| Strong Bad | |
|---|---|
| Homestar Runner character | |
 | |
| First appearance | The Homestar Runner Enters the Strongest Man in the World Contest |
| Created by | Matt and Mike Chapman Craig Zobel |
| Voiced by | Matt Chapman |
| In-universe information | |
| Family |
|
Strong Bad is a fictional character from Homestar Runner, a series of animated Flash videos, who is inspired by "The Strong Bads" from the video game Tag Team Wrestling. He is voiced by Matt Chapman, the principal voice actor and co-creator of the series. Strong Bad enjoys pranking the other characters of the series, along with his ever-diligent lackey pet The Cheat and his older brother Strong Mad.[1] Strong Bad first became popular due to his own segment on the Homestar Runner website, called “Strong Bad Emails”.[2] The Strong Bad Email series grew to be so popular that six DVDs featuring the emails have been released, as well as a podcast where emails could be downloaded to digital media players, since its first episode in 2001.[3]
Strong Bad was created to be the main antagonist of the series but since then has become less of a villain and more of an antihero. However, he is still occasionally referred to as an antagonist, due to the pranks that he, Strong Mad, and The Cheat play on the other characters, and his insulting of his brother Strong Sad.[4] He seems to be a character influenced by the American popular culture trends of the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, such as heavy metal music and the second and third-generations of video games and video game consoles.[4] Since he is one of the site's most popular characters, merchandise has also spun off of Strong Bad, which includes T-shirts and sweatshirts sold by the website.[4]
Strong Bad has been one of the most popular characters in the series and has been well-received. In 2021, Polygon declared Strong Bad an icon. In a tribute, they note that "Strong Bad Email was far and away the most popular segment on Homestar Runner" and the series and character have "remained a "massive comedic influence" on others.[5] Segments have been spun off of his emails, including "Teen Girl Squad", a comic drawn by Strong Bad about four teenage friends,[6] and "20X6", an anime-style cartoon featuring Japanese versions of the characters, such as Strong Bad's counterpart, "Stinkoman".[7]
- ^ Chapman, Matt; Chapman, Mike. "Strong Bad's Character Video". homestarrunner.com. Retrieved September 18, 2008.
- ^ Taylor, Lauren (October 24, 2003). "Homestarrunner's antics provide entertainment for its on-line fans". Red and Black. Archived from the original on January 13, 2009. Retrieved September 18, 2008.
- ^ Miller, Aaron (August 23, 2007). "Podcasts". Courier-Journal. Retrieved September 18, 2008.
- ^ a b c Wood, Peter (August 27, 2003). "Everybody to the Limit". National Review Online. Archived from the original on January 29, 2013. Retrieved September 18, 2008.
- ^ "Strong Bad...thank you". Polygon. April 13, 2021. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
- ^ "Strong Bad Email #53, comic". homestarrunner.com. 2002. Retrieved September 18, 2008.
- ^ "Strong Bad Email #57, japanese cartoon". homestarrunner.com. 2002. Retrieved September 13, 2016.