Orange is a happy color! Well, maybe not for prisoners who have to wear those awful orange jumpsuits, but many other people generally perceive orange as a color that radiates warmth and happiness. Hence, no wonder so many fun characters either are orange or normally wear orange clothing. From Garfield to Q*bert, in this list, I present the best orange characters in fiction. Note! I have tried to reduce the catlike character’s presence on this list to the bare minimum, otherwise, I would end up with a list of mostly fictional orange cats and felines.
1. Velma from Scooby-Doo Cartoon
One of the most iconic orange cartoon characters, Velma Dinkley is usually seen wearing a baggy long-sleeved orange sweater, and orange knee-high socks. Velma is the brains of the Scooby-Doo gang and has the biggest obsession with mysteries. For that purpose, she has studied and read a lot, to the point that she claims that she has a book for every occasion.
2. Tigger from Winnie the Pooh Animated Film
One of the best friends of Winnie the Pooh, Tigger is known for approaching his friends by catapulting himself onto them and rolling them to the ground. According to this eccentric tiger, the proper way to spell his name is: “T-I-double-guh-err.” Tigger has distinctive orange and black stripes and a springy tail that allows him to jump up and down on it. It’s hard to think of a happier orange character than this orange fuzz ball!
3. The Thing Marvel Comics
With his body covered with an orange, rock-like hide, Ben Grimm is the Thing, a powerful orange character from Marvel. If you can overpower The Thing, it means you are in the very top tier of strength in Marvel. Ben can lift well over 100 tons but is consistently shown to not be quite as strong as Hulk or Thor, although he can still give either one of them a good fight. Despite his tough exterior, Ben is kind-hearted and well-liked among other superheroes.
4. Vector from Despicable Me Animated Film
Another orange cartoon character, Vector always wears his orange and white tracksuit. Mind you, this tracksuit can convert into a flight suit enabling Vector to fly. As an aspiring supervillain, Vector is extremely evil and quite a genius, able to invent sophisticated weapons like the Squid Launcher and the Piranha Gun. His fortress is heavily weaponized with all sorts of missiles and torpedoes.
See also: Top 20 Best Cartoon Characters With Beanies5. Kenny from South Park
Along with his friends Eric Cartman, Stan Marsh, and Kyle Broflovski, Kenny McCormick is a leading character in South Park. His most famous thing is dying almost in every episode in the first five seasons of the show. Kenny is also known for almost always wearing an orange parka that hides his face. In fact, at this point, we’re all so accustomed to Kenny’s face being concealed that it would be odd if they began showing it more often. Although the show evolved a lot over the years and became more diverse, they still kill Kenny from time to time.
6. Goku from Dragon Ball Anime Series
Goku’s orange uniform is s synonymous with his character! He received it as a gift from Master Roshi the first time he entered the Tenkaichi Budokai tournament. When he was younger, Goku used to wear this eye-catching orange uniform and nothing else. However, as he grew up he started to wear it with an undershirt and boots. Still, he is most iconic when he wears his orange outfit.
7. Q*bert from Q*bert Video Game Series
An iconic orange character, Q*bert is the action hero of the Q*bert Video Game Series, the third most successful arcade video game after Pac-Man and Donkey Kong. Q*bert is so popular he appeared in his animated series, in Disney’s Wreck-It Ralph feature, and Sony Pictures’ movie Pixels with actor Adam Sandler. In the original video game, it was Q*bert’s job of turning all the cubes on the pyramid into a single color. He did that, despite being faced with his adversaries Coily, Wrong-Way, and Ugg, who interrupted his work.
8. Fred Flintstone from The Flintstones Cartoon
The protagonist of the show, Fred lives in Bedrock, at 345 Cave Stone Road. He is the husband of Wilma, father of Pebbles, and known for his legendary catchphrase “Yabba-Dabba-Doo!” Throughout the series, Fred almost constantly wears his famous short-sleeved orange and black-spotted cloth with a torn hemline. He did change clothes when the specifics of the episode required it, but it was quite rare.
9. Aang from Avatar: The Last Airbender Anime
Aang is a super-powered teenage boy, the only individual alive who can bend earth, air, water, and fire, the four Bending Arts. Despite his fatal task to end the war between the nations, Aang manages to stay an adorable, funny 12-year-old kid. Throughout the series, Aang is most iconic in his signature orange Air Nomad outfit.
