Courage the Cowardly Dog: Difference between revisions

* [[All-Stereotype Cast]]: The show features an '''[[Up To Eleven|incredibly]]''' extreme example of this; Eustace is a [[Grumpy Old Man]], Muriel is a Scottish [[Kindhearted Simpleton]] that also becomes a [[Brave Scot]] in certain episodes, Le Quack is a [[French Jerk]], Di Lung is an [[Asian Rudeness|Asian]] [[Nouveau Riche]] [[Insufferable Genius]], Mad Dog is (debatably) a [[Scary Black Man]], Kitty (prior to her redemption at the end of "The Mask") is a [[Politically Incorrect Villain|Klan-robed]] [[Straw Feminist]], the Flan King is a [[Dashing Hispanic]] [[Fat Bastard]], Freaky Fred has [[British Teeth]], Rumpled Kilt Skin is a [[Violent Glaswegian]], Courage is a [[Southern-Fried Genius]], Katz and the Perfectionist are [[Evil Brit|Evil Brits]], Courage's Computer is [[British Stuffiness]] incarnate, Maria Ladrones is a female [[Bandito]], the General and the Lieutenant are [[Armed Farces]], Dr. Zalost is a [[Mad Scientist]] / [[Herr Doktor]], Dr. Vindaloo is a [[Bollywood Nerd]], Cajun Fox and Big Bayou are [[Ragin' Cajun|Ragin' Cajuns]]...honestly, it would be easier to list the characters that '''aren't''' blatant caricatures in this show.

* [[Ambiguously Brown]]: Mad Dog looks (and acts) like a highly stereotypical [[Scary Black Man]] and has rather-distinctly brown fur, but fur colors are not necessarily the same thing as skin colors.

* [[Darker and Edgier]]: This could be disputed, as the entire series was darker than most other animated series; however, most episodes from the final season are significantly more dramatic in nature compared to other seasons, especially the first. In fact, the show's two Half Hour episodes (''The Tower of Dr. Zalost'' and ''The Mask'') deviate dramatically from the show's usual [[Monster of the Week]] formula, dealing with much more realistic horrors such as depression (in ''The Tower'') and abusive relationships (in ''The Mask'').

* [[Scary Black Man]]: In ''The Mask'', Mad Dog is heavily implied to be one of these by [[Ambiguously Brown|his fur color]], his extremely brutish personality, and the Klan(-esque) robe that Kitty wears because of him.

* [[Shout-Out]]:

** To, of all things, [[Sweeney Todd]], in the form of Muriel's "crazy barber" nephew Fred. The horror is negated somewhat by his cheerful rhyming and the fact that in the end, he's ''mostly'' harmless.

** Also, stock footage of King Ghidorah, a recurring nemesis of Godzilla, appears several times throughout the series.

** The ending to the original short features Courage holding open the iris out to comment "This shouldn't happen to a dog!". The iris then closes on Courage's nose, causing him to yelp in pain. This gag is a reference to the classic [[Bugs Bunny/Characters|Bugs Bunny]] short "Hare Ribbin'". Which is further played with in the sequels. "This ''still'' shouldn't happen to a dog!"

** Also, there are figurines of Dilworth's Dirty Birdy short in the house.

** The twin raccoons from "Campsite of Terror" have the same design as Avery, a character from Ace & Avery, a segment on [[Big Bag]] which Dilworth worked on prior.

** Nedd from Noodles & Nedd (a series of ''[[Sesame Street]]'' segments by Dilworth) often appears, most commonly as a framed picture in the Bagge house lounge room.

** The word "Dil" often appears, this is referring to Dilworth.

** The episode "The Mask" contains a few overall elements and themes of gritty exploitation and noir, especially the violently abusive gangleader boyfriend.

** {{spoiler|Mad Dog's defeat is rather similar to that of Sykes from ''[[Oliver and Company]]'', being too caught up in his fight with [[The Hero]] to realize his car is heading right into an oncoming train until its too late, the crash itself happening offscreen.}}

** [[Quentin Tarantino|Benton]] [[No Celebrities Were Harmed|Tarantella]].

** An episode where Courage, Muriel and Eustace are brought 1000 years into the future, where [[Planet of the Apes|everyone is a banana]], as a kind of inverted [[Shout-Out]].

** "Wait! I sense a disturbance in the Force!"

** In "The Ride Of The Valkyries", a rather dim-witted bird is called the [[Monty Python's Flying Circus|Norwegian Blue]].

** The entire episode "The Demon In The Mattress" was one to ''[[The Exorcist]]''.

** A lot of things the Snowman has said or done are a [[Shout-Out]] to [[Sean Connery]] and [[James Bond]].

** Muriel picking up playing the sitar after an early episode may be a shoutout to [[Star Trek: The Next Generation]], and how Captain Picard picked up playing an alien flute after "The Inner Light".

** The episode "Serpent of Evil River" features a serpent named Carmen who loves opera music. Guess what opera music they used to attract the serpent?...

** One episode is titled "Courage vs. Mecha-Courage". Just take a guess what that's [[Godzilla|a shout out too]].

** In "The Duck Brothers" they have a pretty blatant shout-out to [[The Three Stooges]]

* [[Southern-Fried Genius]]: Courage is implied to be one of these by his incredibly hillbilly-ish teeth and personality (and, you know, his shockingly high intelligence level).

* [[Straw Feminist]]: Kitty is a "hating dogs rather than hating men" variant of this in ''The Mask''...{{spoiler|until she redeems herself at the end of said episode, at least}}.