Cast Off Characters - Who will not return in the New Housepets?

[NHWestoN]

Indications seem to be that, when Rick returns to regular Housepets strips and sagas, he'll be going back to the old "slice-of-Life" format where the comic originally began. Still, over the years, he's populated Babylon Gardens with nearly two hundred characters. Many have been regulars (Grape and Peanut, of course) and some relative newcomers (Marion and Lois) have virtually seized the spotlight.

But others - even those part of the original "gang" from the first three years - have faded or even disappeared. "Comedy Teams" like Jasper and Jinx or Fidler and Keys or Truc and Falstaff or most of the Wolf Pack have been conspicuous by their absence for some time now.

So this thread invites the Forum to speculate about who's name will not make roll call in the new Housepets 2.0 and why.

Or, if you're feeling contrary, what so-long-gone character or character set may make an unexpected reappearance, perhaps in surprising new roles (Rufus and the Barn Cats - remember their unexpected "encores").

So, I'll start - I don't expect to see Tiger and Marvin again. While Rick did some absolutely hilarious episodes with Tiger's appetites, his temper tantrums, and his attempts at sophistication, Rick seems to have lost interest in him. In some ways, he's duplicative of Bino. Conversely, Marvin never seems to have developed as a foil to Tiger or any other character (Max, for example) and needs some kind of depth or quirks to define himself better AS a personality.

Now Daisy and Sasha, on the other hand ... well. You get the drift.

Anyhow, something to do while we wait for the curtain to rise aain.

[Amazee Dayzee]

I have a few ideas of who may not make it into the new comic because Rick wants to move on from them. It might be sad to see many of these characters never be in the comic again but if Rick has taken them as far as he could, then he just needs to close the book on them.

1. Res
2. Tiger
3. Marvin
4. Spo
5. Cerberus
6. Daryl
7. Poncho
8. "Four Finger Discount" Jack
9. Falstaff
10. Truck
11. Thomas Milton
12. Other Daryl
13. Dallas
14. Gale
15. Lester
16. Rex
17. Custom Ink
18. Arthur (Aardvark)
19. The Bigglesworths
20. Pueblo
21. Itsuki
22. Elaine
23. Celia Milton (making her a Karma Houdini)
24. Deadeye
25. Boris
26. Rodney
27. Keys
28. Fiddler
29. Yeltsin
30. The Barn Cats

[NHWestoN]

Interesting that you lead off with Res, our favorite anxiety-ridden author and Canadian kitty. Rick featured him in a number of stories, including his extremely dramatic hero role in defeating "TheForgotten" and saving the cosmos. For a time, too, we thought he might become Grape's artistic love interest while rivaling Fox for self-defeating inferiority complexes and self-esteem issues. However, in his last appearance at an author's conference in December 2020, he seems to have gained new confidence and unapologetically claimed authorship of his magnum opus, The Pridelands.

I'm strongly inclined to agree with you, Amazz. Res seems destined to ride off into the "Canadian Sunset" (title of popular jazz piece by Hugo Winterhalter around 1956). He hasn't appeared in a lead role in an actual story sequence (or even a walk-on) since May of 2018. Rick might want to bring him back if he fancies reviving the budding romance between him and Grape, or do another Pridelands sequnce but I'm pretty skeptical of those possibilities. Max will likely remain Grape's main squeeze, Fox has a strong grasp on the vulnerable, overwrought nuerotic role, and the whole Pridelands thing seems to have slipped behind the bookshelf. He might do some sort of a "special guest star" appearance, reprising some aspect of his earlier modes, but if he is going to return seriously, Res will have to add something to Babylon Gardens that isn't in his current playbook repertoire.

[Amazee Dayzee]

I just chose the characters that I couldn't see making anymore appearances because their stories were done. But that is just me and Rick might have a plan for some of them so I guess we will just have to read on when the comic starts up again.

[NHWestoN]

The K9s will likely survive, since they represent a comedy tradition as old as Aristophanes (or, better, the Keystone Kops). Terrance, however, will likely be deported back to Ol'England. His last two appearances were wordless crowd scenes at the police station in July 2019 and King's Wedding in May, 2013. Maybe Rick thought the Force station was just getting a little too crowded.

Also, if he ever wants to do a sequence where a female tries to join the force, well, only so much room for desks.

Spo could be another matter. Spo's actually popped up frequently as a comic dispenser of sarcasm and confusion and, as a partner of sorts to Fido, he's kinda fun. His last appearances were in 2020 before the Marion-Lois sequence took over. Besides, the Force is a pretty serious, sober bunch, so Spo may survive as the residence house mouse humorist.

