Yellow River, Yellow Brick Road, Yellow Submarine, what is it about the color yellow? On one hand, Yellow is the color of the sun, smiley faces, and sunflowers, but on the other hand, it symbolizes jealousy, betrayal, and cowardice. Working on this list I realized the vast majority of yellow characters are do-gooders who symbolize happiness, optimism, and friendship, In fact, I was amazed to see how many ultra-famous characters are yellow, and I believe you’ll be surprised too. From SpongeBob to Homer Simpson, in this list, I’ve rounded up the best yellow characters to ever make us happy. So, wear your sunglasses, cause this is going to be bright!
1. SpongeBob from SpongeBob SquarePants Animated TV Series
The overly optimistic and passionate square sea sponge looks like a yellow kitchen sponge without the green, rough scouring pad. SpongeBob works in The Krusty Krab as a fry cook, waiter, and janitor in one. He loves jelly-fishing with his best friend Patrick Star and does karate with an alien creature named Sandy Cheeks, a squirrel from Texas. Now, what can be weirder than this?
2. Pikachu from Pokémon
Pikachu is classified as one of several species of “Pokémon“— short for “Pocket Monsters”, as they can fit in and be carried around inside pocket-sized devices called Poké Balls. He is an “Electric”-type Pokémon also referred to as a Mouse Pokémon. The yellow animated character Pikachu who most people know and love is the Pikachu belonging to Ash Ketchum. Pikachu is actually Ash’s “Starter” Pokémon, which is the Pokémon you receive at the beginning of your journey into the Pokémon world. You receive it from a Pokémon Professor, like Professor Oak who gave Pikachu to Ash. The Pikachu however disobeyed Ash the moment it was given to him, but as we all know, over time they developed a strong bond that kept them going for many seasons of the anime!
3. Homer Simpson from The Simpsons
It’s true, Homer is far from a perfect character and has multiple flaws: He is a lazy, drinking, and quite neglectful father and husband at times. Actually, there were episodes where Homer would choose to have a beer over his spending time with his family. In one episode, he does drink driving and then frames his wife Marge for it. Can you imagine that? However, Homer is a great protagonist. He is cute, funny, entertaining, and does have good qualities too. For example, he is a good-hearted person most of the time, he does love Marge very much and has made lots of sacrifices just for his family. So, in conclusion, Homer is one of the best yellow cartoon characters ever.
4. Sinestro from DC Comics
One of the only evil yellow characters on this list, Thaal Sinestro is a former Green Lantern and the leader of the Yellow Lanterns. At first, the greatest Green Lantern of his time, Sinestro was later imprisoned by the Green Lantern Corps leaders, stripped of his Lantern Ring, and banished to the anti-matter dimension of Qward. Sinestro carefully planned his revenge by enlisting the help of other criminals and constructed the first Yellow Lantern Ring, powered by Fear instead of the Green Lantern Ring’s Willpower. Later on, he would create more Yellow Lantern Rings and send them out to find hosts similar to the Guardians with the Green Lantern Rings. The Yellow Lantern Rings’ new hosts were a collection of the vilest creatures in the universe. With his new Lanterns, he was able to create the Sinestro Corps as a group capable of threatening the Green Lanterns and the Guardians.
5. Winnie the Pooh from Winnie the Pooh Disney Franchise
The famous yellow teddy Bear, and the protagonist of the franchise, Winnie the Pooh lives in the Hundred Acre Wood. Pooh is really friendly and kind to his friends and is very famous for his love for honey. Because he is the favorite toy of Christopher Robin, Pooh is often described as the “leader of the group”. However, because he is not very intelligent, as he freely admits, Pooh tends to process things more slowly than his friend. He sometimes does have some good ideas though.
6. Mighty Mouse from Mighty Mouse Playhouse TV Series
Blessed with powers far beyond those of mortal men and mice, Mighty Mouse’s superpowers included flight, super strength, and invulnerability. This yellow superhero has demonstrated the use of X-ray vision in at least one episode. Believe it or not, the muscular cartoon character, Mighty Mouse, got his superpowers escaping from the town’s cats into a supermarket, where he ate Super Celery and Super Cheese, transforming into a Super Mouse. Of course, his first act as a superhero was to subdue the cats and save the mice of Mouseville. Mighty Mouse is always seen wearing his yellow bodysuit with red trunks.
7. Wolverine from Marvel comics
Hugh Jackman never wore the traditional yellow Wolverine Suit, but in the pages of Marvel comics, Wolverine is most iconic with his yellow spandex. In fact, they never even made a version of the yellow outfit for Jackman to try on. I agree that Jackman’s Wolverine is not the type of guy to wear such a flashy costume, but I bet he would look totally cool in it. Anyway, there were some promises from Marvel that the next big-screen incarnation of the Wolverine will go in the yellow-blue uniform direction, so I guess we’ll have to wait and see.
