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This article is about the character. You may be looking for the Fionna & Cake episode.

You were.. Everything.

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Simon Petrikov, formerly known as the Ice King, is a major character in Adventure Time and a protagonist of its spin-off series Adventure Time: Fionna & Cake.

Originally depicted as a two-dimensional, humorously over-the-top villain trying to kidnap Princess Bubblegum and various other princesses on a regular basis, the character's personality was subsequently expanded, revealing him to be a kind-hearted but misunderstood old man with completely twisted senses of morality and social behavior, suffering from loneliness and memory loss. Later seasons unveil his tragic backstory, revealing he was once a good human named Simon Petrikov who lost his mind, memories and loved ones due to the magic crown giving him his ice powers. In "Come Along With Me," Ice King is permanently reverted back to Simon after almost being digested by GOLB.

12 years later, due to a botched magic ritual, he unintentionally brought Fionna and Cake from their universe (which was hidden in his mind) to his world. He went on a quest through the multiverse, while being hunted by an auditor named Scarab; after meeting GOLB and authorizing Fionna-world, he returned to the Land of Ooo and accepts his life better.


Creation and Design

Tom Kenny

Tom Kenny, the voice actor

The character was first voiced by John Kassir in the short film "Adventure Time", which introduced the character. In the short, the protagonists Pen the Human (Zach Shada) and Jake the Dog (John DiMaggio) fight Ice King to rescue Princess Bubblegum, whom he has kidnapped. He is voiced by Tom Kenny in the television series. Kenny said that he approached the character as "a very real psychopath" who did not fully understand why his actions were wrong.

Pendleton Ward, the creator of Adventure Time, considered Ice King to be a "pathetic" character. Commenting on the character's sympathetic backstory, he said that he "enjoy[s] a villain that you fall in love with." The monologue in which Ice King reveals his tragic past in the third season two-part special "Holly Jolly Secrets" was written by creative director Patrick McHale.

Neil Strauss of Rolling Stone noted that the character bore some similarities to Ward, including his "Trotsky glasses", his large beard and his strong desire for social interaction. Strauss said that "If the Ice King is Ward's dark side, then Finn, the show’s 16-year-old protagonist, is his light side."

History

Sometime before the Mushroom War, Ice King was a normal, olive-skinned, dark-haired human named Simon Petrikov who was studying to be an antiquarian (a specialist in the knowledge of ancient artifacts). He was also a Professor of Archeology, and gained a PhD in an unknown subject. At one point, he went on an expedition to try the Armor of Zeldron, the Wand of Dispersement or the creepy porcelain lamb. He did not succeed, but still believed that these artifacts existed, and shortly after had a presentation about his expedition, where he expressed desire to search for The Enchiridion. He was ridiculed by others for his belief in magical objects.

However, shortly before the presentation, he had reached for the same book as a woman named Betty Grof, who had been a fan of his research for years. Afterwards, she approached him again, and asked him to sign her book, and pointed out runes in his book that could serve as a clue to how to find the Southeast Cove. Simon was impressed by this and asked her to go on an expedition with him, which she accepts, despite her plans for a 6-month trip to the Australian Outback. During this trip, both Simon and Betty fall in love with each other, and they manage to find the Enchiridion. When they get back, Betty urges Simon to take sole credit for finding it, which he does reluctantly, and Betty begins planning once again for a trip to the Australian Outback. Simon gets his picture taken by a horde of photographers, and his accomplishment appears in the newspaper. A few weeks after the expedition, Simon found the book Betty had reached for and had caused them to meet. He opened it to unexpectedly find a note from Betty, confessing that during the expedition she had also fallen in love in Simon, and that she wanted to travel together with him. After finding this, Simon went to the bus stop where Betty was waiting to start her trip, and confessed his love for her, starting their relationship. They fell madly in love with each other, and eventually got engaged.

The Crown and Simon's Tape

As recounted by Simon on the VHS tape documenting his transformation into the Ice King, he had purchased a strange jeweled crown from an old dock worker in Northern Scandinavia at some point in his later career. After bringing the crown home and showing it to Betty, he jokingly put it on his head "just for a laugh or something", causing him to bond with the crown and become the new bearer of its curse. Immediately after placing it on his head he began to experience unsettling visions, which he realized only too late were a manifestation of the crown and took it off. Simon had no recollection of what he had said or done while wearing the crown, only that his actions were enough to drive Betty away from him, presumedly forever. Though he had no memory of his actions while wearing the crown, he is seen in the episode 'Betty' running through the streets searching for her, shooting bolts of ice magic into the air and shouting for her as she hid from him.

As his video progressed further in time it revealed that Simon continued to experience visions regardless of wearing the crown or not. His skin and hair were beginning to change color, Ice King's white facial hair had started to grow in. Simon described how his body temperature had lowered at a "supernatural rate" to a hypothermic 30°C, and he confided that he was "really scared". In a later entry he appeared with even further changes to his appearance, and a gruffer, Ice King-like tone to his voice. He acknowledged that his mind was "changing", but he felt "too far gone" to know how to help himself. Afraid of the person he was becoming, he pleaded to the viewer that if he were to cause harm to anyone that he be forgiven. The final entry in the tape reveals him as a near-fully turned Ice King, begging for the viewer to "watch over" him until he can find his way back to sanity. He closes the video with tearful pleas for Betty, his Princess, to love him again. The final segment of the tape was later revealed to have been dedicated to Marceline, moments before he left her.

