Year of the Disney Tiger

On the first day of this month, family and friends around the world, especially in Asia, gathered to welcome the Chinese Lunar New Year. The year of the Water Tiger was ushered in with food, fireworks, gifts, and other festivities. According to chinahighlights.com, persons born under the Tiger sign in the Chinese Zodiac are “brave, competitive, unpredictable, … confident[,] … very charming[,] … well-liked[,]… [and] likely to be impetuous, irritable, and overindulgent.” Tiger people can be “stubborn,” “tough” judges, active workers, “express themselves boldly,” “high-handed,” “authoritative,” and keep their word. In addition, they have “indomitable fortitude, … be competent leaders[,] … will not make preparations…, but can handle anything that comes along.” From this description, those who are tigers have a spectrum of qualities. Similarly, there are Tiger characters in the Disney cannon who also have a broad range of personality traits. In honor of the Zodiac Tiger, this post will look at three of these animated striped felines and how they exhibit some of the behaviors of the Chinese astrological animal.

Tigger: Confident and Indomitable Fortitude

From the moment he meets Winnie the Pooh, Tigger exudes confidence. In response to the question, “what’s a Tigger?,” the bouncy cat isn’t shy in describing himself, stating at the end of his musical number that he’s “the only one!” The sentient plush is confident that he likes (only to strongly dislike) honey, assert that “Tiggers never get lost,” ice skating is what he does “best,” and that the inhabitants of the Hundred Acre Wood love to receive his bounces, among others. 

Along with feeling confident in himself, Tigger also has indomitable fortitude. Even if it gets him into scrapes, the springy tiger is willing to pursue new things. To prove to Roo that he’s the best at bouncing up trees, Tigger exuberantly goes up and up nearly “bouncing clear out of the book.” A fear of heights paralyzes him, preventing the striped toy from going back down. While trusting the story’s narrator to help him back to the ground, this experience doesn’t deflate Tigger’s confidence. Nor does it influence him to be more thoughtful and careful. Instead, Tigger is ready to bounce (with his friends) into the next chapter of Pooh’s story.

Shere Khan: Very Charming and Irritable

His very name struck fear in the hearts of the denizens of the jungles of India. Yet upon his first appearance, Shere Khan is composed with a deceitfully calm voice. The villain of The Jungle Book intimidates (or at least would attempt to) by being charming. In trying to suss out if the “man-cub,” Mowgli is in Kaa’s coils, Khan subtly pressures the python into divulging this information by being polite and gracious. Later, at the conclusion of the vulture quartet’s musical number, the tiger issues applause and praises them. 

Shere Khan’s regal manners quickly dissolve however into irritation after Mowgli stands up to him and refuses to run. Enraged by the boy’s defiance, the big cat leaps at the child in an attempt to murder him, but is stopped by Baloo’s intervention. Khan unleashes his fury, first attacking the bear, next Mowgli, and then the vultures as each try to save the others’ lives. The striped feline’s irritability becomes his down fall. In his violent anger, Khan fails to notice a flaming tree branch being tied to his tail by Mowgli. When he does though, the tiger is confronted by his fear of fire, and attempts to run away from the fiery limb only to have it strike and burn him multiple times as he goes. 

Rajah: Bold Expression and Brave

As a loyal B.F.F., Rajah doesn’t hesitate to boldly express his dissatisfaction with suitors who fail to value and respect Princess Jasmine. He is unafraid to bite off the seat of Prince Achmed’s trousers or threaten to maul Aladdin (disguised as Prince Ali) if they will not leave the tiger’s royal bestie alone. While affectionate and supportive of Jasmine and her positions on love and marriage, Rajah readily reminds her that while she may not have experienced other friendships, he is still one of her “real friends.” He also will not let the unhappy princess run away without confronting her about it first. 

Coupled with his bold expression is Rajah’s bravery. If Jasmine encounters distress or danger, the courageous cat springs into action to protect her. At the sound of Prince Ali’s voice, the large feline extends his claws, has teeth bared, and directs warning growls at the unwanted visitor. Rajah’s biggest display of courage occurs when Jafar takes over Agrabah. After the wicked sultan turned sorcerer forces the deposed royal family to grovel before him with magic, Rajah rushes toward and lunges at the villain. While Jafar prevents the attack by magically transforming the big cat into a small kitten and subsequently placing him in a cage, Rajah readily came to the defense of his human family. 

Rajah, Shere Khan, and Tigger are only a few of several tigers that appear in Disney films and television shows. There are also many Zodiac Tiger characteristics that could be discussed. However, it’s interesting and entertaining to see that the big cats featured here in this post exhibit some of the same personality traits as the animal in the Chinese calendar. “Best wishes, wishing you happiness and prosperity.” 

Pokemon Nicknames: Disney (3)

It's the fourth anniversary of Pokemon Go! Other than a couple weekends that I've been out of cell service, I think I've played just about everyday since its release. So in honor of Pokemon Go, I've got a few more Disney-themed Pokemon nicknames. Since the later generations of Pokemon are less popular than the first two, I'm breezing through generations three, four, and five. So have fun!

Slakoth as Flash

Delcatty as Duchess

Kecleon as Pascal

Chimchar (or Aipom) as Abu

Abomasnow as Marshmallow

Stoutland as Colonel

Simisage as King Louie

Purrloin as Yzma

Unfezant as Kevin

The Genius of Jon Favreau

Most fans know him as Happy Hogan. Some might know him as Monica’s millionaire boyfriend on Friends. Maybe even as the guy from Swingers. But Jon Favreau is so much more than an actor. The genius of Jon Favreau lies in his writing and directing of some of the most memorable, successful, and transformational films of all time.

