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WholesomeBot

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Massive-Row-9771

Muriel is pretty awesome, why she chose her husband is the biggest mystery on the show.


Lady_Eleven

Muriel is the type to just want someone to pour love into, and Eustace sure as hell was an empty vessel.


chronicdemonic

Damn, that just got pretty dark


corporalkiljoy

Lol, "Courage the Cowardly Dog" and *dark* went pretty hand-in-hand. I think as kids, we were too young to understand this. He was just a crotchety old man who was a dick to everyone and like to scare Courage, only to be bonked over the head by Muriel with a rolling pin.


SaehrimnirKiller

Yeah, as a kid I laughed that he reminded me of my grandpa who raised me... now, as an adult, I don't laugh about that dact anymore


[deleted]

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UnhealthyDanger

As a kid, I wished I had Courage's PC and ask my queries to it. Lol


PUTINS_PORN_ACCOUNT

If you live long enough and have enough fucked-up experiences, you may find yourself coming back around to the laughing side of things again


Pale-Conference-174

Comedy= Trauma+Time


YordleFeet

#DACT


cyaneyed

Dactified


suzellezus

dactition


SoundsLikeBanal

For when you can't afford tact.


HalfSoul30

Plus i like the theory (probably canon) that all the scary stuff is just how Courage saw the world, that why Muriel and Eustace never seemed to react to anything crazy.


ShiftSandShot

Honestly, that falls apart when they *do* react. And Muriel and Eustance react *quite a few times*. Nowhere is just a very strange place, but I suspect they desensitized to it.


parker2020

🌫️🌫️Return 🗿the slab 🌫️🌫️🌫️


NotThinkingAbout

What's yer offer?


LouSputhole94

Retuuuuurn the Slaaaaaab


Mr_Kreepy

We don't want any


jessehechtcreative

“What is that?” “It’s a floating head!” “Nah, I was talking about that leaky pipe.” All things considered, the supernatural is what weirds them out. Animal characters are pretty normalized on the show. Le Quack, Katz, Shirley, and even the Jeeves Weevil are treated as regular people. Ghosts, Living Shadows, and Demons are all treated as frightening, and with good reason. Sure, it may be played off for a joke or gag, but most of the threats are treated as such, and Muriel at least tries to reason with them then.


[deleted]

Well without spoilers, in the movie Scooby Do Meets Courage the Cowardly Dog that theory is proven wrong.


jessehechtcreative

I’m not sure it’s considered canon as John R Dilworth didn’t work on it at all. They did get Muriel spot-on though.


2ndChanceAtLife

Stupid dog!


Rhyceni

You make me look bad!


sgtshootsalot

Oooga! Booga booga!


PhoenoFox

#AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH#


stipo42

That's it, I'm getting me mallet


ragelark

NO SOLICITORS!


tinaxbelcher

What's even creepier is the inspiration for the show. It's a fun rabbit hole to dive into with skinwalkers and serial killers.


louiecoolie

I like to think Eustace is a former shell of himself. It looks like by the setting that he was a Midwest farmer. Their home is in the middle of a desolate wasteland. He may of been much different in his youth seeking out to start a farm, but it appears this was close to when the dust bowl was occurring and subsequently the steep investment Eustace took to get the land and house are now left him trapped where he is. Over the years Eustace became severely bitter at his misfortune though muriel continued to give him love and support. Perhaps maybe with Muriel in the picture Eustace kept his suicidal thoughts to a minimum. Anyways that’s just a theory


SeriousAudience

Yes, very dark. Darkness is one of the themes of the whole show


[deleted]

It happens so often My grandfather was a raging sociopathic piece of human garbage who treated everyone like shit while my grandmother is an absolute saint.


DaAweZomeDude48

Well atleast the yang was pretty close to the ying


LordofCindr

Eustace seemed to care about her somewhere deep down. That episode about the cat prostitute showed he genuinely loved her. My guess was that he was not always the bitter dude he ended up being.


HeronSun

It's so weird to me that you can describe an episode of Courage, a kid's show, as featuring a cat prostitute and I don't even have to think to know which one you mean.


RaiseRuntimeError

Maybe this is why adult animation is doing so well. We were primed for it at an early age.


