This article is about the character from the Lilo & Stitch franchise. For the anime series of the same name, see Stitch!.
- “What you see before you is the first of a new species. I call it Experiment 626. He is bulletproof, fireproof, and can think faster than [a] supercomputer. He can see in the dark, and lift objects three thousand times his size. His only instinct... to destroy everything he touches!”
- ―Jumba Jookiba explaining his experiment[src]
Stitch, originally named Experiment 626, is one of the titular protagonists of the Lilo & Stitch franchise. He is an illegal genetic experiment created by the mad scientist Dr. Jumba Jookiba. Designed to be abnormally strong, virtually indestructible and super-intelligent, Stitch was built with the purpose of spreading chaos and misery across the universe. His intended function was challenged by his developed relationship with a young orphan named Lilo, who adopted Stitch into her ʻohana.
Quick Answers
Who is the mad scientist that created Stitch in the Lilo & Stitch franchise?
What was Stitch's original purpose in the Lilo & Stitch franchise?
What are some of Stitch's abilities as a character in the Disney franchise?
How does Stitch's character evolve throughout the Lilo & Stitch series?
What makes Stitch an 'illegal' genetic experiment in the Lilo & Stitch franchise?
Background
Development
Chris Sanders' original drawing of Stitch from 1985.
Chris Sanders first created the character of Stitch in 1985 for a planned children's book that never came to be.
Years later in 1997, when production on Mulan was currently wrapping up, he had the opportunity to pitch a film version of his planned story, beginning the development of the film.
In early drafts, Stitch was originally slated to have landed in Kansas, but the setting was changed to Hawaii since the location would provide a greater degree of isolation from large cities, and the islands were among some of Chris Sanders' favorite places. Also, the character himself started as an intergalactic gangster rather than a recently created genetic monster. In these early drafts, his gang (including ex-gang member Jumba) would have been the ones hired by the Galactic Federation to hunt him down.
Personality
- “626 was designed to be a monster, but now he has nothing to destroy. You see, I never gave him a greater purpose. What must it be like to have nothing, not even memories to look back on in the middle of the night?”
- ―Jumba giving an example of Stitch's instincts
Throughout the course of the entire Lilo & Stitch franchise, Stitch is depicted as a character who is unlikable to many people except Lilo (on rare occasions, even she falls out with him, most notably in Lilo & Stitch 2, where she declares that he is "bad and always will be bad!" after he has an uncontrollable glitch attack) due to his destructive and temperamental behavior. It is interesting to note that individuals who are averse to Stitch (such as Mertle Edmonds, Gantu, and Dr. Hämsterviel) describe him as "ugly and deformed", while those who do love him (like Lilo, Nani, and Jumba) describe him as "cute and fluffy". This reflects the basic idea behind Stitch (and his cousins) that counters what societal standards are for good physical appearance. Despite having odd features, such as an extra pair of arms, misshapen head, or unusual coloring, Stitch and his kin prove that you don't have to look "normal" to fit in.
Whether Stitch is displayed in his true alien form; complete with an extra set of arms, antennae, and spines on his back, or in his "dog" form (the one the audience is accustomed to seeing), sans the aforementioned features, his overall "cuteness" belies his extremely aggressive and destructive personality. This is especially apparent during and immediately after his escape from the Galactic Federation. He proves to be a complex character as he comes to terms with his own "good" and "bad levels" and struggles to find his place in the world. According to his creator Jumba, Stitch is a "machine" who was made without a greater purpose than to destroy. The fact that he becomes trapped on the island of Kauai, which has no large cities, he has more time to contemplate and reflect on alternative occupations. Although Stitch seeks to destroy because of his innate programming, he has a personality of his own (a fact that only Lilo and Jumba truly understand) and shows that he has the will and ability to make the choice not to follow his original design.
In comparison to his super strength and computer-like intelligence, Stitch is emotionally fragile, behaving almost like a child having a tantrum at times. Lilo relates to this and believes that a couple of main reasons for his naughtiness are because of some past trauma and receiving little to no understanding or sympathy from others. Of course, Stitch eventually becomes much more well-meaning after his betterment, but is frequently unable to control all of his impulses toward antisocial actions. Fortunately for him, Lilo (and later Reuben and Angel) is always there to support him, and he returns her support willingly.
There is a common misconception from viewers that Lilo is dependent on Stitch for protection and support; if anything, it is Stitch who is more dependent on Lilo. Despite her having her own troubles to contend with, Lilo makes every effort to help Stitch in life and, as the story progresses, he becomes more self-conscious and capable of making the right decisions. By the end of the series, Stitch has friends, family, loved ones, and a purpose worth believing in.
Stitch is still prone to having temper tantrums when things do not go as well as he hopes. He also gets easily angered by inanimate objects, especially the toaster. After it popped toast in his face once, he has since beaten the toaster and juiced it at least twice. Despite these tantrums, Stitch can sometimes display a little common sense and be more mature than Lilo. For instance, he occasionally discovers when Lilo goes too far in using the other experiments for her own personal gain (examples of which were seen in her schemes involving Sprout, Slugger, Checkers, Morpholomew, and PJ), believing it to be very selfish of her.
Physical appearance
Stitch's full alien appearance.
Designed by his voice actor Chris Sanders, Stitch is a blue alien genetic creation standing around three feet tall. He strongly resembles a koala or a French Bulldog (in his disguised form) and is referred to as both throughout the franchise, especially since humans (with the exception of Lilo, Nani, Cobra, and David) are completely oblivious to the fact he is an alien. He has sharp teeth inside his mouth along with a long pink tongue. A short, stumpy tail cuts out from his rear. He has a limited ability to change his physical appearance, only able to retract his second set of arms, his antennae, and the three spines on his back into his body.
When Stitch was first introduced by Jumba, and during his time as a criminal, he donned a red spacesuit with an upside-down triangle consisting of a red border and yellow center on the chest. Similar patches adorned the elbows of the sleeves and square patches consisting of a dark red border with an orange center showed on each of his legs. He also wore a black belt with a crimson square buckle, and his cuffs, anklets, and collar were also black. The suit survived when he crashed on Earth, but it was torn to pieces when he was run over by a convoy of trucks.
When Stitch was captain of the B.R.B. 9000, he donned a black spacesuit similar to that of Gantu's which consisted of a black shirt with thick red brims on his shoulders. Unlike Gantu's tank shirt, this suit features wrist-length sleeves with red cuffs, along with matching vertical linings on both sides of the shirt and trousers. He also wore a gray belt with a light gray "V" on the front, along with a small gray mark on the upper left chest that resembles a tear drop with a black dot on it. The suit was destroyed during his fight with Leroy.
Powers and abilities
While explaining his creation to the Galactic Council early on in Lilo & Stitch, Dr. Jumba gives the following rundown of Stitch's powers: "He is bulletproof, fireproof, shockproof, and can think faster than [a] supercomputer. He can see in the dark and can move objects 3,000 times his size. His only instinct: to destroy everything he touches!"
- Feral mind (temporarily): In the original Lilo & Stitch film, Jumba claimed that Stitch's "destructive tendency was taking effect" and that he would be irresistibly drawn to large cities to "back up sewers, reverse street signs, and steal everybody's left shoe."
- Superhuman durability/Dense body tissue: Even though we rarely see Stitch shot at with a bullet, he does survive the crash of his spaceship without even a scratch, is only briefly stunned by a fall of several thousand feet, and has to be run over by three tractor trailers in succession to be knocked out.
- Fireproof skin: He drives a tanker truck of gasoline into a volcano and ends up only a little singed from the resulting explosion.
- Bulletproof skin: Rounds fired from plasma guns seem to cause him some discomfort, although he can hold the material in his hands long enough to throw the plasma back at his enemies.
- Shockproof: He has some resistance to electricity since he was able to take a direct electrical attack from Sparky, quickly recovering from it. However, he can still feel pain from these types of shocks despite his immunity to it.
- Hyper-cognition: Thinking faster than a supercomputer is harder to quantify, but he does escape from captivity fairly ingeniously; builds a model of San Francisco after only glancing at a postcard; grabs a crossword puzzle from the table and finishes it in about seven seconds; builds a bomb out of a plasma bolt, a doll, and a roller skate; creates a "bucking bronco" out of a toaster, vacuum cleaner, and a lamp; reads aloud a description of a local museum's display, showing he is able to understand written language at a remarkable speed; manipulates his moral compass by using a human being as a shield in Jumba and Pleakley's presence; and generally picks up quickly on what is happening around him.