The Mushroom War

Simon used the Ice Crown to survive the Mushroom War, and was one of the very few survivors at the time, Shortly after the bombs, he found a young Marceline crying in the wreckage. He gave her a stuffed doll from a toy shop destroyed in the conflict to comfort her. This toy would eventually become Marceline's most precious possession, Hambo, which she would keep and cherish until it was sold to Maja the Sky Witch by her ex-boyfriend, Ash. Simon became a father figure to Marcy, and used the crown to protect Marceline from dangerous creatures left over from the mushroom war. However, Marceline urged Simon to not use the crown, as whenever he did he slowly turned more and more insane. He promised to use it less, but as dangerous creatures kept attacking the two of them he continued to use it. Later on, from at least 2-3 years from that point, Simon ultimately left Marceline after the filming of his final video diary, which Marceline watched him record. Fearing for her safety in the hands of what he was becoming, Simon left Marceline before completely losing his sanity. Before this, using an unknown method, he contacted and summoned Marceline's biological father, the demon Hunson Abadeer into the land of Ooo from the Nightosphere. He did this in an attempt to arrange a new caretaker for Marceline in his place, someone who he believed would not leave in the manner he did. In "The Empress Eyes", The Empress mentions that there was a period in which Simon served her, presumably under the influence of vampiric hypnosis. It is unclear whether Simon was still in contact with Marceline at this time, nor is it clear how he broke free from servitude.

Becoming the Ice King

As time passed, Simon began to lose his mind as he began to wear the crown, deteriorating in both mind and body over the years into his current state. His condition worsened after his fiancée Betty was spirited into his future, which played a role in his subconscious need for princesses. As his mind and body became further twisted by the crown, Simon thought himself "too far gone" to find an escape from its influence, though he hoped that he could one day regain his sanity enough so that Betty, his "princess," would come back and love him again. Before losing his mind completely, Simon wrote a letter to Marceline using some of his old newspapers asking her to forgive him for what he would do to her after losing himself. He eventually lost his humanity; the power of the crown not only twisted his mind but his body as well. His species/race was Wizard according to the writers.

Simon soon became disassociated from his original identity to the point that his only reaction to watching a video of his past was an embarrassment at the idea of having once worn glasses. Further proof of his dissociation is shown in "What Have You Done?" when he responds to Jake's accusation of him stealing the crown with, "I didn't steal it. I made that item! Made it with the magic that I stole!" When others refer to him as "Simon" within earshot, he is generally confused or ignores it. However, some part of him subconsciously remained with Ice King as he always sought out Marceline due to their past relationship and found her each time she had a new home which led her to change locations every time until "I Remember You".

Turning Back into Simon

In the series finale "Come Along With Me" Betty, King Man and Maja summoned GOLB to Ooo. Betty had linked herself with Maja with the goal of harnessing the power of GOLB. King Man told Ice King that he is the only one who can stop her. Ice King compared King Man's instruction to reason with her to "fan-fiction." and began singing "Oh, Fionna" to her, which caused her to awaken and madly berate him for opposing her when she was almost "successful" in using GOLB's power to cure him. Her powerful emotions connected to Maja causes the latter to explode, blasting Ice King and Betty into GOLB's mouth with Finn jumping in after them.

While inside GOLB's "stomach" (along with Finn), Betty and Simon were digested and reverted back to their sane and non-magical forms, with the two completely reunited, with Simon now remembering Betty. Reunited once again, Simon and Betty embrace each other as the space they are trapped in begins to shrink.

Later on, the friends of Finn and Jake sing the "Time Adventure" song, allowing Simon and Finn escape from inside GOLB, although Betty decides to stay behind as a sacrifice and use the Ice crown (which was restored to its essential form, granting its wearer their deepest, truest wish) to wish GOLB out of existence. When this doesn't work, she wishes instead that Simon is protected at all costs. As a result, Betty is fused with GOLB and the two become one singular entity. Devastated at Betty's decision, Simon cries out for her as the new GOLB leaves the planet through another portal, and is comforted by Marceline. Before the portal closes, the Ice Crown falls to the ground. Gunter decides to wear it, fuses with it and is transformed into Ice Thing after wishing to be Ice King.

After Betty’s Sacrifice

Simon is later seen in Prismo's Time Room, seemingly wishing Betty back, only to have a similar result to when King Man wished to bring Margles back.

Simon is seen in Marceline's house, making popcorn and spending time with Marceline, Princess Bubblegum, Peppermint Butler, Ice Thing, and Turtle Princess. He is shown to be smiling, and enjoying the company of his friends.

Simon appears again in "Obsidian", set an unspecified amount of time after "Come Along With Me". He is seen in Dirt Beer Guy's Tavern singing "I Remember You" and later takes Glassboy to Marceline's house. He is later seen dressed in the Ice King's old robe wearing Gunther slippers and a toy crown playing in Marceline's freezer claiming that it is his way of coping with the trauma from years of being the Ice King after Glassassins break in. After the battle with Larvo he arrives wanting to help alongside some Banana Guards, Finn, and Bronwyn. He is then shown to be dancing with a Glass Person after the Glass Kingdom is saved.

