12 oz. Mouse

12 oz. Mouse is an animated comedy show on Cartoon Network broadcast as part of the Adult Swim late night programming block. The show centers around the antisocial actions of a 12 oz. mouse (also known as Mouse Fitzgerald, according to the "bump" that aired just before the program although his ID refers to him as "Mouse Fitz"). It was created by Matt Maiellaro, a co-creator of Aqua Teen Hunger Force, another show that airs on Adult Swim.

The pilot episode for 12 oz. Mouse, "Hired", premiered on June 19, 2005 at 12:30 a.m., with an encore presentation at 3:30 a.m. It became a regular show in the Adult Swim lineup in October 2005.

The show was also known as "oz.Mo" for the title sequence, in which the "camera" was so close to the "12 oz. Mouse" title card that only the characters "oz. Mo" are visible. However it was later discovered that Ozmo is the name of an educational cartoon produced by the BBC and to avoid a potential lawsuit, the producers changed the open to show "12 oz. Mouse" instead.

According to the network, the show is about a 12 oz. mouse who is fond of beer and caught in a world of espionage and love, and unknowingly delights in odd jobs.

The style of the show is of a crude children's drawing and limited motion. The brandishing and usage of firearms, drinking alcohol to excess, and indifferent homicidal acts are common activities of the 12 oz. mouse.

During the premiere, it was hinted in the Adult Swim "bumps" that Matt Maiellaro had been intoxicated when he came up with the idea for the show, which is how the crude art reminiscent of "a 4-year old on drugs" made its way into the show. Local Lexington Kentucky semi-professional rock band Nine Pound Hammer was commissioned to pen the theme song.

Mouse Fitzgerald
Played by Matt Maiellaro

Also known as "Fitz". He is an alcoholic, arrogant, womanizing freelancer who struggles to survive and find love in a world of danger, international intrigue, and anthropomorphic doodles. Fitz seldom answers a question directly and often relies either on circumlocution or insults to evade a clear response. He hangs around with a chinchilla named Skillet and together they sometimes rob banks for beer money in a yellow jet fighter Fitz commonly uses for transportation. Fitz displays sociopathic tendencies and seems to practice a philosophy of life heavily grounded in the 20th century existentialist movement.

He also enjoys making amateur porn, usually starring rectangles that don't have eyes. The show's producers have not yet addressed what this says about Fitz's sexual preferences. However, it is widely believed that he practices bestiality since he has made sexual overtures to human women on more than one occasion. It is also believed that he is heterosexual, since he once had a dream in which he was married to a female mouse and had fathered a son. Some fans of the show speculate that Fitz is three years old, an avowed Marxist, and immortal from subtle hints provided on the show. However, these points are commonly debated among dedicated fans and are not accepted as canon.

Shark
Played by Adam Reed

Shark runs an employment agency and periodically hires Fitz to do various odd jobs. By his own account, Shark loves Fitz in both a platonic and homoerotic sense. As of yet, the romantic nature of Shark's relationship with Fitz has not been expanded upon and is often complicated by the fact that they have literally tried to kill one another on more than one occasion.

Shark also seems to be feared by everyone. In the episode Spider he talks to Rhoda who seems scared and Golden Joe also appears briefly only to see Shark and disappear.

It is speculated that Shark might be Ol'Kentucky Shark from Space Ghost: Coast to Coast but so far, this has not been proven.

Shark may also appear in the Aqua Teen Hunger Force episode "Escape From Leprauchpolis", but this is also unproven.

Rhoda
Played by Dave Willis

Rhoda the bartender has only one eye and serves Fitz his drinks. Fitz's usual order is twelve beers. If you look closely, you can a segment of the screenplay from Perfect Hair Forever, implying the character was doodled on it and scanned in. The words only appear correctly when he faces right, otherwise they're reversed. Is found dead, by Fitz, at the end of Rememorized.