8. Tweety Bird from Looney Tunes Animated Cartoons
Another iconic cartoon yellow character, Tweety is one of the most famous stars of Looney Tunes. Known for his strange speech, Tweety says “Puddy tat” instead of “pussy cat” and mispronounces many words. Tweety and Sylvester the Cat share the same relationship as the cat and mouse duo Tom and Jerry, as Sylvester is constantly trying to eat Tweety. On one occasion he actually manage to eat the little yellow canary, but once Granny found out she cut Sylvester open and got Tweety out.
9. Charlie Brown from Peanuts
Decades of animated specials have fixed Charlie Brown’s egg-yolk yellow polo shirt in our minds. In the past, Charlie’s shirt was painted red in the comic strips but it now appears as yellow in all media. The shirt is also famous for the black zig-zag stripe around its middle.
10. Bumblebee from Transformers
Whether it be in the original G1 Transformers or even in more modern movies, Bumblebee has always been our loveable, incorruptibly good hero and one of the main Autobots under Optimus Prime’s command. His loyalty, devotion, and love for his comrades and the cause that he serves are undisputed. He proved it when he fought Megatron, during which he lost his voice box and was left for dead. Overall, Bumblebee is an easily-recognizable, fun character who has won the hearts of millions through his actions, not words.
11. Flounder from The Little Mermaid
A Disney yellow character, Flounder is Ariel’s best friend and confidante, who escorts her on her various exploits. Despite his cowardly conduct and his hate for adventures, Flounder is very protective of Ariel and can be actually brave when Ariel truly needs him to be. Despite his name, he is not really a flounder, but a tropical yellow fish.
12. Morty from Rick and Morty
Morty is only a 15-year-old high school student, but already seen more than most adults have seen in a lifetime. Throughout his many so-called adventures with Rick, Morty has had to deal with countless life-threatening situations, psychedelic experiences, and the harshest truths possible. However, these ventures have changed him from a submissive teenage boy into a more confident person, who has managed to keep his strong sense of morality and good-heartedness. Morty usually wears a yellow shirt that got ripped many times in the show.
13. Big Bird from Sesame Street
Since his introduction in the first episode of Sesame Street, Big Bird has become one of the most iconic characters in fiction and has entertained millions of children and parents. Big Bird lives alone in a nest at Sesame Street, next to Oscar’s famous trash can. He is an 8’2″ yellow bird from an unknown species and an ambiguous age.
14. Jake the Dog from Adventure Time
Jake is a male dog with a set of super-abilities that allow him to modify the shape and size of every part of his body. He is Finn’s best friend and adoptive brother. Jake is originally presented as the son of both Joshua and Margaret, the owners of a detective agency in the land of Ooo. However, neither of his parents presents his magical shape-shifting abilities.
15. Trini Kwan from Mighty Morphin Power Rangers
Another yellow character, Trini Kwan is the Mighty Morphin Yellow Ranger. Trini was recruited by Zordon of Eltar when she was 16. The idea of protecting people from supervillains appealed to their gentle and kind nature of Trini and she became the first Yellow Power Ranger. While the other Rangers have dinosaur-inspired Zords, Trini has a Sabretooth Tiger, which is the coolest.
16. Belle from Beauty and the Beast Disney Animated Film
Unlike most Disney characters, Belle had some feistiness in her. She is a true free spirit, who is not afraid to love someone like the Beast that doesn’t fit the “norm”. We can also see that in the way she dislikes Gaston despite the opposite viewpoint of her neighbors and in how she speaks out against what she feels is wrong even when she’s the only one. Also, Belle is intelligent. Curious and independent, which is what makes her such a compelling character. In this picture, Belle is dressed in her iconic yellow ball gown as it appears in the 1991 animated film.
17. Kid Flash from DC Comics
Wally West is Kid Flash, gifted with powers so tremendous that Barry Allen took him under his wings. How powerful is he? Well. Wally can run faster than the speed force, the source of his power! Actually, he is officially faster than Barry Allen, but that happened only after Wally stopped being Kid Flash and became the Flash. The top half of Kid Flash’s suit is completely yellow, with red lines on the shoulder areas. He also wears red gloves.
18. Duckman from Duckman: Private Dick/Family Man
Eric Duckman is a 36 years-old duck who lost his wife Beatrice and works as a private detective. Duckman is self-hating, selfish, and a sexual deviant. He is also completely clueless both as a detective and as a parent, which is hilarious. Another funny thing is his eyes, which can be removed like normal glasses. Actually, he wears glasses that contain his eyes.