Squeak is problematic, but I'm tired so maybe I'll speculate about her fate another time.

[Tricksy]

Tbf tho, since I think it was stated somewhere that when Housepets return it will go back to a more slice-of-life comedy style, wouldn't it make sense for very few caracters to disappear if not even for some less seen characters to return? Since Housepets' way of doing slice of life has usually been to focus one arc on a certain group of character and then to have the next one focus on another and so on.So it might be that when the comic comes back we might see more of some of the characters we haven't seen in awhile.

[NHWestoN]

That's an interesting point, Tricksy. A number of the best TV comedies, newspaper comics, and cartoon shows (think The Simpsons will have a small number of main characters but a fairly extended stable of supporting cast members. Often ... and, again, Simpsons is a good example, will have maybe three stories weaving together in an episode and one or two of those stories will focus on one or more of the side characters. Over the years, these personalities have developed almost as much as Homer and his family. Rick has done the same thing in Housepets. I guess what we'll have to see when the strip returns is what established venues he'll recreate (the Good ol' Dog's Club, maybe) and which ones will disappear (like the Zoo).

And like The Simpsons, Housepets always has lots of crowd scenes so there'll likely be plenty of opportunities for "walk-ons".

[Amazee Dayzee]

For some of the characters after Rick starts up the comic again, I think walk-ons are all they are gonna get. Though it is better than nothing.

[NHWestoN]

Maybe a good cast-of-thousands "Imaginate". (Saving Private Peanut or something .......

[Amazee Dayzee]

We might only end up SEEING some of the secondary characters in Imaginate! as Rick will be able to do any sort of medium with roles filled instead of having to do one where only a few characters are used or making the characters he is keeping play multiple roles.

[Nobody]

Eudont.
Pretty sure we're not gonna see him again.

[Amazee Dayzee]

Well considering the fact that Pete, Kitsune and Dragon reduced him to DUST I can't see him really making a return. XD

Maybe we will see a bit of dust somewhere and that will be a cameo.

[NHWestoN]

I'm pretty sure that we won't see Eudoant again because what little we've heard about Housepets II suggests Rick will stay away from cosmic themes - meaning the Celestial and Infernal crews will not return.

On the other hand, as I suggested in a different thread, I think some of the most recent additions will return - Todd, Marion, and Lois seem especially likely. Rick seemed to develop quite a fondness for them over the last two years.

[Amazee Dayzee]

Plus if they don't it would have made the final arc kind of pointless. I am just hoping that with their return they get fleshed out a bit more.

[Tricksy]

I just realised, I know we haven't seen them in ages, but with Peanut about to be a father, it would only make sense for us to see Jill and Earl sandwich again.

Like, i can just see Earl teary eyed as he gives Peanut the greatest heirloom of the sandwich family passed through the hands of generations of sandwich fathers: a "1001 dad jokes" book.

The only thing is that I think Rick has stated at some point that he doesn't like drawing humans. But if it comes to that, he can just say that they were turned into animals by the boon. It wouldn't be the first time we see a character's human parent as another species.

[Amazee Dayzee]

Except with the last time it was by choice and Henry wanted to be a ferret because he loved and was closer to his ferrets than his money-grubbing family.

Earl was forced and even if you think he would have had problems with that (since he was a MECHANIC and he needed to have HANDS and now DOESN'T) you just know that he will pretty quickly accept it as a cop-out and volcanos will erupt rainbows and gumdrops will fall from the sky and it will snow flower petals!

[NHWestoN]

Humans have faded from the comic, kind of in proportion to the increasing number of plots revolving around multiverse adventures, cosmic plots, and
emotional interrelations. Human-animal interactions formed a lot of the humor in the early years, especially "Dads" putting up with or puzzling out the eccentricities of their "Pet children", employees (Itsuki), or employers (Jeves).

Earl and Jill might very well become more involved with a new litter around. As to the rest of the human cast, reversion to "slice of Life" themes might revive their presence but not much more than episodic walk-ons or joke-victims.

Wonder how adding Tarot to the Sandwich household will effect Grape's relationships and roles?

[Amazee Dayzee]

Don't think it should that much as Grape is fine with Tarot and likes her with Peanut. Besides she will probably be glad just to be the cool aunt.

[Tricksy]

Don't think it should that much as Grape is fine with Tarot and likes her with Peanut. Besides she will probably be glad just to be the cool aunt.

Granted their pup(s) are/is as energetic as King's then she has a big storm coming. In now that i think about it, while the pup(s) might leave Peanut too occupied to bother her it's not like having a newborn in the house usally increases the amount of peace and quiet of the house. She might to say bye-bye to her catnap for a while.