- Lingual intuition: Stitch can converse fluently in over twenty different languages, but prefers Tantalog (his native language).
- Parallel computing: He is an information repository, containing an internal dictionary, thesaurus, encyclopedia, and experiment catalog, and records every moment of his life in a reserved portion of his brain that can theoretically store up to 300 PB.
- Instrument player: He is also skilled at playing musical instruments, most notably the ukulele, thanks to his quick learning.
- Vehicle intuition: Stitch can drive any sort of vehicle from something as simple as a tricycle to complex machinery like intergalactic spaceships.
- Superhuman strength: His ability to lift objects 3,000 times his own size and weight is seen several times throughout the franchise, including incidents where he picks up a descending blasted door, hits Dr. Jumba with a thrown Volkswagen Beetle (shouting gleefully, "Blue punch buggy! No punch back!"), and stops an 18-wheeled tanker of gasoline dead in its tracks. The reason why Stitch can lift 3,000 times his own weight, even though he has small arms, is because his muscles contain excessively compressed amounts of myofibril within one muscle cell. This muscular arrangement makes Stitch's muscles contract 1,000 times faster than a human's, making him much, much more powerful. The ability is sometimes joked about in the later series; for example, in Stitch! The Movie, when Hämsterviel has Stitch physically restrained for a cloning experiment, Stitch's restraints counter his strength at, as Hämsterviel loudly declares, to "three thousand and one!" times Stitch's weight, though he later admits it was intended as a joke. This was further validated in the Lilo & Stitch: The Series episode "Swirly", when Gantu correctly guessed that Stitch cannot lift even an ounce more than 3,000 times his size when he adds a small ticket to the given load.
- Quadrupedalism: Stitch can run and walk on all fours in a quadrupedal manner, similar to a dog.
- Wall crawling: While Stitch's claws are very strong, the pads on his hands and feet can secrete a sticky substance, allowing him to scale and adhere to almost any surface, such as buildings and walls. He can also stand on walls and ceilings.
- Spherical form: His skeletal system is very flexible, allowing him to put his feet into his mouth and roll like a ball. This allows him to squeeze through tight spaces.
- Superhuman speed: Stitch can move and run faster as shown when moving past Lilo and Pleakley while carrying Jumba, during a bet made with Lilo to catch Experiments 501 (Yin) and 502 (Yang), and hurrying from Gantu's ship back to the fundraiser while carrying Lilo. His speed is also usually used when he's in his spherical form. When Stitch runs, his speed doesn't automatically increase and can only achieve this by putting effort into his muscles.
- Superhuman jump: Stitch's legs are small but, thanks to the muscle advancements mentioned above, are powerful enough to enable him to jump several feet into the air.
- Superhuman agility: Stitch has extraordinarily greater agility, dexterity, balance, and body coordination, capable of doing feats far beyond an acrobat, such as leaping far distances, jumping off from wall to wall, swinging from vines, and standing on branches, wires, and narrow platforms. He is also capable of standing and walking on his paws. The reason is Stitch has a very flexible skeletal system that also allows him to squeeze through tight spaces.
- Superhuman reflexes: Stitch is able to react and dodge plasma bolts from the plasma guns from Jumba and Gantu. When Jumba tried to shoot him, Stitch caught the plasma bolts in his hands. He was also able to catch some tennis balls with his four arms and even threw them back in the pitching machine.
- Superhuman stamina: Stitch's advanced musculature produces fewer fatigue toxins, allowing him to exert himself for extended periods of time. Stitch can still fight, run, and even eat without tiring out; even when hunting for other experiments, he would hunt them for an entire day to when night comes.
- Electromagnetic vision: Stitch's eyes can magnify objects and pick up various forms of light, filtering out one eye or the other if necessary. Using normal vision, his eyes are a glossy, solid black and also magnify his vision for better visibility.
- Night vision: When activated, Stitch's eyes turn green, permitting him to see clearly at night or in dark places.
- Infrared vision: When activated, Stitch's eyes turn red, permitting him to locate targets by their body heat. He most notably uses this in "Houdini" to track the titular experiment who can turn things, including himself, invisible.
- X-ray vision: When activated, Stitch's eyes turn bright green, permitting him to look through walls and other obstacles.
- Audio amplifier: He can act as an audio amplifier, radio, and/or microphone, illustrated when he uses his claw as the needle on a record player and plays music through his open mouth like a sound horn.
- Enhanced hearing and smell: He has an acute sense of smell and hearing. Concept designs detailing Stitch's anatomy describe the sensory filaments of his nose being so dense and extensive that, if unraveled, could blanket Earth. While listening for Jumba and Pleakley, who were hiding on a hill outside the dog shelter, he was able to detect Pleakley speaking at a whisper.
- Skilled hand-to-hand combat: He is dexterously skilled in hand-to-hand combat, whether using all four arms or just two.
- Marksmanship: He is also dexterously skilled in marksmanship, using plasma blasters (even loaded with net to capture experiments).
- Venomous spines: In anatomy drawings of Stitch from the film's production, his spines are described as being poisonous and connected to venom sacs in his spinal cord.
- Shapeshifting: In his alien form, he has three spines on his back, two antennae on his head, and an extra pair of arms. However, he is able to retract all of these features to look more like a dog while on Earth and used this to become Lilo's "pet".
- Semi-immortality: Stitch cannot age. When Skip flashed ten years ahead, he did not age whatsoever, but, for some reason, Babyfier's powder regressed him into an infant. This could simply mean he stops aging once he is physically mature.
- Vacuum adaptation: Along with the rest of his "cousins", Stitch can survive in the vacuum of space due to being a genetic alien.
- Power immunity: Stitch has some resistance but not total immunity to the other experiments' powers. He is shown to be immune to some of the experiments' powers, such as Angel's siren song and Checkers' hypnosis, since Stitch was created after them. While Stitch was put to sleep by Drowsy, he was able to wake up on his own without the need to be sprayed with water.
Both of the two East Asian animated spin-offs add additional abilities to Stitch not shown in the original Western continuity.
- Battery storage: The third season of the Stitch! anime shows that he also has a natural battery in his body that can supercharge his powers.
- Transformation: In Stitch & Ai, it shows that Stitch has a metamorphosis code in his DNA to assist him in carrying out his primary function. When the metamorphosis programming is activated, he transforms into a gigantic and unstoppable monstrosity with four tentacle-like blasters capable of destroying not just cities, but planets and potentially entire star systems.
- Quill retraction: In "Tell the World", he is also seen sprouting quills around his neck.
- Gliding: In "The Phoenix", Stitch sprouts a patagium—a parachute-like membrane found in bats, birds, and other animals that assists in gliding or flight—to glide through the air, mainly for the sake of having some fun while he, Ai, and her cousin Bao head to a shrine that the titular phoenix heads to. (The trio were using a hang glider during their journey, and Stitch deliberately jumps off it so he can glide through the air without hanging on to the glider itself.) Unlike the metamorphosis program, neither the quills nor the patagium have any major factor into the episodes' plots or the metamorphosis program itself.
Weaknesses
- Program limits: Stitch's primary weakness lies in his programming.
- Water: Stitch's greatest weakness is his inability to float, let alone swim, in water due to his molecular structure being much denser than the average human or animal. This causes him to instantly sink like a stone. Stitch originally had an instinctive aquaphobia (which was even used against him by Spooky), but he was able to overcome it thanks to Lilo's influence.
- Glitch (formerly): In Stitch Has a Glitch, it is revealed that Stitch's molecules were not fully charged after his creation, which is proven to be very deadly once his molecules run out of power. As a result, Stitch frequently experiences periodic glitches that have him revert to his original destructive programming; basically, suffering from a seizure disorder and having nightmares of destroying everything and everyone in his path, including Lilo. However, his glitches were permanently resolved after Lilo's love for him caused him to be fully charged at last.
- Memory erase from Crezonyte: It is shown in "Kixx" that if Stitch consumes two different elements which form to create a particular chemical compound called Crezonyte, all of his training skills will be wiped. Eating the rubber of a tennis shoe and palmitoleic acid (found in macadamia nut oil) together will result in this.
- Mucus drain: Stitch is 62.7% mucus, which is similar in chemical composition to Snootonium. If this is drained from his body, he will become temporarily exhausted from dehydration (evidenced when Snooty siphoned Stitch's mucus).
- Sonic blasts/Sensory overload: Another weakness is the fact that his super-sensitive hearing can lead to temporary deafness when exposed to sonic blasts, such as Yaarp's destructive sound blast.
- Strength limit: As stated above, he cannot lift even an ounce past the "3,000 times his weight" limit.
