Arnold Shortman

Arnold Shortman is a fictional cartoon character and the titular character in ''Hey Arnold! ''created by Craig Barlett. He is a fourth-grader (fifth-grader in The Jungle Movie) boy who lives in a neighborhood. He is Gerald’s best friend and Helga’s love interest.

Why He Rocks

 * 1) He is an excellent role model to kids. He is one many kids should follow as an example.
 * 2) Arnold is a kind, passionate, brave, headstrong, determined, and with a forgiving demeanor.
 * 3) He is very helpful. He helped Grandpa Phil pass a college test and was worried when he became mean.
 * 4) Arnold learns from his mistakes. An example was that when he got humiliated for wearing bunny pajamas in the neighborhood, he didn’t want to be Iggy’s friend anymore.
 * 5) Arnold has a competitive demeanor. He is seen playing baseball with his friends many times and he along with his friends challenged fifth graders to a football match, and did anything to win.
 * 6) Despite having some enemies, he tries his best not to hold a grudge on them.
 * 7) Arnold would do anything to protect the ones he loved no matter what. He confronted Scheck many times to save the neighborhood. He even tried to see his parents when they were trapped in San Lorenzo, despite being dangerous and could get him killed.
 * 8) He isn’t oblivious to other’s feelings, as he knew (or at least suspected) that Helga secretly liked him.
 * 9) Even though Helga can be a jerk to Arnold, he once saved Helga from getting killed by a bully.

Bad Qualities

 * 1) He can be a Gary Stu a times, especially in the later seasons.
 * 2) He was OOC in "Egg Story" and "Timberly Loves Arnold."
 * 3) In "Full Moon" Arnold was placed under Principal Wartz' threat of recieving a black mark next to "FAILURE TO COOPERATE" on his permanent record if it wasn't for Harold, Sid and Stinky confessing the truth on the last day of his unfair punishment.
 * 4) Like much characters like Phineas Flynn, despite being a good character, his design is a bit questionable. No wonder Helga calls him football head.