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Moonlight meanderer

An Ode to Sidekicks

kawaiidaigakusei at Nov. 17, 2014, midnight
tags: and, Banes, Duck, Flinto, MaCoatl, Penguin, Perry, Quail, Restaurante, Strange, Typical, VegaX, Vindibudd



I have been slowly lamenting over the end of The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson ever since he announced that he was stepping down from hosting late night television in April. Needless to say, the jokes from his show have been a welcome distraction from the daily grind and that humor is really the best medicine and it will be missed. During the last few months of this transition period, the rising star to emerge has been Josh Robert Thompson, who is the voice actor behind Geoff Peterson, the robot sidekick on the show. Thompson's unscripted and improvised back-and-forth with Ferguson is one of the highlights of the Late Late Show and one of the strongest Host and sidekick pairings across all networks.

The other night while I was listening to Episode 55 of his podcast, Driving Myself Crazy, he brought up the topic of being a sidekick on a late night show. His role as a sidekick is a great part of his show identity and is a badge of pride.

This really made me start thinking about the traits of sidekicks and what it takes to be a really good professional sidekick in a webcomic.

Here are some examples of sidekicks on The Duck:

Best Friend with Wing Man Abilities

T.K. from Typical Strange by Banes
In Typical Strange, I think that TK could make a good sidekick to Oscar. The two work in a video store as coworkers, Oscar is sometimes caught in the middle of a love triangle between TK's sister, Penelope, and other random combinations of females in the story.

Cute and Small with some Attitude

Kaira from Restaurante MaCoatl by Flinto
Restaurante MaCoatl is without its shortages of sidekicks in the comic. I picked Kaira as a model sidekick because she is an adorable companion who helps many of the characters. Don't let her size fool you, though, she can also have a temper.

Fun-loving, Carefree Banter

Steve from Perry Penguin by Vindibudd
The dynamic between Perry Penguin and Steve the Sea Lion is one of my favorite combinations. Steve is a bit larger than Perry, he is mostly seen with a large smile and sunglasses. Perry, on the other hand, is often seen with angry eyebrows and a scowled expression. In this case, the larger sidekick is the nice guy and offsets the sometimes agitated disposition of the other character.

Unconditional Companionship

Quail from Duck and Quail by VegaX
As part of the history of the Drunk Duck site, the Quail was the original sidekick to the Duck mascot. Though the quail was probably more sober and said fewer words, he was a flagship sidekick on the site.


Are you a fan of sidekicks? It can be a full-time job!


.::.
What's Quacking?
Do you have any original art to contribute to our stock image database, announcements, community projects, ideas, news, or milestones to report? Please leave general comments below or send a PQ to kawaiidaigakusei. Email me at kawaiidaigakusei(at)gmail(dot)com.

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