- Experiments' powers: While Stitch is immune to Angel and Checkers' powers since he was created after them, there are some experiments whose powers he is vulnerable to, such as Amnesio, Babyfier, Spike, Bugby, Lax, Dupe, Frenchfry, Swapper, Swirly, and Houdini. Stitch can also be put to sleep by Drowsy, but he was able to wake up on his own without the need to be sprayed with water.
- Blades/Durability limit: While Stitch can withstand plasma bolts, being beaten, and even the most hazardous environments, it is implied that Stitch isn't resistant to bladed objects. This is shown when Stitch was pierced by a Sample Extractor and able to take out his blood.
- Trash ingestion: If Stitch consumes vast amounts of trash, he will become incredibly sick as shown in "Ploot". He first gets sick to his stomach and sneezes, then his fur turns yellow, his tongue becomes orange, and his nose turns red. Another symptom is, with each sneeze, an arm grows from random areas of his body. Stitch's garbage-eating illness was theorized as a rare space disease by Jumba. Stitch was temporarily cured when he drank a barrel of orange juice and took medicine from an eyedropper, though it was only for a few seconds. When he sneezed again, he developed yellow stripes and grew legs instead. The only permanent cure is inhaling steam from a vaporizer.
- Sauerkraut: According to Lilo, Stitch is apparently allergic to sauerkraut. However, it was never shown what kind of allergic reaction he has to sauerkraut or if he even actually has an allergy to it.
- Pollen: It is shown in Stitch & Ai that if Stitch smells flowers, he will sneeze.
Appearances
Lilo & Stitch
Experiment 626 on trial.
As revealed in Lilo & Stitch, Stitch was created by "evil genius" Dr. Jumba Jookiba, who dubbed him "Experiment 626". Both Jumba and 626 were put on trial by the United Galactic Federation following Jumba's arrest on suspicion of illegal genetic experimentation. When the Grand Councilwoman tries asking 626 to show them something inside himself that is good, he says, "Meega, nala kweesta!" (meaning "I want to destroy!"), which horrifies everyone because in their language, it is a "naughty" insult. Jumba tries to reassure to the court that he didn't teach Stitch the offending remark, but they arrest him instead.
Jumba is incarcerated and 626 is sentenced by the Grand Councilwoman to banishment on a deserted asteroid. Captain Gantu (who despises him to no end) transports him on his ship, escorted by a fleet of police cruisers. During the trip to, 626 outsmarts the plasma guns which are locked onto his genetic signature and manages to break out of the holding cell. He escapes security into the ventilation system, makes his way to the power grid (disabling the ship's power), and steals a red police cruiser. Despite damage to the cruiser, he activates the hyper-drive and escapes the fleet. The Grand Councilwoman supervises a team which track's 626's location and they project that he will land on Earth. Hoping that his ship will crash in water, stating that his molecular density is too great, the Councilwoman is dismayed to see that 626's final destination is on a string of islands; a.k.a. Hawaii. A decision to gas the planet is rejected by Agent Pleakley, an expert on life on planet Earth. In order to capture 626 discreetly, the Grand Councilwoman instructs Pleakley to accompany Jumba to Earth, the deal being that, if 626 is captured, Jumba will be freed.
A few hours later, after his escape, 626 crash-lands on Earth on the island of Kauai. Almost immediately, he is run over by three plantation trucks and knocked unconscious. When he wakes up, 626 finds himself in a dog kennel without his suit or his plasma cannons. He escapes the kennel, but only briefly; Jumba and Pleakley are already waiting for him outside and fire plasma rounds at him. When Lilo enters the kennel, 626 decides to disguise himself as a dog and uses Lilo as a shield from Jumba and Pleakley. Lilo names 626 'Stitch'. Throughout the course of the day, Stitch continues to evade Jumba and Pleakley while the bounty hunters keep a safe, but noticeable, distance as they are under orders to remain discreet. As Stitch's destructive programming takes effect, he begins to cause trouble for Lilo and her older sister, Nani, who is currently struggling to keep custody of her sister following the deaths of their parents. Stitch's destructive and mischievous behavior causes tension between Lilo and Nani, especially when it causes Nani to lose her job. The only thing that keeps Stitch with them is Lilo's persistence.
Stitch with The Ugly Duckling book.
Over the course of time, with nothing of substance to destroy, Stitch finds himself questioning his purpose in life, coming to realize he has nothing if he cannot wreak havoc and destroy because he was only created to be a monster. After going through Lilo's collection of books, Stitch discovers the story of The Ugly Duckling and is immediately taken by the tale. When Lilo explains the duckling was sad because he was lost, but became happy again after finding his family and a place to belong, Stitch tries afterward to fit in with Lilo's family. However, his proclivity for mishaps and interference from Jumba and Pleakley turn this into a futile effort. Eventually, and just when he thinks that things might be happening for the best, one final bit of mayhem (thanks to the alien bounty hunters) results in Nani losing custody of Lilo. Heartbroken by his destruction of the family he has learned to care for, and realizing everything is his fault, Stitch runs away into the night, believing she has a better chance at happiness without him and seeking to find a family of his own. He takes the Ugly Duckling book with him.
The following morning, when Stitch wakes up, Jumba confronts him and chases him back to the house. Stitch finds Lilo alone, since Nani ran out early to apply for a job. Because both he and Pleakley now have been fired by the Grand Councilwoman that morning, Jumba is less discreet this time, to Pleakley's dismay, and the ensuing battle leads to the house being completely destroyed. Nani comes home in time to see Lilo being taken by the social worker. When Lilo hears that she's to be taken away, she runs away. Stitch finds her shortly afterward, and reveals that he's an alien, but Lilo had enough of the trouble he's caused, so she denies Stitch's apologies and pushes him away. At that moment, Gantu arrives and captures both Stitch and Lilo. Though Stitch escapes, Lilo is taken prisoner aboard Gantu's ship. In order to save her, Stitch allies himself with Nani, Jumba, and Pleakley. He then steals a tanker truck, and an air battle between Gantu's and Jumba's ships ensues until Stitch is able to board Gantu's ship. Gantu attempts to destroy Stitch during the confrontation, and though he nearly succeeds, Stitch gains the upper hand and manages to both save Lilo and destroy Gantu's ship. They then run into David, who gives them a ride back to shore.
Stitch and his new family.
Landing just off shore, everyone makes their way to the beach where the Grand Councilwoman is waiting with her ship and entourage. She immediately arrests Stitch who asks permission to bid farewell to Lilo and Nani before he departs. The Grand Councilwoman accepts, surprised by Stitch's sudden gentle and loving nature toward what he calls his family. Though she then admits she cannot change the council's decision to apprehend Stitch, as the council has made the firm decision to do so, and it is outside of her power to overrule such a decision. However, Lilo then reveals her certificate of adoption from the dog shelter, meaning he belongs to her, and taking him away would be illegal. With aliens being all about rules, the Grand Councilwoman happily agrees to allow Stitch to remain on Earth, sentenced to a "peaceful" exile. She then announces that Lilo's family will be under protection of the United Galactic Federation.
During the finale shows that Lilo and Nani's house was rebuilt with the help of Jumba and Pleakley who have remained on Earth. Stitch is shown to have adjusted well to life on Earth, spending most of his days spending time with Lilo, Nani, David, Jumba, and Pleakley, and finally finding his one true place in the world: as a member of their ʻohana.
Stitch! The Movie
Stitch in Stitch! The Movie.
At the start of Stitch! The Movie, Stitch is shown having a difficult time connecting with the island locals during a beach party, feeling that he doesn't fit in and is too much of an outcast. Though Lilo tries to comfort him, he seeks Jumba in hopes of learning about having others like himself and the evil scientist. However, Jumba explains that, in the vast universe, he and Stitch are alone and lack, what Lilo calls, "cousins".
Later on, Stitch discovers Jumba's first 625 genetic experiments locked in a crate, in the form of dehydrated pods. In order to rescue a kidnapped Jumba, a trade between Dr. Jacques von Hämsterviel and Jumba for the experiments is organized, but it instead results in the freedom of the experiments and the capture of Lilo and Stitch. Hämsterviel then tries to clone Stitch, but he was rescued by Experiment 221 (Sparky). Stitch then rescued Lilo and landed Hämsterviel's spacecraft back in Kauai, where the Grand Councilwoman waited to arrest the evil rodent. She then puts Stitch and Lilo in charge of capturing and taming the other illegal genetic experiments scattered on the island.
Lilo & Stitch: The Series
Stitch in Lilo & Stitch: The Series.
