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“ | Oh, I love pie. | „ |
~ Grubber's most famous line. |
Grubber is a secondary antagonist in the 2017 animated film My Little Pony: The Movie. He is a comedic pug-faced hedgehog and also the former servant of the Storm King, and Tempest Shadow's sidekick. He along with Tempest Shadow helped the Storm King invade the entire land of Equestria and have Twilight Sparkle and other Princess' captured to use their magic to make Storm King more powerful.
He was voiced by Michael Peña in his first villainous role, who portrayed Terrance in the Tom & Jerry movie.
Biography[]
Backstory[]
According to My Little Pony: The Movie Prequel, Grubber was initially a low-class hard worker on the Storm King's ship, however, after the Storm King's deputy Strife betrays him, the King makes Grubber his new second-in-command, believing him to be too weak and cowardly to betray him. A broken-horned unicorn who reveals herself to be Tempest Shadow steals the Misfortune Malachite from the Storm King, leading to Grubber and the other Guards chasing her down. The chase eventually ends with the Storm King making Tempest his new second-in-command, demoting Grubber.
In The Stormy Road to Canterlot, Grubber chases the unicorn down into Bleak Valley, however accepts her possession of the Misfortune Malachite, claiming she won it fair and square. After the unicorn reveals her troubled past of how she lost her horn, magic and her friends, a sympathetic Grubber makes an offer to meet his master, the Storm King.
After leading her to the Storm Kingdom and introducing her to the Storm King, the unicorn reveals herself as Tempest Shadow and the two of them are instructed to infiltrate Mount Aris in order to steal the Hippogriffs' pearl.
Tempest and Grubber infiltrate the city, claiming themselves to be lost, however the plan fails, resulting in the Storm King's forces coming to their defense. In an epic battle, the Hippogriffs manage to defeat Tempest, but they end up fleeing, which leaves the city destroyed.
In the days that follow, Grubber helps Tempest practice her unstable magic until it is concentrated and destructive.
In one of the inspired books, The Great Princess Caper, Grubber becomes enamored by Tempest's brute strength and intimidating tone. After multiple failed attempts to become her side-kick, Tempest makes a deal with Grubber to help her aid the Storm King in conquering the world in exchange for his position as her side-kick, to which he agrees. This motivates him to prepare for the eventual invasion of Canterlot.
Invasion[]
When first introduced, Grubber steps off one of the Storm King's ships as they land in Canterlot, and he announces the coming of the Storm King and introduces Tempest.
Chasing Twilight and Her Friends[]
Grubber assisted Tempest to capture Twilight after she and her friends escaped. After capturing Twilight, they returned to Canterlot, where The Storm King arrives. Grubber greets the king before running off in fear.
Final Battle[]
While snacking on some of the food, Grubber sees the Trojan cake being pulled by Twilight's friends, with Capper instructing orders and some of the new friends hidden inside.
When he takes a taste of the cake, Grubber sees the eye of one of Celaeno's crew. He was pulled right in after he called out to the guards, causing a battle. After the gang leapt out of the cake, Grubber was last seen sitting down with his hair sticking out covered with icing.
Accepting Friendship[]
Grubber's fate remained unclear. However, in The Great Princess Caper, Grubber, much like he does in the film, exposes Twilight's friends of their infiltration of Canterlot. Believing this to be his last chance to get on Tempest's good graces and prove himself as a worthy side-kick, he calls upon the Storm Guards to attack and attempts to join the battle for Canterlot, only to find himself burned in the rear end by Spike, who is carried by Capper, and later kicked in the face by Applejack. When the Storm King creates a powerful storm to keep Twilight's friends at bay, Grubber ends up hiding to save himself.
When the storm passes, Grubber re-emerges only to discover that Twilight Sparkle had broken free and won the battle against the Storm King, with Tempest seemingly nowhere to be found and the Storm Guards exiled from Equestria, now restored. As the ponies celebrate their victory, Grubber dejectedly watches from a distance, feeling neglected and ignored by everyone else. Feeling defeated, Grubber prepared to leave Equestria.
Before he could, however, Tempest (finally redeemed and accepting friendship again) runs up to him. Though Grubber expected Tempest to reject him, Tempest offers him a cupcake with the word "sidekick" hastily written on top of it.
