Blu (comic strip character)
- For the manga publishing company, see BLU (company)
- For the hip-hop artist, see Blu (rapper)
Blu (Bidu) is a character in the Brazilian comic strip, Monica's Gang, created in 1959. He was the first character created by Mauricio de Sousa, along with his owner Franklin (Franjinha).[1][2] This blue dog appears in the logo of Mauricio de Sousa Produções, the company founded by Mauricio to release his works. Maurico says he based both Blu and Franklin on himself and Cuíca, the dog he had when he was a child.[3] Blu doesn't have his own printed comics, but when he completed 40 years of existence, a special print was released for him, and titled "Bidu – Especial 40 Anos" (Blu – 40 Years Special).[4]
Blu is the only character who appears in two different kinds of stories. In one, he is a normal dog, owned by Franklin, who fears taking baths (but is invariably forced to take them by Franklin), does anything in exchange for a bone, and plays around with the other dogs from the neighborhood. In the other type of stories, he is a director/actor of his own stories, is highly personified (walking by two feet behind the sets, and walking like a normal dog when acting.) and is famous for the strips in which he talks to objects, specially the rock called Mrs. Stone.
Related characters
- Franklin (Franjinha) – The brains of the gang, and the only character who is closely related both to Blu and to Monica and her friends, apart from Duke. Near his house, he has his own laboratory, where he spends hours, or even days concentrated on his chemical experiments, which usually end in failure. He's also an inventor, building up complex machines like time machines, teleporters, robots, and more. He is in love with Marina, the artist of the gang, even though she has no interest in him.
- Duke (Duque) – Blu's best friend, appears mostly on the stories in which Blu is a normal dog.
- Glu (Bugu) – Not exactly an enemy, but Blu's worst friend. He loves to give Blu a hard time, by begging him to take part of his strips. Blu never accepts, so Glu sees himself forced to perform his famous "imitations", even against Blu's wills. However, in the end he is always kicked off the strip (literally). He always says "Alô, mamãe!" (Hello, mommy!) when he enters the strip, and "Tchau, mamãe!" (Bye, mommy!), when he is kicked off. He has also appeared as Mister B (a reference to the magician Mr. M), a great magician who everybody thought to be Blu.[5]
- Manfred (Manfredo) - Blu's main assistant, appears almost exclusively on the strips in which Blu is a director/actor. He is a secretary, producer, and arranger and is always carrying his clipboard.
- Mrs. Stone (Dona Pedra) – The most famous object that talks to Blu. A single grey stone, which cannot move. She mostly engages in philosophical conversations with Blu, or just talk about daily issues.
- Zé Esquecido – As his Portuguese name suggests, this character suffers from amnesia, affecting his Short-term memory. He also can't remember basic things like closing the eyes when sleeping.
References
External links
