Xandir
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Drawn Together character | |
Xandir P. Wifflebottom | |
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Gender: | Male |
Race: | Elf |
Hair: | Blond |
Age: | 19 |
Job: | Video game warrior |
Sexuality: | Homosexual |
Religion: | Christian |
Voiced by: | Jack Plotnick |
Xandir P. Wifflebottom is a fictional character in the animated series Drawn Together. He is one of the eight housemates who are the focus of the show.
Contents |
[edit] Background
Xandir represents the stereotypical token gay participant selected to appear on reality television shows. He is primarily based on Link from The Legend of Zelda, but also borrows attributes from many other video game heroes. Xandir's character also mocks the use of overly feminine and beautiful male characters (in Japanese called bishonen) in videogames, most notably in role-playing games. Xandir's costume is also a further reference to video games that feature characters wearing clothing which is either too complicated or too revealing to be much protection. His sword is extremely phallic, with two flesh-colored knobs on the hilt and a matching scabbard. He appears to be a reasonably capable warrior when circumstances require it. This has not stopped him from dying many times over the course of the show, but then he also has multiple extra lives to fall back on.
Though he is only identified in the credits as Xandir, the episode "Gay Bash" reveals that his full name is Xandir P. Wifflebottom; it has never been revealed what Xandir's middle initial stands for, if anything. His parents' home resembles a Hobbit-hole, suggesting parody of some contemporary fantasy elements outside video games. Xandir and his parents have pointed ears like Hylians and other elf-like races but their species has not been clearly established.
His special video game move is the "reach-around", which he demonstrates to a bewildered Scorpion from Mortal Kombat, who responds only with the phrase, "Oy vey". He has numerous extra lives, and is constantly earning more; whenever he dies in the show, he usually respawns immediately (the main exceptions being cases where the story requires otherwise, such as many of the main characters dying simultaneously). In "Gay Bash", when he is trying to commit suicide, he stabs himself 49 times, respawning immediately after each death; however, he is talked out of the act before exhausting his last life. Xandir is left-handed (possibly another subtle reference to Link, who is also left-handed). His catchphrases are "You did not just do that!" and a very effeminate "Oh my God oh my God oh my God!", which he utters while frantically running around in circles.
[edit] Sexuality
In the first episode, Xandir valiantly proclaimed, "I'm on a neverending quest to save my girlfriend!" The girlfriend is a spoof of the eponymous Princess Zelda from The Legend of Zelda; the quest is "neverending" because his girlfriend is constantly getting into difficult situations. After he comes out of the closet in "Gay Bash", she breaks up with him in a verbally abusive manner despite being in a very perilous position with presumably, no one else to rescue her. Xandir tries to commit suicide, but finds a new purpose in life when he falls in love with a gay genie in a magic lamp (a parody of Robin Williams's character in Aladdin); after the genie is kidnapped by Xandir's nemesis, Lord Slashstab (a parody of Dungeons and Dragons villain Venger), Xandir declares that he is now on a neverending quest to save his boyfriend. The genie is seen again in "Foxxy vs. the Board of Education", where he is one of the guests at Xandir's marriage of convenience, implying that he and Xandir are no longer an item; however, by this point, Xandir has come fully to terms with his sexuality. Indeed, in the episodes "Captain Girl" and "Xandir and Tim, Sitting in a Tree", it is heavily implied and revealed that he has had a lot of gay sex since coming out -- particularly with Captain Hero's alter ego "Tim Tommerson" and a closeted fellow named Craig. (Craig, in fact, serves as the basis for a running gag on the show; often, after Xandir has made a point of some sort, the scene will cut to him in the confessional saying, "Right, Craig?", or something to that effect.) Xandir has also been involved with a Hispanic man named Fernando, for whom Xandir seems to have had strong feelings but was unable to convince to settle down. In "Foxxy vs. the Board of Education", he remarks, "Oh Fernando, some day I will tame your wicked ways."
