Kid Cosmic (character)
Kid Cosmic (also referred to as Kid) is a fictional character from the 2D animated Netflix series of the same name "Kid Cosmic". He was created by Craig McCracken who is best known for creating The Powerpuff Girls (1998), Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends (2004) and Wander Over Yonder (2013). [1] He is one of the main protagonists of the show who tries to become a superhero after discovering 5 special stones from a crashed spaceship. Each stone can give whoever has it in their possession a unique superpower which Kid plans to use to protect earth from possible alien invaders. He lost his parents in a car accident when the car collided with a semi- truck one night before the events of the series. He lives in a junkyard that sits alongside a desert highway with his grandfather named Papa G and he forms a team with him, two other citizens of the desert town they live in (Jo and Rosa) and his cat, Tuna Sandwich. [2]
| Kid Cosmic | |
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| Kid Cosmic character | |
| First appearance |
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| Last appearance |
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| Created by | Craig McCracken |
| Voiced by | Jack Fisher |
| In-universe information | |
| Species | Human |
| Gender | Male |
| Family | Unnamed mother (deceased) Unnamed father (deceased) George "Papa G" (maternal grandfather) |
Development
Kid Cosmic was originally a character in a comic strip that Craig McCracken back in 2009, where the character was just an odd boy who dreamt of becoming a hero. The character was inspired by Craig's own childhood past. He wanted to focus on the dynamics of what a hero is in the eyes of a child and his fantasy and the reality of what it takes to become one. It was going to be a different take on the superhero genre. This is what Kid Cosmic's character journey was going to be over the course of the first season of the show. To learn that being a hero is very much different to what he had dream so often about.
He also wanted the takeaway from the show to be that a hero helps others in need, not cause fights and punch people around. Which is also what Kid learns in the climax of the Season 1 finale. And that it doesn't matter what age or gender or background you have, you can be a hero with or without powers.[3]
Craig crafted each season of the show to explore different ideas on what it takes to be a Hero. Each season would focus on a different character and the journey they go through. Kid was first to take centre stage in the show's first season, and his story arc is that heroes help others instead of hurting them. While the second season focused on Jo and her story arc to learn that Heroes care for others and what happens to them.[4] While not centre stage in season 2, Kid is a secondary protagonist and comes up with the solution that saves the day in the season finale.
Casting
When the pilot for Kid Cosmic was made, the role of Kid was originally played by child actor, Nicolas Cantu. Craig thought he was incredibly talented and right for the role but since production took so long to get started and for the series to be picked up by a network, he had to recast. Nicolas's voice had changed due to puberty during the long period of time between the pilot and the first season.[5] So the production team had to find another actor to play Kid and soon Jack Fisher was cast in the role.[2] Nicolas was able to come back and take part in the show as another character which appeared in season 2, an alien called Ensign Mainstay. Craig was happy that Nicolas was able to re-join the cast and take part in the show.[5]
References
- "Craig McCracken". IMDb. Retrieved 2021-10-22.
- Kid Cosmic (Animation, Short, Action), Craig McCracken Productions, Netflix Animation, Netflix, 2021-02-02, retrieved 2021-10-22
- "Hero Collector". HeroCollector. Retrieved 2021-10-22.
- thekidcosmic. "thekidcosmic". thekidcosmic. Retrieved 2021-10-22.
- thekidcosmic. "thekidcosmic". thekidcosmic. Retrieved 2021-10-22.