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For the constellation in "A Camping Conundrum", see Hacker (constellation).
Hacker
HACKER 04C
category Species
Cyborg[1]
cake Age
Adult
cake Birthday
August 15[2]
male Gender
Male
palette Favorite color
Puce
work Occupation
Assistant to Motherboard (formerly)
family_restroom Relatives
Dr. Marbles (creator)
Motherboard (mother)[3][4]
Digit, Buzz, Delete (creations)
Harmony (niece)
sentiment_satisfied Allies
Buzz
Delete
Gigabyte
sentiment_extremely_dissatisfied Enemies
CyberSquad
Dr. Marbles
Ledge
Motherboard
Zusk
skip_previous Debut
Unknown
“That's The Hacker to you.”
―Hacker's catchphrase

Hieronymous[5] "The" Hacker is the overall main antagonist of Cyberchase. The archnemesis of Motherboard and the CyberSquad, Hacker plans to seize control of Cyberspace. To this end, he has infected Motherboard with a virus[6].

Hacker is the creator of Digit, Buzz, Delete, Gigabyte, and various inventions that he has sought to use for evil.

Hacker is usually voiced by Christopher Lloyd, but occasionally by Thom Christopher. Lloyd interprets the character as "sort of a monster" that "could cause a lot of damage", but "he's harmless, really. You just have to figure out a little bit of math… you get the right equation going, and you can nail him every time." He believes that child viewers "see right through [Hacker]; that this guy is a jerk."[7]

History

Early life

Young Hacker

A younger Hacker working for Motherboard, in a flashback from "A Piece of the Action"

Dr. Marbles created Hacker as an equally[8] intelligent assistant for Motherboard[9], first booting him up on August 15[2] of an unknown year[10]. Hacker later created Digit to be his assistant, in turn[11].

Hacker attended school with Max, who outperformed him in track, debate, slugball, and the school dance contest[12]. He does, however, have a Borg Spelling Bee Champion trophy[13] that he possibly earned during that part of his life.

Hacker served Motherboard for some time. He claims that his designs and programs helped build Cyberspace[14]. Hacker was initially eager to protect Motherboard and work on inventions for the common good. At one point, he saved Motherboard from a meteor made of magnetite.[15]

However, Motherboard once grounded Hacker for illegal downloading; and, on another occasion, Hacker tried to double his gigabytes to crash a data storage center[16]. These may have been early sources of strife between Hacker and Motherboard. In addition, Hacker feels that Motherboard was taking credit for his work[14].

By the time he was working alongside Coop on the Transformatron, Hacker insisted on using it to usurp Motherboard and take over Cyberspace. When Coop destroyed the blueprints, Hacker swore revenge.[17] Hacker switched Coop's helmet for one made out of magnetite, which he wore a few days later. Its corrupting effects forced Coop into hiding for Slider and Motherboard's safety and to find a cure for magnetite.[18]

Eventually, Hacker removed Motherboard's Encryptor Chip and locked it in a secret vault[19]. Digit returned the Encryptor Chip, and Motherboard banished Hacker for his hostile actions[20], with Dr. Marbles draining Hacker's perpetual power supply in the process[21][22].

Banishment

Upon his arrival at the Northern Frontier, Hacker was trapped on Mount Wayupthere until the Flying Parallinis rescued him, not knowing who he was until it was too late[1].

Hacker had brought Digit against his will[23], having him help build the Grim Wreaker. Hacker invented the Recharger Chair to temporarily restore his power[24], and purchased Build-A-Bot kits on Botopolis that he used to create Buzz and Delete[25].

However, a later flashback in "Hacker Hugs a Tree" shows Hacker arriving on the Northern Frontier alone and via portal.

Hacker began throwing cybersites into chaos, starting by blacking out Valussa. Digit restored Valussa's power, but Hacker caught and imprisoned him. Digit managed to escape and return to Control Central.[24]

It is unknown in what exact order these events take place in, due to the extremely long period of time that is presumed to have passed since his banishment.

Return

"Eons" later, according to Dr. Marbles, Hacker eventually launched a plan to get revenge on Motherboard. He manipulates Inez, Jackie, and Matt[26] into crashing a computerized library map in the real world, which creates a breach in the system while Motherboard's firewall is down during maintenance. Hacker uses this opening to infect Motherboard's circuits with a computer virus. In the time it takes Dr. Marbles to reload the firewall, Motherboard suffers partial damage. In response, Motherboard forms the CyberSquad from Digit and the Earth children who used the library map.[6]

Hacker frequently engages in schemes to spread evil and chaos throughout Cyberspace. At first, some of these plans center around seizing and destroying the Encryptor Chip to prevent it from curing Motherboard's virus. However, Motherboard calls in the CyberSquad to thwart Hacker's schemes.

