The Bark the Polar Bear Story ▸ The Russian Brawler
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- Опубликовано: 21 ноя 2021
- This is the seventh in a series of Sonic character profiles. Let me know in the comments who you want me to talk about next!
"The Bark the Polar Bear Story ▸ The Russian Brawler"
In this video we'll be taking a look at Bark the Polar Bear (or should I say Bark the Polerbear), a character first introduced in 'Sonic the Fighters' in 1996. I'll be taking a look at the development history of Bark, all of his major appearances in the Sonic franchise and his depiction in the Archie and IDW comic book series. Behold as I also show off my ignorance about polar bears. I always though they had white fur!
Thanks to ZM256, Vertekins and biggestsonicfan for helping with this one.
Check out Vertekins Tumblr blog here: / greenyvertekins
Check out biggestsonicfan's Twitter here: / biggestsonicfan
Music used in this video :-
- "Sonic Goes UG Mix" from Sonic Gems Collection
- "Aurora Icefield ~ Black Bed" from Sonic the Fighters
- "Ice Cap Zone Act 2" from Sonic the Hedgehog 3
Please consider giving the video a like if you enjoyed and subscribing for more video game, movie and internet history videos in the future.
Find me on Twitter: / thejohnnyvector 
Игры
In a universe where there are blue hedgehogs, pink hedgehogs, two tailed foxes, yellow fying squirrels, purple chameleons, and etc, I don't think Bark not being the color of actual polar bears really matters lol
Haha, fair point
I'm sure chameleons can be purple naturally, and then there's the obvious fact that chameleons can,well, change colour
@@theblizzard8735 You completely missed the point of my post, but whatever
@@PKGangsta18 im sorry I just felt the urge to point that out as I interpreted something like purple chameleons is unusual like two tailed foxes or anything
>;(
Man, I miss Fang and Bark so much. They need more screentime.
Fang is in Sonic Superstars, so I guess you got half your wish.
Bark is the only one of the Hooligans whose species we definitely know; he’a literally referred to as “the Polar Bear”, while Bean and Fang/Nack are referred to with more abstract titles, like “the Dynamite” and “the Sniper”.
Good point, very true
Maybe he should get a nickname (like " Bark the Brawler" or something like that).
Yeah love how he’s just a legit animal while the others are a bit mysterious.
And we don’t know what animal they are
Bean is actually a Dynamite Duck while Fang is actually a Jerboa :/
Funny enough, I knew a bunch about Bark. The fact that he's the only Hooligan who barely talks (similar to Tom or Jerry from the show of the same name), appearances, attacks, etc.
What I didn't know is the fact that *HE'S RUSSIAN*
its occured to me that the hooligans with tf2 voices would be so perfect
fang is the sniper
bean is the scout
bark is the heavy
i literally wanna see bark speak russian
or northern irish
Чувак говорю как русский но я тоже не ожидал от этого поворота событие
Bark is honestly a character I really like. Compared to the other members of Team Hooligan, Bark isn't really a bad guy, just someone who ended up in a bad group of friends, likely due to his up bringing in North Island making him a bit lonely and just so happened to find Bean and Fang.
Initially Bark was kinda flanderized in the comics as a generic bad guy, it felt like Ian and the other writers found better footing with Bark over the years. His portrayal in IDW is one I absolutely adore. He's just utterly adorable and I love his interactions with Amy and him only fighting when agitated. Without speaking, his actions do the talking for him, tho if he is mute or just prefers not to talk is unknown.
Think I gushed over a bear long enough. To sum things up, Bark needs more love and should be protected.
Thanks for sharing, I totally on-board with your feelings on Bark
My thoughts exactly. I absolutely love the "Big and Intimidating looks but actually Good-hearted" archetype
I'd say that Bean in the comics is less of a "bad guy" and more of a kook (more like a Battle Kukku, am I right?) that's in the wrong place at the wrong time. He'll act as a mercenary if it'll get him shiny stuff and he gets to cause explosions, but he'll briefly act in the protagonists' favor (along with Bark) if his mood is properly swayed.
@@whichcache2517 That's kinda why the Hooligans work. They're essentially the villainous equivalent to the Chaotix, as a group of screwball mercenaries who are often the butt the joke, but never feel like a punchline.
