The Lobe is Freakazoid's primary nemesis, and a main antagonist of the series. He was voiced by the late David Warner. Warner's return performance as the Lobe in the Teen Titans Go! crossover episode "Huggbees" is his final film credit.
History[]
The Lobe's background is never explored. All that is known about him is that he is a super genius with a giant brain for a head. The Lobe also has very low self-esteem, as he once surrendered just because Freakazoid told him that his plan was stupid. He takes great pleasure in his combative relationship with Freakazoid, and is disappointed when Freakazoid does not have the time to properly chase him. Freakazoid and Lobe exchange presents at Christmas.
The Lobe seems to be respected by the villain community at large. Many of Freakazoid's enemies came to watch Lobe's attempted lobotomy of Freakazoid in a huge medical amphitheater. Another time, the Lobe assembles Cave Guy, Cobra Queen, Longhorn and Kid Carrion to try to defeat Freakazoid. He plays outfield in the annual Superheroes-Villains All-Star Benefit Softball Game.
Lobe's schemes sometimes have an international character, including turning mountain climbers into clowns in the Germanic village of Schnitzel with an atomic demoleculizer, and terrorizing Europe with a giant cheese ray. He also spent some time in the state of Kansas developing a fiendish dust machine.
He is beloved by the staff of the Washington Gardens restaurant, who consider him their favorite customer. Unfortunately, he has been unable to show his face there for years due to his dubious legal status. One night, after Freakazoid foils Lobe's plot to pirate all the TV broadcasts in history (thus crippling the entertainment industry and saving him from programming his VCR), Lobe decides to have a night out on the town and returns to the restaurant. The staff give him an enthusiastic and very musical welcome.
One of the Lobe's more ingenious and elaborate schemes was to publish and disseminate a Superhero Code Book, along with a rumor that no superhero can refuse a request on his birthday. Lobe then requests that Freakazoid not bother him, permitting Lobe to run rampant, with Freakazoid powerless to stop him, and all the other superheroes away at a conference on some moon. The Lobe's plan is defeated when Freakazoid notices that the code book is copyrighted by Lobe Industries.
When Lobe's therapist tells him he should be more playful, he traps Freakazoid and Cosgrove in a virtual reality game and lets the actual game characters run amok.
Lobe is later among the many villains being transported by Freakazoid on a plane to France when they are captured by Dr. Mystico. Lobe considers allowing Freakazoid to be killed so that he might become the star of the show, but waivers because he is unsure if he wants the pressure.
Lobe is the primary villain in the series finale, having built the ultimate weapon to destroy Freakazoid, the Lobe Finestra 3000. He invites most of Freakazoid's other enemies over for a Freakazoid-killing party, but they are swiftly defeated, and join in a series-ending musical number.
The Lobe is adept at creating elaborate balloon animals, but has no facility for carpentry. He is somewhat vain about his appearance, and has a fondness for troubadour pants and rakish hats (when he can find one that fits his fathead; such hats are only sold at the Big Wide Hats store at the D.C. Pleasant Hills Mall). He loves the "Hokey Pokey" and Johnny Mathis's Christmas album.
In the Teen Titans Go! crossover episode "Huggbees," the Titans' nemesis the Brain unleashes the Lobe (who has impliedly been imprisoned in Warner Bros. Animation's building since the Freakazoid! series ended), referring to him as "the greatest cartoon mastermind the 1990s had to offer." Lobe and Brain team to build the Transmongrelfier, a machine which will turn the citizens of the Titans' hometown Jump City into dog-people, creating the most loyal army in history. The scheme is defeated when Robin utters the word "Huggbees," and it is revealed that Lobe set the machine's self-destruct code to just that word, since it is so fun to say. Lobe and Freakazoid have a fond reunion, and Lobe reveals that his son has just graduated from Evil Medical School (displaying a photo which appears to also show Lobe's wife).
Appearances[]
Season 1[]
- Main Title (cameo)
- Freakazoid and Friends (cameo)
- Handman
- The Lobe
- Relax-O-Vision
- In Arms Way
- The Cloud
- The Huntsman in "Terror Palace" (mentioned)
Season 2[]
- The Steven Spielberg Show
- Dexter's Date
- The Freakazoid
- Virtual Freak
- Island of Dr. Mystico
- Normadeus
Animaniacs Comic[]
Teen Titans Go![]
International voices[]
- Italian: Oliviero Dinelli (in Freakazoid!) and Sergio Lucchetti (in Teen Titans Go!)
Trivia[]
- David Warner played Ra's al Ghul on Batman: The Animated Series, Superman, and Batman Beyond. As with Freakazoid! voice actors Edward Asner, Tim Curry, and John Rhys-Davies, David Warner had a recurring role on Freakazoid!'s contemporary series (and favorite spoof target) Gargoyles, playing the Archmage.
- Although Warner did not watch the cartoons he recorded voices for, Freakazoid! stood out as his personal favorite on the performing end:
- AVC: You’ve done so much voice work that it’s hard to narrow down which roles to ask you about. Do you have a particular role or experience that stands out for you?
- DW: Well, it’s been so long ago now, but I used to love doing Freakazoid! [Laughs.] That’s the one where I played The Lobe, and there’s one where I sing “Hello, Lobey!” like “Hello, Dolly!” So I enjoyed doing that one. And I played a couple of others that I particularly enjoyed, but I can’t remember them all, to be honest with you. That’s the one that I remember and enjoyed the most. I don’t see myself as having a versatile voice, though![1]
Quotes[]
- "It's the waiting around that kills me." (Handman)