Rise to power

When Dr. Marbles finally locates the Encryptor Chip, Hacker kidnaps and imprisons him. He programs a fake Encryptor Chip to compress Motherboard into a ZIP file onboard internal storage, replace her with Hacker's likeness, and block attempted reboots so that restoring Motherboard through a backdoor will destroy the real Encryptor Chip. He then stages an auction for the hacked chip. The CyberSquad saves enough money to take the top bid and insert the chip into Motherboard, allowing Hacker to assume total control of Cyberspace.[27] Hacker is foiled when the CyberSquad locates him, saves the real Encryptor Chip from destruction, and reinstalls Motherboard at the expense of the real chip.[28]

Decline of reputation

In the wake of innumerable defeats, Hacker is publicly viewed as a joke and no longer feared[29]. Among Hacker's current goals is to rescue his evil image.

A fan of Hacker's, Ledge, creates and deploys a Hacker-themed brainwashing machine to impress him. Hacker casts Ledge away when Inez manages to deactivate the machine[30], prompting Ledge to become a potent rival to Hacker and the CyberSquad alike. This forces Hacker to work with the CyberSquad to thwart Ledge's plans, to his chagrin.[31] He is for the most part, very confident in himself. However, he is always stopped by the kids and he has been outsmarted by other villains such as Wicked, Ledge, and Zusk.

Physical appearance

87F4CF6A-BC11-4C71-8163-2956F7088B7F

Hacker holding up a blue pen, usually kept in his pocket protector, in "Digit's B-Day Surprise"

Hacker is a tall cyborg with green skin, a pointy nose and chin,[32] and an extreme, protruding jawline. His upper body has grown large and well-developed since his time working for Motherboard, but his legs and feet are considered small, especially by comparison[33][34]. Hacker wears a wig that curls at both ends, which he uses wig gel to style.

Hacker's main outfit consists of a purple cape, fastened with a black polygonal bow tie, over a white shirt with a pocket protector containing three pens (blue, yellow, and red). He wears a purple belt with a round yellow buckle, and black pants and pointed shoes.

After being trapped in a cold room in "Trick or Treat", Hacker's skin turns light blue.

Flashbacks

In many flashbacks from when Hacker worked for Motherboard, he was thinner and typically wore a polo neck shirt with a lab coat over the top. At this time, Hacker's hairstyle was also swept up into a bump or pompadour in the front. Later, he wore a pocket protector on his lab coat.

It is not known whether Hacker ever had real hair. However, "Totally Rad" suggests that he has not when Hacker laments about finally having gotten real hair after wishing for it using the ring.

Bedwear

"Harriet Hippo & the Mean Green" reveals that Hacker wears yellow onesie pajamas with a juice stain.

Internal anatomy

Hacker X-ray

Hacker's X-ray

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Please add information to improve its coverage and accuracy.

The interior of Hacker's body is shown in "Inside Hacker".

This is later contradicted by an X-ray gag in "Face-Off", which depicts him with a humanoid skeleton.

Personality

Hacker quest

Hacker as seen in The Quest

“He wants all the power he can take on, and he wants ultimate control of everything. He wants to have the authority to make anything happen and make people do what he wants to do. He wants it all, and he doesn't give a hoot who he tramples on on the way.”
―Christopher Lloyd[7]

Hacker is manipulative, sadistic, cynical and has a planet-sized ego. As part of his conceitedness, he insists on being called the "The Hacker" and will repeatedly correct those who fail to do so. He often admires himself using a hand mirror gifted to him by Wicked[35] and uses wig gel obsessively. His pet peeves include getting dirty and losing his wig.

According to Christopher Lloyd in a MetroFocus interview, Hacker is convinced that he is the "genius of all geniuses" and "the most attractive, sexiest, handsomest man in the world". The interviewer, MetroFocus host Jack Ford, describes Hacker as "delightfully villainous".[7] Unusually, Hacker is willing to call Ms. Fileshare "smart" in "Be Reasonable", but he still insists he is smarter.

Screenshot (10)

Hacker with a duster in "A Perfect Fit"

Although Hacker claims to hates order[16], he becomes distressed when his person or his ship, the Grim Wreaker, is in disorder. In multiple episodes, he orders Buzz and Delete to clean the Wrecker[36] or yells at them for its disordered state[37]. In his introduction in "Lost My Marbles", he carries a duster to tidy up his dashboard, and in "A Perfect Fit" he uses one to clean the outdoor steps of the Giant Pyramid of Petaluma.