@@rainspectre3153 I guess I've been more familiar with how Nack used to be back in Pender's day, where he was an antagonist that was either a merc or a vengeful goon (I legit thought he killed Mina that one time until she showed up in a later story no worse for wear), so when Ian Flynn took over and brought back Bean and Bark, I was always like "Wait, I get they're all mercs, but why do they team up with Nack of all people?"
But I liked their dynamic, and Bean pretty much stole the show, so I didn't mind much.
I must say that Bark has always been one of my favourite characters in the Sonic Extended Universe (can't believe I just said that) because his character has a trope that I've always enjoyed. Which is the large, but quiet character. Not dim or brooding, just shy and not one to speak unless necessary. Also he was one of the first characters I can remember seeing who wore cool human clothing. I know other Sonic characters wore clothes, but they always seemed like outfits or costumes.
Also helps that I've always been a fan of the "winter look" (not SSX or other snowboarding games, I actually hate winter sportswear).
I don't know, Bark comes off as the kind of guy who would agree to be the designated driver and wouldn't be annoyed if you talked dumb drunk stuff whilst he drove you home.
OK, I'll stop before I end up sounding like a fan fiction writer.
Thanks for sharing your enthusiasm. Good point about Bark wearing "human" clothes. When I first saw him, his hat really reminded me of Parappa the Rapper's beanie. He feels very 90s.
@@JohnnyVector I'm a total 90's kid myself. And yes! Very PTR. Also, hate to ask but I agree with you totally about his design in the IDW comic being basically perfect. Whats the best way to read it? Is it worth reading?
"Extended Universe" still makes more sense canonically than Iizuka's vision of the canon.
@@ikagura His canon is what I call "back of a napkin" canon.
@@novelezra Exactly, I think the whole "two world" thing was just him not finding any solid excuse and he pulled this out from nowhere.
I love Barks visual design.
It fits so perfectly with him being a polar bear and his winter motif.
Appreciate the credit for the beta bark icon images! Our discord server discovered that not too long ago and it was a really cool find! Bark is personally my favorite Sonic character so I’m really happy to see him being covered in such detail, awesome vid!
Thanks! Glad to hear you enjoyed and thanks again for sharing that beta Bark image. Cool find.
i kinda like both iterations of bark
i feel like the scene when he feels bad about taking the emeralds is a great balance between the gentle giant and the hired mercenary
Yeah it's a good scene. Really makes me wonder why Bark got into being mercenary/treasure hunter.
Given he was entirely original, I was quite surprised to see how much info you could dig up and talk about regarding Bark. Him as a silent muscle antagonist (but with a soft spot in his heart) seems to work out well for him and it is nice to have a few more antagonist characters in the Sonic universe; particularly one not on a major world-ending level or such.
An to be fair, as a bear, it wouldn't be too surprising for him to tower over the humans in Fighters Megamix.
If I could wish my ideal Sonic Adventure 3 into existence, let me tell you all, Bark would be a force to be reckoned with. Fang's right-hand man, capable of decimating Omega in their assignment for Eggman, tearing through GUNbots and (eventually) badniks alike, and in Knuckles' story, he'd have an intense one-on-one battle for the Master Emerald against him.
Bark would lose (since he's a boss in Knuckles' campaign), but he'd earn the respect and admiration of his opponent for insisting on a fair fight. THEN, just as he agrees to pull Fang and Bean's mass-produced robots out of Angel Island, the two are surrounded by Eggman's forces, lead by none other than the returning Mecha Sonic. What ensues is a gauntlet, where Knuckles and Bark must fight together to survive the hoards of enemies thrown at them while Knuckles' story partners Mighty and Ray go after Mecha.
His portrayal would be identitcal to his IDW counterpart, though in a modern setting, I'd give him Orange eyes. He'd be the most quiet character in the roster, though he WOULD rarely speak. I doubt most voice actors would want to play a character whose lines are few and far between, since it typically means a lesser pay, I'd give the role not only to someone whose voice fits the character, but who already has tons of roles in anime and games at the moment; Kaiji Tang. I think Kaiji would be an ideal Bark, though Ben Lepley, Paul St Peter, Richard Epcar and Marc Diraison would all be worthy auditions.
