Milquetoast the Cockroach

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Milquetoast the Cockroach was a fictional character in Berkeley Breathed's comic strips Bloom County and Outland. The character has also appeared in other works by Breathed.

Though Breathed had sporadically used cockroaches in Bloom County beforehand, Milquetoast was the first cockroach to become a significant player in the strip. First appearing in the strip's later years, he was a purple cockroach with a large nose, and was often depicted as disgusting and unsavory. He was Opus' recurring nemesis, and frequently found himself besting Opus in battles of wit. Milquetoast has also done such things as squirt chemicals (like Liquid-Plumr, for instance) up Opus' nose and claim he had no control over it. He would also steal food and send subliminal messages to the other members of the Bloom Boardinghouse while they slept.

Milquetoast was also one of the original Bloom County characters to cross over into Outland, where he became a major player. During Outland's run, he was revealed to be an occasional cross-dresser.

In the animated Outland Christmas special A Wish for Wings That Work, Milquetoast was voiced by Dustin Hoffman.

As of 2007, he has not appeared in Opus.