Hacker has been described as a bully boss[38] and usually maltreats his henchmen, although in more recent episodes he is shown to care for them. Despite his reliance on henchmen, Hacker sees himself as a lone wolf and refuses to let any partner share his power. He hates being bested and is a sore loser. When Hacker fails to get what he wants, he will take matters into his own hands and go to extremes to achieve it, sometimes even involving hard work. For example, in "Shari Spotter and the Cosmic Crumpets", he tries to enroll in wizard school and learn magic to become the most powerful wizard in Cyberspace, and resorts to deceit failing that.

Hacker's tactics can be underhanded and dishonorable. He seems significantly older and larger than his rivals, with the Earth children and Slider ranging from 9 to 13 years old, and threatens to cause them harm in spite of their age. Hacker also seems to use sincerity as a last resort in extreme situations, and will otherwise try to negotiate more manipulatively. In "The Snelfu Snafu: Part 1", after trying to call Wicked's bluff, Hacker briefly pleads with her not to outbid him for the Encryptor Chip, as it could have ruined his secret plan. However, after the bid is raised and Warren has him captured, Hacker sees fit to try haggling over Wicked's terms for rescuing him.

Likes and dislikes

Hacker seems to enjoy executing schemes in costume when appropriate. For instance, he has repeatedly worn an Indiana Jones–inspired outfit[39][40].

Stemming from this, Hacker seems to have a particular affinity for cowboys and western tropes, most notably in the episodes "Sensible Flats" and "Return to Sensible Flats", where he occasionally speaks in a Midwestern accent, uses slang, and sings frontier ballads. In "A Day at the Spa" and "Shari Spotter and the Cosmic Crumpets", he exclaims "Yee-haw!" when he is excited.

Hacker also likes alliteration[41], the literary device of many words starting with the same sound or letter, and often uses alliterative insults.

According to Buzz in "A Perfect Score", Hacker likes dancing.

Another subject of fondness for Hacker is the Northern Frontier Forest, due to its sentimental value from the time he spent there after his exile. As explored in "Hacker Hugs a Tree", he is uncharacteristically concerned about the forest's preservation, and manages to find common ground with the CyberSquad when the trees are threatened.

Hacker has demonstrated a recurring fear of spiders and ghosts. This has been taken advantage of, such as when Digit uses an inflatable balloon of Ivanka to frighten Hacker away from EcoHaven in "EcoHaven Ooze". Hacker also occasionally shows some childish tendencies such has wearing footie pajamas[13], reading picture books[3][42], and wanting a pony for his birthday when under the effects of the grapes from the Fountain of Truth[43].

In "When Penguins Fly", Hacker expresses distaste for at least 93 aspects of Starlight Night, including giving, to which he prefers taking; good cheer, which he claims turns his stomach; holiday fruitcake, on the grounds that "Cake and fruit should never go together!"; and jingling bells.

Abilities

construction This article or section is incomplete.
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Hacker is incredibly resistant to physical damage; on one occasion, he survived both a fall of some distance and having a castle fall on top of him and emerged with no visible signs of injury.[44]

Relationships

Hacker sees being feared and hated by all as a goal and compliment[45][46]. His only attempts to forge friendships are in acts of deceit, exploitation, or desperation. Most of those who have associated with him only do so for the work. Even so, Hacker frequently berates his henchmen and occasional teammates.

Motherboard and Dr. Marbles

When Hacker was younger, he seemed to enjoy working for Motherboard alongside his creator, Dr. Marbles, but after he decided to take over Cyberspace for his benefit, he made himself an enemy of them. Motherboard has a deep, strong dislike for Hacker because of his betrayal, although he is only listed as one of her pet peeves in official character bios. When Hacker comes to Control Central to falsely ask for forgiveness, Motherboard almost immediately rejects him and makes it clear that he could never be welcomed there[4].

Dr. Marbles' opinion of Hacker has also soured. According to "Step By Step", Marbles created Hacker with brainpower equal to his own. A flashback in "A Day at the Spa" reveals that even though Dr. Marbles could have deleted Hacker after his betrayal, he chose instead to drain Hacker's power supply and banish him to the Northern Frontier. Marbles seems to regret both of these decisions now that Hacker has returned from exile. Because of his loss of power, Hacker has developed a strong and requited hatred of Dr. Marbles.