Fionna and Cake

Simon is now visibly much older, with a gray streak in his hair and wrinkles. He now lives and works in a small, one-room-one-bathroom house inside a zoo or outdoor museum of sorts in the floating human island of Up-Ton, with one side of his house completely cut out so people can view his exhibit, which is a model of a 20th-century house, complete with an authentic 20th century man. Day after day, visitors would come to ask him questions about his time period. Choose Goose also resides in a small bird cage within the house, corrupted by demons. It's evident that over the years, Simon has progressively grown depressed with his current life, lamenting his isolation in the present and admits he almost misses being the Ice King, as at least then he wouldn’t be depressed. He regrets the stories he wrote about Fionna and Cake and is embarrassed by them, as it reminds him of his traumatic tenure as the Ice King. Finn attempts to cheer him up by bringing Simon along on an adventure, but it only makes him feel weak and useless. Finn eventually parts ways with Simon to go talk to Huntress Wizard. As Simon walks back home, he calls up Marceline, who is in the middle of getting a tattoo with Princess Bubblegum. Deciding not to burden her with his problems, he promises to see her again soon and ends the call.

Back home, Simon pulls out the Fionna and Cake book he threw out earlier and becomes inspired after reading it. The thing in the cage begins taunting him for thinking he can bring back Betty: Simon pulls off the cover to reveal Choose Goose, still evil after drinking the ichor of Coconteppi in "Wizard City". Simon attaches clamps to Choose Goose (using him as a magical battery) and begins a ritual to summon Betty/GOLB, but it seems to fail, apparently killing Choose Goose in the process. However, just as he laments failing Betty once more, a portal opens in the back of his head, and out stumbles Cake to Simon's shock. He tries to summon Betty/GOLB again and another portal opens up in the back of his head and Fionna comes out, shocking Simon yet again, disbelieving that she was real and claiming that she's a manifestation of the Ice King's madness.

Simon is later beamed into Prismo's Time Room while he's taking a shower and is clothed with Ice King's blue muumuu before being interrogated on how Fionna and Cake stumbled into Ooo. Simon claims he didn't do anything but Prismo sees that Simon tried to do a ritual to summon Golbetty. Prismo reveals to Fionna and Cake that he became disillusioned with his job so he created their universe just to see what it was like to create something for himself. Since Prismo wasn't supposed to create anything for himself, he hid the rogue universe in Ice King's mind but when Ice King turned back into Simon, their reality lost its magic too.

Simon, alongside Fionna and Cake traverse the multiverse in search for a magic crown. He must regain his magic powers in order for Fionna and Cake’s world to have magic again. Eventually however, just as Simon retrieves a crown, in a ritual gone awry, he is transported to Golbetty’s dimension where she stops him from putting on the crown by briefly placing Simon’s mind in the body of Shermy, where he discovers a valuable lesson about the nature of his and Betty’s relationship. Once this epiphany has been reached, Simon is transported back to Golbetty’s dimension where he reconciles with her, accepting that Betty is gone and decides to move on. After this, Simon cracks under the pressure of saving Fionna’s universe, leading to him regurgitate Fionna’s universe, releasing it from his mind and placing it in the hands of Fionna herself. Golbetty returns Simon to Ooo where he no longer views his life as worthless.

Characteristics

As the Ice King, Simon Petrikov's skin turned light blue, his nose became pointy and long, his eyes and hair turned white, he grew a full beard, and his body temperature dwindled to an unnatural low of 30 °C, or 86 °F (normal human body temperature is 36 °C or 98.6 °F). His ice-based magic abilities come from a magical crown he wears, which directly causes his insanity.

Personality

Simon is known for his intelligence, kindness, and self-sacrifice. From the information given in "Holly Jolly Secrets Part II," Simon was a deeply committed and loving fiancé (to Betty). He proved to be the same way as a watchful guardian over young Marceline during the aftermath of the Mushroom War. Even when they were in great danger, Simon struggled to keep Marceline happy and helped her to always see the best of their situation. He took on a very responsible role in Marceline's life, by not only protecting her and keeping her healthy but also by teaching her right from wrong and keeping her spirits high (as seen in "Simon & Marcy"). Simon, as a rule, is known for being optimistic even at the worst of times and it is clearly one of Simon's most notable attributes. Even while being saddled with a great burden, Simon fought an apocalyptic world while fighting the omnipotent influence of the Ice Crown. Some of Simon's innermost thoughts and fears of his inevitable madness were revealed in messages left to Marceline revealed in "I Remember You." Simon agonized over abandoning Marceline in a dangerous world due to his deteriorating sanity. However, Simon, nearing the very end of his humanity feared for his own life, worried that as the crown took him from Marceline, no one would be able to "save him." His vulnerability as a human was most evident just before he permanently became the Ice King. In "Come Along With Me" his optimism and courage is shown when he comforts Finn wisely telling him that no one gets to chose how they "go out" or die and at least they were together before being rescued.

Although Simon is characterized by these traits, Ice King's personality is completely the opposite. Though (in earlier episodes) Ice King was portrayed as disagreeable and short-tempered due to his main antagonistic role, he is merely a nuisance and "isn't usually a serious threat," according to Princess Bubblegum.

In later episodes, due to no longer acting as the main antagonist, he is portrayed as more easy-going and having a sense of humor, particularly due to Ice King considering Finn and Jake his "friends" after the events of "What Have You Done?"

