Merl

A paranoid and safety-conscious squirrel, Merl believes that a perfectly planned day and respect for the rules are the keys to surviving the dangerous and unpredictable world outside—and Pickle's plans for fun.

Depiction in the series
Despite the endless measures he takes to keep the stump (and himself) safe, organized, clean and tidy, Merl always seems to be the one who gets bonked, crushed, trampled, dunked, zapped by death rays and whatever else Pickle’s plan for the day entails.

Personality
Merl keeps his extensive collection of rare and valuable nuts meticulously polished and organized, and he’ll do almost anything to protect his precious stuffed “animal” Nutty Buddy…as long as he has the appropriate safety equipment for the job.. The stump, that's the safest place to be! Merl is a flying squirrel, although his wings have never grown. Merl is very cautious and hates the adventures that Pickle and Gull get him into. He is also very obsessive about cleanliness and hates the messes Pickle and Gull make. He has a peanut-shaped doll called Nutty Buddy. He speaks with a Spanish accent.

Pickle
Pickle is one of Merl's stumpmates and best friends. Although she is the main trouble-maker in the stump (and the show, generally) and drives Merl insanse, he could never kick her out of the stump! She's part of his family and he'd rather be running after her to clean the mess she's making, instead of losing her forever. Merl would totally miss Pickle even if she left for just one day, and that has been proven in the episode Speechless when Merl found a way to turn off Pickle's voice but then missed her so much that in the end of the episode he hugged her a couple of times and even admitted he loved her. Yes, Merl would do anything to have her around and even when she feels down, he's able to forget his safety rules and have some fun with her just to make her happy again (Dilly Comes to Town).

Gull
Merl's other best friend and stumpmate. Merl doesn't really like the fact that Gull is mostly listening to Pickle and doubles the trouble, but he cares for him and wants him in his life. Merl can hardly show off his affection for someone, espacially for Gull because he's full of microbes and so, he avoids (or at least, he tries to avoid) hugs with him. Despite Gull's lack of smartness, Merl keeps trying teaching him stuff, especially when it comes to his safety.

Nutty Buddy
Nutty buddy is Merl's best nutty friend. He loves him so much and it's the person (thing) Merl hugs the morst. He's very bonded with his little stuffed doll. Merl would drive himself insane if he ever lost him (Gone Buddy Gone). He's as precious to him as his collection of nuts, and even more! In the episode Collecting Merl, Merl did everything to take his Nutty Buddy back because he can't sleep with him.

Bigfoot
Merl doesn't seem to appreciate Bigfoot's company. He does not hate him, but doesn't like him at all. Maybe it's just because Merl avoids contatcs with other people and no one else (besides Pickle and Gull) is welcome in the stump. He let Bigfoot stay in there for a while though, but that was because he wanted to collect money to buy a rare nut. When he realized Bigfoot had no money, he yelled at him and kicked gim out of his house.

Dilly
Merl (unlike Gull) needed just a moment to hate Dilly and want to get rid of that pink, snobbish bunny. He mostly hated the fact that she caused Pickle to change everything on her to be liked by her cousin. but Pickle never managed to impress her and Dilly was only hurting her feelings. Merl reaching the other side of his personality to get Pickle back to normal and see her smiling again by doing whatever crazy and dangerous things she liked. In the end, he and Pickle ejected Dilly along with her couch out of the stump.

Schlitzy
When Schlitzy started insulting Merl, he thought it was just Gull using the corn of the cob to speak to him about issues he might have, but things went more serious when the evil creature started taking control of Gull's life, making him take the wrong decisions. Schlitzy quickly became one of Merl's worst enemies and Merl will always do his best destroy him, everytime he comes back, as shown in the episode Just Us League of Heroes.

Gallery


"That isn't very wise!" -Merl (Theme Song) Sumbol: warning yellow and black ribbon

Trivia

 * He is over 30 years old
 * He is Mexican
 * He speaks in a Spanish accent
 * Though he's a flying squirrel, his wings have never grown
 * He and Gull are flying animals but still can't fly
 * Merl was the first pesron to live in the stump
 * Warning yellow and black ribbon seems to be his characteristic symbol
 * His appearances in the Stephen Squirrelskly and Friends' Movie Spoof Travels are The Reindeer and the Deer and will hopefully in more spoof travels.

Memorable Quotes

 * "G-g-g-go?? Assaying leave the stump?? Nonono! There's only trouble out there!" -Merl to Pickle and Gull. [source]