Imagine if all sidekicks were
removed from Disney films; what would that look like? Without the help from Flounder,
Scuttle, and Sebastian, would Ariel still be able to defeat Ursula and marry
Eric? Would Belle still fall in love with the Beast if Lumiere and Cogsworth
had not helped free her? Would Simba be able to defeat Scar without Timon and
Pumbaa by his side? Disney movies without sidekicks are like peanut butter
without jelly, lungs without air, or Oreos dipped in orange juice; you just do
not do it. Period.
Sidekicks are the ones who provide humor and entertainment
while the hero is off slaying a sea witch (Prince Eric) or their evil uncle
(Simba). They are also a fiercely loyal group who impact their masters in a way
that either positively or negatively affects their master’s future actions and
character. I believe that Timon and Pumbaa are some of the most iconic and influential sidekicks that Disney has ever created. Bustle has a blog where they ranked thirty-five different sidekicks against each other, including animals like Sebastian, the White Rabbit, and Terk, and they chose Timon and Pumbaa as their number one choice. But what is it about them that makes them so special and so loved by audiences? For one, their humor. Sidekicks, in general, are given the role of providing humor in films because it helps take away some of the seriousness and gravity of a situation. Almost everyone who has seen The Lion King can attest that Timon and Pumbaa are some of funniest characters in the film, especially in the scene where they “dress in drag and do the hula” (shown below in clip).
Their
humor was needed in this situation because without it, the scene would entail
Simba trying to figure out how to distract the hyenas on his own and run the
risk of getting caught. Also, it helps to “lighten the mood” since Simba was
there to kill his evil uncle, Scar, and take back his rightful throne. Timon
and Pumbaa both use different types of humor in the film that fit their
personalities. Timon is a self-centered Meerkat who thrives on sarcasm and
wisecracks.
Timon and Pumbaa were really the iconic duo. no one can ever top them— merry jaidemas / pinned (@comicsnegan) November 26, 2017
Pumbaa, on the other hand, is a sweet and childish Warthog with prominent bowel issues, who often has fleeting moments of brilliance. Being presented as a Meerkat and a Warthog, Timon and Pumbaa take full advantage of their looks in their humor, constantly commenting about Pumbaa’s “prominent rump” and bowel issues. A perfect example demonstrating this interaction of their different types of humor is when Simba, Pumbaa, and Timon are laying in the grass looking at the stars together:
The
irony in this scene is that while Pumbaa is ridiculed for his thoughts about
the stars, he had, in fact, the right answer, whereas Timon was completely
wrong. If you would like to see some other great examples of their humor and other
TLK characters in their humor prime,
look at this blog that "Oh My Disney" made about some of the movies best quotes.
Secondly, their appearances. Who doesn’t
love a cute little meerkat and gassy warthog? Whenever Disney designs a
sidekick, they typically go for the small, non-carnivorous, innocent animal
that looks like the ideal snuggle buddy. We don’t see them designing large,
scary, flesh eating monsters as a hero’s sidekick because first off, they would
emulate evil which defeats the purpose of being a “good guy’s” helper, and second
because they need to be approachable so children will love them. For instance,
in Disney’s Cinderella and The Little Mermaid, the sidekicks are
the lovable little mice, Gus Gus and Jaq, and an adorable fish, Flounder, and
not some scary cat (ew) or terrifying shark, although they are in the movie as
well. The only exception to this theory is in Aladdin, where princess Jasmin owns a pet Tiger, Rajah, but honestly,
who did not dream about owning a pet tiger one day? I know I did.
Another factor that makes Timon and Pumbaa so unique is their level of loyalty to Simba. They not only adopted a “child” that could grow up to potentially eat them, but they also later on abandoned their home and lifestyle to stay with Simba and help him defeat Scar. Mushu from Mulan is great and all, but in the end, he was very self-centered and constantly put his own agenda above Mulan’s (interestingly, the whole plot of Mulan II is based on Mushu’s ulterior motives). If it wasn’t for Pumbaa’s persuasive skills and sympathy, Timon would have surely made him leave Simba to die all alone in the desert because he was a lion, and “lions eat little guys like us.”
Three pals and no worries, what more could you want?— Simba (@SimbaBot__) December 15, 2017
Another factor that makes Timon and Pumbaa so unique is their level of loyalty to Simba. They not only adopted a “child” that could grow up to potentially eat them, but they also later on abandoned their home and lifestyle to stay with Simba and help him defeat Scar. Mushu from Mulan is great and all, but in the end, he was very self-centered and constantly put his own agenda above Mulan’s (interestingly, the whole plot of Mulan II is based on Mushu’s ulterior motives). If it wasn’t for Pumbaa’s persuasive skills and sympathy, Timon would have surely made him leave Simba to die all alone in the desert because he was a lion, and “lions eat little guys like us.”
Also, if it wasn’t
for their wonderful “dress in drag” scene, Simba may not have been able to get
to Scar without being spotted by the hyenas first, thus posing the question,
would Simba have been able to defeat Scar without Simba’s help?
Lastly, along with Timon and Pumbaa’s
loyalty comes leadership that emulates, like the blog “Lion King” states, a servant leader. Through their loyalty,
quirkiness, leadership skills, and insight, Timon and Pumbaa influence Simba in
a way that helps him to reach his full potential and overcome his past
tragedies. One of the most important lessons that Timon and Pumbaa taught Simba
was to not let his past define him and to move on from it, don’t let it drag him
down. Just like what every other Disney character does when they want to get a
point across, they of course sang a song in honor of their lesson called, “Hakuna
Matata” (link below).
Not
only is this song iconic, it describes a “care-free” lifestyle that would end
up helping Simba overcome his adversities and become the king he needs to be.
Simon Tam, a writer for the Huffington Post, wrote an article as well about
leadership in TLK called, “5 Important Leadership
Lessons from The Lion King”, and he agrees
with my statement that if it wasn’t for Timon and Pumbaa teaching him not to
use his past “as a crutch”, as Tam puts it, Simba would not have become the
leader he is and strived to be.
i've always kinda wanted to try the bugs timon and pumbaa ate they lowkey look good— oscar isaac (@erikslehnsherrs) December 3, 2017
In all, I believe that if it was
not for Timon and Pumbaa’s help that Simba would NOT have been able to defeat
Scar and take back his rightful position as king. Even if he had not run away
from Pride Rock after the tragic “accident” (cannot bring myself to say it),
Scar would have found another way to kill Simba so that he can remain in power.
Timon and Pumbaa are legendary characters, and I will always hold a special
place in my heart for the two that made fart jokes a Disney thing.