In Lilo & Stitch: The Series, Stitch and Lilo have to capture Jumba's experiments, turn them from bad to good, and find them each a home before Gantu, 625, and Hämsterviel capture them and use them for evil. Due to being the most physically capable, Stitch is often the one who defeats Gantu and subdues the experiment, leaving it up to Lilo to rehabilitate them. Along the way, Stitch meets his match 627 (who is tougher than him), and he eventually defeats him.
He is also affected by fourteen experiments' powers: Amnesio wipes out his memory; Babyfier turns him into a baby (along with Nani, Jumba, and Pleakley); Spike makes him goofy; Bugby turns him into an insect; Spooky turns into water and nearly drowns him (thus traumatizing him in the process until he overcomes it); Lax makes him lazy; Dupe clones him into four, weakening his strength; Frenchfry serves him unhealthy meals (along with Lilo and Pleakley) and fattens him up into a giant bowling ball; Swapper switches Stitch and Lilo's minds; Yaarp blasts his megaphone, temporarily deafening Stitch; Snooty sucks out his mucus, temporarily putting him out of commission; Swirly hypnotizes him; Drowsy (in the episode "PJ") puts him to sleep; and Houdini makes him invisible. He also meets Experiment 624 (Angel), who is introduced as a love interest for Stitch.
Over the course of the series, he and Lilo have also had adventures with Kim Possible, Jake Long, Penny Proud, and the Recess gang.
Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch
Stitch in Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch.
In Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch (set shortly after the first movie), Stitch is now living, along with the also-exiled Jumba and Pleakley, in Lilo and Nani's house.
Although still hot-tempered and mischievous, he is reasonably well-behaved, but then begins to malfunction unintentionally. Since his molecules were not fully charged after his creation, Stitch frequently experiences periodic glitches that have him revert to his original destructive programming; basically suffering from a seizure disorder and having nightmares of destroying everything and everyone in his path, including Lilo. Seeing this, as well as the severity of the situation which could eventually lead to Stitch's death once his molecules run out of power, Jumba strives to create a proper fusion chamber in which to recharge Stitch.
Stitch wants to prove to Lilo that he can still be good, so he goes around doing good deeds for the citizens of the town to prove himself. When his goodness chart is finished, he goes to show it to Lilo, but she is too busy preparing for the contest, resulting both of them to end up fighting, which consequently gets them sent to their room by Nani. Once Stitch accidentally destroys one of the costumes and set pieces for Lilo's hula contest because of his glitch, an enraged Lilo ignores Stitch and tells him to get lost, deeply hurting him.
Before Lilo goes to perform her hula dance, Stitch shows up to wish her luck, but, due to his glitch, accidentally scratches her in the face and hurts her, just like in his nightmare. Believing himself to be too dangerous, Stitch attempts to leave Earth for a remote planet while Lilo, Jumba, and the others desperately try to have him return so they can recharge him. When Stitch crash-lands the ship on a mountain, Lilo manages to get him into the fusion chamber, but pulls the switch too late. As Stitch dies, he says his last words, "Stitch sorry." Jumba says that they're too late and there's nothing Lilo can do. However, she tells Stitch that he needed her more than she needed him because he is Lilo's ʻohana, and she will always love him in accordance with her belief that love is more powerful than death. With these words, Stitch is successfully revived, his molecules fully charged.
Leroy & Stitch
Stitch in Leroy & Stitch.
After Stitch, Lilo, Jumba and Pleakley have successfully captured and redeemed all the remaining experiments (except 625) the Grand Councilwoman offers Stitch the chance to become the new captain of the Galactic Armada and its new flagship, the BRB (Big Red Battleship) 9000 (and by extention the rights and privileges of a United Galactic Federation citizen). However, that would require Stitch to be separated from Lilo. Not wanting to make Lilo sad, he chooses to return to Kaua'i. However, Lilo tells him he should go. Before he leaves with Jumba and Pleakley, Lilo gives him a necklace with a tiki of the god Ku Tiki to give him strength. She also gives Pleakley an Earth rock and Jumba an Elvis record.
When Gantu breaks Dr. Hämsterviel out of prison in an action of frustration, Stitch is sent on his first mission as captain to capture the evil rodent once more. But when he arrives at Galactic Defense Industries, Stitch faces off against a new experiment – Leroy, who is an enhanced red doppelganger of Stitch. After Leroy is named, Stitch bursts into the lab and starts to fight against Leroy. Stitch fights well and is about to beat Leroy when Pleakley shows up unexpectedly, allowing Leroy to take advantage of Stitch's lapse in concentration and beat him. He is knocked into a capsule and sent with Jumba and Pleakley heading towards a black hole, while Leroy disguises himself as Stitch. After they are sent towards the black hole, Leroy heads off towards Earth to capture all of the other experiments for Hämsterviel. Luckily, Stitch, Jumba, and Pleakley escape from the black hole and arrive on the planet Turo. There, they rescue Lilo, 625 (now known as "Reuben"), and a reformed Gantu, and then fly Pleakley's car pool van back to Earth to assist the other 624 experiments in the defeat of an army of Leroys. Now, with Leroy defeated, Stitch, Jumba, and Pleakley return to Earth with Lilo, realizing that family is more important than spaceships, laboratories, and prestige.
Stitch!
Stitch with Yuna in Stitch!.
In this anime spin-off, which starts years after Leroy & Stitch, Stitch seems to have reverted to his original destructive nature as seen in the original film. However there has been debates whether or not these events are canon.
He is first seen being chased in a spaceship by authorities and Jumba before he crash-lands on Earth on Izayoi Island, off the coast of Okinawa. Soon joined by Jumba and Pleakley, they make a new life with a young girl named Yuna, and Stitch seeks the mythical powers of the Spiritual Stone, a sacred island object that can grant any wish, which is, in Stitch's case, wanting power. But the powerful wish only works by doing and getting 43 good deeds and Stitch now faces the return of Hämsterviel and a once-again disgraced Captain Gantu along with various experiment threats, all while juggling, getting, and losing (due to his own mischief) good deeds. After spending time with Yuna, Stitch finally gave up his vow to be the most powerful of the universe to stay with her.
Lilo originally never appeared or was mentioned in the anime, but many would still question her absence. In the English dub, it completely changed the story by implying that Stitch ran away out of jealousy of Lilo having a boyfriend, as mentioned by Jumba, "Just because little girl has new boyfriend now and is all washed up by 626 is no reason to act bad," which leaves us to believe that this takes place years after the events of Leroy & Stitch. Despite this, when Yuna once confronted Stitch, telling him that his previous family forgot about him. Offended, Stitch quickly states, "Lilo didn't forget!" which implies that he still deeply cares about her, and is certain that Lilo still feels the same way about him. It wasn't until Episode 23 of sequel series Stitch! ~Zutto Saiko no Tomodachi~ that Lilo makes her appearance for the first time.
She, now fully grown, visits Okinawa New Town with her daughter (whom Stitch thought was Lilo in the beginning). Both friends reunite, and we learn that there was never any boyfriend. Lilo had gone to college, and they planned to meet by the beach when she returned, but when that day came, Nani was in labor and caused Lilo to be a little late. Stitch, for unknown reasons, was never aware of Nani's condition (although the English dub states that Stitch had been away on a mission), and since Lilo didn't arrive at the time they planned, he thought Lilo had forgotten about him. He leaves his tiki necklace on the beach before flying away in his ship, and by the time Lilo arrives he had already left, and cries when she find his necklace. In the end, before Lilo and her daughter could board the plane, Stitch arrives in time to see her again. They both have a happy reunion, she hugs him, promises to visit him again, and asks Stitch to take good care of his new family. She gives Stitch his tiki necklace back before leaving.
Stitch & Ai
This Chinese spin-off series is set chronologically after the events of Leroy & Stitch but on a separate timeline from the anime, since it was produced without any consideration towards the latter.
In this series, it is revealed that Stitch has additional programming which causes him to under go a metamorphosis when activated. This transforms him into a large monster capable of destroying not only cities, but star systems as well. The information about Stitch's programming is hacked and spreads throughout the galaxy. This causes Stitch to be kidnapped by the Jaboodies, who had failed in their own attempts at re-creating Jumba's Experiment 626 research and wish to use Stitch to end their space war against the Woolagongs. When their ship is raided by the Woolagongs, Stitch uses the confusion to escape and falls back to Earth. After surviving re-entry, he ends up landing in the Huangshan Mountains in China and befriends a young girl named Wang Ai Ling. In order to help contain Stitch and stop the Jaboodies and Woolagongs, the Galactic Federation sends Jumba and Pleakley to monitor Stitch in China.
