Turn: Es lebe die Freundschaft! has Arktos work together with Tabaluga to stop an erupting volcano and save both their worlds. Afterwards, the two become friends.
- Hidden Depths:
- In "A Matter Full of Seeds" it was revealed he went to the school of pottery and flower arranging. Probably that's why he knew the names and smell of so many flowers in "A Fatal Present".
Arktos: And close those windows, James! That breeze must be coming from Greenland. Even with this old nose I can still smell the disgusting stench of daisies, buttercups, daffodils, roses!- He likes to sculpt in ice and has a sensitive artistic side. In "Someone Is Cheating" he confessed he was a frustrated architect and yearned to build a city in wood and stone too, not only in ice. In "Scary Story" he said he was a member of the junior snowflakes as a youngster (probably a summer camp in Iceworld ).
- I Control My Minions Through...: Fear. In the animated series, his subjects don't like him and only work for him because he threatens to turn them into ice statues if they don't do what he says.
- It's Personal: In "Tabaluga & Leo Christmas Special" Arktos wants to conquer Greenland because he thinks the Greenlanders melted his mother.Arktos: And since then the invasion of Greenland has been...personal.
- I Minored in Tropology: He went to the school of pottery and flower arranging.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: To a small extent, depending on the adaptation. In the 90s cartoon episode "Mother Arktos", he steals a mother crocodile's egg/baby in an effort to foil Tabaluga and defeat him. As the episode proceeds however, Arktos seems to genuinely enjoy taking care of the baby and even thinks of it as his own child. Soon when the baby is in trouble after Arktos leaves it, it seemed like a genuine accident. To add to it, when everyone finds out the baby is in danger, Arktos actually seemed genuinely CONCERNED for the baby's safety, proving that his heart isn't as cold as ice as many think.
- Laser-Guided Karma: In the series finale of the animated series, Arktos, after freezing countless Greenlanders, killing Tyrion and threatening numerous lifes throughout the years, gets frozen in a giant block of ice after his own ice beam is reflected back at him.
- Paper-Thin Disguise: In "Who's who" he is wearing a two person cow costume with James. His carrot nose could be seen poking through the maskHappy: What a hopeless costume!
- Perpetual Frowner: He has a full range of facial expressions but usually he is seen with a frown on his face.
- Really 700 Years Old: Arktos has lived thousands of years but he doesn't look that old.
- Rotten Rock & Roll: In Tabaluga und Lilli and the 2018 movie, Arktos' Villain Song, "Der Schlüssel zur Macht" is an epic rock piece with a sinister, screechy synth playing the melody.
- Sick Episode: He had an extremely serious disease in "Where's winter" and he had to take bad-tasting medicine. He was wearing an Illness Blanket. The disease made him have [[Polka-Dot Disease purple spots on his face and body]] and eventually they got itchy. Tabaluga had to Find the Cure!!
- Snowlems: Arktos is a living version of a traditional snowman, complete with top hat and carrot nose.
- Take Over the World: His plan is to freeze the world and take control of it.
- Trademark Favorite Food: Arktos is very fond of chocolate ice cream.
- Un Explained Recovery: Since the TV movie Tabaluga and Leo is sequel to series Arktos appear perfecfully fine and is unfrozen with no explaination.
- Tyrant Takes the Helm: In the 2018 film, at least. According to the narration in the beginning, Greenland and Iceland were at peace until Arktos seized the throne of Iceland and began to kill off the dragons. His taking control was what lead to the separation of both lands from each other by the storm wall.
- Ungrateful Bastard: In the animated series, despite being saved by Tabaluga on more than one occasion, he still wages war on Greenland and wants to defeat Tabaluga.
- Villainin A White Suit: He called himself the devil in white in his song.
- Villain Song: In Tabaluga und Lilli, he had a song called "Der Schlüssel zur Macht" (The Key to Power), in which he boasts about his great power and dark intentions. This song returns in the 2018 animated film, and this was also the first time it was dubbed into English, with the name "Devil In White."
- Villain with Good Publicity: At the beginning of the 2018 movie, he is well liked by his subjects.
James/Mirmel
Animated Series (Left), 2018 Movie (Right)
"I'm more a henchman/sidekick."
Voiced by:
English: Keith Scott
Arktos' butler and right-hand man, a penguin who is very subservient to him.
- Adaptation Name Change: While is named James in the franchise he is renamed Mirmel in the film.
- Adaptation Species Change: He was an Emperor penguin of sorts in Albums and novels here his's a Macaroni penguin
- Adaptational Ugliness: In the movie he is way skinnier and looks more like Macaroni penguin than his previous incarnations.
- Ambiguously Gay: There are implications that James might have romantic feelings for Arktos. In "Double trouble" he was offered the opportunity to stay in Greenland but he refused and said that Iceland is his home and that Arktos needs him. He is also noticeably feminine, he admitted that he loves dressing up, he wouldn't mind if his feathers would be permanently pink and also wears a pink apron sometimes. Lampshaded:Attila (to James): Get it yourself, you twink!
