GIR (Invader Zim)
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GIR is one of the main characters from the animated television series Invader Zim. He is Zim's robot slave, a "modified" S.I.R. (Standard-issue Information Retrieval) unit, who occasionally dresses like a dog. GIR is voiced by Rosearik Rikki Simons.
The Almighty Tallest, to avoid the waste of a good, working unit on Zim, created it from garbage and spare parts, and his CPU is apparently made out of a screw, two "monies" (the currency unit of the show), a marble, and a paper clip. In an interview in Nickelodeon Magazine, Vasquez claims his body was made from old S.I.R. parts and a frozen yogurt machine[citation needed]. Despite his construction, GIR is technically functional, but his behavior is far from the standard S.I.R. unit.
GIR is Zim's advanced, unfocused robot slave, easily influenced and impossible to fully control. He is incapable of focusing attention on important things for long periods of time and often speaks with no relevant coherent thought in mind (see quotes link below), making him completely useless, or even disastrous. Nobody knows what the "G" in GIR stands for. At a panel during the 2002 Dragon Con, Jhonen Vasquez has said that the "G" doesn't stand for anything. Occasionally he reverts to normal S.I.R. behavior, during which time his cyan components (sometimes only his eyes) become red and voice becomes much deeper, but these periods are normally short-lived. As a robot, GIR technically has no gender, but he is usually referred to as being male, typically by Zim, although he occasionally wears women's makeup. However, in the episode Mysterious Mysteries, he(?) is referred to as a she, although it is because GIR claims that he was "the chubby lady hidin' in the bushes." Zim (While under the Santa Suit's control) also called GIR a "cute little girl." GIR's normal disguise is a shoddy green dog suit with a visible zipper down the front, though he occasionally forgets to wear it in front of humans. He is infatuated with Earth culture and Gaz, the sister of Zim's enemy, Dib.
GIR's personality is essentially much like that of a dog or little brother. His main interests are sleeping, dancing, watching TV (in particular, the Scary Monkey Show), eating, and aimlessly rolling on the floor. He cooks occasionally, making foods including mashed potatoes and waffles, and often uses unusual ingredients such as peanuts, bacon, and soap. His favorite food is tacos and a chocolate bubble gum slushie. He usually cooks only for himself, as Zim finds human food to be disgusting. However, in the episode Zim Eats Waffles, Zim was attempting to develop an immunity to human food, and he was shown eating the waffles GIR concocted throughout the episode (although GIR used ingredients not typically found in human food). GIR eats solely for pleasure, as he is a robot and likely does not need food. He gets along well with others, and his best friend (other than Zim) is a pig, named "Pig", who sometimes "visits" with GIR at Zim's house, and can even be heard driving a motorcycle after GIR says goodbye to him. He commonly says "I don't... know", accenting "Don't" with a high pitch and dragging out the last word.
Jhonen Vasquez mentions in the Invader Zim DVD commentary that much of GIR's personality is simply attributed to the fact that he is a largely hedonistic character. Regardless of what Zim and others want of him, he will probably do anything that makes him feel good, no matter how crazy, if left to his own devices. Vasquez and the cast of the show have expressed that they dislike how some people consider GIR "cute", using the scene from Bestest Friend (GIR walks up to where Keef has been thrown out, and looks like he's going to comfort him, but he just takes his bacon) as an example. Curiously, GIR is not utterly selfish and devoid of conscience, as he does do what Zim wants of him from time to time and often expresses his love for his master in ways that may make sense only to himself, like the random hugging sessions in Germs and Rise of the Zitboy.
In the episode GIR Goes Crazy and Stuff, Zim uses a behavioral modulator set on a "dangerously high level" in an attempt to lock GIR in "Duty Mode" to make him a more efficient and obedient servant. These extended lucid periods, however, reveal to GIR Zim's overall incompetence. Duty Mode GIR subsequently tries to eliminate Zim, who he deems a threat to the mission. In the end, Zim realizes that a super-intelligent robot that hates him is a larger burden than a stupid robot that loves him, so he reverts GIR back to his former, normal self.
Defective S.I.R. Units, as observed in Megadoomer, appear to act similar to GIR's normal behavior, although their coloring stays red, and does not change to cyan.
The Game Boy Advance game Nicktoons: Freeze Frame Frenzy refers to GIR Goes Crazy and Stuff: In the Danny Phantom stage, Zim, the main villain in the game (unlocked by getting 100% in the album), confronts his rebellious Helga robot and mentions that "using GIR's code was a really bad idea." This implies that non-S.I.R. robots could rebel with GIR's programming. Realistically though, the game should not be looked at as being too related to the show, being a fictional crossover, which are usually non-canonical.
[edit] Zim and GIR
At the start of the series, Zim deemed GIR his "robot slave." Throughout most of the earlier episodes, Zim and GIR's relationship was established as master and servant (indeed, GIR usually refers to Zim as "Master" and "My lord"). Later on, however, Zim refers to GIR as his sidekick.
Their relationship is oddly complex for a children's series. While Zim initially wished that GIR were operational, and though he often shouts at him and blames him for his failures, he regularly expresses concern for GIR's safety and treats him affectionately. For instance in the Halloween episode Zim hopes that GIR is okay on his own against the "candy zombies". Although Zim is frequently frustrated by GIR's incompetence, he takes no steps to deactivate or get rid of GIR (but he does try to replace him in the unfinished episode Nubs of Doom). One reason Zim may keep GIR around is because he is the only friend Zim has. Another is that GIR has saved him from Dib on a number of occasions.
[edit] Bloody GIR
Main article: Bloody GIR
Bloody GIR is an Easter Egg visible in several episodes of the series. To see him, one would likely need a DVD player capable of viewing screens frame by frame.
The most visible instance of bloody GIR is in the opening sequence of Mortos der Soulstealer. The image is evident for four frames at the end of the sequence in the end of one of the pipes that snakes out of Zim's house. Bloody GIR has also been sighted in Bad, Bad Rubber Piggy as the last pig goes through the "space time object replacement device". He has also been seen in the Voot Cruiser sequence in the opening of Plague of Babies. He is seen looking in the window of the Voot at the left hand corner of the screen several times, some more noticeable than others. One of the least known and least visible bloody GIR is in the episode Tak, the Hideous New Girl. When Tak's ship is falling from space, wait until just before it crashes and the screen turns almost completely white, bloody GIR's head is just barely visible in the center of the screen.
The existence of bloody GIR has been confirmed by director Steve Ressel in interviews. The frames were reportedly scattered throughout the episodes following Bad, Bad Rubber Piggy by Ressel and Chris Graham.
Bloody GIR was born when Nickelodeon refused to allow a scene involving GIR covered with blood. Out of comic spite, a frame of the forbidden image was hidden in several episodes.