Marbles has had to go into hiding since Hacker's return. When Hacker captures him in the first three seasons, he uses Dr. Marbles to further his schemes, such as trying to transfer Marbles' brainpower into a monster[32]. After the sacrifice of the Encryptor Chip in "The Snelfu Snafu", Dr. Marbles' hiding is an attempt to hide other potential cures from Hacker, but he tends to find Marbles' location at inopportune times that destroy the research[47][48].

Buzz and Delete

Hacker is a bad boss to Buzz and Delete, usually condescending and quick to anger when they don't carry out his plans perfectly, yelling insults such as "duncebuckets" and "tinwits". He has acted more compassionate to manipulate them back onto his side[38].

CyberSquad

“[He is constantly being confounded b]y these kids, these kids who have the audacity to allow mathematics and arithmetic to destroy Hacker's world. And, I mean, some people may think that's nice, commendable… but not The Hacker.”
―Christopher Lloyd[7]

Hacker loathes Digit, Inez, Jackie, Matt, and Slider for ruining his plans. He particularly hates Digit for defecting to Motherboard's side. He refers to the Earth children as "Earthbrats", "the goody-goody gang"[49], and "terrestrial termites"[citation needed]; and to Digit as a "tin turkey". He has also teased Inez for her height, taking advantage of her insecurities[50]. However, he can also cover up these feelings effectively when trying to trick them into thinking he's reformed[51][4].

Assistants

Hacker's other assistants include Baskerville, Cyclops, Olga, Scratch, Tonga, and Trashinator.

Wicked

Though Hacker and Wicked have romantic interests in each other, they are prone to conflict, and their shared plan to be the sole ruler of Cyberspace drives them apart. Throughout Seasons 2 and 3, they often work together to destroy Motherboard. When their plans fail, they argue, and Wicked casts a spell on him to change his size[52] or attitude[13]. In "The Snelfu Snafu", when Wicked jumps at the opportunity to become co-ruler of Cyberspace with Hacker, he initially rejects her, prompting Wicked to use extreme measures to convince him. After Wicked overdoes Control Central's new look and overspends Hacker's money once she is finally in power, Hacker kicks her out, leaving an angry Wicked to double-cross him by spoiling his plans to the CyberSquad[28]. Most of the episodes involving their relationship after Season 3 have been either trying to make Wicked jealous, trying to impress her, or trying to upstage her. Wicked is aware of all of these things and will either take advantage of the situation, or she will let him know that she is not interested and wants nothing to do with him. Whenever she beats him at anything, she will not refrain from bragging.

Harmony

He is shown to deeply care about her, and he doesn’t want her to know he hates the CyberSquad, who she likes.

Character bios

"Meet the CyberSquad" bio (2001)

A pompous and power-hungry scoundrel- and don't under any circumstances, mess up his hair! He's primped and primed to take over the cyberworld- and he's not about to let anyone ruin his plan.

Favorite Book: “The Prince,” by Machiavelli

Hobbies: Collecting pens, costumes, caviar and cheating (at anything)

Pet Peeves: Jackie, Matt and Inez. Being called Hacker instead of The Hacker

Favorite Phrases: I often use the pet name “duncebuckets” when referring to my assistants

Favorite Color: Puce

Favorite Music: Elvis Presley (would you like to hear my rendition of 'Hound Dog?')

Favorite Movie: “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” He especially liked the wonderful Judge Doom guy

Trading card bio

Age: He's not telling

Favorite Color: Puce

Favorite Line: "That's THE Hacker to you."

Other Faves: Wig gel, Elvis, The Wicked Witch

Pet Peeves: Those pesky Earth kids, getting dirty, losing

Great At: Creating chaos, scheming

Skwakopedia entry (Cyberchase: The Quest)

The meanest, greenest cyborg in all of Cyberspace. Wants to get rid of Motherboard and be in charge of Cyberspace. Loves to cause chaos and do mean things.

"Who's Who Document"

There’s really nothing good to say about Hacker. He’s all bad, all the time. His goal in life is simple: take over the cyberuniverse. At times smart and cunning, Hacker is also self-important, arrogant, and smug. He’s got a penchant for pomposity and absolutely adores alliteration.

Hacker celebrates his victories before they’re won, planning elaborate events with his co-hort/girlfriend the Wicked Witch. He has a particular fondness for outrageous outfits and imperious speeches. Hacker is very vain, especially about his hair and chin.

His hapless henchmen are the robots Buzz and Delete, also known as “you dithering duncebuckets.” They never seem to do anything right, but he’s stuck with them because he’s notoriously cheap and can’t afford better help. Oh, and no one else would work for him either.

