The Cheat

Biography
The Cheat, whose name includes the integral article, or pronounced The Chort by Coach Z, is what could be called Strong Bad's sidekick and Strong Mad's best friend. According to his Yearbook Character Page, his motto is "No rule is solid". He is at knee-height (1' 2" and 18lb., or 35.56 cm and 8.17 kg) and covered with yellow fur with prominent black spots down his back. In secret recipes and retirement, it is shown that The Cheat's skin is a pinkish flesh color under his fur. His arms resemble flippers (but he's still able to type and use a computer), and he doesn't have any legs to speak of. Instead, The Cheat crawls along ground, similar to a pseudopod. He has round black eyes and a pointed "facebone". The Cheat presents an adorable figure that is marred only by his large gold tooth, which he is hesitant to show, as seen in his character video. In lunch special, Strong Bad says The Cheat reminds him of a duck, and in huttah, Strong Bad suggests that The Cheat is "a cheese, or maybe an anvil."

The Cheat lives in the The King of Town's grill which, according to Strong Sad, is a nice place. The Cheat works at an unspecified tech company with Homestar Runner and Strong Bad at The Office, possibly tech support. Strong Bad's retelling of how he met The Cheat in flashback professes that he was hidden in a giant egg containing a lifetime supply of fish sticks, though it's not clear if it can be taken as truth or not. No one knows when The Cheat's birthday (or Cheatday) actually is, so it is celebrated on April 18, the date on his Scandinavian fake ID, since it's the most likely day that his birthday isn't. According to the client list in the On Point Kings recruitment brochure seen in more armies, The Cheat has a sister. His favorite color may be blue, as suspected from Drive Thru.

The Cheat is loyal to Strong Bad for many reasons. In privileges, The Cheat earns points for doing things that amuse Strong Bad, and when he gets enough points, he earns extra privileges (e.g. use of the mute button on the remote control). Strong Bad pays The Cheat for his services; in lackey, he reveals that The Cheat thinks that pencil shavings are legal tender, only for The Cheat to trick Bubs into accepting the shavings as cash. Strong Bad also pays The Cheat soft tacos for being his lawyer, as evidenced in e-mail rough copy. Strong Bad coerces and bullies The Cheat into being his lackey to a certain extent, and the two share a somewhat abusive relationship, particularly since Strong Bad is fond of kicking him. In animal, The Cheat was overshadowed by Sterrance when Strong Bad declared Sterrance to be "way cuter than that stupid ugly old washed-up The Cheat [he] used to have." In secret recipes, Strong Bad said he had a recipe for cooking "The Chekt". It's possible that Strong Bad's bullying has given The Cheat an almost murderous hatred of him at times (as in secret recipes and disconnected). Finally, The Cheat sees Strong Bad's brother Strong Mad as a source of protection, as seen in The Cheat's character video. While The Cheat is more than willing to help Strong Bad in his schemes of obvious illegitimacy, it must be noted that he isn't very good at it. Whenever he and Strong Bad try to pull off a heist, prank, etc., The Cheat usually screws something up and thus causes the plan to fail. A few examples of this are in Strong Bad is in Jail Cartoon, A Jumping Jack Contest, and caper.

The Cheat is an amateur Flash animator in his spare time, creating Powered by The Cheat cartoons and music videos first on an older orange iMac computer, Tangerine Dreams, and later on a newer iMac computer in redesign. These animations sometimes make their way into Strong Bad Emails, often even blurring "reality" with The Cheat's fantasy. The Cheat often uses his animations as an outlet for his pent-up feelings of abuse and lack of appreciation, rewarding his fictional self with trophies, fame, and friendship. He's also a master of many instruments; he plays the piano, the flute, the keyboard,[1] the drums,[2] the guitar,[3] and his record player.[4] He also is a music producer, doing remixes for The Geddup Noise (geddup noise) and the King of Town's New Jam, "Not Talkin' 'bout Butter" (Marzipan's Answering Machine Version 13.2) under the name "DJ Teh Cheat." Also, as evidenced by scenes in Seasonal Sweaters and No Hands On Deck!, he can knit. According to Strong Bad, he is "the best lawyer soft tacos can buy", but since his idea of suing is throwing water bombs at the defendant, this statement might not be sound. However, his aim with water bombs is so good, he can hit Strong Sad from three football fields away.

The Cheat's less admirable qualities include being addicted to cigarettes, and extensive use of Leetspeak on the computer. His AIM screenname is Cheatachu72. He also seems to possess explosive properties, which can cause his head to explode with no lasting effects. It is debated exactly what triggers it, since The Cheat's anatomy provides no information about the subject. It could be triggered chemically (i.e. carbonated drinks and Pop Rocks), when the brain is being overworked, such as in states of confusion, or even for no apparent reason. The most spectacular display was in Happy Fireworks, when he was shaken by Strong Mad and thrown into the air. This provided a huge explosion resembling fireworks. The Cheat once had a battle with insomnia, as Strong Bad recounted in bedtime story, due to watching a shockumentary about gingivitis. To go to sleep, he needs The Denzel, a glass of suudsu, and a story about him and Moses Malone, followed by a chainsaw lullaby. Failing that, two or three roach foggers are used. The Cheat also attracts fleas, as seen in retirement. As explained in bottom 10, The Cheat has a foul stench when he is wet. He is a very good swimmer, however, as seen in keep cool, when he easily skims across the surface of the water in a fashion similar to a speedboat.

Despite these issues, ladies are often attracted to The Cheat. Strong Bad advises his fans to use a cute pet like The Cheat to attract women in both lady...ing and lady fan. At times, however, The Cheat's charms are so irresistible that ladies prefer him to Strong Bad. This is seen most clearly in huttah!, in which several people send emails indicating that they are more interested in The Cheat than Strong Bad. The Cheat's capture of so many girls' affections contrasts sharply with Strong Bad's lack of success with women. The Cheat seems to have a particular crush on Marzipan, as seen in do over, in which The Cheat (in Homestar-esque makeup and covered in lip-shaped lipstick marks) is seen with Marzipan. He also went out on a date with Marzipan in Date Nite, but it did not work out in the end, as Marzipan found out that he had been declawed and then dumped him.

The Cheat's Language
The Cheat speaks entirely in a language of high-pitched squeaks and growls, which is actually called "The Cheat", that other characters apparently understand just fine. It's hinted that he knows some English, as he frequently says things that sound like fitting sentences not only in tone, but in how the words sound (for instance, in coloring, he sounded out "okay"). At other times, however, it seems to be just gibberish.

According to Matt Chapman in this interview, The Cheat does all the voices in his Flash cartoons. He normally can speak only in squeaks, but can impersonate the other characters speaking English remarkably well for a The Cheat.

The Cheat also provides the voice for the character Firebert in the Cheat Commandos Adventures TV show, in which he speaks entirely in his native language.

Interestingly, during Dangeresque 3: The Criminal Projective The Cheat plays the role of the villain Craig, when Craig is revealed the first part of The Cheat's monologue actually appears to be in English using his Powered by The Cheat Homestar voice. However, this may just be a glitch since the rest of the speech has clearly been dubbed over his The Cheat noises.