The Thnikkaman
From Homestar Runner Wiki
The Thnikkaman is the alter ego of Bubs, wearing a pair of flashy sunglasses and a piece of paper taped to his chest with "tH" written on it. The Thnikkaman does not have any visible ears or a nose, so it is a mystery as to how the sunglasses are held up. Most of the other characters seem unaware that the Thnikkaman is Bubs; in cliffhangers, Coach Z attempts to reveal the Thnikkaman's identity, only to be thwarted by his own bad hand-eye coordination (though he later accuses himself of being the Thnikkaman). This is odd, since he takes off his glasses in the Strong Bad Email monument, clearly showing his eyes. In Happy Dethemberween, Homestar Runner demonstrates that he, unlike the other characters, is aware of the Thnikkaman's identity. The other characters seem to have no response to Homestar's assertion that the Thnikkaman is just Bubs with a piece of paper taped to his chest. His powers (if any), background, and the reasons for the respect given to him are intentionally vague — even the various other characters seem in the dark about the details of the Thnikkaman's existence. Strong Bad even asks, "What exactly does that man do?" His powers of distraction are amazing, as shown in monument, when he prevented Strong Bad from completing a monument of himself, as well as Homestar from finally putting on some pants.
Whenever he arrives someplace, an offscreen chorus sings "Here comes the Thnikkaman!", accompanied by those words dancing across the screen. Similarly, the chorus sings "There goes the Thnikkaman!" with the dancing words whenever he leaves. Similarly, the words "You Got a Call from the Thnikkaman!!" and "Here Hang-ups the Thnikkaman!!" are seen when he calls or hangs up on someone. The singers are first seen in Happy Dethemberween, and they all resemble Bubs. His famous catch phrase "Yeah, shut up, kid!" is usually given in response to the question "Can I/we have some?" (although what "some" refers to has not been revealed). In Fan Costumes '08, Strong Bad mentions giving "a full Thnikka" to a trick-or-treater, implying that a Thnikka may be a candy bar parodying Snickers.
The Thnikkaman has once "Thnikkafied" Marzipan's "Marzipan machine", asking her to join his "Thnikkaband". He is also obliquely referenced in virus, when Bubs walks across the screen with his mouth replaced by a "broken JPEG" reading "TH". In a @StrongBadActual Tweet, a Shark-Tooth Thnikkaman was revealed, claiming he used to sell TVs. In Bubs's Easter egg in Haunted Photo Booth, he is identified as "the ThnikkaStan" by the chorus, due to his Grunkle Stan costume.
On Decemberween, he becomes the "Dethemberween Thnikkaman", a holiday figure vaguely akin to Santa Claus. Instead of a sleigh pulled by reindeer, he travels through the night sky in an unmarked van with the letters "tH" painted on the side. During the night, he borrows people's hedge clippers and then places blank media in their slippers. He also cold calls random kids, offering them discount travel packages over the phone.
[edit] Complete Filmography
- Debut: Email monument
- FAQ (cover drawing)
- Marzipan's Answering Machine Version 12.2
- Email cliffhangers
- Fan Costumes '07
- Happy Dethemberween
- Donut Unto Others (when viewed in a decompiler)
- @StrongBadActual (Shark-Tooth)
- Strong Bad Classics! (YouTube version; Shark-Tooth)
- Haunted Photo Booth (ThnikkaStan mentioned)
- Decemberweenvent Calendar (Day 22)
Bubs variations | |
---|---|
Major | The Thnikkaman | Shark-Tooth Bubs | Baron Darin Diamonocle | Onion Bubs | Old-Timey Bubs Zubs or Coach B | King Bubsgonzola Supreme | Original Bubs |
Minor | Bubsamecium | Dry Ragamuffin | Bubz | Character 4 |