Tempest apologizes to Grubber and admits that what she had done was evil and that while Grubber himself failed to be evil, powerful, mean, and scary, he still proved to be generous, loyal and laughable and she wants him to be her friend. Grubber happily accepts Tempest's hand in friendship. At the end of the book, Tempest and Grubber leave Equestria to spread the word of the Storm King's defeat. In the film, Grubber joins the Friendship Festival. In the credits, he is seen playing karaoke and pinnate with Tempest, pulling up the pinnate shape of the Storm King when Tempest was trying to wack it blind fold, only for her to take it off and blast it with her magic. He is also seen dancing with the rest of new characters and Twilight's friends.
Personality[]
Described as "bumbling" and "a good guy put in a bad situation", Grubber is a loudmouthed wise-cracker, providing comedic banter to many of Tempest Shadow's scenes. He usually acts tough and tries to match Tempest's level of wickedness, but this is counterbalanced by his inherent cowardice and laziness.
True to his name, Grubber has a very ravenous appetite, often shown eating or craving sweets. He is also innocent at heart, demonstrated by his awe at Rainbow Dash's sonic rainboom and in The Great Princess Caper when he tries to get Tempest to accept him. Grubber also speaks with a distinct lisp.
The Great Princess Caper reveals that Grubber feels somewhat insecure about his weak strength, small size, and his lack in any power. As mentioned above, he idolizes Tempest for her abilities despite her size in comparison to the Storm Guards and makes numerous attempts to prove himself, only for them to fail, much to his dismay. In the battle, he quickly hides, showing that he is not one to risk his life in a dire situation.
After the Storm King's death, Grubber's self-esteem is shattered upon realizing that he had failed in successfully helping the King and Tempest conquer Equestria, only for Tempest to make him see the good qualities within himself as both a side-kick and a friend, and offer him friendship, to which he obliges. In a novelization based on the film, Grubber is shown to have be-friended Spike, indicating that he, like Tempest, had begun to open up to new connections. At his core, Grubber was a misguided creature seeking validation who eventually finds his place by Tempest's side.
Appearance[]
Grubber is a hedgehog with a black color and white streak hair. He wears a black vest with a symbol of The Storm King's kingdom.
In the credits, his crested vest now has a cupcake. His hair was also dyed pink in the credits when he was singing with the sound box and playing penata with Tempest. In the cast and character credits, it was reverted back to full white.
Reception[]
Similar to the Storm King, Grubber received mixed reception from critics and the fandom. Though Michael Peña's performance was praised, the character himself, along with his comedic moments, were criticized. Many would even go on to say that Grubber was an unnecessary character to include.
However, Grubber did receive some praise from fans, and his role as the main protagonist in the picture book called The Great Princess Caper was considered his best appearance, although many have wondered why the book could not be made into a cartoon instead and if it ever depicted his actual fate in general.
Quotes[]
“ | Ponies of Equestria, we come on behalf of the fearsome, the powerful, the almighty...Storm King! And now, to deliver the evil, evil message, put your hooves together for Commander Tempeeeest! | „ |
~ Grubber's first lines. |
“ | Well, uh, funny story. It kinda seems like she... she might've like, you know, got away... a little bit. I know you're disappointed, but I got one word for you: "Spongecake". | „ |
~ Grubber reporting Twilight and her friends' escape and offers a cake for Tempest, who zaps him. |
“ | Ohhhh, Fishman just got DROPPED! | „ |
~ Grubber after Tempest beats up a fish creature. |
“ | There's no ponies. But I found this. It's a... kind of a cupcake... with sprinkles... Oh, yeah, and I found this, too. | „ |
~ Grubber revealing the map to Tempest. |
“ | Mmm! That's some, like, gourmet icing! Who puts eyeballs in filling? [hyperventilates] GUARDS! | „ |
~ Grubber's last line before he gets pulled into the cake after he called out to the guards. |
Appearances[]
Films[]
Comics[]
Nightmare Knights[]
- Nightmare Knights Issue 2 (cameo)
Specials[]
Trivia[]
- Grubber was the only new character in the movie who does not have a background.
- In preparation for the role, Peña ad-libbed much of Grubber's dialogue in order to help him fit as a comic relief character.
- Grubber is Michael Peña's first villainous role.
- Grubber is the only new character in My Little Pony: The Movie not to appear or be referenced in the rest of the series.
- Grubber is one of the few Friendship is Magic antagonists that are not redeemed through the efforts of the Mane 6. In a novel adaptation of the film, he does befriend Spike.
- Originally, Grubber was named Skritch.