Other appearances
Stitch appears in a DVD slideshow short film, narrated by David Ogden Stiers, showing his numerous invasion of Disney movies over the years. He is first shown in two scenes of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs where he appears crawling under the log the seven dwarfs march across, and associating with the woodland creatures. In the next slide, he appears as a puppet next to the lifeless Pinocchio. He then appears among Captain Hook's crew in a scene from Peter Pan. The next scene shows Stitch standing in for Lady during the spagetti scene. Stitch appears as one of Maleficent's Goons and one of the Dalmatian Puppies. In a scene from "I Wan'na Be Like You", Stitch can be seen in the background playing the ukulele. In a scene from Beauty and the Beast, Stitch is among the wolves attacking the Beast. He is shown biting into the Beast's arm. The last two slides are of Stitch fishing with Pocahontas and training beside Mulan.[1]
In Treasure Planet, Stitch made a brief cameo as a stuffed toy on a shelf in Jim Hawkins' bedroom when he was a child.
In the Aladdin Virtual Magic Carpet Ride game included on Disc 2 of the 2004 Platinum Edition DVD, Stitch appears riding in his spaceship while passing by Aladdin and Carpet briefly three times.
In The Lion King 1½, a silhouette of Stitch is seen at the end of the film crawling on the wall inside the dark theater. He bounces off Goofy, Rabbit, Mad Hatter, and Donald as he makes his way to his seat. Donald is heard quacking angrily as Stitch laughs at him.
In Brother Bear, Stitch makes a surprise cameo in the outtakes.
In Big Hero 6, Stitch is referenced twice: the first as a costume worn by Mochi in a painting, and the second as one of the pillows on Fred's bed (alongside a Splodyhead pillow). Stitch also makes another cameo in the Baymax! episode "Sofia" as a sticker on the back of a student's chair.
Stitch, alongside Angel and Scrump, appears in the fourth UniBEARsity story OhanaBEARsity. In it, Stitch reads the UniBEARsity storybook and comes up with the idea of making their own teddy bears. His teddy bear, named Blue, is based on his likeness.
Stitch appears as one of the residents of Oh My Disney in Ralph Breaks the Internet.
Stitch is acknowledged prominently in Better Nate Than Ever, mainly due to the fact that the film's main character, Nate Foster, sets off to audition for the role of Stitch for a Broadway musical adaptation of Lilo & Stitch. At one point, when Nate's best friend Libby travels on a bus back to Pittsburgh, she is seen watching the aforementioned movie on her phone, particularly during the scene where Stitch and Nani reconcile. At the end of the film, Nate, after he had succeeded in getting the lead role in the musical, is seen wearing a costume of Stitch during his performance.
In Once Upon a Studio, Stitch appears after Goofy accidentally breaks the camera, in which he starts gnawing on the plate until Lilo drags him away. He later appeared in the group photo along with the rest of the Disney characters.
In Wish, Stitch was among the Disney animated characters that appeared during the credits.
Printed material
Kingdom Keepers
Stitch appears in the third and fifth book in the saga. In Kingdom Keepers III: Disney in Shadow, he is an Overtaker and along with some of the pirates from Pirates of the Caribbean, pursues Finn and Maybeck through Tom Sawyer Island. In Kingdom Keepers V: Shell Game, he seems to have freed of the Overtakers, for he saves Finn from the rescue dummies at Typhoon Lagoon. This makes Finn get to the conclusion that Stitch was under a spell from the Evil Queen.
Stitch & the Samurai
In this manga, Stitch escapes the United Galactic Federation in a stolen police cruiser spaceship by using its hyperdrive to make a blind jump that ends up on Earth. However, instead of traveling through just space, he also travels through time; he crash-lands in Japan during the Sengoku period, in which he meets battle-weary samurai warlord Meison Yamato. After a brief struggle, Yamato is not only impressed by Stitch's strength, but the sight of the little blue "tanuki" causes him to have a thought that he has never had before: "cute". Thus, the warlord takes in the alien, not only making Stitch part of his army, but also developing an unlikely bond.
Video games
Kingdom Hearts series
Stitch is a minor and later major character in the Kingdom Hearts series. He first appears in Kingdom Hearts II and is one of two summons during the game that makes a difference to the storyline (besides Genie). His first appearance is when he is seen crawling above Sora, Donald, and Goofy without their notice while the trio are in the corridors to Ansem's study. Later, he is noticed by Goofy and drops down onto the keyboard of Ansem's computer in front of the surprised trio. A furious Donald jumps onto the keyboard to grab him, but Stitch dodges, bounces off of Donald, and laughs with a taunt. As Donald turns around, he mashes the keys, causing the Master Control Program to be alerted. Later, Stitch helps fight in the Battle of the 1000 Heartless in the Great Maw using his plasma blasters.
The prequel game Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep details the history of Stitch ten years prior to events of the first game. Stitch appears in his true form and is known as Experiment 626, and his story had occurred in his homeworld, Deep Space, which mirrors his escape from the Galactic Federation in the original film. First appearing in custody, he is released by Terra and Dr. Jumba, where he briefly steals the Keyblade wielder's Wayfinder. Curious about the item's emotional value to Terra, 626 returns it to Terra and scurries off. By the time Aqua arrives, 626 constructs his own Wayfinder. Aqua goes to apprehend him, only to meet opposition from Gantu, who tries to destroy Stitch and Jumba. The two defeat the captain and afterwards, Aqua asks the Grand Councilwoman for Experiment 626's sentence to be reconsidered due to 626's display of sentience through his charm. However, when an Unversed attacks the ship, 626 escapes and follows Ventus. Unfortunately, while waiting for him, 626's charm is destroyed by Gantu, who still considers 626 a monster. Angered, the alien nearly attacks Ventus but then helps him when Gantu arrives and tries to arrest them. 626 escapes with Ventus on a police cruiser and Keyblade ride (respectively), but activates the cruiser's hyperdrive in order to escape his pursuers and abandons Ventus by accident. Afterwards, it is seen that Stitch had managed to fix his charm and puts it on the steering wheel as he flies his ship towards a blue star.
In Kingdom Hearts χ/Kingdom Hearts Union χ, Stitch serves as inspiration for an unlockable costume for the game's avatars and as combat medals.
Stitch returns in Kingdom Hearts III as a Link summon to aid Sora in battle. He uses his blasters to create electric fields, which can destroy enemies as they get close.
Kinect: Disneyland Adventures
Stitch appears as a meet-and-greet character in front of Redd Rockett's Pizza Port in Tomorrowland. He gives several tasks to the player, including fetching some burgers for him to eat, cheering him up by donning a hula costume and dancing with him while wearing it, finding him some flower leis and taking a few photos throughout the park so that he can show them to Jumba.
Disney Infinity
In the first game, Stitch only appears as part of a surfboard gadget and laser Power Disc. During a poll posted by Disney after the first game was released, Stitch became the most requested character for the sequel.
In Disney Infinity: 2.0, Stitch takes part as a playable character; however, he can only be played in the Toy Box mode.
Disney Heroes: Battle Mode
Stitch in Disney Heroes: Battle Mode
Stitch appears as one of the playable heroes introduced to the game. He is unlockable with 80 tokens and his attack skills are the same as in the franchise, using his plasma gun to attack enemies, spits rudely at enemies, he also jumps at enemies to scuffle them. His victory pose is his signature dance. His friendship campaigns are with Maui and the Mad Hatter. He also has friendship campaigns with Hector Barbossa, Angel, Jumba Jookiba, and Timon & Pumbaa.
Disney Dreamlight Valley
Stitch appears in this game as an unlockable villager once the Forest of Valor biome is opened up and the player has helped Kristoff and Donald Duck with retrieving the Orb of Courage to place back in the pillar in the forest from the Dark Realm of the Forgotten. After helping Donald repair his houseboat, a sock covered in mucus appears on Dazzle Beach near Donald's house. Returning it to Donald causes him to suspect extraterrestrial activity is behind it. After finding a homing beacon in Donald's house, Donald notices that it seems attuned to the DNA in the mucus on his sock, so he suggests keeping an eye out for more socks whenever the strange lights in the sky show up every few days. After finding another one five days later, and a third one five days after that, the homing beacon is fully charged and is placed near Skull Rock. Shortly thereafter, Stitch returns to Dreamlight Valley as he crashes a smaller version of the Red One on Dazzle Beach. After providing a new home for him via the McDuck Construction Company, Stitch explains that he had left the Valley to seek help, but had tried to use Night Thorns for fuel, and that's what messed up his ship and caused it to crash, not to mention getting lost thanks to the Night Thorns messing up his memories. He appreciates having a new home and is glad to be back in the Valley.
