We all love the episode of The Simpsons when the contrived cool character of Poochie is dreamt up by marketing executives in an effort to shake things up and appeal to a younger audience.

Most designers and illustrators have been involved in creating characters based on the client’s input, sometimes it works out great but a lot of the time it goes wrong. And usually the results of these misguided attempts at trying to second guess what appeals to the kids usually falls into the ‘cool and/or radical dudes’ category.

Last year I was in Costa Rica and was amazed at how many cool dudes there were adorning billboards and packaging. These dudes were certified fresh. Caps on backwards, shades, skateboards and even their hands poised in vague gang signs. It kills me that I didn’t take any usable photos.

So now I’m looking for an example of the ULTIMATE RADICAL COOL DUDE used in advertising, packaging, design etc. 

I have devised a grading system to rate all the cool dudes I have found so far.

Skateboard and Cool Paraphernalia

Obviously the inclusion of a skateboard gets maximum points but this category also includes:
baseball caps, sunglasses, chains/medallions, surf boards, roller blades etc.

Attitude: Bad Boy or Certified Whack?

Is the character the bomb? This measures the attitude of the character. They can be a cool dude with a skateboard but have no attitude while conversely; a character without a skateboard can gain more points by throwing a rap hand or gang sign.

Artistic Merit

This measures just how well it is executed graphically. But if a character or premise is so bad that it becomes good, it gets positive points. 

Wukomi Wrap up

This is the final review and summary of all points from our expert panel.

Please keep an eye out for examples and on your finds and we will add and review them here.