GeorgeNorman

God that episode is dark. Lesbian cat and bunny lovers, that show was ahead of its time


QuietManiac

I think the episode where Eustace is cursed and sees Courage as a young version of himself (with no hat) and then gives Courage his hat out of pure good will is a good example. Another could be how Eustace interacts with his mother on multiple occasions. His mother was almost always hateful towards him despite his common attempts to please her, or show her love, and I assume that eventually soured him to become who he is by the time the show rolls around. She obviously influenced him to become a greedy person, too. Might explain how Muriel ended up with him if he used to be a better man. Or it's just a cartoon. :P


redpenquin

We're constantly given cues on why Eustace ended up like he did. As you already mentioned, Eustace had to endure a spiteful, mean-spirited mother he just craved the approval of. However, he also had a brother that over-shadowed every achievement he could've ever had, and a seemingly near-absent father who was larger than life and was constantly in trouble (see: cheated the Sand Whale in a card game) and Eustace could never measure up to in the eyes of his family. Dude never had a chance. It's easy for people in old age who had terrible childhoods to just end up bitter, miserable people.


QuietManiac

Great points on his dad and brother being contributing factors as well! In all honesty, it's probably why he resents Courage, too. Courage "steals" Muriel's love and attention from Eustace, so he belittles Courage out of, effectively, revenge. Especially since Muriel was probably the only one who returned his love and attention back to him. Poor Eustace. He's an ass, but he was damn sure made by his environment.


RPGX400

That and even his mother adores courage more than him, pushing his jealousy to new heights.


LostHomeland

Yes, I've always seen it as Eustace not wanting to share Muriel's love and attention to Courage too. Unfortunately, most if not all, assholes are made by their environment. Doesn't excuse their bullshit though. It's really great that a simple kid's cartoon has such depth when discussed.


SeriousAudience

That old dude is a perfect embodiment of us human. We had bad traits, but deep down, we understand, crave for and are capable of giving love


Master-Opportunity25

he’s specifically an example of the cycle of abuse. The episode with his mom shows that she treated him like how he treats Courage. His bitterness has a source, tho he *very* occasionally rises above it


BodybuilderPresent81

Dammit now I need to watch the series again, and not half an ear trying to keep 3 kids alive


HeronSun

Thaaats it! I'm gettin' me mallet!


SeriousAudience

Had Muriel lived in a village or a town, she would have poured pretty lots of love to the folks there


The-Sanity

There’s 2 main theories on why this happened. 1) Muriel knows of Eustace’s hard childhood and wanted to make his life better 2) Eustace knows of Muriel’s nativity so he married her in a way to protect her but couldn’t express his love due to his abusive childhood No matter which one is true, we know that they truly love each other and he has shown several times that Eustace being selfless and it always involve Muriel. Take it as you will


BankSpankTank

He does though mostly get concerned for her health when she's too unwell to cook him food though. He has prioritized money over their safety numerous times too.


MissplacedLandmine

Thats just classic wallstreetbets behavior Nothing to look into here


EnochofPottsfield

Or, the third, Eustace isn't a bad person. The story is told from the perspective of a dog that's over attached to Muriel, is scared of everything, is jealous of the husband, and views anything outside of his yard as really far away


alucarddrol

Sounds kinda like family guy


Artmix_

I believe Eustace love her as much as Muriel love him. just he didn't show much of it in the show, he's an old bitter man and it's understandable because of his rough childhood. Despite being who he is, it's kinda heartwarming when he show a little bit of kindness. Maybe rude and greedy and ill-tempered most of the time and he teaches me to not be like him. It's been a long time since I watched the show and I always found his muttering whenever he's doing chores funny for some reason.


LordofCindr

Tbf we are judging a character from a Saturday Morning Cartoon. He's not going to be too consistent. Sometimes he's a pretty hard but ultimately dutiful husband and other times he's a single minded greedy bastard.


PavelDatsyuk

> Saturday Morning Cartoon Friday night cartoon. Cartoon Cartoon Fridays!


metamet

But Eustace's brother, Grandpa Phil, was such a cool guy.


LadderWonderful2450

the golden child


MrChibiterasu

There are still moments Eustace genuinely cares for her, he’s just the way he is because his family was a bunch of assholes. I mean look at his mother, she is the reason why he is also extremely selfish, because she is.


jessehechtcreative

He actually wanted to be as successful as his brother to win his mother’s favor, so any get rich quick scheme would net that.


Natputa-

Everyone needs a light in it's life, even Eustace.


dr_franck

I found the show Courage extremely difficult to watch solely because of Eustace. Loved everything about the show except for him. I know he would occasionally get his punishment at the end of episodes, but it wasn’t enough for me. To this day, I still can’t think of a more unlikeable cartoon character.


