Hunkahunka, also known as Experiment 323, is an illegal genetic experiment created by Jumba Jookiba and a character in the Lilo & Stitch franchise. He is designed to cause societies to come to a crashing standstill by causing artificial lovesickness. Once he pecks someone, they fall in love with the first person they see regardless of their gender and personal preferences; only spraying water in the victim's face will break the spell. He was captured by Gantu, but was rescued in "Snafu".
Appearances
Lilo & Stitch: The Series
Experiment 323 was the 323rd genetic experiment created by Jumba with Hämsterviel's funding. He was designed to use his fake love-inducing ability to bring entire civilizations to a lovestruck standstill. 323 and the other first 624 experiments were deactivated and smuggled to Earth by Jumba during his mission to capture Experiment 626.
All of the experiment pods were released and scattered across the island of Kauai.
At an unknown point, Experiment 323 was activated off-screen (possibly by an ocean wave). 323 then proceeded to cause artificial love across the island. He first targeted David and pecked the latter to make him fall for some other woman on the beach, making Nani jealous.
Later, Gantu attempted to capture 323 after noticing the experiment, but was thwarted by Stitch. When Gantu restrained Stitch and prepared to shoot him into the ocean (knowing he would drown), 323 pecked Gantu to make him fall in love with Pleakley. Stitch got free and managed to capture 323 in a drink cooler. Stitch then showed 323, named Hunkahunka, to Lilo, who used the experiment's fake love-inducing power to make Keoni fall for her.
However, Hunkahunka escaped and resumed his rampage while being pursued by Stitch and Gantu. At one point, he pecked Gantu again, causing the latter to temporarily fall for Stitch. While Stitch evaded Gantu, the former was able to recapture Hunkahunka and hide him in a raffle box. When Lilo came across Stitch and told him that she no longer wanted this phony love from Keoni, she attempted to grab the raffle box from Stitch, thinking it contained the antidote, causing the box to open and Hunkahunka to get free.
Later, Hunkahunka entered a dance hall, where he caused countless victims to fall in love, and pecked Nani at one point to make her fall for Gantu. Eventually, after a long chase, Gantu was able to capture Hunkahunka in a containment orb and take off with him. Regardless, Lilo ultimately decided that people should want others to love them for who they are, not merely because some alien bird pecked them.
Hunkahunka was successfully sent to an impatient Hämsterviel, where the former then pecked Hämsterviel, causing him to fall for Gantu, much to the latter's surprise. However, he still insulted Gantu like he would on a regular basis, implying that Hunkahunka's love powers had a somewhat different effect on Hämsterviel.
Hunkahunka reappeared in "Snafu", and was freed along with Gantu's other captive experiments by Lilo, Stitch, and several other experiments in a rescue mission.
Leroy & Stitch
The first 624 experiments, including Hunkahunka, were rounded up by Leroy and taken to a stadium to be destroyed. However, Lilo, Stitch, Jumba, Pleakley, Reuben and Gantu arrived before the experiments could be destroyed.
Hunkahunka participated in the following battle between the experiments and the Leroy clones, as he was seen among the other experiments.
The Leroys soon gained the upper hand in the battle but were defeated when Lilo, Stitch, Reuben, and several other experiments performed the song "Aloha ʻOe", which caused the Leroy army to shut down due to the original Leroy's fail-safe.
Stitch!
Hunkahunka made an appearance in the Stitch! anime where Stitch used him on Angel after she got mad at him earlier. However, Hunkahunka's spell caused Angel to become too obsessed with Stitch, therefore teaching him a lesson when Hunkahunka also made others fall in love (including Jumba, who was about to reveal the antidote before becoming part of Hunkahunka's spell).
Gallery
Trivia
- Hunkahunka was first revealed in a DVD bonus feature of Stitch! The Movie in the experiment gallery.
- Hunkahunka is based on Cupid.
- Hunkahunka is named after a lyric in the Elvis Presley song "Burning Love", played in the original movie. Lilo refers to him as a "Hunkahunka bird of love."
- Hunkahunka was activated off-screen.
- In his debut, Hunkahunka had dark purple feathers. However, in the show's intro, the episode "Snafu", and his later appearances, he had dark pink and maroon feathers on his body.
