Top 10 Best Timon & Pumbaa Moments

In the compilation direct-to-video special, “Around the World with Timon & Pumbaa”, our favorite warthog ends up getting struck by lightning and gets a bad case of amnesia. Timon tries to jog his buddy’s memory be recounting to him – and first-time viewers- some select episodes from the very first season of their own spin-off series. It ends up working eventually… but then TIMON ends up with amnesia, and the only way to get his memory back is to rewind the movie. This was definitely a creative way to showcase the hilarious misadventure that the duo’s TV series had to offer.

It’s an all-out war between the Pride Landers and the Outsiders, and Timon and Pumbaa are more than willing to get in on the fight… at least until they get chased and cornered by Zira’s lionesses. It looks like the end for our favorite twosome, but Timon manages to scare the hunters off by pointing Pumbaa’s tail at them like a rifle –threatening to “use it”. If there’s one thing stronger than any lion, it’s Pumbaa’s stench. The last thing you’d ever want is to be caught downwind of it – so running off may have been the smartest move the Lionesses ever made. Timon and Pumbaa may not be the fiercest, but you can’t say they don’t prepare for battle.

Pumbaa is usually the good-natured, loyal, sometimes rational one of the duo. However, there’s one thing that really sets him off – being called a “pig”. Whenever anyone foolishly insults him as such, he goes completely beserk: [“They call me Mister Pig”] Not only is watching the normally level headed warthog lose it hilarious, but it’s also a funny homage to the iconic Mister Tibbs line from “In the Heat of the Night”. Oddly enough, he doesn’t usually go hog-wild on his friends when THEY call him a “pig” – probably because they usually mean it as a term of affection. However, Pumbaa’s enemies – especially the Hyenas - would be wise not to disrespect this sensitive swine.

After a frustrating day trying and failing to find their new dream home, Timon is just about ready to pack it in and return to his tribe. He encourages Pumbaa to do the same… but the gentle warthog reveals that he doesn’t have a home –he’s all alone in the world. Timon sympathizes with the big lug because of his own loneliness and admits that Pumbaa’s the only real friend he’s ever had. You’d never expect these two bumbling outcasts to have a touching moment like this, and yet they pull it off so well –leaving their audience in happy tears to see their friendship solidified.

Every now and then, Timon and Pumbaa’s spin-off series would feature fun music videos performed by the titular duo –which were usually covers of already well-known tunes. In this particular number, Timon –with the aid of some harmonizing frogs - sings a cover of Ben E. King’s “Stand by Me”, about how he won’t be afraid as long as Pumbaa is by his side. Meanwhile, poor Pumbaa finds himself constantly bombarded by a series of unfortunate – but hilarious - events… and Timon is completely oblivious. While we naturally feel bad for Pumbaa’s predicament, it’s hard to not laugh at this much slapstick being presented in a cool, soulful music video.

Simba has been hurt in a nasty ambush by the Outsiders, and, needless to say, Kovu’s not very popular with the Pride Landers. As soon as Timon sees the disgraced lion, he comically shouts “Let me at ‘em” and tells Pumbaa to hold him back. By now, it’s pretty obvious that Timon’s bark is worse than his bite, so trying to make himself look tough like this with a bluff is just humorous – made even funnier by Pumbaa’s obliviousness to the bluff. Even if he’s all talk, you can’t deny his loyalty to Simba –standing by his side no matter the circumstance.

It’s the final battle between Simba and Scar at Pride Rock, and Timon and Pumbaa have a plan to take out the hyenas once and for all with the help of Timon’s family. Unfortunately, the duo has the difficult task of distracting the Hyenas while the trap is set up - without getting eaten in the process. They do everything to stall for time – they juggle, they do freestyle… Timon even tries spontaneously proposing to one of them. The trap goes off with a slight hitch, but gets the hyenas out of the game!

To get past the Hyenas, Simba needs Timon and Pumbaa to create a diversion with live bait. Their solution… having Timon dress in drag and do the hula while tempting the scavengers to eat Pumbaa. Believe it or not, the line that prompts this scene was actually improvised by Timon’s voice actor Nathan Lane. Their Hawaiian War Chant was supposed to be replaced with a different song, but was kept in thanks to time constraints. And thank goodness! The stage and live-action adaptations had their own humorous takes on the diversion, but it’s hard to compete with something THIS silly and effective.

One of the benefits of seeing the first movie from Timon and Pumbaa’s point-of-view is that we get to see how they first met. Timon is on his own looking for a new home, but his fear of predators sends him running for his life. He ends up running into Pumbaa and… their first encounter is a scream, to say the least. Realizing Pumbaa’s good nature, Timon asks the warthog to join him in finding a home –mostly to protect him from predators. Little could either have known that what starts out as just an “acquaintanceship” would blossom into an unbreakable friendship – facing the good and bad times together as the iconic duo we know and love today.

Before we reveal our number one pick, here are a few worry-free honorable mentions.

Pumbaa gets sick
“The Lion King's Timon & Pumbaa” (1995-99)

Mother Gorilla
“The Lion King's Timon & Pumbaa” (1995-99)

“No one asked the opinion of Gaston”
“House of Mouse” (2001-03)

Parenthood
“The Lion King 1 ½” (2004)

Adopting Bunga
“The Lion Guard” (2016-19)

Taking the number one spot is the show tune that secured Timon and Pumbaa’s place in our hearts. After rescuing young Simba from the desert, the two teach him the ways of their problem-free philosophy with their personal motto – “Hakuna Matata”. This catchy reggae fusion fits Timon and Pumbaa’s characters to a T – it literally translates to “no worries” which is how our favorite twosome wants to enjoy life. They almost replaced this song with the equally catchy “Warthog Rhapsody”, but we’re glad they kept this track alive as one of the most iconic Disney songs in history. There was a reason this was handpicked to be the theme song for the duo’s own animated series.