Evidentially, I've had almost 20 years for these ideas to stew, which is crazy to think about now.
Could the Orangutang concept have been dropped because Nintendo were using them in Donkey Kong Country? Mankey Kong.
I really want to see more of these underrated characters
If Sonic Heroes ever did have the Hooligan trio, I feel like Bark would've been with Fang for his own reason and Bean being Bean would've tagged along for the ride, it would make sense if Bean was the speed type, being a crazy projectile user, and Fang with all of his gadgets could have some flying gear to carry around other characters, projectiles can work in a game like heroes, not too well but of course homing attack would still be better.
Either way I still see Bark as more of a gentle giant than a bad guy, and Bean is just whatever cuz that guy's on something else.
Headcanon: Bark said "shit" once and was then so horrified with himself thst he vowed to never speak again
I like it. He's a shy boi
@@JohnnyVector such a gentle giant
I love em
I personally like to see Bark as not 100% evil and actually being the most moral of team hooligan. Like, he'd be the one to reign them in if they went a bit too far, and is generally the most responsible of the group, especially being the one to reign in bean if it's just the two of them
Sonic's history has so many interesting characters with great character designs, it's a real shame we don't see them often. Not saying they need to be in every game or anything, Sonic already has enough characters. But I dunno, giving Team Hooligan a spotlight once again by being a sort of "Second villain" to both Sonic and Robotnik would be quite interesting.
I don’t like the idea of Bark being a villain. Bears seem to always be seen as bad guys. It would be nice to see a bear as a good guy for once. However a gentle giant who just ends up with bad friends would be very interesting.
Banjo is a good guy bear and tbh it is hella boring that bears are seen as bad guys. There needs to be more good guy bears
IMO, Bark is handled decently in the comics thanks to Ian Flynn’s epic writing skills.
The wanted posters in Sonic Generations were actually references to how the characters were wanted back by the fans besides there is nothing to suggest Bean and Bark are bad guys
We need bark to be in a sonic game just to hear his voice lmao Russian polar bear
Finally the last underrated team hooligans members yeah boi bark the polar bear
Maybe it because he dose not talk
@@amied7361but thats still what makes him unique
Well metal sonic doesn’t talk
@@amied7361 but its different for bark cause he actually has emotions unlike metal sonic
I dont mind Bean and Bark as villains. Sonic needs more villains anyways. I love your content and it just gets better!
Thanks, glad you're enjoying it
Fun fact: Despite writing him for so long, the IDW comics is the first time Ian Flynn has gotten any feedback form Sega, in regards to Bark's personality.
If you don't mind, where can I find the source for that?
Team Hooligan needs to make a comeback
Yeah there in club of forgotten classic charters like Honey,heavy robot,bomb egg robo ,tails doll and metal knuckles
Bark Is pretty cool! (pun not intended) He was really awesome in the IDW 30th anniversary annual. Glad you did a video on him!
Thanks, glad you enjoyed the video
Can't wait for a video on Mighty and Ray...
It’s still hilarious that his name is Bark even though he’s a mute. So all bite and no bark instead of all bark and no bite. I think I might be on to something
Haha, it's like Knuckles claiming he never chuckles when it's one of the first things he does on-screen. A bit of Sonic irony.
@@JohnnyVector Ha yeah
I know Sonic is more your thing rn, but I was thinking, since you did a video on the history of the Oddworld series, maybe you could do a character video or two like this but for Oddworld characters sometime in the future.
Idk it could be neat. 🤷♀️
Thanks for the suggestion! I'll definitely be adding some non-Sonic videos into the mix soon and that sounds like a good series to revisit.
I thought bark was garfield when seeing him briefly going through the zone for the first time
Sonic & Garfield are eternally linked after all
-Name is Bark
-Looks like a canine
"Let say hes a polar bear"
I have a suggestion. Feels the Rabbit. It may be hard due to him just being a concept.
Thanks. I've considered that in the past but covered Feels in my Sonic 1 iceberg video. I could still do a more extensive look at him I guess but I covered all the main points there.
Wait is that Sonic’s prototype?
Totally love these videos with lesser known Sonic content, keep it up!
Thanks a lot!
Pretty great video as usual!