- Butt-Monkey: Whenever he fails his master's plans back in Season 1, he would be frozen by Arktos. Also, when he acts on Arktos' orders, he will run into an accident.
- Beleaguered Assistant: His master, Arktos, is often abusive to him.
- Cartoon Penguin: He's a penguin butler wearing a bow tie and a tailcoat.
- Character Development: He starts out the series as the only Arktos' completely loyal servant. As the series progressess, the loyalty slowly weakens, though not to the point of open opposition. He also becomes nicer to Greenlanders.
- Disguised in Drag: In "Mister Nice Guy", when Arktos told him he needed a disguise James dressed up as a ballerina for a bit thinking the Greenlanders would never recognise him. In one of the Tabaluga PC game he dressed up as the queens for the playing cards' images.
- The Dragon: To Arktos.
- Green-Eyed Monster: Tends to get very jealous very fast, particularly when Arktos praises or shows affection towards someone else.
- Harmless Freezing: He was frozen a lot of times by Arktos but we seen him unharmed (just a bit dizzy) after he is unfrozen. He even manages to escape multiple times from the ice by himself in season 3.
- High-Class Glass: James wears a monocle on his left eye, fitting for his image as an elegant butler.
- Jerkass: He clearly shows a tendency towards tyranny and takes pleasure in the evil deeds that he can do with relative impunity thanks to Arktos. He even shows pleasure in manipulating Buzz in "Who's who" and without remorse holding Happy so she couldn't move to help Tabaluga in "Little Wonder" even though she was nice to him in "Mister Nice Guy".
- The Jeeves: James is a stereotypical butler with, a bowtie, a monocle, and a posh British accent.
- Non-Action Guy: While he will always do what Arktos says, he is anything but a fighter preferring to order Arktos' troops into battle for him.
- Nurse with Good Intentions: James tried to take care of Arktos when he got sick in "Where's winter"James (to Arktos): Let me wipe your nose.
- Punch-Clock Villain: In the animated series, while he initally considers the Greenlander his enemies and takes joy in attack them, after infiltrating them and realizing that they aren't all that bad, he only continues working against them due to being Arktos right hand.
- Sick Episode: He got a cold in "Hidden Treasures". We can see he was wearing an Illness Blanket and having a Foot Bath Treatment. Later in the episode he had to work through the cold. He had to mine in the charcoal mines for Arktos.James: I should be home in...ah choo...bed.
- The Starscream: Downplayed. He will only try and usurp Arktos if Arktos has already been taken out in some way such as at the end of the series.
- Stronger Than They Look: We can see James carrying Arktos his arms multiple times despite the size difference between them.
- Sycophantic Servant: As Arktos' butler, James starts out the series completely devoted to him.
- The Unintelligible: In the 2018 film he is this.
- Wholesome Crossdresser: He admitted that he loves dressing up and he looked cute and happy wearing a ballerina dress in "Mister Nice Guy". In one of the Tabaluga PC games he also dressed up as the queens for the playing cards' images and he was smiling.
Vultur:
Voiced by:
English: Keith Scott
- Canon Immigrant: He was created exclusively for the animated series.
- Punch-Clock Villain: He doesn't have anything personal against the Greenlander. He only opposes them because he works for their enemies. In fact, he has helped them numerous times.
Humsin:
- Achilles' Heel: Water. Being made of sand, it would result in him disolving. As such, he is terrified of water.
- Big Bad: Of season 2.
- Canon Immigrant: Like his troops, he was created exclusively for the animated series.
- Classic Villain: Like Arktos, his motives don't go further than a general desire for power by conquest.
- Disney Villain Death: Humsin falls off a waterfall at the end of the second season and subsequently dies off-screen.
- Evil Is Burning Hot: While Arktos is a villain who represents ice and snow, Humsin is a villain who represents deserts and heat.
- Eviler than Thou: In his very first apperance Arktos offers Humsin his allegiance and proposes for Humsin to be his dragon. Humsin laughs at Arktos overconfidence, insults him, and decides he can conquer Greenland without his help. And throughout season 2, he actually proves to be a bigger threat and more cunning than Arktos. They do make several allegiances throughout the season though. It always ends in disaster for both.
- Killed Off for Real: At the end of season 2, he ends up in a river and ends up falling down a waterfall, killing him.
Kayo:
- Butt-Monkey: He often ends up on the receiving end of physical humor.
- Canon Immigrant: Like the rest of Humsin's forces, he was created exclusively for the animated series.
- The Dragon: To Humsin. He is the one of his subjects who helps out Humsin the most.
- Heel–Face Turn: At the end of season 3, after being rescued by Tabaluga, he joins Greenland and proves to be a valuble asset.
- Invisibility: Being a chameleon, he can turn invisible.
