Grem and Acer are major antagonists in Pixar's 12th full-length animated feature film Cars 2 and Acer is a cameo character in its 2017 sequel Cars 3. They are a pair of Lemon cars who are from the AMC Gremlin and Pacer crime families and work as some of Professor Zündapp's henchmen (although they secretly worked for Sir Miles Axlerod).
Grem was voiced by Joe Mantegna while Acer was voiced by Peter Jacobson.
What Makes Them Base Breaking Characters?[]
What Do People Like About Them?[]
- While serving for Professor Zündapp, they both have gained a fanbase for their designs and their partnership (as they are almost always seen together in the movie and make sure that they are by each other's side.
- Some viewers were impressed of how intimidating and competent Grem and, albeit Acer were aside from the rest of the lemon henchmen due to standing out as more evil than them, such as killing British agent Leland Turbo by crushing him into a compacted cube, having Rod Redline executed when Zündapp kills him with the EMP emitter, dealing with the EMP emitter to blow up the racers' engines, being smart enough to leave a trap to capture Finn McMissile who tried to stop them from sabotaging the racers and tricked Mater heading into the pit stop to save Lightning McQueen without telling him there was a bomb in his hood, showcasing their evil is cool elements.
- They are also fiercely loyal to Professor Zündapp, never leaving his side no matter how many times they get defeated.
- Their popularity made them the secondary antagonists in the tie-in game, Cars 2: The Video Game serving Professor Zündapp by attacking the player they were sent and for being unlockable playable characters.
- Their evil laughter is iconic.
- Viewers praise them for Joe Mantegna and Peter Jacobson's performances.
- Viewers agreed that Grem was considered more intelligent and competent than his partner-in-crime Acer. An example where this is further supported by the fact that Grem is entrusted with operating the electromagnetic pulse emitter, while Acer is not. His actions and decisions in the movie also suggest a higher level of intelligence and cunning compared to his partner-in-crime.
- Viewers find Acer somewhat funny, such as being smacked by a bathroom stall after Mater leaves it, Finn spraying him with a fire extinguisher, being slung into the logo for a sushi restaurant, driving through a plane and landing in a truck providing lavatory water for the plane (as he would appear in a newspaper with an image of him falling into the sewer truck in Cars 3, despite not making a psychical appearance), and he and Grem's defeat of Holley causing them to be slung into a bar, destroy all the tables and spill drinks on the patrons, causing the patrons to beat them up.
- While Acer may be slightly dumb, he's shown to at least have some intelligence, such as from the above mentions. Viewers expressed surprised when he used a flamethrower to try and burn Finn alive, and trying to block Finn and Mater's escape route driving with luggage carts.
What Do People Hate About Them?[]
- There are two reasons why people don't find them enjoyable:
- They are basically flat villains, lacking any complexity due to not having a deep internal conflict or personal philosophy that shapes their villainy.
- They can be both seen as one-dimensional, driven by a singular desire to prove themselves and hurt those who have wronged them. Their actions are not driven by a complex understanding of their own motivations or the broader world around them, since they mostly carry Professor Zündapp's plans.
- Viewers didn't like the twist how they ended up secretly working for Sir Miles Axlerod, by following his illogical plans and were better off sticking with working for Zündapp instead.
- In Acer's case, sometimes he acts somewhat slightly dumb compared to his partner-in-crime Grem, because of his very overconfident ego, though he is trusted with responsibilities such as operating dangerous devices. And while his evil laugh is iconic, in the tie-in video game called Cars 2: The Video Game, it also feels that it is overdone too much by getting annoying, such as when his laughter is reused with the other lemon henchmen's voices, despite not having the exact same voice actor due to some errors.
External Links[]
- Grem on the Villains Wiki
- Grem on the Disney Wiki
- Grem on the Pixar Wiki
- Grem on the Cars Wiki
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 Base Breaking Characters
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Animated Films Live-Action Films Animated Television Live Action Television Video Games Fanon
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