The Ice King is misunderstood, lonely, and only hopes of marrying a princess. He has been labeled a "sociopath" by the Cosmic Owl, though his personality seems more akin to a person with a narcissistic personality disorder, as he still feels humiliation and guilt. Due to his poor social skills, enduring short attention span and arrogant nature, Ice King is unable to attract any of his prisoners and often resorts to a forced marriage instead of the loving relationship he desires. However, he can be a loving and selfless person as revealed in "Princess Monster Wife." Aside from Gunter, his other penguin guards, and numerous ice creatures, Ice King has few other friends and expresses a continual zeal to spend time with anyone who will tolerate his company, especially his frenemies, Finn and Jake. In "The Eyes," he takes on the disguise of a horse to spy on Finn and Jake in an effort to learn how to be happy, but this fails as well.

Despite Ice King's more antagonistic role, he plays the part of a protagonist in "Mortal Recoil," as he helps Finn and Jake defeat Princess Bubblegum by freezing her Lich-possessed body. In the mini-episode, "The Wand," he actually helps Finn and Jake regardless of the fact that Finn said to "sacrifice" himself, but unbeknownst of the fact that it also changed his face.

Ice King is harmless in nature, and only kidnaps princesses and steals out of desperation. However, in the episode "Loyalty to the King," when he does have the opportunity to marry many princesses, he secretly plots to make an elite army of wives to take over the world with. His misunderstood intentions may either be in question or may just stem from his lunacy. His crown has made him insane over the years, affecting his social skills, causing him to unintentionally do bad things. Friendship and companionship is all he really wants, though he goes about it the wrong way.

Due to the insanity brought by wearing the crown, Ice King seems to have limited memory. This was first seen in "I Remember You," where he does not seem to remember his past as Simon Petrikov, even though he saw the history (after he found the crown) in "Holly Jolly Secrets Part II." Later on, he does not remember who Neptr is, even though he was the one that wanted Neptr to accept as his father in Neptr's debut, "What is Life?" and even confuses him with BMO, as seen in the events of "Mystery Dungeon."

Ice King seems to find his happiness in his own Imagination Zone, and it is clear that he would rather live in his Imagination Zone than in the real world. In "Fionna and Cake," he is shown reading his gender-swapped fan fiction to Finn and Jake, based on the events and characters in the actual world. He is shown to cherish his fan fiction characters more than the real-life characters, and in "Mystery Dungeon," he tries to bring the characters to life, but he fails. In "Bad Little Boy," it is revealed that he had made ice sculptures of Fionna and Cake along with writing many other fan-fic stories.

In "The Prince Who Wanted Everything", Lumpy Space Princess kidnaps the Ice King so he could read a fan-fic she wrote about her gender-swapped counterpart, Lumpy Space Prince and bring him to life, but after he reads her version of the gender-swapped fan fiction, a raccoon comes out of the bushes instead of Lumpy Space Prince. In "Five Short Tables", Ice King catches Gunter messing with his Fionna and Cake fan fictions so he freezes him and creates a new shorter story. In "Fionna and Cake and Fionna", Ice King reads another fan fiction to the people who show up, but someone claiming to be Fionna shows up and tells Ice King he's wrong about what happened in the stories. "Fionna" shows Ice King video tapes of "her" adventures with Cake throughout the day. Later that night, Ice King realizes that "Fionna" is not Fionna and she reveals that Fionna and Cake were just characters from a TV show from the past.

After becoming Simon again, he has more or less return to his old self but is now struggling to find a place for himself. In a talk with Finn, he admits that while he is happy to be around humans again, that he feels out of place with the futuristic humans who don't understand things of his era. He is shown to lament things related to his past such as the Fionna and Cake stories or being Ice King. He initially resisted the idea of using magic again but soon did and it resulted in Fionna and Cake crossing over to his world. When talking to Prismo, he was gloomy and depressed though he was surprised to discover that his once thought fictional story was actually real when it turn out that Prismo shot a red beam of Fionna and Cake's world into his mind, so they could exist as an alternate reality. He was upset at being used and not getting Betty back, as seen when he saw her face in Prismo's memory. Simon was also willing let to Scarab destroy him, only for Fionna to (literally) slap sense into him and he became active again, to the point that he decided to become Ice King to restore Fionna and Cake's world.

During inter dimensional travel with Fionna and Cake, he developed a strong friendship with them(especially Fionna to the point it resembles a father-daughter dynamic ). He gave advice on how they should tread the new worlds, despite them initially not paying him any mind. Simon soon comforted Fionna when she was feeling down and assured her they would restore her world. After finding a crown and learning why she hid it, Simon told Fionna that while he may lose his sanity that her world deserves a chance to be restored. When preparing to put on the crown he bid farewell to his sanity but his actions ended up sending him to his lost love. When he saw Betty again, he told her about her his current life and how he has to make a sacrifice for a friend but he ended up being sent on a journey because of the realization that he never puts other people's happiness first and had them go by decisions he made. He made peace with Betty, upon having their last talk and once learning Fionna has accepted her world, Simon threw the crown away and headed home. In a therapy session, he has decided to take on a new lease in life by first deciding to move.

Physical Appearance

Simon Petrikov is a human male, with olive skin and dark brown hair. He prefers to wear a dark suit with a red bow tie and his trademark blue eyeglasses. Before his curse, Simon had dark eyes, similar to Finn's, but afterward, his eyes turned white and remained so to the present day.

