Tom and Jerry: Why Tom was the hero all along

We had different heroes when we were kids than we do today, and likely used to cheer for the “trouble-makers,” such as Jerry. Now that we know better, we realize that Tom was the hero of Tom and Jerry all along.

Everyone knows the colorful and hilarious cartoon Tom and Jerry. Even if you have never watched a single episode, I’m betting you have seen clips and memes about it. The plot isn’t tough to understand or follow. It’s basically cat vs mouse, and, usually, Tom gets the short end of the stick.

The animated series sees house cat Tom and an uninvited mouse named Jerry trying to beat one another or sometimes join forces. They have an on-and-off friendship, but, for the most part, audiences watched the ongoing rivalry between the two.

Personally, I would always cheer for Jerry when I was younger. He’s cute, small, comes off as the underdog in the eyes of the children, and simply seems more fun. Tom, on the other hand, always seems so grumpy, he tries to kill Jerry in nearly every episode, and doesn’t seem as pleasant. Boy was I wrong!

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As we get older, we are changing our minds on who the hero of the stories are. In the case of Tom and Jerry, I now side with Tom.

He’s grumpy, sure, but I would be too if I was tired after running around chasing a mouse or trying to escape the shenanigans said mouse has planned to hurt me. Let’s be honest here, Jerry is no angel! He has always purposely pestered Tom. Jerry has gone out of his way to bother the unsuspecting cat several times.

Mainly, though, Tom never truly wanted to kill Jerry. Tom was brought into the home to chase the mice away. We have seen his owner multiple times getting angry at Tom and ridiculing him for not being able to get Jerry. Some cats just want to relax. Actually, I think relaxing is all cats ever want to do. And don’t we all love a good nap?

Now that we are older and watch Tom and Jerry with a different set of eyes, can we applaud Tom for trying his best and just wanting to unwind in his own home? Tom is all of us, and, therefore, a hero!