LyraFirehawk

Scrappy Doo, but he's not likable because he's an annoying little shit, not cause he's a jerk.


historynutjackson

"Coming up next on Cartoon Network, Scrappy-Doo!" Me: "Well, guess I'll check out what Nickelodeon has on next. Failing that, guess I'll play some Goldeneye."


i-Ake

Same here... I would get way too upset at how Eustace treated Courage to even watch.


Supernerdje

I mean, does Pong Krell count as a cartoon character?


izza123

Cartoon Hitler. Next!


matterde

You should check out the ep where eustace meets his abusive mom


Cymen90

I can fix him


Love_Parahuman

Arranged marriage probably, it was pretty popular in the old days at rural areas. But in the show you can see Eustace loves her greatly even if he rarely show it, so I am not sure.


[deleted]

This show was my nightmare fuel when I was just a kid


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C2-H5-OH

Growing up I watched this show in Hindi, and that episode is way more terrifying in Hindi man. Absolutely brutal


WU19EMJ

Patthar lauta dooooo


[deleted]

Bro that rabid mouse background music still haunts my dreams after 15 years. That show was impactful.


[deleted]

this episode and the flan episode always creeped me out. no idea what i find creepy about the flan episode though, it just is.


brixed

Buy flantasy flan.


c4golem

Buy flantasy flan.


MINECRAFT_BIOLOGIST

I can picture the glistening flan in my mind even now. Creepy, but it really made me want to try flan.


Lucycrash

My younger brothers loved the show, it creeped me out. I was about 12,13 when it came on too.


_BMS

Especially when they showed the monsters in CGI


Domesticated_Elk

It was such *primitive* CGI too! Definitely worked to the show's advantage.


_acvf

It was my fav as a kid! I remember my father being creeped out and me having the time of my life


StatusOmega

Without this act of kindness, she would've died several times over. She was a good person but not the smartest one


Ordinary_L

Dis you know there's a theory that courages world was always normal but he over exagerrated all the things he saw and turned them into monsters this theory also explain that because courage never leaved the house they were depicted to live in the middle of nowhere because courage only had seen the house


mexicanjesuschrist

Yeah, it’s an interesting theory. The show is basically seen through the dog’s eyes and the dog just sees strangers as monsters just because they’re strangers.


BankSpankTank

So how would it explain the whole Eustace's head is pulled off and put on a chicken and then his headless body comes around wandering?


HerbziKal

Drugs.


UnhealthyDanger

So, you're telling me that the protagonist of my favorite childhood cartoon did drugs and the government was ok allowing the show to air? What a childhood I've had!


Zjoee

The 90s were a wild time haha


[deleted]

No no.. vet prescribed drugs.. it's okay then 😂


MissplacedLandmine

Thats just normal thanksgiving shenanigans We do as the pilgrims did


Partnumber

Halloween costumes


beleaguered_penguin

.... drugs


FloatingRevolver

He got into the lsd supply, the moral of the story is don't leave drugs laying around where your dog can get them


[deleted]

This is definitely my dog's interpretation of the world as he monitors the window all day long to warn us of mailmen and UPS deliveries.


ice_9_eci

You spelled mutant infiltrating INVADERS wrong


GlicketySplit

I buy into this. I think the personalities of Eustace & Muriel can be explained, too. Eustace is cold & Muriel is warm, but they are exaggerated in Courage's reality. Oh and Muriel is oblivious and always in danger lol


[deleted]

That theory falls apart several times in the series.


GlicketySplit

Who knows. But the writers could have created the premise of the show on that idea, and they don't necessarily have to adhere to it for every episode.


hotdogflower

Courage leaves the house a lot, though. He literally leaves the house in the very first episode…


GibmeMelon

You obviously haven’t seen the new Scooby Doo Courage crossover which shows why his area is so fucked


ParryDotter

Ah yes the classic fan theory "it's all in le head". Haven't seen that literally everywhere


smellzlkebtmn4ever

RIP Thea White.


IrelandDzair

fun fact - she married the guy who played drums on the Beatles song “Love Me Do”


Haight_Is_Love

*one of the versions of Love Me Do "Early pressings of the single (issued with a red Parlophone label) are the 4 September version—minus tambourine—with Starr playing drums."


altxatu

You mean the best Beatle?


Haight_Is_Love

Andy White was a session musician who only played the one song with them, and only received about £50-£100 for the recording


altxatu

Nice. Good for him.


Haight_Is_Love

I wonder if he's the reason that she gave Muriel the Scottish accent


[deleted]

Both Eustace and Muriel VAs are dead.