As Ice King, Simon was a blue-skinned, elderly man with unusually pointy fingers, pointy toes, sharp teeth, and a long, goblin-like nose. He wore a dark blue tunic and had a lengthy white beard that covered most of his body. Typically, the Ice King's weight varied in different episodes. Although his robe gave him the appearance of a fat and small/short man, Ice King's body was in fact exceptionally thin and tall. In "What is Life?," he is seen without his robe, and it is revealed that he sometimes looks short because he usually slouches. It was also revealed that Ice King doesn't have proper underwear. In "What Have You Done?," Ice King revealed that he is on a diet. However, in "I Remember You," "Bad Little Boy," and "Princess Potluck" he was shown to be fatter than usual. Confusingly, his regular emaciated state is shown again in "Mystery Dungeon" and "A Glitch is a Glitch." Pendleton Ward explained in the commentary for "Loyalty to the King" on the Season 2 DVD set that Ice King frequently diets, but binges on food when depressed and regains weight.

Ice King was rarely seen without his crown; without it he is powerless, and he is revealed to be balding with a tuft of white hair atop his head. The only times he has been seen in shoes was when he was working out before Slime Princess came to talk to him in "Loyalty to the King" and while playing basketball in "Simon and Marcy." Ice king had no visible ears when his beard/hair was removed in "Loyalty to the King" and "Mystery Dungeon."

In "Adventure Time: Fionna & Cake", his appearance is Simon's but with gray hair and some wrinkles. His skin is still brown and he keeps his brown suit in addition to his glasses, but he is noticeably much older.

Relationships

Main article: Ice King's relationships

Simon was engaged to Betty Grof, who left him after the crown began to affect his mental health. The loss of Betty, whom he nicknamed "his princess," led to the Ice King's obsession with kidnapping princesses. Despite this breakup, Simon and Betty have an enduring bond that "stretches across boundaries of space and time." Later in the series, she time travels to the future, intent on curing him of his insanity and restoring Simon. She becomes fixated on restoring Simon to the way she remembered him, despite Ice King's desire to remain the way he is. After Betty sacrifices herself to cure Simon and defeat GOLB, he struggles to move on.

Ice King has a complicated relationship with Marceline the Vampire Queen, whom he found in the wreckage of the Mushroom War when she was seven years old. He became a father figure to Marceline, protecting her from mutants and gifting her the stuffed animal Hambo, which became her most prized possession. Writing for IndieWire, Eric Kohn compared the relationship between Ice King and Marceline in the flash-back episodes to the Man and Boy in Cormac McCarthy's post-apocalyptic novel The Road. This similarity was also acknowledged by the creative team of Adventure Time, who described the episode "Simon & Marcy" as "The Road for kids" when pitching it to Cartoon Network.

After learning of his past from Marceline, Finn and Jake become kinder to Ice King and start inviting him to social events. Ice King in turn gradually became less evil as those around him became understanding of his struggles. His relationship with Princess Bubblegum also becomes less antagonistic, despite his repeated attempts to kidnap her in the beginning of the series. Ice King is accompanied by Gunter, a penguin who acts as his friend and servant. It is later revealed that Gunter is Orgalorg, a powerful being that attempted to destroy the world in the past and was turned into a harmless penguin.

Powers and Abilities

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  • The Ice King's crown bestowed upon him numerous powers in exchange for his sanity, most of which involved ice and snow. He can cast ice lightning to freeze or strike targets and can summon blizzards at will to cover the land in snow. He is also capable of creating various weapons or structures out of ice. He can also animate beings of ice and snow, like the Ice-o-pede and snowman soldiers.
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  • He could sense when someone is tampering with the snow and/or ice around the Ice Kingdom.[2] However, it is not known if he can use this ability with snow outside of the Ice Kingdom.
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  • Outside of cryokinesis, the Ice King is also able to fly by using his beard, parting and flapping it like a pair of wings to stay aloft.
  • He could withstand high temperatures (possibly due to his own low body temperature), as seen when he stayed in the Fire Kingdom without a heat suit or flame shield.
  • The Ice King's nose lengthened when he was near or wearing the crown, and shortened whenever he was far from it.
  • The Ice King was shown to be able to take people to his "Imagination Zone" where he was able to create illusions. He uses this power to try to convince Neptr to join him with the promise of princesses.[3]
  • He also has a power called Wizard Eyes, which makes him see strange things and puts him at risk, and he is not fully conscious while he uses this power. In "Beyond this Earthly Realm," it is revealed that his Wizard Eyes allowed him to see into the Spirit World, explaining that the freaky creatures surrounding him were spirits like Finn when he is transported to the Spirit World. In "The Empress Eyes," he seemed to possess immunity to the Empress's hypnotic abilities.
  • The Ice King's crown also prolonged his life and preserved him for at least a millennia.
  • Prolonged physical body is also given by the crown as the Ice King, even though elderly, has a rather strong physique being able to carry people by the hand. This is especially odd given the frailty of his old bones and skin, although this could be attributed to Ice King often mentioning working out.
  • In "The Chamber of Frozen Blades," the Ice King is shown to have studied the Ice Ninja art of Fridjitzu, and that his sanctum is filled with all sorts of ninja-esque weaponry and memorabilia.
Ice King's Drum Set

The Ice King and his Drum Set

  • The Ice King has shown to be very skilled at the drums, once demonstrating a drum solo, and owned two drum sets, one of which was a green one with "#1 Babe" across the front. The set consisted of a bass drum, a floor tom, a snare, a crash cymbal, a ride cymbal, and a hi-hat. His other drum set, a red one, was in terrible shape and smashed to pieces in a corner of his castle. He could also play the keyboard fairly decently. The fact that he had so many instruments lying around his castle indicates that he had a fair amount of musical ability. Also, in "Simon & Marcy," Simon shows that he sings songs to entertain Marcy, who says his songs are "so good." His drumsticks can also be seen in the side pocket of his backpack in any post-apocalyptic flashback.
  • The Ice King also had the Demonic Wishing Eye and the Ghost pouch. The Demonic Wishing Eye's powers were shown in "Reign of Gunters" when Gunther used it to (temporarily) conquer Ooo.