19. Pac-Man from Pac-Man Video Game
Probably the most recognizable little yellow circle in existence, Pac-Man has been around since 1980. This little guy specialized in eating dots and escaping colorful ghosts in a maze. Despite the simplicity of the game, Pac-Man is one of the most lovable characters in the history of video games and continues to make cameos in high-profile movies, such as Pixels and Wreck-It-Ralph.
20. Bert from Sesame Street
Well, I already had Big Bird from Sesame Street on this list, so I thought I’ll bring along Bert to keep him company. Bert is a yellow Muppet character and the orange Erni’s best friend and roommate. If you somehow don’t know, the two share the basement apartment at 123 Sesame Street. Contrary to his BFF, who is totally extroverted, Bert is serious and has a hard time making sense of his friend’s practical jokes and actions.
21. Minions from the Despicable Me Animated Film Franchise
In the animated cartoon movie Despicable Me and its sequels, minions are little yellow creatures, who have one or two eyes. They are servants to the most despicable villain and have their own made-up language. For example, they will say “bello” instead of “hello”, “poopaye” instead of “goodbye” and “underwear” instead of “I swear”. Minions are of course adorable in all possible ways you can imagine.
22. Lemon Meringue from Strawberry Shortcake
A major character on the show from the beginning, Lemon Meringue is a top fashionista with great advice on how to look good. She is always updated on the latest trends, looking for the perfect combination for each of her friends, and even has her own beauty salon where she does hair and manicures for everyone. Don’t be mistaken by her name, Lemon is actually a real sweetheart who will do anything to make others happy.
23. Luke cage from Marvel Comics
While serving time for a crime he did not commit, Luke Cage was recruited by scientist Dr. Noah Burstein as a volunteer for experimental cell regeneration. However, Luke’s treatment was accelerated past its intended limits, inducing body-wide enhancements that give him superhuman strength and durability. Luke used his newfound power to escape prison and started fighting crime and corruption.
24. Fluttershy from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
Fluttershy is a yellow-winged horse with light pink hair in my little pony. She is also the element of kindness. As her name suggests, her personality is that she is super shy. Yet, when it comes to her friends being put down by others and if she sees disrespect get distributed to her friends or family she becomes a very strong type. One of the most beautiful things about Fluttershy is that she doesn’t need to prove anything! She just lives the way she feels she ought to, even if she gets demoted and ignored.
25. Top Cat from Top Cat Cartoon
A yellow cartoon character, Top Cat is the leader of a band of Manhattan alley cats. Together with his gang that consists of ancy-Fancy, Spook, Benny the Ball, Brain, and Choo-Choo, Top Cat constantly hatch get-rich-quick schemes, but most of them usually backfire. The gang also has to deal with a local police officer, Charlie Dibble, who either tries to arrest them, evict them from the alley, or get them to clean the alley. Top Cat usually wears a purple pork pie hat and a matching waistcoat over his yellow fur.
26. Isabelle from Animal Crossing Video Game
Snoopy’s little yellow friend Woodstock is good-hearted and a skilled whistler. However, he is a very poor flyer who frequently crashes into stuff. Also, he gets beak bleeds if he goes over ten feet in the air, which is weird for a bird. Woodstock first appeared in April 1967 and is named after the 1969 Woodstock festival
27. Woodstock from Peanuts
Snoopy’s little yellow friend Woodstock is good-hearted and a skilled whistler. However, he is a very poor flyer who frequently crashes into stuff. Also, he gets beak bleeds if he goes over ten feet in the air, which is weird for a bird. Woodstock first appeared in April 1967 and is named after the 1969 Woodstock festival.
28. Arthur from Arthur Cartoon
Arthur is an aardvark and the main character of the show. He is kind-hearted and plays piano in his school band. Despite the fact that his younger sister D.W. constantly irritates him and causes him problems, he tries to be a good big brother and helps her when she’s in need. That’s admirable in my book because I know what it is to have a bratty preschool sister.
29. Wooldoor Sockbat from Drawn Together Animated Series
Another cartoon yellow character, Wooldoor is one of the eight housemates that the show focuses on. He is a bizarre children’s show character who in a way resembles SpongeBob SquarePants and displays many of the typical reality-defying behaviors that cartoon characters exhibit. As a SpongeBob mirror image, Wooldoo is hyperactive and gullible, but also kind-hearted. He also idolizes Captain Hero, who is one of the other housemates and wishes to become his sidekick.
30. Wubbzy from Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!
Wubbzy is a yellow mouse-like creature and the protagonist of the Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! Show. This little guy spends most of his days chasing flutterflies and playing games of kickety-kick ball. When he gets into trouble, he goes to his friends for help and advice.
