Squirrel and Hedgehog

Squirrel and Hedgehog (Chosŏn'gŭl: 다람이와 고슴도치 Dalam-iwa Goseumdochi, lit. Dharam and the hedgehog) is a North Korean animated series about two teenage anthropomorphic animals who fight an evil army.

쥐, 족제비, 늑대에게 패배해야 하는 이유 (Why It Should Get Defeated by the Mice, Weasels and Wolves)

 * 1) It is one of those propaganda shows aired in North Korea, in fact, these types of shows always portray the U.S. and other Western countries in a very negative, but of course, xenophobic type of way similar to Tomorrow’s Pioneers.
 * 2) There's a lot of graphic violence (such as murder, suicide and brief scenes showing several dead characters killed onscreen) and swearing in this show, despite the fact that the show is made for children. The opening theme of the show labels it as a "Children's Cartoon", which leads to more irony.
 * 3) Hidden political messages, considering the fact that it's a propaganda cartoon made to get children to have the same mindset as the people in the DPRK (North Korea).
 * 4) *In addition of the aforementioned political messages, all characters represent some of the countries - brave squirrels, hedgehogs and ducks portray North Korea, strong but dumb bears portray North Korea's former ally: The Soviet Union/Russia, while cowardly mice, nasty weasels and b- wolves portray North Korea's enemies: South Korea, Japan, and America respectively.
 * 5) Half of the time, the lip-sync does not match the dialogue. Sometimes, the characters mouths do not move at all when they are speaking. This is especially apparent during the beginning of the show's 31st episode.
 * 6) Odd sound effects. This is also apparent in the previously-mentioned 31st episode. In fact, in one scene, an opening door sounds more like a vibrating cell phone.
 * 7) The duck characters in the show look strangely similar to Donald Duck, even wearing blue and white sailor uniforms similar to the one Donald uses. Either this is a coincidence, or North Korea intentionally plagiarized the design.
 * 8) The pacing is very mediocre and bland.

Redeeming Qualities

 * 1) The animation is pretty impressive for a 1977 cartoon, although the character animation is sometimes slow and the aforementioned lip-syncing could be touched upon and improved.
 * 2) The premise of two anthropomorphic animals fighting an army is actually quite interesting, despite the horrendous execution.
 * 3) It does have some sweet and heartwarming moments, despite the still-visible violent moments.
 * 4) Decent voice acting.
 * 5) In the English dub version of the show, it removes all elements of the propaganda to make the show less offensive despite its war themes.
 * 6) The music is very well-composed.

Trivia

 * The show has (ironically) garnered a large fanbase overseas.
 * Despite the previous reason, however, the show was actually banned outside North Korea for reasons stated earlier.
 * The show was supposedly discontinued in 2013, which was around the same time the North Korean state television changed its broadcasting schedule, which cut several animated programs along with it.
 * This show is one of the most popular animated shows in North Korea, and a Manhwa (Merchandise) was released alongside the show. There were several key differences between it and the television series, such as the character "Lt. Fox Vixen" originally being depicted as male. It is unknown why this change occurred, but it could possibly be to acknowledge that the United States Armed Forces had allowed women to fight alongside male soldiers.
 * The SEK Studio, the North Korean studios that produced this show, has also produced a number of stand-alone short cartoons with anthropomorphic animals.
 * PhantomStrider ranked it #2 on his video "Top 5 Worst Korean Cartoons".

Videos
iV41khJKhBs Saberspark's review zxiYKfIExVg Squirrel and Hedgehog was ranked at number 2 in, and is served as an inter-card's background for PhantomStrider's Top 5 list CRjZsa4VtkI Sienduk (Сыендук)'s video Y3uA9oqNxec ConnerTheWaffle's video