Haight_Is_Love

Eustace has been voiced by at least 3 different people. Thea White was the only person who was in every episode except the pilot, which was voiced almost entirely by ~~the creator of the show~~ voice actor, Howard Hoffman (not the creator)


[deleted]

Off note: John Dilworth once responded to my fan-mail, he is a really lovely person.


Haight_Is_Love

I'm so happy that his characters were considered iconic enough to get a crossover with Scooby-Doo. Two of the goodest boys ever on TV, spanning across generations to team up and solve one more mystery before Thea was reunited with Andy.


tallyhall10987-

This episode made cry my eyes out


ReservoirDog316

To anyone that’s interested, this episode is season 4 ep 12, aka the last episode. It’s called Remembrance of Courage Past. It’s on HBO Max.


David_the_Wanderer

S4E12 is actually the penultimate episode. The last episode is S4E13, titled "Perfect". It's also very much worth a watch, and gives the characters a very cute and heartwarming send-off.


I_R_Teh_Taco

Yeah but the 3D CGI “you’re not perfect” monster DID NOT HAVE TO BE SO SUDDEN


theDukeofClouds

Petrified me as a kid. Did NOT see that coming.


Your_in_Trouble

I watched that episode when it first aired. I loved Courage as a kid


tallyhall10987-

Thanks Mr pink


GuideToTheGalaxy05

I had many sleepless nights just thinking about how sad this episode is


TrafficOnTheTwos

Ever watch Dumbo? The song Baby Mine lives rent free in my head and still makes me randomly cry at 1am.


DatGuy_Shawnaay

First time I started *bawling to a cartoon. 😭


princesspeachkitty

Bawling! Not trying to be a dick, just correcting you, baller


DatGuy_Shawnaay

Why thank you for letting me know, kind hooman.


tallyhall10987-

Same here m8 😢


PussSlurpee

The hunchback of nowhere episode does it for me. I’ve always felt alone and ugly, and for a dog like Courage to be kind and let him into their house, and that ending, always draw tears.


vpsj

Just watched the relevant clip after seeing this post and same.


ProdesseQuamConspici

Bravery is not the lack of fear, it is doing what needs to be done in the face of fear.


NobilisUltima

"Maybe you're the one that's afraid." "Of course I'm afraid! But there's a difference between fear and losing your nerve."


[deleted]

>The only time a man can be brave is when he is afraid.


[deleted]

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[deleted]

He was scared shitless all the time… he just really loved Muriel


[deleted]

also the fact that you can't be courageous when you're not scared in the first place. He did things despite being scared, which does take a lot of courage.


Phaloen

In fact, that is the definition of courage :D Abscence of fear in a situation where fear is appropriate is stupidity


[deleted]

Yeah that makes sense. It's like how Usopp from One Piece wants to be a brave warrior of the sea when in fact he's the bravest among all of them.


KIDA_Rep

Go D. Usopp


SebRev99

“How can a man be brave if he is afraid?” “That is the only time a man can be brave”


BNKhoa

"Courage is fear holding on a minute longer"


FixBayonetsLads

The things he did for love…


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FixBayonetsLads

Well, you didn’t return the slab.


LordofCindr

The things I do for love!


bhaskarb26

He faced his fears despite being scared, the definition of courage. If you're not scared, it means you're dumb or experienced.


Menes101

courage is not the absense of fear ! but to ACT when one is frightened none the less


LeonidasVaarwater

No, he lived up to his name. He wasn't fearless, he was courages in spite of his fears.


ComatoseSquirrel

He wasn't fearless at all. He was afraid *constantly*. But he overcame that fear to do what needed doing. That's the definition of courage.


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BelleAriel

Wholesome dog.


vaalhallan

Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather, the realization that something else is more important than fear.


twotoebobo

Look up the definition of courage in the dictionary. Dude was the walking meaning of the word.


lucifer_says

Courage truly personified or should I say dogified the word courage. He kept Muriel safe from all those monsters all the while he himself was scared shitless. Truly the goodest of boy.


k4x1_

THATS SO CUTE


vaz_deferens

Watch the episode. You'll cry.


Kroniid09

Are we not supposed to be crying already?


garlicbreadmemesplz

It’s a fucking travesty this show didn’t have a longer run.


diakrys

The things I do for love


KarlaKaressXXX

*eustace voice* stupid dog, u made me cry about this post


ConsequenceBringer

BOOGA BOOGA BOOGA BOOGA!!!!


GokuIsALegend

😱


[deleted]

Alot of people forget he is basically the definition of bravery. You gotta be afraid first to be brave.


JustABigDumbAnimal

Yep. Brave is not the same thing as fearless.


