A lot of people accuse cartoons of being too violent. This may be true, but now people with dissenting views have a new argument: Maybe it's not the cartoons that are violent, but rather, the cartoon characters themselves.
Earlier this year at Walt Disney World in Florida, an actor dressed as Tigger was accused of punching a 14-year-old boy in the face and was subsequently suspended.
The incident was videotaped by the boy's father, who immediately showed the tape to Disney authorities, the press and I'm assuming FOX for its next installment of "When Cartoon Animals Attack."
You can find the video online on YouTube.com by simply running the search "Tigger punch." The tape clearly shows Tigger's left paw connecting with the boy's face. The blow seems unwarranted, but it is hard to make out whether or not Tigger's jab is malicious or all in good fun.
Many news stations that covered the story showed the tape in slow motion to make it look as if the punch connects like a George Foreman uppercut, but anything looks much more dramatic in slow motion. This is the same technique TV editors used to make it look like the Bionic Woman had a tremendous right hook.
The tape clearly shows an altercation between Tigger and the boy, but it is difficult to speculate who is at fault or why the incident occurred. The footage is grainy and without audio; it's like Disney's version of the Zapruder film.
The attacked boy, when interviewed, said the blow was unprovoked and mean-spirited. Tigger, who is usually exuberant and outspoken, is remaining silent on the issue. The boy's family, who has already received multiple apologies from Disney officials, is still waiting to hear an apology from Tigger himself.
I don't think an apology from Tigger is necessary. If he truly hit the boy, there's probably a reasonable explanation behind it. It's totally illogical to think that a man in a six-foot-tall tiger costume would pose politely with two children one minute and then cold-cock their brother in the face only moments later.
The video is admittedly only a snippet of what happened, so I'm sure there's more to the story than is being shown. The entire incident seems completely irrational. Besides, Tiggers do bouncing best, not boxing.
The problem comes when people expect too much from costumed mascots. A costumed character's entire job is to dress up in a silly costume and wander around, and pose with guests in countless Kodak moments. The whole purpose of the job seems kind of goofy, especially when you consider one of the costumes is Goofy.
But it is inane to look to these people who have this absurd and wacky job as shining beacons of professionalism. Someone who wants a person in a giant cartoon costume to be an example of businesslike conduct is the same kind of person who would chastise clowns for not taking their job seriously.
The attacked boy should just be thankful; he got off easy. He walked away with only a slight slap from Tigger, one of Disney World's more cuddly denizens. Things could have been much uglier had he taken a hard left from Captain Hook. I also hear that Buzz Lightyear has a mean karate chop, and he's one guy you don't want to scrap with. I saw Buzz Lightyear out at Disneyland last summer, and trust me: He's a lot bigger in person.
So if anyone is headed down to Disney World next week for Spring Break, they should be careful. They say Miami can be pretty rough, but apparently so can Tomorrowland.
Paul Metz is a graduate student and writes 'Support Your Local Cynic' for the Daily News. His views do not necessarily agree with those of the newspaper.
Write to Paul atpjmetz@bsu.edu
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