1) S.D. Kluger: We rave about Fred Astaire's performance in the podcast, and can you blame us? Kluger steals the show by not only narrating, but performing the best songs AND providing a baffling but fun conundrum by being the only one in Kidtown who (we know) ages.
2) Gadzooks: He starts as a cliched beast in the wild but reveals glimpses of his potential when he gets the classy Easter threads. The romantic subplot with him is discarded, and Gadzooks is underutilized, but I don't blame him for the creative decisions to focus on more Easter-y elements of the story.
3) Sunny: Despite my hang-up about his name, I do appreciate what the bunny himself brings to this special. Some of his quirks are a little bizarre, but his "how to eat an egg" scene tops anything in screen history outside Cool Hand Luke. And of course Over Easy.
4) Chugs: Talk about "can-do" spirit! His inspiring grit and determination makes a perfect combination with Kluger's smooth motivational singing. Chugs is a reminder that the special isn't all jellybeans and hard-boiled eggs. It's about ganas--desire!
5) Burl Ives: Yes, Burl Ives, who isn't a "character" in The Easter Bunny, nor even a performer in it. He still looms large over the whole special. There is his previous performance as Sam the Snowman that makes us yearn for a team-up with Kluger. Also, his underrated turn in The First Easter Rabbit is a key link from that Rankin-Bass effort to this more ambitious Animagic production. "There's That Rabbit" and Ives might have made this an all-time classic.
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