10. Ahsoka Tano from Star Wars
First debuting in the Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated movie, Ahsoka Tano immediately captured the attention and the hearts of fans around the world. Anakin Skywalker’s Padawan quickly leaned and took a significant part in the galactic confrontation between the Jedi Knights and Darth Sidious. She grew into becoming one of the strongest Jedi in her own right and developed a close brother/sister bond with Anakin. As a member of the Torguta race, Ahsoka’s skin is dark orange. Her skin color seems to turn from reddish-orange to a lighter orange as she ages.
See also: 20 Purple Characters With Enigmatic Personalities!11. Puss in Boots from Shrek Animated Film
An iconic orange character, and the cat with a Spanish accent, Puss started as a mercenary hired to capture Shrek but soon became Shrek and Donkey’s good friend. Based on the character Zorro, Puss is a fearless warrior with a code of honor. Still, Puss is a cat and has many traits in common with the regular housecat. For example, he licks himself clean and joyfully plays with a ball of yarn, which is hilarious.
12. Alf from Alf TV Series
Alfi, real name Gordon Shumway, is an alien from planet Melmac who crash-landed in the Tanner family garage. Since the government would have performed experiments on him, the Tanners kept him hidden for his safety. Trouble is, Alf was always getting into trouble because of his tremendous curiosity. They say “Curiosity killed the cat“, but in this case, Alf is the one who’s likely to kill the cat. Yep, Melmacians eat cats, and – they have eight stomachs so they’re constantly hungry. Alf is covered with orange rust-colored fur that got him into this list of best orange characters.
13. Charizard from Pokemon
Charizard is one of the most popular orange characters in the Pokemon anime. He was the fourth Pokémon that Ash Ketchum caught in the Kanto region and his fifth Pokemon in total. Because of his unique characteristics, Charizard quickly became one of Ash’s main Pokemon. Charizard is a strong and sharp Pokemon, who looks like a dragon and can fly. He breathes out fire hot enough to melt boulders, has sharp claws, and can even pack a decent punch. All of these abilities lead him from being an abandoned, rejected, helpless hatchling to a strong, fierce, and dependable Pokemon that everybody loves!
14. Nemo from Finding Nemo Animated Movie
Nemo is a young and adventurous orange clownfish with big white stripes and small black stripes. Growing up in the Great Barrier Reef with his overprotective father, Nemo became frustrated most of the time, which lead him to try to explore the ocean and into being captured by scuba divers. He was placed in a dentist’s fish tank in the Sydney Harbor and had to devise a plan to escape. In the end, he came to realize his father only smothered him to protect him. That’s a big insight for someone his age!
15. Rath from Ben 10 Cartoon
Rath is a humanoid tiger alien. He is orange and white with black stripes. Since Rath is hardwired for aggression and fighting, he is always angry and fearless, so he isn’t afraid of anyone. Rath was the second alien in the show after Grey Matter to stay in a full episode due to an Omnitrix malfunction!
16. Crash Bandicoot from Crash Bandicoot Video Games Series
Another iconic orange video game character, Crash Bandicoot is the star of the Crash Bandicoot video games series. The series focuses on Crash as he battles his archenemy, the evil Dr. Neo Cortex, who is bent on world domination. Crash is an Eastern barred bandicoot who was captured and evolved by Dr. Cortex. As a result of the experiments done by Dr. Cortex, Crash is fast, nimble, and resourceful. He can reach impressive speeds on the ground and can easily traverse through the air. His main physical strength comes from his infamous Spin Attack which is capable of tossing projectiles, objects, and even molten plasma at blazing speed. In a lot of ways, Crash is like Sonic the Hedgehog.
17. Ernie from Sesame Street
Ernie is an orange Muppet who lives in the basement apartment at 123 Sesame Street with his friend and roommate Bert. Between the two, Ernie plays the part of the naïve troublemaker, while Bert takes the role of the no-nonsense guy. There’s nothing Ernie loves more than playing games, making jokes, and pranking Bert. This behavior sometimes frustrates Bert, who doesn’t understand Ernie’s fun-loving nature, but in the end, they always work through their differences. That’s what friendship is all about, right?
18. Luke Skywalker from Star Wars Movies
Luke wears many different outfits throughout the movie series, from the traditional dark Jedi apparel to the bright Bespin Fatigue Jacket. However, none is as iconic as his orange Rebel Flight Suit which came with a flight helmet that had a yellow screen with a computer projection for targeting. Luke wore this suit in Star Wars V: The Empire strikes back.
19. Blinky from The Simpsons Animated Series
I know that Blinky isn’t a very important orange character, but he does raise awareness of a very important issue – pollution! Blimky is a three-eyed orange fish who is a product of the nuclear waste of Springfield Nuclear Power Plant. That’s right, Mr. Burns’ Nuclear Power Plant caused mutations to the fish in the ponds and lakes outside the nuclear power plant. This crime against the environment has cost Mr. Burns the elections, thus making Blinky a true hero.