Maybe you could cover Metal Knuckles in a future video? He's a really cool character who I wish had more appreciation
Thanks! I do really like Metal Knuckles' design from Sonic R. That design was also used in the British comics as well, so they'd be a few bits to talk about.
"Bean the Dynamite Duck: Has issues" LMAO
bark is a big boi and i love him
The biggest boi
When i was kid i thought him has a super form lmao
Haha, yeah he's got that saiyan hair
Happy this got recommended, awesome content man!
Thanks, glad to hear you enjoyed it!
"I've never seen a yellow polar bear before"
and i have never seen a blue hedgehog before
Hey folks, that Fighting Vipers manga I mentioned? I found it! Check it out in my Team Hooligan BONUS Video right here: ruclips.net/video/NZTd_H_j2OE/видео.html
FINALLY you Manage to Do it!!!!!
It's awesome we saw knuckles and bark fighting each other 14:40
I ended up needing to research some Sonic stuff for a dumb project i'm working on and came across this channel. I've long since stopped doing research and have just been enjoying Sonic lore. I knew it was complicated and has been going on for decades but i never thought i'd be this into it. Thanks for the great videos and convincing me to read the Fleetway comics :)
So does bark ever actually bark?
Haha, no he doesn't
Y’know I wonder if he’s silent because he doesn’t speak English but Russian. He can understand it but not talk it.
That's a fun theory
A perfect video for this time of year...
10:03 IMO, back when Archie did it I think it may have been at least understandable. Any actual information about Bark as a person seemed to be very obscure in the west, only officially available in Japanese.
But these days, I just wish they'd let him be his own thing and NOT lump him in as a bad guy with Fang.
Same here, I kinda wish Team Hooligan would split up to revitalise the characters a bit.
@@secoTheSonicFan A mute character doesn't NEED to be in a group. Especially if there's characters they can interact with even without being in said character(s)'s group.
It's just a little harder since you can't have them use words.
For instance, if he were to temporarily accompany Sonic for a single zone or something, you can have him react to Sonic's quips and whatnot through non-verbal means like facial expressions and body language.
Fang is still my favorite
Fun fact Bark isn't the first bear in the Sonic series and as a kid i thought that he was a dog
Good point. Was it Sonic 2 where one of the critters is a little bear?
@@JohnnyVector yes it was a bear
I keep falling off on the same part of Flying Battery Act 2 in Mania, what am I doing wrong. You go outdoors, you go on these black balls and go upside down,' but I always fall on the last one.
I have beaten the game loads of times, but I don't know how to ALWAYS beat this.
Hurrzay! That was great!
Thanks, glad you liked it
A yellow polar bear is weird have you ever seen a blue hedgehog?
Haha, no. I haven't seen a red echidna or two tailed fox either come to think of it.
@@JohnnyVector I've never seen a hedgehog rub fast
Anybody else want that Little Sonic Figurine Machine in the Real World?
Please do a character review of Julie-Su
Thanks, that would be a fascinating one especially considering Penders' post-Archie Julie-Su project
@@JohnnyVector wait he still uses her in comics?
Espio when. Jk, anyway once again nice video!
Oddly, Bark reminds me of a Womble.
Haha, yes! Think it's his snout.
Claiming Early Vector Team Ticket.
Welcome aboard
I recently got hyperfixated on them especially bark cus of the 30th anniversary book I rented this year so I am very new about this trio
I hope we seen the hooligans in more games and feature as villains
6:25 That google search said Polar bears aren't white so i think you got your answer lol
Bark is my all time favorite Sonic character because of IDW
8:22 lol wat? they used to put thirst fan art right on the cover back in the day huh, "for cool gamers" indeed
Good old Japanese sensibilities
9:29 wait,this is so familliar...
In that list for me strange third and last teams.
Bark isn't white because Sonic characters eyes are white.
Right? I could be wrong but I get the feeling they realised that they'd need more detail around the eyes to make them stand out if his fur were white. Which being a low poly 3D Fighter probably wouldn't have looked all that good. Id love if we had higher res screenshots from when he was white to see if that checks out.
Good point, thanks
8:22 uhhhhhhhhh... Interesting art there.