Stitch is also needed to unlock coffee beans in the Glade of Trust as his Level 4 Friendship Quest involves growing a fresh batch with help from WALL-E to make Stitch some coffee to help him fight off his sleepiness. Once complete, three coffee bean bushes appear in the Glade to be harvested for their beans every so often to make coffee, lattes, and mochas.
Later, Stitch needs help fixing his TV to help him relax so he's not causing trouble around the Valley such as pranking Donald. After collecting some tinkering parts, gold ingots, and glass to mend it, the player needs to dress up in something sporty before taking him to the mystical cave on Dazzle Beach, then Ursula's house, then to meet up with Ariel, before Stitch is still considering what to do as a hobby to help burn off all his excess energy and excitement.
He finally decides on a music career, but first needs the player's help to make it happen, first getting a backdrop to do some photo-ops of Stitch in the Dream Castle, then getting the sound equipment together for the big concert on Dazzle Beach. Once the sound equipment is placed, and Stitch is able to perform, the concert is a success, and Stitch awards the player a copy of his ship he crashed in as thanks as furniture to decorate the Valley with.
Other games
Stitch serves as the protagonist of Stitch Jam, where he travels through various locations on a mission to rescue Angel from Hämsterviel and Gantu.
Stitch is an unlockable playable hero in Disney Mirrorverse. Stitch has the ability to turn metalic and then molten.
While Stitch himself does not appear in Disney Universe, a costume of him (in his "pet form") does.
Stitch makes an appearance in Just Dance: Disney Party, where he is seen dancing the hula with Lilo during "Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride".
Disney Parks
Stitch posing for a photo in his former area, Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom.
Stitch quickly became a staple character in the Disney theme parks due to his popularity. He is usually seen with Lilo or by himself. In the Disney Parks franchises, he sometimes accompanies Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, and Pluto, replacing Daisy at times.
Stitch is also a meetable character at PCH Grill located in Paradise Pier Hotel. He only appears during the Mickey and Friends character breakfast with Lilo and lots of other characters.
He is always seen in Tomorrowland at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland, Shanghai Disneyland, Arabian Coast at Tokyo DisneySea, and sometimes seen at Disneyland, Disney's California Adventure, Disney's Hollywood Studios, Disneyland Paris, and Walt Disney Studios Park for meet-and-greet sessions.
Disneyland
In Mickey and the Magical Map, Stitch can be seen towards the end, when Mickey chases the ink spot into the Hawaiian painting. Stitch is seen on the screen, before ducking down and coming onstage from the side of the screen. He dances with a group of cast members to the song of "Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride".
In World of Color at Disney California Adventure, Stitch can be seen during the "Transformation" sequence at the end of the show. In World of Color: Season of Light, Stitch and his family are featured celebrating the holidays in their own segment.
In It's a Small World, Stitch can be seen with Lilo on a surfboard in the Hawaiian area. In It's a Small World Holiday, Lilo and Stitch ridden the surfboard with a Elvis Presley bobhead.
In The League of Planets safety videos for Space Mountain, Stitch makes a cameo as an example of large luggage.
Walt Disney World
Stitch was the main character of Stitch's Great Escape!, where he had a chance to interact with the live audience. This attraction later became a meet-and-greet area where guests can have photos with him until the signage was dropped. It is currently unknown where he will meet in Tomorrowland.
He also appeared during ʻohana breakfast times with Lilo, Mickey, and Pluto in Disney's Polynesian Village Resort until 2020 when it was closed to be Moana-themed for the summer of 2021. So it is unknown if he will return for character dining appearances.
Stitch is the star of Stitch's Supersonic Celebration, initially on a video screen and then in costumed form. The Stitch character on the video screen could interact with guests, using the same technology as in Turtle Talk with Crush.
Stitch is one of the characters who appears on the riverboat in the finale of the WDW version of Fantasmic! beginning in mid-2002. He used to be in the Disneyland version but was since omitted.
In Star Tours: The Adventures Continue, Stitch also made a cameo inside a piece of luggage in the baggage check section of the ride, Star Tours: The Adventures Continue. G2-9T, when noticing Stitch inside, removed the luggage and quarantined it, due to animals not being allowed on the flights. He was eventually replaced with Figment.
In A Totally Tomorrowland Christmas, Stitch is one of the special "guest characters" alongside Buzz Lightyear and Mike Wazowski. Unlike the others (until towards the end), Stitch does not appear onstage. He broadcasts himself from a television screen. The host checks back in with him between musical numbers, given the important job of tracking down Santa to make sure he comes for the big finale. As Stitch learns more about Santa from the guests, Stitch mistakes Santa for a "spying snitch who breaks into house" and almost uses his ship's lasers to shoot down Santa and his sleigh. Luckily, he manages to stop in time and now learns the real meaning of Christmas. However, Stitch loses track of Santa afterwards and decides to appear onstage dressed as Santa for the big finale.
In March 2016, he and Genie are replaced by Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde from Zootopia in the Magic Kingdom parade, Move It! Shake It! Dance and Play It! Street Party. He also appeared in Town Square near the flagpole replacing Marie for more meet-and-greet sessions, but was moved back to Tomorrowland when Stitch's Great Escape! was not in use. There, he currently meets on the Tomorrowland stage along with Buzz.
Tokyo Disney Resort
Stitch in his incarnation of The Enchanted Tiki Room.
In Stitch Presents Aloha e Komo Mai!, an animatronic Stitch was added in the attraction since 2008. Throughout the show, the Birds of Paradise discover a writing believed to be done by "Big Kahuna" who is thought to be a tiki god and anyone who angers him would put the Tiki Room in trouble. During the musical number "Hawaiian War Chant", Stitch disrupts the song by popping out of the flowerbeds where the orchids are singing (though his full body is not physically seen until the end of the show). During the Showgirl Birds' act, the Birds of Paradise discover the Showgirl Birds wearing Stitch ears in which they explain that a strange creature (referring to Stitch) put blue ears on them as they plan on not finishing the song until Stitch is gone. Waha Nui, one of the Birds of Paradise, gets upset to tell the prankster ruining the show to show up, but Stitch gets insulted when he hears Waha Nui calling him a prankster. When Stitch rises from the fountain, the Birds of Paradise think he is Big Kahuna, but Stitch himself declares he is not. The Birds of Paradise then scold Stitch for disrupting the show in which Stitch explains that he wants to perform in the Tiki Room.
The Birds of Paradise let Stitch perform in the show, on the condition that he not interfere with the show anymore. Stitch agrees, asking the Birds of Paradise and the audience if they want to join his ohana. Stitch and the Birds of Paradise then close the show with a reprise of "Aloha, E Komo Mai". Stitch declares, "Everyone...ʻohana!" and the show ends with him spitting out of the fountain.
In the defunct Tokyo DisneySea version of Fantasmic!, Stitch starred in his own segment, conducting the water and lights to an instrumental rock version of "Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride" while Angel drives around in a speedboat with a plasma pistol.
In the Polynesian Terrace Restaurant, Lilo's Luau & Fun ran from 2005 to 2020. In it, Lilo & Stitch, as well as Mickey, Minnie, and Chip and Dale came onstage and danced with some hula dancers and a ukulele player to the music from Lilo & Stitch.
In It's a Small World, Stitch can be seen with Lilo on a surfboard in the Hawaiian area, similar to the Hong Kong Disneyland and Disneyland versions.
Hong Kong Disneyland
At Hong Kong Disneyland, Stitch used to show up for meet-and-greet sessions in Tomorrowland and Fantasy Gardens, and sometimes appears in Disney's Hollywood Hotel. He also appears in It's a Small World with Lilo and the Flights of Fantasy Parade and appeared in the defunct version of The Golden Mickeys.
Recently, he greets guests most often (especially alongside Lilo) in the Karibuni Marketplace in Adventureland.
Shanghai Disneyland
Stitch met in Tomorrowland and appeared in the caboose in Mickey's Storybook Express until 2020. He also appears in the second segment of Summer Blast in front of Enchanted Storybook Castle.
Disney Cruise Line
Stitch also greets guests on the Disney Cruise Line ships. On board the Disney Fantasy, Stitch interacts with guests boarding the ship in CGI through a screen much like his attraction Stitch Live! (or Stitch Encounter).
He is also present on the Disney Fantasy cruise ship with Lilo in the show Disney's Wishes.
