The Mystery of the Orange Yurble(s)

So Yurbles... who do they have? The unknown Yurble(s), of no name(s), no certain identity(ies). The famous figure of their species is but an icon and not a one specific Neopet; the Orange Yurble.

Orange Yurbles are not among the most popular Neopet species/ colour combinations throughout Neopia, and yet the Orange Yurble seems to have a reappearing role in many Neopian stories. His first known appearance - to this humble writer - was in the Lost Desert Plot of Year 7, and has popped up over the past 6 years, reappearing latest in this year in the Year 13 Negg Hunt of our Neopian History.

Here's the million dollar question: are these Orange Yurbles twins/ triples/ quadruplets/ multiples of 5, 6, 7, or are they completely unrelated, or are they in fact the same Yurble? (Queue drama music for this theory, please.)

Main Appearances

So let's begin with the main appearances of the Orange Yurble(s), and collate the data before we begin to form theories.

1. Lost Desert Plot

There are two Orange Yurble appearances in the Lost Desert Plot; the Yurble Foreman and the Yurble Chef. Both angry... of course. The Foreman and the Chef are the same Yurble; the former having to take up the role of Chef when a part of the plot was completed and no longer a need for a Foreman. The Foreman is seen wielding the dusty scroll of pessimism, while as the Chef he is wielding the cooking pin of pessimism. Angrily, furniture was moved and the cafeteria was served by one orange fur ball.

2. Altadorian Plot

Argh! There's something lurking among the shadows in the Hall of Heroes! Ah phew, it's just the Orange Yurble Janitor, with his signature anger and now wielding the mop of pessimism. He's part of this plot, and helps out the Neopians (if you push the right buttons) in their quest to solve it. The only characters nearly as displeased and fed up as him are those Blue Quiggles (or Quiggle?) who run the clubs, of whom notices are pinned on the notice board at the library.

3. Mop 'n' Bop

The Yurble Janitor has his own game! In this game, you play the Janitor himself, and you need to clean various Altadorian petpets as they tread mud across the floor of the Hall of Heroes. Waving his mop (of cynicism) wildly around, it's business as usual for him in this demanding and under-appreciated job.

Actually, let's hear a round of applause for janitors, please.

*smattering of polite applause*

4. Faeries' Ruin Plot

An Orange Yurble appears in the Faeries' Ruin Plot as the Angry Yurble Librarian, wielding the bookmark of cynicism - which is handy for smiting those Shadow Wraiths; buy your own now! - and helping Brynn on her search for spells. However, this librarian really seems to be taking it too easy, wanting Brynn and the helpful Neopian to arrange the books and do this job for him.

5. Y13 Negg Hunt

The most recent appearance of this iconic Orange Yurble, he is part of the first Quest to help Kari the Negg Faerie build her booth for this year's Negg Festival. While *finally* agreeing to help us by giving us some wood, he needed to be pacified with some Delicious Chocolates. Ultimately, he reverts back to his old angry self, and pelts a box of half eaten Chocolates at you while you run to the next part of the quest.

*Nom nom nom, Chocolates...*

6. Miscellaneous

There are also a few miscellaneous appearances, such as the Orange Yurble avatar (depicting the three stages of Foreman, Chef and Janitor).

In the game Better Than You, the Orange Yurble has appeared four times. The games were:

Attack of the Slorgs (AHH get them OFF me!);

Sutek's Tomb (ooooh shuffle);

TNT Staff Smasher (take THIS *whack*);

and Mop 'n' Bop (just make it end!).

...and beating him in these games simply made him even more disgruntled. :(

Theories

Here are the most popular theories concerning the Orange Yurble(s) mystery so far:

1. He's one person.

2. Those Yurbles are a whole extended family.

3. They're utterly unrelated and this is ultimate cosmic irony, which if this is true, the entire population of Neopia will react with, "huh, I guess coincidences do exist", and then get on with their respective lives.

The most possible theory? Well, it's hard to say. However, with the collated data and items of relevance, it seems that these Orange Yurbles are in fact one Orange Yurble. His rather famous trademark anger surely isn't a familial trait; siblings can't *inherit* personality dispositions, can they? Or are Orange Yurbles in general just angry, because there aren't many more of their colour/ species? And if these Yurbles are indeed just one Yurble, what purpose does this Yurble hold, appearing in so many plots, stories, and events?

It's obvious: he's a free-lance actor.

Not just any free-lance actor as well, but an extra, always being denied of the opportunity of a lead role, which would explain his anger. It would also explain his incompetence at his various jobs, since he's only a trained actor, and not a foreman/ chef/ janitor/ librarian.

Or perhaps this anger that he has is not his natural disposition... but is scripted into these various plots? Something to mull over, on Year 13's Yurble Day.

Future appearances!

As an avid follower of the Orange Yurble(s) myself, I call for more appearances of the grumpy janitor/ chef/ foreman/ librarian. However, in what form? As a human resource manager? An assistant at the bakery? Or maybe a running a mine on Kreludor and blending in a bit too much with the Grundos.

So, ladies and jelly spoons, we conclude our mystery of the Orange Yurble with no conclusion, as is the fate of many questions in this mysterious world.

Whichever theory you pick is up to you; or even if you choose to make up your own. What's for sure, though, is whether he be cuttin' through jungle on Lutari Island, employed as court jester at both Skarl and Hagan's courts simultaneously, or running a Gnorbu ride on Mystery Island beach, the appearance of the Orange Yurble has but one consistency: disgruntlement.

(P.S. TNT, I'm looking for work; employ me to write a plot, please?!)