Spat (デビハムくん) is a strange, villainous hamster who appears in Hamtaro: Ham-Ham Heartbreak and some of the Japanese episodes. He is an evil, devilish hamster who attempts to destroy love.
In comparison to most other characters, he has a unique appearance and personality. He says "pfpth" after most of his sentences (in the original version, "debi").
Character description
Spat is an evil and sinister hamster who fights with Harmony and tries to ruin love for all hamsters. He enjoys sowing discord and heartbreak in otherwise-happy hamster friendships and couples. He is able to use a little bit of magic, as he can fly (but only for short distances) and shapeshift into other hamsters. However, most of his power comes from being able to easily manipulate others.
Spat is very childish and petty. If his plan doesn't work the way he wanted it to or he can't have something, he often throws tantrums much like a child would. He also has the habit of provoking his rivals by making grimaces and rude faces when he runs out of nasty things to say. He has a hatred of "all things lovey-dovey", and does everything he can to ruin other hamsters' love. There doesn't seem to be a significant reason as to why he hates love, except that it sickens him; though it is hinted that he may just not understand love.
Even though he has a somewhat-silly appearance and a childish personality, Spat can be dangerous. He is a master-manipulator and sometimes follows through on his more-dangerous threats. On several occasions, he has possessed hamsters to turn them onto the side of evil. In a few instances, he has even kidnapped hamsters; who would later be rescued by the Ham-Hams. Spat's mischief also led to the closure of Sweet Paradise - nearly getting a group of Ham-Hams killed in the process.
There does seem to be some well-veiled level of sympathy held by Spat. For example, when he kidnapped a girl hamster in Ham-Ham Heartbreak, he gave her a TV to watch and many comforts, showing that he somewhat cared for her comfort and feelings.
Appearance
Spat has unique eyes compared to most hamsters, which are half-shut. He wears a black cap with two long stalks, with an arrow on each tip. He has wings that enable him to fly (albeit not very well), and carries a large pitchfork (which is sometimes colored blue, other times colored black).
Spat received several redesigns throughout the series. In Hamuchanzu de Gozaimachu! Vol. 2, his head is entirely off-white fur, with a dark gray line around his belly. In Hamtaro: Ham-Ham Heartbreak, he was given a small, arrow-shaped streak of gray fur at the top of his head. In the anime series and most media following, his arrow marking is much longer, going halfway past his eyes.
Spat as an angel
When the player defeats Spat using Harmony's Love Shots, he turns white, his hat turns into a halo, and his devil wings turn into angel wings. He looks like Harmony, not counting his half-lidded eyes and a small arrow marking.
Relationships
Harmony
Spat and Harmony are always at odds with one another. Spat views her as his mortal enemy and is typically annoyed with her for thwarting his attempts to cause heartbreak. However, he may secretly have a soft spot for her; in Rin Rin! Harmony!, he blushes at her while she's scolding him. This may indicate he may have a small crush on her, and that he's just being childish about love.
Notable Episodes
- Rin Rin! Harmony! (#130)
- It's Santa, Merry Christmas! (#232)
- Devi! Big Panic! (#244)
- Happy Ham-Ham Wedding! (#296)
Audio Files
Themes
| Only used | Composer | Theme Song |
|---|---|---|
| Hamtaro: Ham-Ham Heartbreak | Satoko Yokota |
Trivia
- In the Italian dub, his name is Birbo, which means "rascal" or "scamp". In the French dub, he is called Zizanie, which translates to "discord".
- Strangely, he is only noticed by Bijou when he says "pfpth".
- Spat seems to like spooky and creepy things, and does not seem to be afraid of things like ghosts (as he thinks they are evil creatures just like himself); but being a hamster, he is deeply afraid of cats.
- On the North American releases of the Hamtaro Official Trading Cards, Spat's devil-horn hat is completely removed, and his pitchfork is replaced with a brown wand; seemingly due to it implying loose religious context.
Gallery
- Main article: Spat/Gallery