Stitch Encounter
Found in Walt Disney Studios Park (known as Stitch Live!), and Tomorrowland at Tokyo Disneyland and Shanghai Disneyland, guests are seated in a room that is something like a theater, and Stitch interacts with the audience. Guests would also need to help Stitch get to his space cruiser before Captain Gantu captures him.
It ran at Hong Kong Disneyland from July 2006 to May 2, 2016.
Disneyland Paris
Stitch also appeared in Stitch's Hawaiian Paradise Party in Disneyland Paris on June 9, 2011 and Merry Stitchmas in 2017.
Relationships
Gallery
Trivia
Stitch and Scrump celebrating Stitch Day by Dean DeBlois.
- On June 26, 2015, the United States Supreme Court ruled in Obergefell v. Hodges that it is unconstitutional for any of the states in America to ban gay marriage, as all U.S. citizens have the fundamental right to marry as stated by the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Because of the month and day this ruling was made (6/26), many fans began associating with Stitch to the date of the decision, making him its unofficial mascot.
- In response to this, Dean DeBlois, a former Disney story supervisor at Walt Disney Feature Animation and co-director/co-writer of Lilo & Stitch who is gay himself, drew an image of Stitch and Scrump celebrating the court's decision. The sketch showed Stitch holding a rainbow flag, which represents gay pride, and Scrump holding a blue flag with a yellow equality sign, representing the logo of the Human Rights Campaign.[2]
- According to Chris Sanders' initial designs, Stitch was originally going to have green fur and smaller eyes. His ears flared at their bases instead of close to their tips, and his nose was below the eye line instead of above. He also had white or silver claws instead of dark blue claws, and wore a yellow-orange spacesuit with burnt orange pants instead of the more uniform red-orange spacesuit that he wears in the original film's first act.
- Stitch is the only Lilo & Stitch character to have his name in every title of the franchise.
- Despite not appearing in the show itself (as the show ran for about one year before the movie came out, although the film came out during its run on television), Stitch was featured with Lilo in some online games for the television series House of Mouse.
- In a deleted scene of the original film, Stitch was responsible for the death of Pudge the fish. This incident made him learn about the consequences of his evil actions and gain a better understanding of mortality. It was cut out because Disney figured that it would be too morbid for a protagonist to kill someone and would also set a bad example for children. Moreover, Stitch is more interested in vandalism than violence.
- Also, the original version of the scene where Jumba attacks Stitch which results in the Pelekai residence accidentally being burned down was actually going to have more violent scenes like Stitch using a chainsaw to attack Jumba, as well as Stitch setting the house on fire by biting apart a gas pipe and tricking Jumba into shooting it with his blaster. The final version of the same scene has everything violent edited out and replaced in favor of making the scene more slapstick-oriented (Jumba knocking the ceiling down with dishes instead of laser blasts, Jumba's "shuriken" being made of hairbrushes and a tube of toothpaste instead of knives and a pizza cutter, and the entire chainsaw scene shortened), having more comedic scenes added in (exploding Scrump, Stitch catching Jumba's laser, Stitch yelling, "Blue Punch Buggy! No punch back!" when hitting Jumba with Nani's VW, the Elvis Presley song "Hound Dog" playing in the background, and Lilo saying, "Oh, good. My dog found the chainsaw."), and the house being destroyed by having Stitch stop up Jumba's blaster with a carrot and then having them both play "hot potato" with it until the blaster overloads and explodes.
- A similar treatment was done to the climax, where Jumba, Pleakley, Stitch, and Nani fly through the sky to pursue Gantu after he accidentally captures Lilo as a result of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.
- When Jumba attacks Stitch on the ceiling using plates like shurikens in the original film, he claims that he wants to reprogram Stitch to be "taller" and "not so fluffy", hence highlighting Stitch's failure as Jumba's "ultimate monster" experiment, and foreshadowing the creations of both Experiment 627 and 629/Leroy in Lilo & Stitch: The Series and Leroy & Stitch, respectively; coincidentally, both of them are improved versions of Stitch that are more evil and destructive and less fluffy than Stitch himself.
- Stitch is considered to be one of the first successful prototypes for Jumba's "ultimate monster" experiment, though he is technically a failure because he wanted to belong and find a family. Other notable attempts for this prototype are 000, 262, 600, and 625, and each failed for its own reason: 000 is uncontrollable, 262 is good, 600 is clumsy, and 625 is lazy. 627 and Leroy are additional attempts Jumba made after Stitch, but both of them also failed: 627 is weak to laughter while Leroy is weak to a song. However, Leroy can also be considered a success, since Jumba deliberately programmed the weakness into him.
- Stitch appears, along with several other Lilo & Stitch characters, in a parody of the Disney Channel Original Movie High School Musical, which was broadcast as part of the High School Musical: Around the World one-year anniversary special.
- In said parody, when Stitch and the other experiments are looking up at the ceiling, Stitch is colored red and 627 is colored blue due to a coloring error.
- Stitch's English-language speech capabilities, which are usually broken and childish, vary throughout the franchise and other works.
- In the original film, he starts out only speaking his native language, Tantalog, but gradually speaks English over time as he acclimates to Earth, though most of the time, he only makes various noises that are mostly animalistic due to him needing to keep up with the dog disguise. He speaks more during the third act, especially after he reveals his true alien nature to Lilo and Nani.
- In terms of the actual production, his limited intelligible speech is due to Chris Sanders not wanting the character to speak anymore than what's absolutely necessary and keeping his dialogue to a bare minimum.
- Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch continues from the first film by having Stitch become more proficient in English, though with occasional moments of his more familiar childish English, and he almost never speaks in Tantalog. However, after he has his final glitch at the end of the film, which causes him to crash-land Jumba's ship, he only says a few words in brief sentence fragments from then on out.
- Lilo & Stitch: The Series and its films has Stitch speaking mostly in Tantalog, which was developed by the show's writing staff based on Chris Sanders' alien gibberish in the original film. When Stitch does speak English, it's usually as brief, broken sentence fragments with some brief pauses between words at times and a few possible instances of echolalia.
- The Stitch! anime series gives Stitch more dialogue than in any other work in the franchise, making him more talkative compared to his Western and Chinese portrayals. In the Japanese original, he maintains his broken and simplistic speech patterns, including his trademark illeism, and more clearly has echolalia, showing a tendency to repeat that last thing someone else says. However, in the English dub, his English improves, he talks in more complete sentences, and he develops a considerable wit. This is likely to reflect the long passage of time since the events of Leroy & Stitch, as Stitch may have spent enough time on Hawaii before leaving to actually get a decent grasp on English. (It should also be noted that English is heavily taught as a second language in Japan.)
- Stitch & Ai has Stitch's speech revert back to his broken, childish English, and he mainly speaks Tantalog again, much like in Lilo & Stitch: The Series. Interestingly, despite having the same English voice actor as his anime counterpart (Ben Diskin), he speaks with a lower-pitched and somewhat less energetic voice than that used in the anime.
- In the original film, he starts out only speaking his native language, Tantalog, but gradually speaks English over time as he acclimates to Earth, though most of the time, he only makes various noises that are mostly animalistic due to him needing to keep up with the dog disguise. He speaks more during the third act, especially after he reveals his true alien nature to Lilo and Nani.
- Stitch has illeism, which is the act of a referring oneself in the third person. He developed this habit probably because of his broken English or he had gotten it from Jumba, who also refers to himself in the third person.
- Interestingly, he only does this twice in the original Lilo & Stitch film, after he was apprehended by the Grand Councilwoman. He says "Stitch" instead of "I" when he asks her if he has to go into her ship, and if he can say goodbye to Lilo and Nani. All other times he refers to himself in the original film have been in the correct first-person. It is likely that, since this trait of Stitch's is more prominent in the sequels and spin-offs, his illeism (along with his broken English in a franchise where aliens can speak English fluently) ended up being a case of Flanderization for his character.
- In Stitch Has a Glitch, he is shown to do this less often up until the climax.
- In the English dub of the Stitch! anime, he does it even less often than before, but over the course of the series, he seems to have grown out of this habit: he talks in complete sentences, his English has improved, and he has more dialogue.
- Stitch's weak grasp of English throughout the franchise (especially in the original 2002–2006 continuity) does not make logical sense, considering his hypercognition, the fact that he shows no apparent signs of struggling in understanding English, the fact that the aliens in the franchise can speak fluent English (including his own creator more or less), and the fact that he spends most of his time with Lilo, who has a very complex vocabulary (especially for someone her age). The indirect explanation that he does not have "advanced language programming" like his predecessor Reuben also does not make sense considering the above, and in fact leaves a plot hole as to why Stitch doesn't have such an ability when his predecessor, who is said to have every power and ability that Stitch has, does.
