The main character of the comic strip is
, easily recognized by his round hairless head, shirt with a horizontal zigzag pattern, and characteristic exclamation of "Good Grief!", uttered when he faces yet another of the many setbacks that life seems to hold for him. These include frequent run-ins with
, failure to successfully kick a football (when
van Pelt once again pulls it away at the last instant), and unrequited affection for
.
There is a lot of frustration for many characters over the years.
has a crush on
van Pelt, who is generally seen with security blanket in tow (including on the Halloween evenings spent waiting for the appearance of
instead of trick-or-treating with the others). Her best friend
shares the interest, leading to some tension in the friendship. Meanwhile, Lucy is constantly rebuffed by the music-obsessed
, who is often seen playing a toy piano on which is perched a bust of Ludwig van Beethoven.
, she of the naturally curly hair, puts a lot of effort into getting
to chase rabbits, with no luck. At least she realized from the start that he was a dog, unlike freckle-faced
, who took several years to cotton on to that fact! She calls Charlie Brown "Chuck", while her best friend
, who calls her "Sir", calls him "Charles". The deference is an indication of her crush on him.
, a yellow bird who is a member of the Beagle Scout Troop (of which the only female member is a small bird named
), regularly finds himself crushed as he tries to catch a football despite being much smaller than it.
This litany of disappointments could make you wonder why 'Peanuts' is remembered with immense fondness, and has generated numerous spinoffs in other media. The answer may lie in the unquenchable optimism and resilience displayed by the characters.