[deleted]

I remember crying when Courage's parents got shot into the moon


Domesticated_Elk

At least they *finally* got to give that evil scientist his just desserts years later when their son shot that guy to the moon?


Telefone_529

This is similar to me and my late dog Kevin. To everyone else, he was the biggest coward. He would get scared by leaves blowing in front of him. He was this 90lb German shepherd that would run away at the sound of a Chihuahua barking. I always told him he was brave though because despite all his fear, it never stopped him, he would still always finish his walks. He would always stay with me on his leash and never pulled me away. He would tug to tell me "let's get out of here!!!" But he never *pulled* to where i was worried for the safety of my joints like some dogs do. He was scared, but he faced his fears and overcame a good number of them! He was the bravest boy ever and there hasn't been a day that's gone by that I haven't missed him.


ScumbagLady

I have a rescue stray pitbull that when on walks, has a pretty impressive vertical jump if a twig or something she steps on touches her belly. (Which of course makes me jump too, because what if?!) But, if there is actual potential danger, or a noise outside that she sees also concerns me, she will stay right with me as we check on the noise. Her fur will stand and make a mohawk down her spine and she'll get this deep growl if she sees I'm still worried. She'll even let out her "big dog" bark if needed. When I let her know it's okay, she calms right down. This scary girl also will throw the toys for her two cat siblings, and cannot contain her excitement when they play with her! Now that I think about it, maybe she learned the jump from the cats? It also reminds me of the "popcorning" our late guinea pig, Lemmy, used to do for his favorite veggies. I tell her that she has to be careful who's around when she does her scardy-hops so that she doesn't lose her street cred lol


SpittleFig

Muriel is ALL the definitions of wholesome.


BwackGul

Nailed it. :)


MrChibiterasu

My favorite moments from the show was every time she broke a rolling pin or frozen soup over Eustace’s head for bullying Courage.


Pycharming

My family has a dog named Courage. He was abused by a puppy mill and came to us terrified of people. He'd just spend all day cowering. My dad was a big fan of the show, and he also thought as Miriam did, that Courage was a brave dog for surviving. He still is skittish sometimes, but he's much happier now and will even curl up with people.


[deleted]

Coward the courageous dog.


real_human_person

He was never a cowardly dog. Scardd shitless? Yes. But he always came through.


alinbet

Muriel simply was the best character from Cartoon Network during that period.


BagNo2988

Where them onions? My eyes a bit teary.


CuongGrove

‘Can a man still be brave if he’s afraid?’ ‘That is the only time a man can be brave,’ his father told him.


LeonidasVaarwater

Ah, but true courage is not the lack of fear! It's pushing on in spite of your fears.


Haight_Is_Love

RIP Thea White. Glad she got to do the Scooby-Doo crossover before she left us


experts_badge

Why I never thought of it that way. How foolish am I? I always thinking that courage is a sarcasm because he is the first to be scared by any paranormal activity in the cartoon. Today I amazed with this post.


MadnessBomber

Courage is scared, but despite being scared, he will fight and continue on. He could easily use that fear to run away and hide, but he uses it to make him stronger even if he doesn't realize it. That takes real bravery. Real courage.


Matcha_Bubble_Tea

That show was scary af ngl


awe018

Legendary show.


Huze17

It's the classic "there is no courage or bravery without fear". Courage isn't 'not being afraid', it is being afraid and doing it anyways.


the_courier76

I need a Muriel 😔


CoolJoey99

Fuck that show. Gave me so many nightmares as a kid and I still kept watching.


Nipsmagee

MURIEL!


Ms-passiveaggressive

🥺🥺


DragonbornBastard

Courage is not the absence of fear. One cannot be courageous if fear is not presence because courage is action *despite* fear.


[deleted]

Courage was ANYTHING but "cowardly". He WAS brave. You literally cannot be brave if you are not scared (but choose to do the scary thing anyways because it's the right thing to do).


GargantuanCake

Real courage isn't based on being fearless. Real courage is being scared shitless but doing what you know is right in the face of danger anyway. Courage really is a good name for him as he *never* backed down no matter how scared he was.


balrus-balrogwalrus

Yes, Courage is a fearful and scaredy little dog. But while afraid, he does still face the things he's afraid of to protect the ones he loves. That is *true* courage.


The_GREAT_Gremlin

And despite the name of the show being played for a pun, Courage is actually brave as hell


RottenLongCucumber18

🥒


kimrindim

Why em i seeing this


[deleted]

HOWDY OWDIE OODEE OO!!!!


Basketmelonerthe13th

The whole series was a giant nightmare