Weaknesses

  • The Ice King's powers and abilities are directly tied to the crown, however, and its removal will strip him of all his abilities until he puts it back on.
  • Extreme heat/humidity could also negate his powers. This was seen when his powers became weaker in a heated chamber in a hidden dungeon, and despite having a moat of water, the humidity in the area made it impossible for the Ice King to convert any of the ambient water or vapor into ice or frost.[4][5]

Reception

Simon Petrikov cosplay at San Diego Comic-Con 2014

Simon Petrikov cosplay at San Diego Comic-Con 2014

Ice King and Gunter cosplay at London Comic Con May 2015

Ice King and Gunter cosplay at London Comic Con May 2015

The character originally earned a mixed reception, with some critics considering him to be a one-dimensional villain. Oliver Sava of The A.V. Club described his character in the show's early seasons as "a princess-stealing villain in the Gargamel mold." However, Ice King's characterization was considered to improve from the third season onwards, as his backstory established him as a more complex character experiencing mental illness and social isolation. TV.com stated, "it's sort of amazing how Adventure Time has transformed the Ice King from an irritating antagonist to one of the most tragic figures on television[6]."

The fourth-season episode "I Remember You", which focuses on the Ice King's relationship with Marceline, is considered a turning point in the show's portrayal of Ice King. Charlie Jane Anders of io9 called the episode "one of the most intense things I've seen in ages". Dan Persons of Tor.com ranked it #3 on his list of "Ten Heartbreakingly Brilliant Works of Animation." The episode "Simon & Marcy" also received praise, and was nominated for a Primetime Emmy at the 65th Primetime Emmy Awards. Both episodes were included on Geek.com's list of the show's best 10 episodes.

Juliet Kleber in The New Republic also praised the character's arc, saying that:

The series’ first antagonist, the Ice King, is revealed to have once been a human scientist, turned mad by the magic crown he used to protect a young Marceline in the ruins of human civilization. It was a moving character arc revealed over many seasons, woven deftly into the series mythology, turning one of the show’s most outlandish characters into a complex, tragic figure.

In a retrospective review of the series, Eric Thurm of Vulture called the Ice King "Adventure Time’s Best Character" and opined that the character's appeal came from his complex flaws. He felt that Ice King embodied both intense struggles such as Alzheimer's and more mundane issues like social awkwardness, making him relatable to a wide audience.

Quotes

See Ice King/Quotes


Episode Appearances

Major Appearances

Minor Appearances

Mentioned

Comic Book Appearances

Trivia

  • Princess Bubblegum has striking similarities with Simon Petrikov's fiancée Betty, as their heights, faces and hairstyles are similar, they both have pink skin, and they both are known to work in science. This might explain why Ice King likes Princess Bubblegum more so than the other princesses, and it may also suggest that some of Petrikov's desires have remained even after he lost his sanity and became the Ice King.
    • This might be a reference to the fact that Bubblegum's preliminary name was Bettie, although it's spelled differently.
  • It is possible that Ice King was motivated to steal princesses partly by the fact that as Simon, he called Betty his "princess," and some subconscious part of his mind thought that if he stole princesses and forced them to marry him, he could find the same love Simon once had with Betty. This is not confirmed because it isn't known if Simon called Betty his princess before putting on the crown.
  • Simon, who was an archaeologist, is seen holding the Enchiridion, in the pictures above.
  • After Marcy realizes who he is, she starts addressing him as Simon; Betty would do so as well. It's worth noting that Ice King only ever corrected Betty on his name, while he accepts Marcy calling him Simon; possibly because it's the most treasured memory of his last bit of sanity, as he became Ice King.
  • Ice King has a tattoo of a penguin on his right buttock, as seen in the episode "Prisoners of Love" during his dream sequence.
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Ice King with his penguin tattoo