Humans have faded from the comic, kind of in proportion to the increasing number of plots revolving around multiverse adventures, cosmic plots, and
emotional interrelations.

Personaly i thought the main reason for the slow decline in appearence from human characters stemmed mostly from Rick's aversion to drawing them, since the boon at the end of HECKRAISER feels like it was made specifically to deal with that issue:
Wants tobring back an old human character but don't want to actually draw a human? Boom, they are a hyena now, problem solved.
Wants to have a plotline where the characters interact with a store clerk or something but animals having a job was established to be an exception?Boom, the store clerk is a human who was transformed by the boon.

But i suppose at the end of the day it's just speculation and there can be other reasons for the abscence of human characters.

[Amazee Dayzee]

Honestly many people including myself believe that Rick only did this boon just BECAUSE he hates drawing human characters and would rather not. He probably believed that this would have solved the issue completely and he could phase humans out. However the problem is that the way it happened makes Marion and everybody else who agreed look bad because people were transformed without having a choice. Just so Marion could get into college and Keene could build up the ECP. It probably put a lot of people off Marion and Keene.

Not to mention many of us are not pretending that he will use this to draw human characters less often. He used it so he doesn't have to draw them AT ALL. Not to mention I'm pretty sure any conflict people have about being forcibly transformed is not gonna be used and people will already be fine with their transformations even if they transformed and their family didn't.

Also about the cure that is supposedly coming? There is gonna be no cure that is coming. Pretty sure Rick threw that in to placate the people who were upset about a good chunk of the world being transformed into animals. As long as the comic is going, there will be no cure. Even when the comic ends I'm pretty sure we are stuck with everybody we see being animals.

[Tricksy]

Yeah, personally this plot point doesn't bother me too much, but it definitely could have been handled a lot better.

[Harry Johnathan]

You hit the nail on the head, Dayzee.

[NHWestoN]

I'm partly persuaded that Rick may just drop the whole transformation thing under the theory that it won't fit into the "return to Slice of Life" context he wants to bring back. Perhaps there's going to be a degree of amnesia about the "animalization era" we've just concluded. Be interesting, under those circumstances, what will become of the ferrets - will they continue as agents of chaos and cupidity as they were before the tribe was eclipsed by Keene and Breel? And will they continue to retain the services of the wolf pack ... and Jeves?

Of course, that contradicts a counter-valing impression I also have that Marion-squirrel, Lois-lynx, and maybe Todd-RedPanda have sufficiently endeared themselves to Rick that he'd like to continue them into the "Post-Game/Post-EPC" world.

[Elwood Blutarsky]

However the problem is that the way it happened makes Marion and everybody else who agreed look bad because people were transformed without having a choice. Just so Marion could get into college and Keene could build up the ECP. It probably put a lot of people off Marion and Keene.

It's heavily implied that everyone is going to quickly find a way to control those transformations so involuntarily ones will likely be reversed. Granted transformation could still get a few more characters like Bill or Earl more into the comedic action or open the door to some fish out of water craziness like turning Bino into a cat, etc.

I honestly think if we're going back to a more comedic mode the K-9 unit would be a natural fit to bring back. One of the left hanging threads was King needing to get a job and, with a corgi's natural position of herding off the table, having him join the force and be caught up in their antics would be an ironic twist. Might also give him a chance for further character development, completing a transition from criminal human to heroic dog.

[Amazee Dayzee]

If he did somehow become a member of the K-9s and took the job seriously I am sure at some point he would end up being driven mad from their antics. King just can't get away from the role the universe has decided he was meant for: the cosmic plaything.

[CryosR]

Except with the last time it was by choice and Henry wanted to be a ferret because he loved and was closer to his ferrets than his money-grubbing family.

Earl was forced and even if you think he would have had problems with that (since he was a MECHANIC and he needed to have HANDS and now DOESN'T) you just know that he will pretty quickly accept it as a cop-out and volcanos will erupt rainbows and gumdrops will fall from the sky and it will snow flower petals!

Where did we see the Sandwiches change? Earl and Jill haven't been seen in 8 years

[Amazee Dayzee]

I know that we haven't and they may not have even been affected by the changes also (though that's unlikely). But I was saying if Earl WAS transformed into an animal it would have been against his will when where Henry Milton died he chose to become a ferret (and is now hitting on the ferret's BIOLOGICAL mom).

[NHWestoN]

I'm not entirely convinced that "domesticating" Kitsune, Craig, and Draig will lead to more frequent appearances. However, the woodland crew might get more appearances especially Jessica, Zack, Ink, and maybe even Badger. Other members of the "Treehouse tribe" might get "walk-ons", depending on the plot - Rick seems to like that crew but Cory, Truc, and Falstaff have been pretty scarce.