Skillet
Skillet is a chinchilla and Fitz's closest associate. Fitz doesn't have friends. Skillet often finds himself getting separated from Fitz in odd ways. Apparently, he has rockets on his feet and uses them to jump around. He can also fire lasers from his eyes. Skillet is an accomplished drum player and can use his prehensile tail to play with three drumsticks.

Eye
Played by Nick Ingkatanuwat

Eye is a giant eye who hires Fitz to kill Golden Joe, who owes him fifty million dollars. He seems to have a speech disorder as he speaks slowly and indefinitely. He often uses words that have the "I" sound in them, even when they have nothing to do with the conversation at hand or when they are not supposed to have the "long I" sound in them (e.g. mon-eye instead of money).

Golden Joe
Golden Joe is a loudmouthed rapping wizard who has the ability to "come and go" as he pleases through teleportation.

New Guy
The New Guy is a strange red ghost. He appears at random intervals throughout the show and makes a flapping noise. He also seems to have an obsession with Skillet as his house is covered with pictures of the chinchilla. He once kidnapped Skillet and hula-hooped in front of him. It is unknown toward what ends these actions were aimed, but it is suspected that Ghost has some type of romantic interest in Skillet.

The Policeman
Played by Nick Weidenfeld

A blue peanut shaped policeman who fails to do his job. He is constantly "stoned". He sometimes knows what's going on, but he's state of mind stops him from seeing the obviously wrong.

Siren Lady
Played by Bonnie Rosmarin

This nameless woman appears at random times, laying horizontally and turning upright to make a loud siren sound. She first appeared in the episode "Hired" when Fitz tried to make out with her. She has the unusual ability to transform into a man....

The airhorn siren first appears in the episode "Signals". In the episode "Rooster" Rectangle asks Shark if he got his signals and a brief flash of the siren lady emitting the airhorn noise is shown. The Siren Lady appears to be Rectangle's signal. His reasons for using her remain unknown.

In "Rememorized" she seems more naive and talking in a monotonic voice.

Rectangle
Played by Kurt Succolich

A prominent financier? A brilliant con artist? A spy for a foreign power? An up and coming young porn star? The background of this pink rectangle remains a mystery. He wears sunglasses, presumably to hide the fact that he is without eyes, and purports to be quite wealthy. However, it is unknown whether or not he is a legitimate businessman and if his claims of financial affluence are accurate.

It is known that the rectangle once asked Shark to provide him with transportation. His request was granted in the form of Fitz, who was charged with flying him to an important meeting in a yellow jet fighter. Instead, in keeping with his usual mode of operation, Fitz took the rectangle to a motel room. There, Fitz forced him to star in his first amateur porn film. During the course of the brief filming, Fitz served as director while Skillet worked the camera. When Fitz finished his masterpiece, he and the chinchilla tossed a bomb onto the bed and fled the motel. It was assumed that the rectangle was killed in the ensuing explosion. However, he was more resourceful than Fitz realized and the rectangle reappeared not long afterward. This time he was in league with Shark and Golden Joe. What goals the trio may have been advancing toward remain unknown.

Rooster
A corn dog farmer near the town where Fitz lives. The divining corn dog that Fitz received in the mail leads him and Skillet to Rooster's farm. It is at his farm that Skillet is kidnapped by the New Guy. Fitz stayed at the farm until Rooster ran out of beer, then left to look for Skillet. In the episode "Rememorized", Rhoda reveals that, according to Liquor, Rooster received a piece of mail that blew up on him before he could open it. His survival is unknown.

Talent Scout
Played by Dave Willis

Twice Fitz has been approached by the talent scout. The first time was in "Hired", in which he attempts to hire Fitz as an actor. He shows up later, in "Spider". He happens to be passing by the music store that Fitz and Skillet are burgling to become rockstars. He hears their music and decides to give them a contract with his record label. He then gets into a discussion with the Policeman. Neither seems to understand what the other is talking about and are carrying on two completely different conversations. The Talent Scout's head is then sliced in half, apparently by Fitz. His blood sprays all over The Policeman, who believes it to be ice cream. Fitz still gets the contract and releases his first record, "F-Off."