Coco (Pauley Cracker in the 65' English Dub) is a childhood friend of Kimba (Leo) and Kitty (Lyra), and is seen in 1965 show Kimba the White Lion, 1966's Leo the Lion (Onward, Leo) and the 1997 movie Jungle Emperor Leo. He is also in Tezuka's manga.
Appearances[]
In Jungle Emperor (manga)[]
50s and 77 version
Coco first appears in chapter 5, "Jungle Symphony" as he is one of the animals that tries to convince Kimba (Leo) to come back to the jungle and help the animals by putting on the hide of Leo's father, Panja (Caesar). Coco's best friend is Tommy (Bucky). Coco is always there seeing Leo grow up and helping Leo rule the jungle.
Coco is the one that thinks of the names of Leo's children. He reversed the syllables in "Neru" and "Okiru". As Coco is not the brightest bird around, he confuses Rune with Leo.
In Leo the Lion Cub (manga)[]
Coco appears to look the same as the did in the anime rather than in the original manga. Leo also appears to know him when he enters the jungle. The role that Coco play is very similar to the manga and anime - silly shenanigans while never abandoning his jungle friends. It's revealed that Coco has a child that he attempts to feed to Kimba (Leo) the egg when he needs energy to fight in the "Boxing" chapter. He doesn't recognize the egg of his own child by accident.
In the 1965 anime[]
In the 1965 anime, Coco/Pauley Cracker (at least in the NBC dub) is depicted as a crazy and somewhat comical jerk with a strong and loyal belief in Kimba and his abilities. He is often seen with the gazelle Bucky (Tommy). His backstory (in ep. 10 - Two Hearts and Two Minds) provided in the anime is that he was the pet of a hotel owner, but met an attractive female parrot and tried to rescue her and other captive birds, a plan which ultimately ended in disaster and the demise of most of the escaping birds (including the aforementioned female parrot) except for Coco/Pauley, which may be the reason for his erratic and somewhat unstable behavior.
In 'Jungle Emperor: Onward Leo!'[]
Coco/Pauley Cracker is present in this anime, along with Tommy/Bucky, and is similar to his previous incarnation, although his role is greatly reduced here, as is Bucky/Tommy, due to the darker and grimmer tone of this anime. In some of the episodes (such as episode 9, The Falcons), Coco sometimes has some silly shenanigans and comic relief moments.
In 'The New Adventures of Kimba' (1989)[]
Coco is present in this anime along with his best friend, Tony (Tommy). This bird is always the first to report any danger in Panja's jungle that's far from Kimba (Leo)'s location as he's able fly through the brush. Coco mentions in episode 47: Crown, that he used to belong to a human named Nick. He lived outside in a bird cage. The only phrases of human language that he knew were, "Thank you, Thank you!" and "I know, I know!". Coco tells the story about how he made this way to the jungle. He joined Nick and his father on a hunting trip and Tony (Tommy) saves Nick from a raging leopard. Coco becomes envy of Tony's freedom and decides fly away from the cage and set himself free in the jungle.
In Jungle Emperor Leo (1997 film)[]
Coco announces the birth of Leo and Lyre's new cubs. When Lune becomes a little older, he acts like an uncle to the cubs like Bucky (Tommy). He attempts to teach Lune to fly, but doesn't succeed as Lune's wings were merely leaves.
In 'Jungle Emperor: The Brave can change the Future' (2009)[]
Coco is portrayed as a female, but as well resembles a Hummingbird rather than a parrot. She has a secret crush on Leo.