Rocko's Modern Life Wiki
Rocko's Modern Life Wiki
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Ed Bighead


Edward "Ed" Bighead is a main character of Rocko's Modern Life, serving as an antagonistic character and occasional anti-hero or complete villain throughout the series. He is the husband of Bev Bighead, the father of Rachel Bighead, and the next door neighbor of Rocko.

Appearance[]

Ed is an older cane toad with green skin, blue lips, has a few hairs on his head and usually wears a white shirt under brown dungarees and a black bow tie. Ed was once known as the most handsome man in O-Town until an accident that was caused by Heffer when he was the Bigheads' newspaper boy.

Personality[]

Ed is shown to be grumpy, antagonistic, and bigoted (especially towards Christmas elves), but fears his wife Bev and his boss Mr. Dupette, whom he has worked under since 1961. He is known to dislike Rocko, Spunky, Heffer, and Filburt, yells at anyone he sees, and grumbles bitterly under his breath at any situation he finds even slightly troubling, if not annoying. Ed has no integrity, and is willing to achieve his often dubious goals - usually some kind of schadenfruede-motivated goal such as revenge or winning a contest - through dishonest means, ranging from cheating to unhinged violence. In Wacky Delly, it is shown that Ed has a laboratory where he researches Rocko on the regular, and has developed a heat ray in an attempt to eliminate him and his friends. Much like his otherwise polar-opposite Rocko, he has a tendency to overreact and scream at bad situations. Ed's catch phrase is "I hate my life." which is usually said when his actions catch up to him.

In the past, he has had a particularly poor relationship with his daughter Rachel, such as when he tried to encourage her to pursue business jobs at Conglom-O instead of cartooning, and when she came out as a transgender woman and he was initially unable to accept her new identity. They eventually made amends. Ed holds a strong emotional attachment to the Conglom-O corporation, which he is portrayed as either a high-ranking or lowly employee of depending on the episode, despite consistently being mistreated by its CEO Mr. Dupette - however, at the end of Static Cling, he is happy to see the company destroyed and its wealth redistributed among the entire O-Town populace.

Despite his grumpy and unpleasant personality, Ed is not without soft sides, and with help from Rocko and Bev, he is occasionally able to see the error of his ways, and once in a blue moon he may feel remorse for his actions on his own, such as finding out his B.O. bothers Bev in Nothing To Sneeze At. In some episodes of the series, Ed is on better terms with Rocko and acts much more friendly. (sometimes to a fault, such as in Old Fogey Froggy). His relationship with Bev, while occasionally antagonistic, is a lot more positive than any of his other relationships - the two are very affectionate and enjoy "games" like throwing plates and zorb ball chases. As a younger toad, he was friendlier, happier, and more handsome. In the time between the original episodes and Static Cling, Ed has become significantly happier, though he attributes this to Rocko's disappearance as opposed to self reflection - that being said, when Rocko is going through a similar toxic attachment to nostalgia that he had in the past, he gives encouragement to help Rocko have a healthier relationship with the past, and embrace nostalgia and change in equal measure.

Behind the scenes[]

Development[]

The concept of big-headed characters originated from an earlier Joe Murray comic titled Rizzo the Art Director, with one comic showing Rizzo commenting on how his creative directors have "big heads", leading to a group of big-headed creative directors, one of which being named Ed, walking in and complementing one another's big heads.[1] Ed and Bev were both based on grumpy neighbors Joe Murray lived near as a child, as well as a problem happening in Australia involving a cane toad infestation, making them natural antagonists for an Australian marsupial.[2]

Voice[]

Ed is voiced by Charlie Adler, who also provides the voice for his wife.

Quotes[]

  • "I hate my life!"
  • "I have no son!"
  • "I'm Ed Bighead!"
  • "(angrily) You saw my wife in her bathrobe?! (sadly) Isn't it awful?"

Trivia[]

  • Despite aging in "Future Schlock", he still looks the same in Static Cling.
  • Ed and his wife were based on mean neighbors that the show's creator Joe Murray had when he was a kid.

References[]

  1. Creating Animated Cartoons with Character Page 20
  2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dN3pkqDZ1w0

External links[]


ve Characters
Main characters Rocko RamaSpunkyHeffer WolfeFilburt ShellbachEd BigheadBev BigheadPaula Hutchison
Supporting characters Really Really Big ManChuck ChameleonLeon ChameleonMr. DupettePeachesThe FatheadsRachel BigheadBloaty the TickSquirmy the RingwormVirginia WolfeGeorge WolfeHiram WolfePeter WolfeCindy WolfeEarlGordonFleckoFilburt and Paula's children (Gilbert Shellbach, Norbert Shellbach, Shellbert Shellbach, and Missy Shellbach) • Melba Toast
Recurring and minor characters AliciaAmbulance BeaversAmerican Balding EagleBetty BolognaBig Biff Benderhaus The Blood BrothersBob TaylorBuddy GeckoCaptain Compost HeapChuck RoastClaudetteClean Gene, the Hygiene MageneConglom-O LizardsCrappie JackCrazy Aunt GretchenCupidDan the Fly ManDingoDoctor DementoDonald FrumpDr. BendovaDr. Iris MacFropterDriverElkieFilburt's FatherFrank HutchisonGarbage RatsGib HootsenGladys HippoGrandma WolfeGranny RockoJingles the ClownJohn Quincy BigheadJudge SocknerKaren ChickenLolitaMadame DoreenoMagdalaneMitchMortimer KhanMr. BullMr. CheeseMr. GrungeMr. IckkMr. SmittyNoseyPinkyRed DragonRocko's AncestorRocko's ParentsRoloRosie O'GrazieRuler of HeckSal AmiSausage Cult LeaderSeymourSheilaSlippy the SlugTammy the PigThe Enchanted UpchucksThe Hopping HessianThe NewscasterTigerTurdyWallaceWally H. BarkerWidow HutchisonWild PigWilly D. WeaselWinds of ChangeWinnifred Wolfe
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