Previously, we discussed the history of Boris the Wolf, co-star of the Bendy Cartoons made by Drewline Studios. This time, we'll be discussing Barbara Sheep: The third character introduced into the series, and its first female character.
Like Boris, Bendy was conceptualized sometime after the two of them, making her first appearance as late as 1932. The short cartoons, while entertaining, could only do so much with just Bendy and Boris as a duo, and Henry Stein would make Barbara as a result. Joey Drew seemed to be infatuated with the character, often having her be depicted as an "Angel" in certain roles. In her first appearance, "Showbiz Sheep", Bendy would continuously chase Barbara's affection at a Theater, only to be rejected by her. Barbara Sheep.
While people loved Barbara, no one did as much as Joey Drew, although only second to Bendy. Rather frequently, Drew would push Henry to do more shorts with her after her success in "Showbiz Bendy". This in turn caused Henry Stein to grow a disdain for his own creation, as he enjoyed the familiar routine of Bendy and Boris' escapades as a duo. Barbara, to him, was meant to appear every so often as Bendy's crush, often rejecting his advances and making a fool of the prankster. However, Henry Stein would give in to pressure and include Barbara more often. When the studios' works suddenly gained popularity in 1933, Barbara got an update to her design. It was fairly small, however, the only difference being the removal of her round hat.
Sometime after making another stellar appearance in "Swing you Saints", Barbara Sheep would be used less due to controversy and inner conflicts at Drewline Studios over voice actors. A lawsuit was filed, but ultimately fell in the Studio's favor. This was, like many events related to the Studio, shortly before the disappearances that caused the animation studio to close down for good.
After the Bendy IP suffered in limbo and disuse for years after 1945, Archgate Animations would soon pick it up and re-vitalize its characters. Barbara would be given a makeover as while she kept most features from her original design, she was given a much longer dress and longer gloves. In the Archgate Era.
Regarding the controversies that caused Barbara Sheep's roles and appearances to chaotically fluctuate, we would rather not discuss. While it is likely we will discuss it in the future, the whole situation regarding the matter is pathetic at best and unsettling at worst. Hopefully, this piece on Barbara Sheep and her early history will be filling enough to those who wanted to know. Perhaps later?