20. Applejack from My Little Pony Cartoon
Applejack is a hard-working pony who lives on Sweet Apple Acres farm with her family. As a farmer, Applejack is a very determined individual who learned the value of responsibility very early on. There’s nothing Applejack wants more than to earn money so she can renovate the farm and help out her family. As committed as she is to her family, she also likes visiting her Ponyville friends as often as she can. Applejack represents the element of honesty, which is a gold necklace with an orange apple-shaped gem.
See also: 30 Best Yellow Characters Of All Time21. Dizzy from Bob the Builder Animated TV Show
Dizzy is an orange tilting-drum cement mixer trailer who works for Bob the Builder. Together with her machine friends Muck, Roley, Scrambler, and Scratch, Dizzy does construction jobs all around Bobsville, Sunflower Valley, and Fixham Harbour. She has a really curious and cheerful personality and she’s a bit of a know-it-all. All in all, Dizzy is a great asset in Bob’s building yard.
22. Clyde from Pac-Man Video Games
Clyde is the orange ghost in Pac-Man. He is an outsider! That’s right, unlike the three other ghosts – Blinky, Pinky, and Inky – Clyde’s name doesn’t rhyme with the others. Maybe that’s why Clyde doesn’t have much interest in chasing Pac-Man like the others. When he gets within eight spaces of his prey, he starts to retreat into the bottom-left corner of the maze. Have you ever noticed that about him?
23. Rusty from Thomas the Tank Engine Animated TV Show
Rusty is the orange narrow gauge diesel engine, that mainly does maintenance work on the Skarloey Railway. He loves to work and help out the other engines. A male engine in the books, Rusty was wrongly presented as a female in the original American broadcasts of the 9th series. However, the two episodes that contained this error, were edited for their DVD issues, identifying Rusty rightly as the male engine.
24. Tails from Sonic the Hedgehog Video Games Series
Miles the orange fox was bullied because of his tails, but when met Sonic the Hedgehog, he was inspired to be just as cool as him. By using his tails to fly by rotating them like a helicopter, Miles could pick up just as much speed as Sonic himself. As time passed by, Tails became more courageous and confident, to the point of being an independent hero on his own.
25. Tigress from Kung Fu Panda Animated Film
Master Tigress is a member of the Furious Five. Like the other members of the quintet, Tigress was trained by Master Shifu in the “Five Animal” styles of Kung Fu. Over the years, she developed into a powerful warrior and fought many times by Po’s side. Initially, she was very skeptical of Po’s calling “The Dragon Warrior”, probably because she was the most suitable for the title. However, she has since accepted it was not in her destiny to be the Dragon Warrior but to be the closest aide of the Dragon Warrior. I respect that in her!
26. King Louie from The Jungle Book 1967 Animated Movie
27. Mermaid Man from SpongeBob SquarePants Animated Series
A great orange cartoon character, Mermaid Man is the semi-retired superhero of Bikini Bottom. Together with his sidekick Barnacle Boy, Mermaid Man now lives in a retirement home. Although the two elderly superheroes show signs of senility, they still fight off supervillains from time to time. Mermaid Man’s archenemy is Prawn, who is about the same size as Plankton.
28. Hardy Har Har from Lippy the Lion and Hardy Har Har Shorts
A classic orange cartoon character, Hardy Har Har is an anthropomorphic hyena. Although his name is an onomatopoeia for laughter, Hardy is the stereotype of someone who is chronically depressed. It seems like even the slightest expression of joy puts this hyena in pain. However, together with his happy-go-lucky partner and pal Lippy, Hardy experiences many adventures and somehow comes up on top.
29. Shannon from OK K.O.!
Another orange cartoon character, sometimes referred to as Orange Mushroom Head, Shannon Boxmore is a cartoon robot henchman for her creator, Lord Boxma. She constantly yearn for Lord Boxma’s admiration and would do almost anything to get it. Because of it, she has a never-ending feud with her brother Darrell, who also craves for Boxmas’ appreciation. Although Shannon would never admit it, she loves her brother and cares for him deeply. Unfortunately, she is too stubborn to ever admit it!
30. Mr. Tickle from Mr. Men
Who doesn’t remember Mr. Tickle? The guy goes out to town tickling people with his amazingly long arms. I used to have nightmares about it! Mr. Tickle was the first book in the Mr. Men series by authors Roger and Adam Hargreaves. Mr. Tickle has a short round orange body and arms so long they sometimes got tangled up.