The Ultimate "Invader Zim" Quiz

Interested in launching a show to cater to the network's older demographic, Nickelodeon reached out to Jhonen Vasquez and asked him to pitch them some ideas. "Invader Zim" was the very first concept he presented, and the network greenlit it.

It doesn't take long at all to realize Zim isn't from Earth ... or even from this solar system. Our fave little extraterrestrial hails from Planet Irk. He journeys to Earth on a mission to enslave the human race. No big deal!

On his secret mission to conquer Earth, Zim is joined by GIR. So, what's the deal with GIR always malfunctioning? Well, that probably has something to do with the fact it was assembled using spare parts found in a trash can.

It breaks our hearts, for real, but there are only two seasons of "Invader Zim." But they are two lit seasons. Even though the series received positive reviews from both audiences and critics, ratings declined as the series went on. Before the second season was even finished, Nickelodeon cancelled the show.

In the years following Nickelodeon's cancellation of "Invader Zim," the show has only become more popular. In fact, it's widely considered to be one of the network's best shows. Its numerous awards include an Annie Award, an Emmy Award and a World Animation Celebration Award.

Fans are so obsessed with "Invader Zim" that they organized an entire convention to celebrate the show. InvaderCON launched in 2011. If you attend, you can find loads of awesome merchandise including a comic book series, toys and clothing. Let the world know just how much you love Zim!

Even though it was intended for kids, "Invader Zim" had some dark episodes. Of those, "Dark Harvest" is widely considered the darkest. Fitting title then, right? In the episode, Zim collects human organs from his classmates to pass off as his own to fool the school nurse into thinking he's human. Killer Scott Dyleski referenced the episode when he talked about his own fascination with human organs.

To say we were excited when we learned Netflix would be dropping a movie based on our fave animated series would be an understatement. Basically, we lost our minds when "Invader Zim: Enter the Florpus" premiered on Netflix in August 2019.

Nickelodeon heard the original pitch for the "Invader Zim" pilot in 1999, and in March 2001, the series premiered. It was intended for the network's 11-to-15-year-old audience. At the time (to this day, really), we'd never seen anything on TV like "Invader Zim."

That's rough, Zim. Unfortunately for our short extraterrestrial pal, the social hierarchy on the planet Irk is based on height. Zim might have a shot at ruling if it was based on intellect or some other type of skill.

After nearly destroying Irk (He just wasn't paying attention), Zim is banished to Foodcourtia, which is the Irken food court planet. The trouble started during the Irkens' first invasion. Operation Impending Doom I was not a success.

A pair of leaders that are exactly the same height rule over Irk. Because the planet's social hierarchy centers around height, they're known as "The Almighty Tallest." Wally Wingert and Kevin McDonald voiced the tall leaders.

To get rid of him, the Irkens send Zim across the universe to a mystery planet that they're not even sure exists. After his six-month-long trip, Zim lands on an alternate Earth. This particular version of our planet is dark and satirical.

Using his short stature to his advantage, Zim decides to disguise himself as a human child. It's not like he can just go walking the streets of Earth as an alien! To collect intel about Earth and (hopefully) learn how to conquer the planet, he attends school.

You have Jhonen Vasquez to thank for your complete and total obsession with "Invader Zim." Born in September 1974, Vasquez grew up in East San Jose, California. His passion for creating goes way back, and his high school newspaper published a number of his comic strips.

Zim's classmate, Dib, knows Zim isn't like the other kids. Obsessed with the paranormal and supernatural, Dibs wants to expose Zim for the alien he is. He'll do whatever it takes to keep Zim from enslaving the human race.

Zim's teacher, Ms. Bitters, is so much more than just a background character. For starters, she has some spooky demonic tendencies. The show creators confirmed she's, in fact, not human. But we kind of guessed that based on her ability to levitate.

Everyone has enemies. Zim has Dib. The Irken Empire has the Resisty. Apparently, during Operation Impending Doom II, the Irkens conquered a bunch of planets, and the aliens who lived there were pretty salty about it. With the mission to overthrow the Irken Empire, different alien races came together to form the Resisty.

Well, maybe GIR does like salad, but so far, we've never seen him eat one. Unlike Zim, GIR loves Earth - especially the snacks. In the show, we've seen him devour everything from tacos and candy to chicken with mayonnaise and even Poop products.

Like Zim, GIR has to disguise himself while on Earth. His typical costume is a green dog with big eyes and its tongue hanging out. There's a zipper running up the front. Tbh, it suits GIR just as well as his actual robot form.

Even though Zim is trying to play himself off as a human child, there's not much he can do about his green skin. So, he explains it away as a skin condition. That answer might satisfy some Earthlings, but Dib sees right through it!

Dib's little sister is Gaz Membrane. Like Zim, she has a deep disdain for the human race ... even though she's human herself. Gaz is antisocial and prone to violence. The only things she seems to like are video games and pizza. Big mood.

While Dib considers himself the "defender of Earth," everyone else just thinks his crazy. Because of his obsession with the supernatural and paranormal, Dib is an outsider at school. His classmates call him "bighead boy."

Throughout the "Invader Zim" series, we randomly see pigs cropping up all over the place. From toys and posters to actual characters, pigs play a significant role in the show. GIR is particular obsessed with pigs and has a lot of rubber piggy toys.

In all, "Invader Zim" spans 27 episodes. Each episode lasts approximately 23 minutes. Since Nickelodeon cancelled the show before all the episodes in the second season could air, six episodes weren't released until several years later.

Now, this is a major throwback! According to Johnen Vasquez, the alien Zim shares his name with his girlfriend's Tamagotchi. Remember those things? For a long time during the show's initial production, Zim didn't have a name.

Jhonen Vasquez started creating long before "Invader Zim." Even though he was just 22 years old when Nickelodeon invited him to pitch them ideas for a show, he was already an accomplished comic book artist but had no experience in animation.

Based on his previous work, you might be surprised Jhonen Vasquez ever managed to land a show on a children's network. "Johnny the Homicidal Maniac" followed the adventures of Johnny C. Attacking anyone who irritated him, Johnny's comic ventures involved lots of blood and swearing.

When Nickelodeon canceled "Invader Zim," a lot was left unfinished. In addition to several episodes, the network dropped its plans for a final TV movie to conclude the series. It was supposed to be called "Invader Dib."

It's true: you don't know what you've got till it's gone. Since Nickelodeon canceled "Invader Zim," the series has only become more popular. In 2010, NickToons started rerunning episodes. "Invader Zim" came in second in the ratings.

Fans love Invader Skoodge, who appears in the very first episode of "Invader Zim." His assignment? Nbd, but he's just supposed to conquer Blorch, which is the home of the slaughtering rat people. Even though he's short, Skoodge turns out to be pretty competent and completes his mission.

In 2015, fans prayers were answered when Vasquez and Nickelodeon teamed up with the independent comic book publisher OniPress to release a comic book about Zim. GIR's voice actor, Rikki Simons, worked on the project as a colorist.

Dib's younger sister, Gaz, lives for gaming and is rarely seen without her trust Game Slave. Apparently, Gaz's obsession with gaming was inspired by the "Invader Zim" crew's love for playing video games. There's even an entire episode about Gaz's addiction!

The perfect getup for exposing alien invaders, Dib dons a long, dark trench coat. But Vasquez had to fight to dress Dib how he wanted, as Nickelodeon wanted to nix the trench coat.

The behind Nickelodeon's iconic alien, Zim, is Richard Steven Horvitz. He beat out Mark Hamill (yuh, Luke freaking Skywalker) for the part. Series creater Jhonen Vasquez didn't want a well-known actor voicing Zim.