Does anybody else think it's funny how it looks like hes doing the Mario pose in the thumbnail
Now Here's a Request I Want to Tell you "Now Do Who is Marine the Raccoon Girl?"
Thanks, good suggestion.
oh boy now is gonna be time for tiara?
Tiara has been requested quite a lot. She'll be coming in the near future hopefully.
1:45 thats not nibroc's render, thats rafa knight's render.
4:21
"Preferring to pound opponents with his huge fists"
🤨
My guess on why they chose the yellow fur is perhaps they were worried if Bark ever were to be placed in a snowy environment, he might blend in too much to the background. It also could be that the designers wanted to make him fit better with the rest of the brightly-colored cast of characters. No matter the reason, I like how his design looks!
Furry :D
@@Scribblemations Indeed! I know how to properly enjoy life, lol ^0^
Have you done a video on the chaos emeralds?
I think an aligned vision of Bark would be good in a role similar to that of Red Menace from League of Super Evil. Big and strong, not too bright (such as when he ordered multiple fridges), well intentioned, but part of a team of villains.
yeah this video will be good
Thanks!
An unrelated question but can you do the Sonic CD iceberg? I feel like there's a lot on that game that could be used in an iceberg
I would like you to talk about charmy bee
8:55 "oh shit" lol
Ight. Since you've been covering characters that involves Sonic the Fighters, Rocket Metal.
Bean and Bark should not be villains. They are crucial emerald guardians
@tlst94 They didnt for the first 20-25 years of their existence
6:19 *vine boom*
You have any thoughts on Silver Sonic (or "Robo Sonic" Lego Dimension named him)
I do like Bark’s design, he’s cool🙂
27.11.2021
That is so cool that his inspiration may have been Zangief!
Agreed. I imagine Zangief would love to grapple with Bark.
@@JohnnyVector
Oh, that is a great point--I forgot that Zangief wrestled bears. Hey, maybe he got his chance in Wreck It Ralph. ;)
A lot of fighting games take inspiration from each other, so--despite Sonic the Fighters having a more Fighting Vipers aesthetic--it's not difficult to imagine AM2 looking at other popular fighting games and being inspired, intentionally or not.
With the "it must be a typo" you made me think that Bark was a bear (but, like, a GRIZZLY bear or something) with yellow fur, that lived in a cold land (and that's why he used a scarf and hat, because he wasn't actually a POLAR bear).
Now my sonic memories were extended thanks to johnny lol. Y e s
5:44 I played the Pengo game, I found it fun
I didn’t watch all of the video when putting my comment but when talking about IDW 15:04 - 15:45 that was what I was talking about in my first comment
"why is Bark yellow?"
Why is espio purple?
Why is sonic blue?
How does having two tails help tails fly?
Does Knuckles sweat milk?
8:19 Jesus f-king christ that art
Could you do a video on Metal Knuckles
A hecking cutie who needs more love, that's who he is.
I RECENTLY FOUND OUT BOUT EM CUSBOF ME RENTING THE 30TH ANAVERSSRY BOOK AND I WOULD PROTECT EM WITH MY LIFE
Cosmo from sonic x could be an interesting one to cover.
Can you do mecha sonic he's so cool I have no idea of his evolution
Honestly I like the idea of a big polar bears like Bark being a bad guy, because I feel like if he was good he’d be a bit to similar to Big
make a video about the 1992 sonic manga version of sonic(and nicky)
“Why is Bark yellow?” Why is Sonic blue???
@7:06 That’s…not Bark. That’s the bear that ended up being a secret character you can unlock in Fighters Megamix. Forgot his name (I wanna say Smokey) but definitely not Bark lol unless I’m missing something at this part here 🤔
So basically Heavy from Team Fortress 2 isn't completely original character but instead based off the obscure sonic character
Could you possibly do either Wisper and Tangle from the mobile sonic forces racing game or Mecha Knuckles from Sonic R
12:14 I know his design looks like boom knuckles from sonic boom and he’s game counterpart has a different body type plus I think he probably been working out for like mouths 8:53 in this comic strip I didn’t notice that he can speak I feel like he can only speak when someone isn’t around him so… but I know bark wasn’t a bad guy he was a gentle giant deep down but I’m not sure why he joined bean and fang/nack and turning his life into a life of crime was that because bark has a rough past