SPECIES Cyborg

LOCATION Cyberspace

SKILLS Wreaking havoc and creating chaos

PET PEEVES Jackie, Matt and Inez. Being called “Hacker” instead of “The Hacker”.

FAVORITE COLOR Puce

FAVORITE BOOK “The Prince,” by Machiavelli

"CyberSquad" bio (2012)

Hacker, a pretentious cyborg, wants to rule cyberspace. Aboard the Grim Wreaker in the Northern Frontier, he schemes new ways to overthrow Motherboard. Buzz and Delete, his two henchbots, work for him. He hates dirt and is afraid of ghosts. Signature line: “That’s THE Hacker to you.”

List of Hacker's inventions

The following are gadgets that Hacker has made; however, not all of them worked accordingly.

Name origin

A hacker is a computer expert who uses technical knowledge to overcome a problem. In popular culture, this is synonymous with the term "security hacker", someone who uses bugs or exploits to break into computer systems, gain unauthorized access to data, or carry out malicious attacks.

Appearances

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Web Adventures

Cyberchase

Games

Cyberchase Online

Activities

Games

Minisodes

Gallery

Main article: Hacker/gallery


References to popular culture

Hacker may be an example of the Luciferian archetype, wherein a heavenly being striving for the highest seat of heaven is cast down to Earth or the underworld. This could align with Hacker's rebellion against Motherboard—the ruler of Cyberspace—and his subsequent banishment to the Northern Frontier.

Fans have noted various similarities between Hacker and the main villain of the DIC Entertainment animated series Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog, Dr. Robotnik[53]. They arguably resemble each other in areas like build, outfit, personality, relationships, details of certain subplots, and even have comparable belt designs. Ironically, Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog has a separate character also named Hacker; a similar situation also applies to Scratch.

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 "The Flying Parallinis"
  2. 2.0 2.1 Cyberchase - Can you come up with an alliterative birthday wish to THE Hacker? | Facebook. August 15, 2018.
  3. 3.0 3.1 "Mother's Day"
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 "Trick or Treat"
  5. "Sensible Flats" Cyberchase Online closed captions. Sheriff Judy: The case of Sensible Flats versus Hieronymous Hacker.
  6. 6.0 6.1 "Lost My Marbles"
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 MetroFocus | 'Back To The Future Star' Now Teaches Future Generations | PBS
  8. "Step by Step"
  9. Cyberchase . Webisode 1. Panel 8 | PBS Kids
  10. "Back to Canalia's Future"
  11. Cyberchase . Webisode 1. Panel 9 | PBS Kids
  12. "Father's Day"
  13. 13.0 13.1 13.2 "Harriet Hippo & the Mean Green"
  14. 14.0 14.1 An Interview With The Hacker. Internet Archive.
  15. "A Piece of the Action"
  16. 16.0 16.1 "The Secrets of Symmetria"
  17. "Past Perfect Prediction"
  18. "Measure for Measure"
  19. Cyberchase . Webisode 1. Panel 10 | PBS Kids
  20. Cyberchase . Webisode 1. Panel 12 | PBS Kids
  21. Cyberchase . Webisode 1. Panel 13 | PBS Kids
  22. "A Day at the Spa"
  23. Cyberchase . Webisode 1. Panel 15 | PBS Kids
  24. 24.0 24.1 "How It All Started: Webisode 2"
  25. "Buzz & Delete Save the Day"
  26. Cyberchase . Today's Show | PBS Kids. Internet Archive.
  27. "The Snelfu Snafu: Part 1"
  28. 28.0 28.1 "The Snelfu Snafu: Part 2"
  29. "Peace, Love, and Hackerness"
  30. "Hackerized"
  31. "The Bluebird of Zappiness"
  32. 32.0 32.1 "Castleblanca"
  33. "Team Spirit"
  34. "Journey of a Thousand Food Miles"
  35. "A Fraction of a Chance"
  36. "A Battle of Equals"
  37. "The Case of the Missing Memory"
  38. 38.0 38.1 "Penguin Tears"
  39. "The Eye of Rom"
  40. "A Perfect Fit"
  41. "Who's Who Document"
  42. "Water Woes"
  43. "The Grapes Of Plath"
  44. "Measure for Measure"
  45. "A Reboot Eve to Remember"
  46. "A Garden Grows in Botlyn"
  47. "Step By Step"
  48. "The Cyberchase Movie"
  49. "Double Trouble"
  50. "Totally Rad"
  51. "True Colors"
  52. "Hugs and Witches"
  53. Things — *Goes Hmmm*. Tumblr.
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