Favreau really made a name for himself when he directed Elf in 2003, which became an instant classic. Favreau took on a big comedic personality (Will Ferrell), and somehow managed to make a movie that was at once funny and charming, heartwarming and quotable, lovable and just a dang good story. Favreau knew when to let Will Ferrell be himself, and when to reign him in. And then along came Iron Man.

In 2008, Favreau took on another big personality (Robert Downey, Jr.) and once again knew when to let Downey be himself and let his personality shine, and when to hold back and let the story and geekiness and the worldbuilding take over. Not enough can be said about the importance of Favreau’s Iron Man. It set the stage for one of the biggest, most successful, ambitious, culturally relevant, critically acclaimed, and fun franchises in history. Favreau’s direction created a tone that would be echoed in every Marvel movie that followed. In addition to those successes, Favreau also directed Zathura (a fun sequel to the original Jumanji), Cowboys & Aliens (inventive and well-directed, even if it wasn’t a huge success), and several live-action (with tons of CG assistance) adaptations of classic Disney films.

2016’s Jungle Book was so much better than it was expected to be. The story was familiar, but just different enough to warrant a remake. Favreau will direct a sequel, due out later this year. 2019’s  Lion King adaptation won praise for its beauty and hyper-realistic style. Indeed, it felt like watching a National Geographic documentary where the animals were performing Hamlet.

And then came Star Wars. Favreau hasn’t written much, but he was given a chance to write and produce the first live-action television production in the Star Wars universe. What was created was a hugely successful, pop culture phenomenon that is being hailed as the new direction for Star Wars. (See our review here.) Frankly, it’s not easy to please Star Wars fans. But somehow Favreau managed to not only satisfy (but not pander to) fans, he also impressed critics, and made a huge dent in meme-dom with Baby Yoda!

So the big question is, since everything he touches turns to gold, what should Jon Favreau work on next?

Check out our review of Favreau's projects, The Mandalorian Season One and Season Two.

Disney Super Heroes

As an established Mormon Geek, I’ve shown that I have an affinity for Disney movies. I’m also getting into Marvel more and more. Recently it occurred to me that we’ve got quite a few Disney characters who have some super powers of their own. Now obviously there are characters like The Incredibles and Super Goof, who explicitly have super powers, but I’m talking about more subtle characters. These characters have something inherent to them, possibly magical, but more than just the “regular” kind of magic.

Talking to Animals

Snow White, Cinderella, Princess Aurora, and Mowgli have all shown the ability to talk to animals. Granted, Mowgli grew up with them, but still it’s kind of weird that he hears their voices. Snow White and Cinderella even get their animal friends to help with the cleaning (I could use their help with unpacking right now). And then there’s Princess Aurora, who is so deprived of human interaction that she dances with animals.

Shape Shifter

Maleficent and Jafar both show the ability to shape shift. Maleficent has only been shown to transform into a dragon, but Jafar has transformed into an old man AND he’s turned into a snake. Pretty good powers for these super villains.

Snow Powers

Of course Elsa and her ice powers had to make this list. It could just be considered magic, but with such a specific kind of magic, this is more like Ice Man or Frozone (who, by the way, I’m tired of seeing fan art with him and Elsa together… Frozone is married… and she is the greatest good he is EVER gonna get).

Communication with Spirits

Next we have a hero and a villain. Both Facilier and Pocahontas have been able to talk to spirits. Facilier, as the villain, talks to the evil spirits. Pocahontas more often talks to the spirits of the trees, the wind, etc. Not the most useful power in fighting super villains, but still a super power in my books.

Healing Powers

Rapunzel of course has healing powers. Before it was cut, her hair was the outlet for her powers, strong enough to keep Gothel alive for over a decade. However, even after her hair was cut, her tears had healing powers enough to save Eugene from dying from a stab wound. It’s unknown whether she still retains this power, but I like to think that she does.

Flight

Time for the first non-human hero: Dumbo and his ability to fly using only his oversized ears. At first it seemed like he’d only be able to fly with the help of his magic feather, but it only took one leap of faith for Dumbo to learn that he could fly on his own. Now, I doubt the timid elephant would be much use in a fight against super villains, but he could help out I guess.

Super-Strength

Much like Thor and the Hulk, Hercules and Stitch get their super strength from their heritage and experimentation respectively. We don’t exactly know the limits of Hercules’s strength, but Stitch is able to lift 3000 times his weight. These two would be quite useful if we ever needed a Disney character Avengers team. Personally, Stitch is top on my list. The extra arms are definitely a bonus.

Talk to Squirrels

This could have been put up with Aurora, Mowgli, Snow White, and Cinderella, but Kronk is able to talk specifically to squirrels. Now this could be a learned skill and he’s not much of one to be on this super hero team, but he could be useful for developing intelligence… even if he lacks his own intelligence. Regardless, Kronk needs to be acknowledged.

Teleportation/Super Speed and Psychic Powers

As I noted a few weeks ago, there was something not fully explored with Pacha’s kids: Tipo and Chaca. When Pacha was in trouble, these two both seemed to have visions of his peril…. And having to (almost) give Llama Kuzco mouth to mouth. Even more impressive is later when Yzma charges out of their house, Tipo and Chaca have this ability to appear throughout her tumble down the hill (multiple times) and then be back at the top when Kronk leaves. I’m just saying that they must have some sort of super speed and/or teleportation to get around that fast.

Who else would you add to our list of Disney Avengers?