Count Duckula (character)

<infobox> <title source="name"> <default>Count Duckula (character)</default> </title> <image source="image">

</image> <group> <label>Aliases</label> <label>Relatives</label> <label>Affiliation</label> </group> <group> <header>Biographical information</header> <label>Marital status</label> <label>Date of birth</label> <label>Place of birth</label> <lable>Date of death</lable> <label>Date of death</label> </group> <group> <header>Physical description</header> <label>Species</label> <label>Gender</label> <label>Height</label> <label>Weight</label> <label>Eye colour</label> </group> <group> <header>Behind the scenes information</header> <label>Voiced by</label> <label>First episode</label> <label>Last episode</label> </group></infobox>Count Duckula (full title: Count Duckula the 17th, as stated in the episode 'The Count and the Pauper'), is the main character of Count Duckula. He is a short green duck with black parted hair, traditional vampire evening wear, complete with a cape. He has no fangs, although his more old-fashioned relatives do.

Details

As his name suggests, Count Duckula himself is very loosely based on the titular character of Bram Stoker's Dracula. Duckula is a vegetarian vampire duck, coming into the world as an accident. Unlike his family and ancestors, Duckula has no bloodlust, as when he was created, blood was omitted and replaced with ketchup. He is actually quite cowardly, with a distaste for blood and gore, to Igor's disappointment.  

Although he retains some vampiric powers and qualities (such as teleportation and an image invisible to mirrors), common vampire weaknesses such as sunlight, silver, and garlic have no effect on him, as he is not a "traditional" vampire. In the episode 'Dr Goosewing and Mr Duck', Duckula briefly turns into a "proper" vampire, desiring blood from the villagers outside the castle, but he turns away from the door when he discovers that the sun is still out. 

As the theme song states, Duckula is rather zany! Energetic, good-natured, and ambitious, he is prone to short-lived obsessions, sometimes forming the plots for episodes, such as attempting to become a blues musician in New Orleans, prospecting for gold, becoming a cowboy or performer and opening Castle Duckula to the public. He likes to make puns and jokes, and even has the same snarky edge that Igor has on occasion. 

He has a very modern outlook, and despairs over the traditional vampire image he is expected to embody. In 'Family Reunion', he is willing to go as far as contacting Doctor Von Goosewing, his hunter, to help him destroy his own evil family. He hates living in a dark, gloomy castle, and finds the behaviour of his servants to be depressing. Duckula frequently expresses frustration with Igor's attempts to change him back into a proper vampire and his lecturing Duckula as a disgrace and disappointment to the lineage, as well as Nanny's bumbling and clumsy nature. Still, he keeps them around, suggesting that he really does need them. Quite a few times he admits to missing Nanny while she's gone, and always takes his employees back at the end of the day.

Despite everything, Duckula is very immature, egotistical and selfish, often taking his lifestyle and employees for granted. He can be quite childish, rash, and naïve, given how emotional he can be, acting almost spoiled despite his lack of riches. That also drives his avarice, a frequently occuring trait that has him scrambling for money. He does try to act refined and mature, which shows in his speech and fake attempts at modesty.

The character differs considerably from his predecessor on the 'Danger Mouse' series. In fact, the only similarities, other than the name, is they are both vampire ducks with ambitions in show business with little actual talent. The previous version of Duckula was an evil villain, willing to blackmail and force his way into stardom (as opposed to the current Count, who merely tries to get in the legitimate way) and was fixated on being a television star, rather than settle for fame in some other branch of entertainment. He has far greater magical powers and makes much more use of them. He has a thick accent consisting of lisping, stuttering and occasional squawks.

Trivia

• Count Duckula's favourite food, as a vegetarian, is broccoli sandwiches.
• In some episodes, Duckula is seen wearing pyjamas with a Danger Mouse logo, a reference to another British animated television series produced by Cosgrove Hall Films for Thames Television in 1981.
• Duckula speaks with an American accent, despite being voiced by a British actor.
• Duckula sometimes uses alliterative expressions - "Action, adventure, activity, and all this is pretty boring!" "Smart, snappy, snazzy, and say, what's down there?" "This is the end, this is disastrous -- doom, debacle and drat it all why me, why?"
  "Dark, dismal, dreary, and darn it, I just want to get away from it all!"
• When excited or surprised, he usually stumbles and trips over his words, repeats things, and pauses, before getting what he's trying to say out.
• According to Igor, he presses flowers with the bone crusher in the torture chamber.
• The episode "The Rest is History" states that the first Count Duckula was alive in the 12th century. If the opening theme is to be believed, and Duckula can only be reincarnated once a century, this would mean it is incorrect for him to be the 17th count, as the series takes place in the years it was aired.

Photos

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The one and only Count Duckula

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Duckula stranded on a desert island in 'The Lost City of Atlantis'

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A sombre Duckula in 'Transylvanian Take Away'

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Duckula excited about going to Spain to visit his cousin Don Diego in the episode 'Vampire Vacation'