Birthday Bios: Jumbo Thumbo · 3:02pm Nov 25th, 2016
That feeling when you’re so deep into Moana hype that you start imagining one of your OCs with the voice of The Rock. No, really, I have You’re Welcome stuck in my head (I caved and listened to the soundtrack on YouTube instead of being surprised) and I keep looking at Jumbo here and thinking, “Huh, I think that voice actually suits him.” Awkward…
I’m going to be stuck in this hype until I see the movie next week. Oh, boy, Tuesday can’t come any faster.
Okay, let’s get back to horse business and get this bio done.
Jumbo Thumbo was born in Manehattan to Bulk Packaging and Integer Round, preceded in birth by older sister Angle Belle. He was named for a dear family friend who was a circus star, but had his life cut short in an accident. The baby’s chunky build made the name quite fitting, though some were concerned with how silly the name was.
Baby Jumbo definitely had a big appetite. He could down at least three bottles of formula in one sitting, even though his parents have tried to make sure he has less than that in his meals. And when he started eating solid food, he started to raid the fridge. There’s a reason why there’s a lock on the fridge at his house, and that his parents often make sure that he eats healthy food and gets some exercise.
He didn’t quite have a problem with it until his sister started poking fun at him for being so round when he was four and saying that Mom and Dad don’t love him because they gave him a stupid name. She planted ideas in his head that once he started school, he’d be the bouncy ball that they’d play with until he deflated—after all, she saw plenty of fat foals being used like that… or bullied for not being healthy. He would have nightmares about him as a ball, balloon, or anything else, and he dreaded starting school.
When he did start school, he started planning to fight back once the teasing started. After all, if he used his size to his advantage, they’d be too scared of him to bully him. Jumbo Thumbo was not going to take anything lying down, and he wouldn’t be that crying kid surrounded by other foals mocking him.
So, the first day of school rolled around, and just as he feared, several foals had poked him. Some were genuinely curious, some just found it funny to see him squirm. He was grumpy the entire day, not quite willing to socialize after most of the comments and threatening to crush anypony who got in his way.
Still, it didn’t stop one classmate, Tomato Sandwich, from being the last one to feel his fat, and to Jumbo’s surprise, say that he feels like a big, fluffy teddy bear. He still tried to punch him for invading his personal space, but Tommy was just too fast. Still, being compared to a teddy bear did soften Jumbo a bit, and he later apologized and asked if they could be friends. Luckily, Tommy was not one to hold a grudge, and was elated to have another friend.
Jumbo would be involved in a bunch of games with other foals, thanks to Tomato being generally a friendly kid that loved fun games with lots of ponies. He’d meet the shy Bluejinx, the smug Squirt, and the sarcastic Carpet Burn through these games, and the first couple years seemed to be a lot of fun with a lot of ponies.
Still, it didn’t prevent some of the meaner foals from making fun of him for being chubby, and Jumbo still had to keep a rough attitude to keep them away, and even picked on others for some slight. He’s gotten into fights because someone dared to say something about him, and he’d be dragged away by the ear to face the principal and his parents. He’s gotten grounded plenty of times in foalhood.
Soon enough, everyone had drifted apart into separate groups, and it was just him, Squirt, Carpet Burn, Bluejinx, and Tomato, the last one not wanting to leave them alone, even though the rest of the class still thought he was a pretty cool kid and kept acquaintance with him. The group of five still played together often, though there were points of contention, like who was the leader (despite the oldest being Jumbo himself, it was usually between Tomato and Squirt).
Tomato was a little too fond of his older brother, and had often pleaded his friends to try to get to know him. Sometimes he and Squirt would argue about who had the more awesome brother. Due to Jumbo Thumbo not really getting along with his sister Angle, he doubted that any big sibling was all that great. Plus… he had seen Tommy’s brother, who was a shy nerd that everyone picked on, and wondered what Tomato even saw in him. It got really annoying, with Jumbo being a bit snide about it behind Tomato’s back.
Finally, when they went to Tomato’s house, the group accidentally broke Tommy’s brother’s accordion. That led to the brother running away, which made Tomato upset with his friends. Jumbo has tried to cheer him up and asked when he could play again, which would only make Tommy angrier and shut out his friends. Jumbo didn’t admit it, but he was hurt that Tomato could suddenly be so cold. Thus, when Tomato finally had an emotional outburst over losing his brother, some of his nastier habits took over and he, Squirt, Carpet Burn, and a bunch of other foals laughed at him.
Jumbo had found out prior that Tomato was actually really smart and had high grades, so he justified to himself that his former friend had become a cold, nerdy jerk and it was okay to pick on him. He, Squirt, and Carpet Burn would take to harassing Tomato and Bluejinx for years to come. While they could ignore each other from time to time, sometimes it would just take a little goading from either Squirt or local rich girl Crème Brulee to set him off and push Tomato around.
He also got into plenty of fights from ponies who still didn’t get that poking fun at his weight would lead to him essentially body slamming them. Since he would grow from a cute and chubby cute to a wall of fat and muscle, his fights could cause injury. His cutie mark appeared during one fight with a pony who amazingly could fight back with equal strength. Unfortuately, Jumbo’s win led to a broken window, stitches on his opponent, and his suspension.
Finally having enough of his behavior, his parents decided that he needed therapy. His teen years were spent digging into his insecurities and controlling his anger, learning how to socialize better, and keep tabs on his weight so that he didn’t develop any serious health issues. It would take a few years for him to shed his victim complex and actually work on bettering himself.
He drifted apart from Squirt and Carpet Burn, and while he has considered trying to reconnect with Tomato and Bluejinx, he figured it was far too late to reconcile—plus, the Tomato he knew was gone, having turned into a cold and cynical business student who rejects fun. So, Jumbo went off on his own path, joining a wrestling club, which would end up launching him to the big leagues.
Though he still has his classic pudge, his diet and exercise have made much of his weight muscle, and he’d make a living off of wrestling other ponies of similar size to entertain others. He often puts the social skills he learned to good use, actually making friends with most of his opponents. He now gets along with his sister, who feels bad for driving him into his aggressive ways as a foal.
Though he wishes he could turn back time and change things, at least he’s made himself a better pony in his adulthood.
Well, at least he turned his life around before he did irreparable harm to himself. Though his sister did have a point; that really isn't the best name to foist on a child.