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Gunter ASCII Art

  • Ricardio is the Ice King's heart; made sentient by magic. Though the power of the crown can keep him alive when Ricardio leaves his body, the Ice King is left extremely weak without a heart.
  • In the episode "Lady & Peebles," Princess Bubblegum builds an artificial heart for the Ice King- made out of Ricardio's sinews, toffee, and maracas. The replacement is presumably permanent, as Ricardio runs away and his last appearance occurs in come along with me as a cameo in the background.
  • His cut-out has Ricardio sticking out under his beard.
  • Ice King has a computer which he uses to play video games, as seen in "What is Life?" and to make rudimentary drawings of himself with princesses, as seen in "The Chamber of Frozen Blades." In "A Glitch is a Glitch," he uses his computer to create a virus to delete the entire universe, save him and Princess Bubblegum. However, he was stopped by Finn and Jake who saved the day through a reenactment of a disgusting video they watched at the beginning of the episode.
  • He is currently the only main character in the series whose parents have not yet been introduced.
  • In "Mortal Folly," when Ice King tried to lift the latch on a window in order to see Princess Bubblegum, he used a small card that has the word "Wizard" printed on it.
  • He sometimes falls asleep with his eyes open, as seen in "Still."
  • As Simon Petrikov, a Scientific Parasite is visible in his coat pocket. This had led fans to believe that Simon may perhaps be brilliant in his profession of Archaeology.
  • Ice King is older than Marceline by precisely forty years, as seen in the episode "I Remember You" and clarified further in "Simon & Marcy."[7]
  • Ice King loves filling his bathtub up with milk and sitting in it like he is a magic angel. This is revealed in a slowed-down portion of Ice King's tapes in the episode "Holly Jolly Secrets Part I."
  • It seems that the Ice King will steal any adult female so long as she has the word "Princess" in her name. This is shown in "The Chamber of Frozen Blades," in which he kidnaps Doctor Princess, even though "Princess" is merely her surname.
  • Ice King's favorite princesses, as he revealed in "Princess Monster Wife," are Princess Bubblegum, Muscle Princess, Skeleton Princess, Turtle Princess, Hot Dog Princess, Wildberry Princess, Elbow Princess, Slime Princess, Lumpy Space Princess, and (not an actual princess) Doctor Princess.
  • It is revealed in "Little Dude" that Ice King sometimes sleeps on Finn and Jake's roof.
  • Simon may have been a fan of the classic TV show Cheers, as he reenacted the iconic "Norm!" greeting in "Simon & Marcy" and even sang an abridged version of the theme song.
  • Ice King is similar to the Teen Titans character Mumbo. They both have blue skin and white hair, they are both voiced by Tom Kenny, and they are both magic users with similar origins.
  • Ice King is also similar to the Winter Warlock from Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town. They both have a long nose, sharp teeth, beard and wear robes, they both control winter and snow, live on mountains, and they both appear to be evil, but end up not being so bad.
  • He is an avid fan of Marceline's music. His favorite song may be Fry Song because he did a cover twice.
  • In the special feature of the DVD Adventure Time: My Two Favorite People, "Little Did You Know," Ricardio's "species" is shown to be a human heart, meaning that Ice King is still genetically human.
  • Ice King can hide items under his beard, as seen in "Hitman", "I Remember You", and "Sky Hooks"
  • Ice King is slightly similar to Gollum in Tolkien's Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. Ice King refers to Betty as "princess," whereas Gollum refers to his ring as "precious." The crown which he purchased made him insane while the One Ring had corrupted Gollum. Also, his past from when he was Simon Petrikov is similar to Gollum's from when he was known as a Hobbit by the name of Smeagol.
  • It was stated by Pen Ward that the Ice King's body weight fluctuates with his mood changes.
  • Simon Petrikov's design and characteristics share many similarities with those of Milo Thatch from "Atlantis: The Lost Empire." Both Simon and Milo are intellectuals fascinated with artifacts and history and both are driven to achieve their goals for the sake of knowledge. It is assumed that Simon Petrikov was enthused by his career choices (Archaeology and Anthropology) while Milo specialized proudly in Cartography and Linguistics. Simon's red bowtie and yellow undershirt are almost identical to Milo's bowtie and shirt at the start of "Atlantis." They both wear glasses (although Milo's are large and clear-lensed and Simon's are small and blue-lensed) and both undertake trips to foreign lands that change their lives forever. Even the discovery and significance of the Enchiridion (for Simon) and the Shepherd's Journal (for Milo) draw shocking parallels.
  • Ricardio seems to know about Ice King's previous life, being his former heart, and this seems to be true because in the episode "Lady & Peebles" when Ice King asks for a hug, Ricardio steps on him and says "Silence, Simon!"
  • Like most characters Ice King is ambidextrous. In "Mystery Dungeon," he is shown to be able to write with either hand in separate scenes.
  • Ice King has many characteristics similar to Doctor Two-Brains from WordGirl.
    • Both have something on their head that turned them insane (Simon with his crown, Steven with his helmet).
    • Both have a photograph of their original selves wearing a green sweater and standing next to a woman.
    • Both had their hair turned white and their skin change in pigment upon going insane.
      • Both initially had brown hair.
    • Both are voiced by Tom Kenny.
    • Both were previously friends with one of the protagonists (Simon and Marceline, Steven and WordGirl).
  • Simon might be of Eastern European origin, due to his last name.
    • It is theorized that he is Russian, because Petrikov is a Russian surname.
    • Furthermore supporting this theory is that there is a Dutch brand of Vodka called Petrikov, Vodka is a Russian alcohol.

