said that as he visited a
zoo, he encountered a
wallaby that was "minding his own business" while
elephants and
monkeys "screamed for attention"; according to Murray, this led to the development of Rocko's character Murray suggests that Rocko's interest in the United States began with a vacation with his family as a youth; during the trip he met his friend
Filburt. Murray allowed for directors to create inconsistencies, reflecting how friends possess different and varied, nostalgic memories of the past. For instance, in the episode "Put to Pasture" the writers portray Rocko, Filburt and
Heffer Wolfe as students at O-Town High School. Murray received many pieces of
fan mail regarding the storyline inconsistencies. Jean Prescott of
The Sun Herald described Rocko as a "pudgy little wallaby star" who tries to "do what's right" and is devoted to his friend Heffer and dog
Spunky. Prescott has called the character "lovable."
Common Sense Media reviewer Andrea Graham, whose review is posted on
Go.com, describes Rocko as "
paranoid and obsessed with cleanliness" and that he initially perceives his neighbors to be "loud and messy." Graham describes Rocko as accepting of his neighbors' faults and seeing the positive qualities within them.
Careers Throughout the television series, Rocko enjoys collecting comics and works as a cashier at a local comic book shop called Kind of a Lot O' Comics, which is owned by
Mr. Smitty and sells mostly
Really Really Big Man comics until he is currently unemployed in
Static Cling. Rocko worked at Mega Lot-o Comics owned by chairman of
Conglom-O,
Mr. Dupette,
Ed Bighead's boss. In the television show, his other jobs include tattoo artist, plumber's assistant, phone operator, a product tester at Conglom-O, a tow truck driver, an underwear model and a cartoonist for the program
Wacky Delly. In the official comic book, Rocko works as a comic book dealer in Issue #7's "Conned Again", working for "Humongo Con".
Friends and neighbors Rocko's best friends are
Heffer Wolfe, a steer who eats a lot and was adopted and raised by a family of wolves, and
Filburt, a bespectacled turtle with neurotic
Woody Allen-esque mannerisms, who often feels nauseated. Rocko's neighbors are Ed, with whom he has a semi-rivalry, and
Bev Bighead. Bev considers Rocko a very sweet neighbor. He and his dog Spunky, who often eats the neighbors' salmon bushes, are a source of constant annoyance to Ed. In the episode
Skid Marks, Rocko's drivers license reveals that Rocko and the Bigheads live on "Boogie Blvd."
Love life In early concept sketches, Murray indicated that Rocko bears a strong crush on a character named "Melba Toast". Rocko expresses this trait in Season One, bearing a crush on the
unseen character until he discovers that Melba has a serious boyfriend named Dave in "Love Spanked". Melba has only been mentioned once since. In subsequent episodes, Rocko bears crushes for other characters. In "S.W.A.K.", Rocko has been vying for the attention from the pretty kangaroo mail-lady that comes to his door every day; he writes her a love note that he is too scared to send so Heffer does it for him instead. Rocko fails to retrieve the letter and gets the impression that the mail-lady would rather go out with Heffer. This turns out to be a joke on the mail-lady's part and she actually returns Rocko's feelings. In "
Wallaby on Wheels", Rocko learns to roller skate to impress Sheila, a girl who hangs out at the roller rink, and becomes jealous when it is implied she is attracted to Heffer. In the end, he wins her over after saving Heffer's life. She then rides on a
jackhammer with Rocko. In "I See London, I See France", Rocko tries to win over Claudette, who turned out to be his female wallaby
pen pal from
Paris, but she is more interested in Heffer. ==Video game appearances==