Not sure speculating on Karashad would be polite ...

[Tricksy]

I'm not entirely convinced that "domesticating" Kitsune, Craig, and Draig will lead to more frequent appearances. However, the woodland crew might get more appearances especially Jessica, Zack, Ink, and maybe even Badger. Other members of the "Treehouse tribe" might get "walk-ons", depending on the plot - Rick seems to like that crew but Cory, Truc, and Falstaff have been pretty scarce.

I feel we will probably get more appearence from Kit,Craig and Draig if only because of the whole setup of Olive and Craig being friends. Tho that's not a garante.

Honestly tho i don't feel like we see Truck and Falstaff this rarely i feel like the amount of appearence they make has been pretty concistent throughout the years, it's just that they didn't appear all that much to begin with, plus they were present both at the begining and at the end of HECKRAISER so i get the feeling that we'll keep on seeing them when the comic returns.

Cory tho i agree, the last time we saw him (barring the valentine cards) was for a one-off during the hot spring arc. And despite Trinket's involvement with Sterward's plans, at no point does anyone mention Cory or remarks that she isn't with her usual partner. Granted it's still not THAT unlikely that he will shows up again, but if he didn't I wouldn't be too surprised, tho it would be a shame because I really like his design.

[NHWestoN]

I always liked Cory because he was outright larcenous and scheming. He and Trinket made a fun and funny team. The raccoons, who joined the comic very close to the beginning, never evolved much between their riveting focus on food scavaging and being rather dim and bumbling.

We're gonna have a lot of tykes in the neighborhood once the Tarot-Peanut litter joins the cast.

[NHWestoN]

With all the puppies around, wonder if we'll see Pueblo again. Not to mention his mom. The tension between Gale and Bailey cold have some interesting possiblilities - I still think the idea of one of our more assertive females wanting to join the PDK9s (Sasha? Sabrina? Gale and Bailey both?) is an intriguing riff.

[Amazee Dayzee]

I am pretty sure we will still see Pueblo at some point in the future when the comic starts up again. Especially if Olive still has a crush on him. Not to mention we need to read the whole Craig/Olive/Pueblo love triangle in full so we can enjoy it.

[NHWestoN]

Don't expect to see Fidler, Keys, or the limerick slingin' Hermit, though. No place for the arts, I guess.

[Amazee Dayzee]

Though to be fair I think that they were mostly joke characters. Rick used them to infuse a bit more comedy in the comic. I doubt he had any long-term plans for them.

If we do see the Hermit again he will probably be one of the people that was forcibly transformed.

[NHWestoN]

No more Bigglesworths, either, I guess.

[Amazee Dayzee]

They might appear in the background if Rick needs them to pad out a crowd scene but they never really were characters in their own right. They were just a gag that Rick developed because it was really fun and he needed the excuse to put many Siamese cats in the comic.

[NHWestoN]

They might appear in the background if Rick needs them to pad out a crowd scene but they never really were characters in their own right. They were just a gag that Rick developed because it was really fun and he needed the excuse to put many Siamese cats in the comic.

Yeah, as I remember, the last we saw of them was one holding hands with Rex (!) in a background scene in Keene's massive sauna pool ...

[Amazee Dayzee]

That actually could have been a really great angle to explore. Rex, who is one of Bino's most loyal followers is a cat lover. How would he react?

Though I don't think we will be going there however nor do I think we will be seeing Rex again.

[TyVulpintaur]

I'm not sure any of the Miltons will return, honestly, other than maybe a cameo.

[Amazee Dayzee]

I think we need to see Keene because he is now in a relationship with Breel who is a pretty new character and I do feel like Rick would want to continue to write for Breel and there is a lot of mileage with him and Keene.

We also need to see Lana since she is now the head of the ECP so even if she doesn't show up we will hear about her so she won't be totally gone but it wouldn't be a good idea to cut of the head of the program that is gonna help so many (forcibly) transformed people into animals. Though I wonder if her personality change will stick around. She basically told King and Bailey if King didn't get a job, she would raise their rent so high they would be kicked out despite having three pups. Plus there was another instance where she asked King to do something she knew he wouldn't like and threatened him with outright eviction if he didn't.

I think we will still see Rock because he is a producer of television shows and a lot of shenanigans can be done with that ti move some slice-of-life plots along so Rick might end up keeping him but we would be seeing him the least of the ferrets.

All the other ferrets I can't see them ever appearing again though. Mentioned maybe but not appearing,