In which Trufflehunter gets badassery…

.

Browsing more concept art, and it’s interesting what people will draw. Everyone sees a “scene” differently, so seeing how someone else sees a character or a place can be rather enlightening.

Such was the case when I found this picture of Trufflehunter, the badger from PC. I don’t know what it is about badgers, but it seems that a lot of people view them like JKR, who made them the mascot of Hufflepuff, described by the sorting hat as:

These belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal.
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
And unafraid of toil.

Of course, like anyone who has an affinity with Hufflepuff will point out, Cedric Diggory was a Hufflepuff, and he was also brilliant and brave and good. But it’s the loyal and hardworking aspects which most people think of first, and those aren’t thought to be very exciting attributes. Trufflehunter is much the same (and I do think JKR was at least subconsciously channeling Lewis when it came to the creation of Hufflepuff), and thus isn’t very exciting, even though he is knighted by Caspian. Part of the blame may be the movies, in which he was female in the BBC version (the one I grew up on), and, while noble, not a very good fighter in the Disney version. And maybe he gets confused with the rather hapless Beavers. Plus, I think a lot of people don’t realize that the Animals in Narnia are quite a bit more, for lack of a better word, anthropomorphic than regular animals.

So, what inspired all this? This wonderful depiction of Trufflehunter by John Dickenson:

Trufflehunter by John Dickenson

Trufflehunter looks…serious, fierce and badass. Look at that sword. Look at those claws! And then that bit of grass out of the corner of his mouth, giving him a hint of swagger. That’s an Animal worth respect.