Girlfriend aside, he is one of the only houseguests who has not been implied to be bisexual, being fully and joyfully gay since his emergence from the closet (though he did once have semi-consensual sex with housemate Toot Braunstein, or as he put it, "toss[ed] her a mercy fuck", although it was clear he didn't enjoy it). He shares a room with Captain Hero, with whom he shares a friendship and many pseudo-sexual discussions -- and sometimes more. It is implied that Xandir and Captain Hero have romantic feelings for each other, but Hero's refusal to acknowledge his bisexuality prevents them from having an actual relationship. He implies that he has a very strained relationship with his father in "Terms of Endearment", though he has since come out to his parents, as evidenced in "A Very Special Drawn Together Afterschool Special", despite the fact that it was already very obvious to them.
Many of his sexual interests border on the perverse, as he is an aficionado of glory holing, BDSM, role-playing, and even gerbilling. When advising Toot on how to lose weight, Xandir inserts his sword down his throat, much like a sword swallower would. He then notes that he no longer has much of a gag reflex, alluding to his being accustomed to performing oral sex. It has also been revealed that during anal sex, he is accustomed to being the "active" ("top") partner. In the first episode, "Hot Tub", we see that both of his nipples are pierced, and is shown to wear nail polish in Season Two. In "Gay Bash," he is shown to be uncircumcised. In "Ghostesses in the Slot Machine", he wears makeup, lipstick, and a pink bikini while performing a male strip show in an attempt to seduce The King (who believes Xandir is a woman).
The idea that Xandir possesses the ability to become pregnant is a running gag on the show. In the episode "Gay Bash", when he locks himself in the bathroom and takes another gay test, Foxxy corrects him, telling Xandir that there's only a pregnancy test in the bathroom. Xandir grumpily replies with, "Oh, great. Now I've got two problems." The joke is repeated in "Unrestrainable Trainable"; when Hero tells Xandir that he always pulls out, Xandir warns him that's not a foolproof method for preventing pregnancy, upon which the scene cuts to Xandir in the confessional breastfeeding a baby and saying, "Right, Craig?".
[edit] Role on the show
Xandir largely serves as a vehicle to make fun of gay stereotypes. In addition to the sexual jokes made at his expense (almost all of which come from either Captain Hero or Spanky Ham), it is also revealed that he enjoys knitting, sewing, reading romance novels, and attending ice shows. He also subscribes to the magazines Cosmopolitan, Tiger Beat, Dude'z Health, and Ex-Box Muncher. He is prone to going hysterical when upset. He is the most sensitive and the most emotional of the housemates (though in Season Two, Captain Hero begins to give him some competition in this regard), traits which are based on another gay stereotype. He is frequently depicted as the most caring and considerate member of the group. In stories where he is not the focus himself, Xandir is usually cast in the "best friend" role, offering support and advice to one of the others. Of all the housemates, Xandir has shown himself to be the one most willing to go to great lengths to help the others, as exemplified by his marrying Spanky in "Foxxy vs. the Board of Education" so the latter could have health insurance, and his having sex with Toot in "A Tale of Two Cows" (even though the idea repulsed him) just to keep her feelings from being hurt.
[edit] Original artwork
In original artwork before the show's release, Xandir's hair was dark brown and longer in length, and his skin tone was much darker.
[edit] Prototype comparison
Link from The Legend of Zelda series (Twilight Princess version pictured) ;Xandir from Drawn Together
Drawn Together |
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Characters |
Captain Hero | Foxxy Love | Ling-Ling | Princess Clara | Spanky Ham | Toot Braunstein | Wooldoor Sockbat | Xandir Recurring and guest characters |
Episodes |
Season One: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 Season Two: 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 Season Three: 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28| 29 |
Other |
Running gags on Drawn Together |
Cast and creators |
Dave Jeser | Matt Silverstein | Adam Carolla | Jess Harnell | Abbey McBride | Jack Plotnick | Tara Strong | Cree Summer James Arnold Taylor |