- Adding on to this, Chris Sanders published a TikTok video in June 2022 for the film's 20th anniversary in which he unofficially (as it was not made nor authorized by Disney) voices Stitch again, albeit in narration. The video has Stitch speaking in fluent English throughout, with only his famous illeism sticking around. This suggests that Sanders sees Stitch as eventually becoming naturally fluent or near-fluent in English over time.
- While Stitch and the other experiments are technically siblings, sharing the same creator, "cousins" is a Hawaiian term, like "ʻohana", for extended family and close friends, although Stitch only uses it in regard to the experiments.
- However, in Stitch & Ai, when he reunites with Jumba and Pleakley, he tells Ai that they're "cousins", despite never having called either of them "cousins" before.
- Stitch loves reading his favorite storybook, The Ugly Duckling by Hans Christian Andersen, which he obtained from Lilo at some point.
- The plot revolving around the book mirrors Stitch questioning his purpose, as it revolves around his loneliness and desire to find a family, to which he did in the end.
- Stitch also developed a fondness for ducks as he showed some ducklings the storybook, as seen in the credits of Lilo & Stitch.
- Stitch apparently has a fondness for frogs as seen in Lilo & Stitch, where Stitch saves one from being blasted by a plasma gun of Gantu's ship.
- He is also very fond of sea turtles and even sleeps with a stuffed one, as seen in Stitch Has a Glitch.
- In the end credits of Lilo & Stitch, Stitch is also seen covering a turtle and its baby with a leaf.
- Stitch likes to dress up as Elvis Presley and is very skilled at playing the ukulele.
- His favorite foods are coconut cake and coffee, which are the very first Earth-based food and drink he has ever eaten, as seen in the original film and also mentioned in Stitch! The Movie. However, when he drinks coffee, he gains a massive amount of uncontrollable energy. Ironically, in "Slugger", he drank a large bowl of cappuccino, along with Lilo's cappuccino, but didn't go crazy at all.
- Stitch also enjoys soda, as he steals a can from the Pelekais' fridge in the original film, angrily drinks the rest of the soda from a pitcher at Macki Macaw's restaurant in "Phantasmo" when Pleakley doesn't pour him some after Lilo had Stitch wait his turn, and enjoys a can after stuffing Mr. Stenchy into the Pelekais' pantry in "Mr. Stenchy" before being interrupted by Gantu.
- He has also been shown to eat anything inedible and very rarely doesn't like to eat something. An exception was in "Spooky", when he spat out a lemon, saying, "Ew, organic!", implying he might not like lemons.
- However, in "Shortstuff", Stitch, as a giant, drank some lemonade from the cart he accidentally smashed without expressing any disgust, and in "Swapper", he drank a whole bowl of lemonade (albeit modified by Jumba to cause those who drink it to temporarily change colors), again without expressing any disgust, which would contradict this supposed dislike of lemons. It could be that either Stitch doesn't like organically-grown foods (as his heightened senses might have the unintended side effect of him tasting even the tiniest amounts of manure residue), he doesn't like the taste of unsweetened lemons or lemon juice, or him spitting out the organic lemon was nothing more than a simple joke.
- In the Stitch! anime, he also loves Yuna's blue crab sushi.
- Due to a continuity error, Stitch's ear notches have a tendency to disappear or change position in some works and merchandise. This has also caused countless fan art and even some official artwork to reflect these and other errors, such as reducing his four toes on each foot to three or changing his paw pads or body markings from dark blue or indigo to the same aqua color as his countershading.
- Following after Stitch! The Movie, Stitch's toes have changed from dark blue to black.
- Additionally, following after Stitch Has a Glitch, Stitch's fur color has changed from dark blue to light blue.
- Stitch's blood is revealed to be pink when a sample was taken out of his body with a syringe.
- Since then, Stitch has developed trypanophobia (a fear of needles) as evidenced in "Sample", when he showed fear of going to the vet to get his shots.
- When Stitch has a glitch, his eyes glow green.
- Ironically, in the original film, Stitch's eyes were shown green after he crash-landed on Earth, but he displayed no glitch whatsoever.
- In Stitch Has a Glitch, the animation was reused in the beginning.
- Usually when Stitch rolls into a ball, he puts his feet into his mouth and covers his face with his butt. In "Dupe" and "Snafu", his ball form resembles Cannonball's ball form in Leroy & Stitch.
- Since Lilo's adoption of Stitch was a legal process under State of Hawaii law (complete with legal documentation), it can be said that his legal name is indeed "Stitch" and not "Experiment 626". Disney Infinity seems to re-enforce this by describing him as "Dr. Jumba's former Experiment 626" on the description for Stitch in the games' Hall of Heroes.
- This may also provide additional context when he interrupts the Grand Councilwoman to clarify his name in the denouement of Lilo & Stitch, as he may also imply that it would no longer be considered proper to refer to him as "Experiment 626" in any further formal or legal matters. Since he is referred to as "Captain Stitch" when he joins the Galactic Armada in Leroy & Stitch, it could also be that the United Galactic Federation does formally acknowledge "Stitch" as his proper legal name; if they didn't, then he would have been "Captain 626" instead.
- In the Disney Adventures prequel comic "Experiment 626" and The Origin of Stitch, it is revealed that Stitch's genes contain those of some of the most powerful creatures in the galaxy, as well as some of Jumba's for "brains and good looks". One of the genes was a puppy, explaining Stitch's apparent resemblance to a dog (though Jumba did not know how it got in there).
- Notably, Stitch appeared on more covers for issues of Disney Adventures than any other character, appearing on the cover of twelve issues.
- In each of the franchise's three TV series, Stitch grows into a giant at least once per show via some method.
- In the Lilo & Stitch: The Series episode "Shortstuff", Stitch uses Jumba's Protoplasmic Growth Ray to make himself bigger, but he is considerably clumsier in this larger size since he was not designed to be large. The episode's titular experiment also becomes bigger and defeats the enlarged Stitch at the carnival. Stitch would later be returned to his normal size in order to fight back and win.
- In the Stitch! anime episode "Experiment-a-palooza", Shrink zaps Stitch with an energy ray after the latter falls into a swimming pool, causing him to grow into a giant. Due to Retro reverting Stitch to his original destructive programming, Stitch goes on a rampage in this giant form until Yuna reaches out to him and reminds him of his promise. Shrink would be used again to revert Stitch to his original size.
- Stitch & Ai has the aforementioned metamorphosis program, which transforms him into a gigantic monster armed with four tentacle-like blasters. Notably, unlike with Lilo & Stitch: The Series, Stitch does not become clumsier as a giant in this series, which had some of the same crew members as the Western series.
- However, a deleted version of the opening of the original film contradicts this. In this opening, the Galactic Council shows video footage of Experiment 626 – in his familiar small size – causing chaos and destruction in an alien city, including tipping over a skyscraper by lifting it from its base. The existence of this scene strongly suggests that Chris Sanders, Stitch's creator and original voice actor, never intended or at least considered giving Stitch this metamorphosis ability, thus likely making the monstrous "destruction form" in Stitch & Ai a retcon or a "revision" of the character. (Sanders did not work on either Stitch & Ai or the Stitch! anime series in any capacity.)
- Toothless, a Night Fury from DreamWorks Animation's How to Train Your Dragon franchise, bears a strong resemblance to Stitch. Even their facial expressions are similar, especially those showing excitement, wariness, and anger. However, their personalities are somewhat different, as Stitch is far more mischievous and anthropomorphic than Toothless. This is not a coincidence; Chris Sanders was the designer for both characters and co-directed both films with Dean DeBlois. It is also possible that Toothless was inspired by Stitch.
- Sanders left Disney to join DreamWorks Animation (a rival animation company to Disney) in 2007 due to creative differences over Disney rejecting his original Bolt script and designs. Despite his departure, though, Sanders still continues to voice Stitch in video games, such as Kingdom Hearts II, Birth by Sleep, Disney Infinity 2.0, and in many other appearances of Stitch, having established a contract with Disney Character Voices. The notable exceptions are the Japanese Stitch! anime and the Chinese Stitch & Ai series, which had their English voice acting done with Studiopolis instead of in-house at Disney.
- The number 626 is the area code for San Gabriel Valley in Southern California, the place where one of the writers of the film used to live, albeit unconfirmed.[3]
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