The citizens of O-Town are preparing for the return of Rocko’s Modern Life in the shape of a TV special, but what were the main characters up to when the show came to an end? In the era of remakes and reboots, Nickelodeon didn’t want to be left behind and decided to bring back three of their classic cartoons: Hey Arnold!, Invader Zim, and Rocko’s Modern Life.
Arnold and company had their TV film Hey Arnold: The Jungle Movie in 2017, and next on the list is Rocko’s Modern Life: Static Cling, to be released on Netflix on August 9. This one-hour special will follow Rocko, Heffer, and Filburt as they return to Earth after being in space for 25 years (after a rocket ship crashed on Rocko’s house at the end of the last episode of the series, “Future Schlock”), and how they adapt to the even more modern world. Over 20 years have passed since the last episode aired, so where were they before they were sent to space?
The titular character, a wallaby that emigrated to the United States after graduating high school (although there were some inconsistencies on that throughout the series), worked as a cashier at a local comic book shop called Kind-of-a-Lot-O-Comics, which has now become an instant-print kiosk. Rocko was single and lived with his dog, Spunky. He had different jobs in a couple of episodes, but by the end of Rocko’s Modern Life, he was back at his job at the comic book shop.
Heffer Wolfe, one of Rocko’s best friends, is a steer raised by wolves who were originally going to eat him, but they grew to love him and eventually adopted him. Heffer had various jobs throughout the series, including security guard in the episode “Uniform Behavior”, which was a reference to Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining. He lived with his parents and was unemployed by the time he was launched into space with Rocko, Spunky, and Filburt.
Rocko’s other best friend, Filburt Turtle, is a neurotic and hypochondriac turtle who holds the record number of jobs in the series with a total of nine, including license checker at the Department O’Motor Vehicles, photographer, food sample carrier, and lounge singer, as it turns out he has a Frank Sinatra style singing voice. Unlike Heffer, he supports himself in-between jobs by recycling cans. Filburt lived in a trailer with his wife, Dr. Paula Hutchison, and four children: Gilbert, Shellbert, Missy, and Norbert. The first two look exactly like Filburt, Missy like Hutchinson, and Norbert is a miniature Heffer with Filburt’s eyes, as Heffer took on the job of “egg-sitting”, consisting on literally sitting on the egg to keep it warm, as Filburt’s rear was too hard and Hutchinson was too busy working.
Filburt’s grown-up children are the ones who crashed the rocket ship through Rocko’s house in the final episode, sending them to space. It’s unknown if the Hutchinson-Turtle siblings will appear in the upcoming special, as they could have gone on their very own adventure, leaving Rocko, Heffer, and Filburt to their own luck. Hopefully, Rocko’s Modern Life: Static Cling will answer this and other questions fans might have about the characters and what they’ve been up following the end of Rocko’s Modern Life.
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