  • In "Fionna and Cake," when Cake put on the Ice Queen's tiara, Fionna knocks it off, yelling, "Take that off! You might catch her crazy!" As "Holly Jolly Secrets" has revealed, the power of the Ice King's crown caused him to lose his sanity. Since Fionna and Cake and their universe are fan fiction written by the Ice King, this shows he knows to some extent, at least subconsciously, that the crown can endanger its wearer's sanity.
  • In "I Remember You," on the newspaper clipping that Marceline shows the Ice King, we can see Simon getting out of what appears to be an old black Plymouth 4-door, holding the Enchiridion underneath his arm: this story reports that he was the archaeologist who found the legendary book. Betty can be seen sitting in the occupant's side.
  • Over the same newspaper clipping, there are written lyrics to "Oh, Bubblegum." Ice King stated he wrote the lyrics down on that paper. In a parallel of this, the picture of young Marceline has the notes that became the lyrics of the song "Remember You" on the back, suggesting Simon wrote those just before he lost his identity, to apologize to Marceline when she would read them in the future.
  • Even though he has been changed by the crown, Ice King still shows signs that some vestiges of his former self remain. This can be seen in certain things he says and does. For example, in "I Remember You" when he finds his old scrapbook filled with poignant reminders of the man he once was and his shared past with Marceline, he absentmindedly describes the pages as "wet with tears." The implication is that during a recent moment of lucidity he was crying over them and has since forgotten doing so. He brings the diary entries with him as inspirational material for the song he wants Marceline to help him compose.
  • He does not seem to remember his past as Simon Petrikov, even though he saw the history (after he found the crown) in "Holly Jolly Secrets Part II"; his only reaction to the tapes was shame at the fact that he previously wore glasses. This may suggest that the crown tries to suppress all living memory of Simon Petrikov in Ice King's mind.
  • Ice King seems to act more contemplative, reasonable and conscious to others when he removes his crown for a long period of time. His clearer thinking could be due to an absence of the crown's influence. In the episode "Holly Jolly Secrets Part I," Ice King is shown (in his secret tapes) without his crown on, looking sad and more serious than normal, talking about his "innermost thoughts." He begins to say "As you can see, I'm not wearing my -" several times before being interrupted by his penguin. It can be assumed he was referring to his missing crown, and he says that he is more contemplative than normal. Another good example is the episode "The Party's Over, Isla de Señorita" during which the titular character's entire encounter with the Ice King takes place while he's not wearing the crown. After much conversation between the two, she ends up making a tough, life-altering decision, and says she would never have been able to do so without the advice of her "emotionally mature friend, Ice King."
  • In the episode "What Have You Done?," he said that he got his crown through the magic that he stole. Later on in "Holly Jolly Secrets Part II" it is revealed that he purchased the crown in Scandinavia. This dissociation is related to the true origins of the crown, as in "Evergreen," it is revealed that the crown turns its wearer into "Urgence Evergreen," its creator, who stole the magical jewels from Magwood in order to create it.
  • In "Mortal Recoil," Ice King exits the scene when Bubblegum is reduced from 18 to 13 years old. In "I Remember You," Ice King states in his song "Oh, Bubblegum" that he thinks Flame Princess (who is 15) is merely "okay." This indicates a lack of interest in younger-aged princesses.
  • In photos seen in "Holly Jolly Secrets Part II" and "I Remember You," Simon's eyes are shown to be black, implying that his eyes later turned white as the Ice King due to the crown. This same change in eye color is also seen after Betty gains magic powers in "You Forgot Your Floaties." However, future episodes show Simon before his transformation with white eyes, either by error, or implication that his eye color is unrelated to the crown.
    • Farmworld Finn's pupils turned blue when under the crown's influence, implying the crown does change one's eye color, but due to Ice King's eyes lacking detail it is simply not seen.

  • Ice King is a quest-objective character in FusionFall, and his crown is a wearable item.
  • On New Year's Eve 2010, there was an Adventure Time marathon, and it featured bumpers with the Ice King.
  • Ice King is one of the bosses in Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon Because I DON'T KNOW! Once you defeat him, you can play as him.
  • He appeared in two Hole in the Wall bumpers in which he is a contestant. He tries to freeze the wall, or runs away due to the fact that he cannot not fit in either one of the holes.
  • Ice king regular show XD

    The Ice King costume in Regular Show

    • In the Regular Show episode "See You There," one person is dressed like the Ice King but with the crown in a different format. He is seen many times throughout the episode.
    • He appears in the Cartoon Network TV show MAD in the episode "Avenger Time." He is called by the same name and voiced by Tom Kenny, but he has a much shorter beard and hunches over.
    • There is a licensed Halloween costume of Ice King.
    • Ice King is the main antagonist and one of the bosses in the video game Adventure Time: Hey Ice King! Why'd you steal our garbage?!!
    • The Ice King's head was used in Cartoon Network's booth for San Diego Comic-Con 2013.
    • There was a "Pet Society" costume of Ice King. The game has since shut down on June 18, 2013.
    • Ice King is a playable character in Adventure Time Battle Party.
    • In The Simpsons episode "Treehouse of Horror XXV," Homer is dressed like Ice King.
    • His backstory is similar to Dr. Two-Brains from WordGirl, even sharing the same Voice actor, Tom Kenny

    Gallery

    Modelsheet iceking inxmassweater withrims Modelsheet Ice King in Ice Armor - Special Pose with Ice Debris Modelsheet Ice King as Finn Getting Sword Slice by Butterflies - Special Pose
    The full image gallery for Ice King may be viewed at Ice King/Gallery.

    References

    1. As stated by the Lich in "Mortal Recoil"
    2. "Princess Potluck"
    3. "What is Life?"
    4. "Mystery Dungeon"
    5. "Hitman"
    6. # "FTW vs. WTF: The TV Week in Review (March 31)". TV.com. CBS Interactive. March 31, 2013. Archived from the original on April 4, 2013. Retrieved April 15, 2013.
    7. http://www.newsarama.com/tv/adventure-time-pendleton-ward-2-120214.html

    See Also

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