- You may also be looking for the cartoon episode called "The Smurflings", or its comic book adaption.
The Smurflings are a group of four young Smurfs who are main characters of the 1981 Smurfs cartoon show from Season 5 to 8 (with only Sassette and Snappy appearing in Season 9) and minor characters of the comic books. They live together in their own playhouse made from a tree stump.
The group consists of:
- Nat - A Smurfling who loves animals and wears brown ragged pants (held up by a single suspender) and a straw hat. He is the de facto leader of the Smurflings due to his slightly more mature attitude, often arguing with Snappy.
- Snappy - A Smurfling who gets irritated easily and snaps at others, especially when he doesn't get his way. He wears a yellow shirt with a thunder cloud on it. Some see him as the "self-proclaimed leader" of the Smurflings.
- Slouchy - A calm, laid-back Smurfling who wears a red shirt and a drooping Smurf hat. He is the shortest of the Smurflings (probably because he slouches too much).
- Sassette - The only girl Smurfling. She wears pink overalls and has ginger hair with braided pigtails. She seems to be the smartest of the four Smurflings, as well as the most emotional.
Origins
The boy Smurflings were originally adult Smurfs who were de-aged to around 50 years old due to Father Time's backwards-running grandfather clock. Their unique outfits were picked out by themselves, much to Tailor's disapproval.
Sassette is a girl Smurfling who was magically created by the three boys in the episode of the same name, with the intention of making a sister for Smurfette. She was made with the same formula used for the creation of the latter, though with less clay. The boys got in trouble for doing so and were forced to do several chores as punishment.
Role In The Village
The Smurflings are a tight knit group and can be seen playing together in (and out of) Smurf Village frequently. They often get into more trouble than their adult peers but are sometimes capable of saving them or themselves from danger.
The Smurflings are also often seen doing various chores and activities for the Smurfs, such as helping Farmer with harvesting crops in his fields and Greedy with serving (and baking) his various goodies.
Relationships With Others
On occasion, the Smurflings play with Baby Smurf. They don't enjoy doing so in the episode "Unsound Smurfs", but soon warm up to the infant. In "Bringing Up Bigfeet", the group wanted to watch over Baby, but were told that babysitting was no job for Smurfs their age. Disappointed, the Smurflings then offer to take care of Bigmouth and Bignose's nephew Bigfeet while the couple go to the Ogre Ball.
Although Puppy was a gift for Papa Smurf, he seems to be more the Smurflings' (and Baby Smurf's) pet, as they're often seen playing with the dog or using him as a form of transportation. In "Smurf Pet", the Smurflings try to sneak a Nebbit into the village as another pet (with chaotic results) before having to send it back home.
Out of all the adult Smurfs in the village, the Smurflings seem to be closer with Papa Smurf and Smurfette. Papa Smurf, just like how he is portrayed by the adult Smurfs, acts as a father figure to the Smurflings. Meanwhile, in a follow-up story in "The Wild Smurf" titled "School For Fairies", it was revealed how Smurfette acts as a teacher for the Smurflings, having to provide them education from time to time.
The Smurflings once made a friend in the form of Ripple, a mischievous prankster of a wood sprite who ended up causing more problems for them and others than expected.
in Season 5 of the 1981 cartoon show, they barely had the chance to meet Peewit, who is a friend of the adult Smurfs.
In Season 6 of the 1981 cartoon show, they obtain somewhat of a rival in the young Scruple.
In Season 8 of the 1981 cartoon show, they become friends with Balthazar's niece, Denisa.
Band
The Smurflings band with Grandpa Smurf
The Smurflings form their own band (originally excluding Sassette because she was yet to be created). The music they play is considered "new" and "different", receiving mixed reactions from the older Smurfs. Only Brainy voiced complete disgust for the Smurflings' music when they made their debut, as it didn't sound very traditional.
- Nat plays a washtub bass.
- Slouchy plays the Saxophone.
- Snappy plays the drums.
- Sassette plays the piano.
In the 1981 cartoon show, the instruments the Smurflings play in their band performances (or otherwise) aren't completely set in stone and thus can differ from episode to episode.
Other Smurflings
Besides the four main Smurflings in Smurfs media, the adult Smurfs have at one time or another been changed into Smurflings through other magical means.
In the episode "The Fountain Of Smurf", Papa Smurf was changed into a Smurfling by unknowingly drinking water from the Fountain Of Youth; it took some work in his laboratory to restore himself to his normal age.
In "Smurf Van Winkle", Lazy accidentally caused his fellow Smurfs to become Smurflings by using a youth formula on them when he originally assumed that they were now elderly Smurfs, only to reveal that they have been using fake beards and other disguises to make themselves appear elderly. Papa Smurf created a counter-formula that restored the de-aged Smurfs to their normal ages, though in the process the same formula turned Gargamel into an old man.
In Season 9's "Grandpa's Fountain Of Youth", Grandpa Smurf became a Smurfling through a Fountain Of Youth much like Papa Smurf. Although, in Grandpa Smurf's case, his beard didn't disappear when he was de-aged.
Unlike these situations, the three boy Smurflings were never magically restored to their proper ages in the 1981 cartoon show simply because Father Time had no way of causing time to go forward in the same way he was able to make time go backward, while in the comic books, the three boy Smurflings were never magically restored to their proper ages as they liked how they are.
Stachel-ing Smurf, a character created for the Smurfs' Village game as an April Fool's Day joke, was originally introduced by Beeline (the then-developers) on social media as the new "fifth Smurfling". Stachel-ing's namesake was his mustache and five-o'clock shadow. He was also said to have a hut that provided a mini game.
Appearances
For all of the appearances of the Smurflings below:
- see Natural Smurfling/Appearances for Nat
- see Snappy Smurfling/Appearances for Snappy
- see Slouchy Smurfling/Appearances for Slouchy
- see Sassette Smurfling/Appearances for Sassette
Trivia
- The Smurflings' figures are all included in the New Generation of Schleich Smurf figures.
- Snappy and Slouchy are the only known Smurfs in the 1981 series to wear t-shirts.
- In the 1981 series, the boy Smurflings seem to have no recollection of their past except going to Father Time's workshop and knowing who the other Smurfs are. In the comic books, however, the boy Smurflings are pretty much aware of their past.
- The age of the Smurflings appears to be around 7-11 in human years.
- The Smurflings appear much more in the 1981 series than in the comic books, where (besides their origin story) their only other appearance as main characters are in the album The Smurfs Halloween. Sassette and Snappy are also given cameo appearances in Can't Smurf Progress.
- The Smurflings did not have many human friends aside from Peewit, as most of the humans were phased out before Season 5 of the 1981 series or those humans appeared in episodes that don't feature them.