Animal Crossing: New Horizons has saved many a college student’s sanity this quarantine season; for those of us who were unable to celebrate their Easter Festivities over the weekend, Animal Crossing came in clutch (like they do every year) with the Bunny Day festivity. When April 12th hit, people all over the world turned on their devices to collect and trade in their eggs, giving them to the one and only Zipper T. Bunny.
As soon as you meet the bright yellow bunny, a couple of questions might come to mind, like, “Why are his eyes so big?” and “Is that a zipper?”. The questions on my mind? “Why does this rabbit look like he could kill me in 2 seconds without blinking?” and, “Who is in that suit?”
While many would just brush off Zipper T’s appearance and go about collecting their eggs, something just doesn’t sit right with me about this character.
When your secretary is a dog, you’re taking out loans from a raccoon, and buying clothes from hedgehogs, it never really crosses your mind that any of them would be in a costume—why would it? The title of the game is Animal Crossing. So why is it when you meet Zipper T he is quick to defend himself, adamantly stating that he is not in a costume? Why is this happy, cheery bunny so quickly angered by those who question his identity? And why is it that some villagers fear his arrival? Who is this sinister-looking yellow “bunny”?
One popular theory is the retired mayor Tortimer is hiding behind those lifeless blue eyes. The mayor “didn’t make it” to New Horizons, and with the blinding evidence of the middle initial being “T”, this makes it a strong theory.
Other Animal Crossing theorists claim the “T” in Zipper T is the first initial of the town loan shark, Tom Nook. Main evidence surrounding this theory is the character’s body shape, which would fit perfectly in a Zipper T suit, as well as the pointing evidence in the name. However, this theory has been widely busted, as you can see Tom Nook around the village during Bunny Day festivities.
Within Animal Crossing, a few characters stood out to me as suspect, however, as I dug deeper into the theories, I saw connections within some holiday-specific villagers. Pavé is a peacock that travels to the island for Festivalé celebrations; from the first time you see this flamboyant peacock, you can tell she loves a celebration. My theory? Not only is Pavé zipping up into a Bunny suit in April, she is also getting into a reindeer costume, hiding the zipper with a bag full of presents, in December as Jingle. This theory would explain why the “bunny” is constantly mumbling about being hot—or not being able to breathe well—when you walk away from them. Would you want to stuff yourself—and all your feathers—into a suit in spring? Maybe, if you loved parties, celebrations, and the attention they bring. And you would be able to enjoy this even more during the cold December months, where the furry suit would bring you warmth.
Of course these theories will probably never be confirmed by Nintendo, who created the terrifying visor-wearing bunny suit. And maybe I took it too far, and Pavé is innocent of this; maybe there isn’t a zipper hiding under Jingle’s bag. What I do know, and what I hope others will realize, is there is someone, or something, hiding in Zipper T. Bunny’s suit. That there is no birth certificate in the Animal Crossing universe with the name of Zipper T. Bunny.