Sweet but SARCASTIC

Happy Bunny is just one of many product lines that mix charm with a little bite.
By JENEE OSTERHELDT
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
Hello Kitty may have the market cornered when it comes to cute, but this year's teen shtick seems to be all about sarcasm.
"It's Happy Bunny" is the king, or queen, of the bitter and of the sweet. As in, sweet-looking yet mean-mouthed.
This trend of cute but cheeky icons isn't exactly new.
Look at the four foul-mouthed, incredibly cute fourth-graders from "South Park." They draw you in with their little faces and appall you with those dirty mouths. Or look further back to Bart Simpson.
But right now, the adorable It's Happy Bunny (he or she) is gracing everything from shirts and slippers to candy and notebooks. Sometimes Bunny is blue or yellow, other times pink or white. And Bunny always has something smart to say (www.itshappybunny.com).
You might see the fun bunny on a little T-shirt and be drawn in by the cuteness. Then you look closer and realize the shirt says something like "Hey You Make Me Throw Up a Little," or "Cute but Psycho. Things Even Out."
The appeal
It's this balance of the bitter with the sweet that 16-year-old Jeannie Cerda loves.
"I like the fact that he is so cute, but he has this horrible attitude," says Cerda, a junior at Lincoln College Prep in Kansas City, Mo. "You see him and you think to yourself, 'Aw, how sweet.' And then you read what it says, and you're like, 'Why?'"
Cerda says she's not usually into being trendy, but she thinks It's Happy Bunny and other edgy brands like David & amp; Goliath and Paul Frank are popular because being rebellious is currently quite stylish.
As far as Bunny being a girl or a boy, it turns out gender is in the eye of the beholder.
Sometimes Bunny sounds like a cocky little girl, saying things like "Boys lie and kind of stink." But with its flat face and hard lines, it has the cartoon attributes of a male character. Not to mention Bunny can be sometimes caught with a naughty finger in the air or passing gas.
The creator
Bunny's creator, Jim Benton, says he created Bunny to be gender-neutral. Whether Bunny's a girl or a boy isn't important. The bottom line is, this rabbit has nearly 40 licensees everywhere, from Claire's to Torrid, for notebooks, pens, air fresheners, T-shirts, pajamas and more.
Benton's inspiration came through trial and error.
"You try a lot of things that don't work, and then you find the thing that does," says the Michigan native, who also wrote "Frannie K. Stein, Mad Scientist." Frannie is an eccentric and bold little girl who happens to be a scientist. She's not as mouthy as Bunny, but she does have an edge to her. Not only did the book make Amazon's top 10 list of children's books in 2003, Frannie was chosen as one of The National Enquirer's top hotties of 2003.
America's affair with adorable yet acidic has been ongoing, but perhaps now the trend is at its peak.
Beyond the Bunny
Bunny isn't the only tongue-in-cheek icon that's flying off the shelves of "tween" stores.
From the girly Delia's to the gothic Hot Topic, there's a smorgasbord of flippant icons. Even Hello Kitty, our idol of all things cute and innocent, has a cheeky makeover. There's one shirt that features Kitty dressed as a pirate and reads, "It's all about the booty." Target even introduced its own edgy line, Fred Is Red, in January. It features pajamas and T-shirts that say things like "Chicks Rule" or "I'm good looking. Just Ask Me."
Other smarty-pants brands include Emily Strange, Paul Frank and the popular David & amp; Goliath (www.davidandgoliathtees.com).
D & amp;G is a Florida-based clothing and accessory company that features characters such as Trendy Wendy and the infamous "Boys Are Stupid, Throw Rocks at Them" T-shirts. Although the shirts are meant to be a joke, there has been recent backlash against the tees.
Gina Kelly says these brands aren't popular because they are mean or malicious, but because they are cute and fun.
"I think maybe teenagers are just discovering irony and sarcasm, and since teens aren't afraid of expressing their feelings, this is a way to literally wear it on their sleeves," says Kelly, fashion director of Seventeen magazine.
These shirts are also conversation starters, Kelly says. "It's very obnoxious, sarcastic sayings coupled with a cute icon to provide a balance."
As far as boy-bashing or insults, Kelly doesn't buy it.
"I think that's what boys and girls that age do anyway. They're not quite comfortable with the opposite sex yet, so they joke."