The Mystery Cartoon Character Game, ongoing-ier.

Zoiks, this sounds like Mister Fox, of the Fantastic variety. (Does he have another name?) It's the old story of the Gentleman Thief being lured back to his old roguish ways, but with some nifty twists added. I can't really blame the fox for, essentially, playing to his strength. Add the charm of stop-motion filming, and voila, enjoyable animation.

That's right, it is Mister Fox, from the stop-motion film Fantastic Mr. Fox.

Most of the clues are self-explanatory, but....
The lawyer warned him that the new home is not a safe location for foxes.
In the sewers, they found an entrance into the very grocery store that the farmers own.

Take it away OUB!

Sweet. Oh dear, now the character I have in mind is patently anti-fantastic. Fasten your Mood Whiplash collars, here we go:

1) This character occurs only once to date in an animated feature film. He survives to the end of the film, though not by much. It's like he's trying to die of stupidity.

2) Y'know how Chicken Little had that whole "the sky is falling" fiasco? Gave him a bad reputation as a lunatic alarmist? This character has the same bad rep. Thing is, Chicken Little aims to put that calumny behind him, while this character continues to be a lunatic alarmist.

3) One job, this character had one job: keep an eye on a young boy until his superiors show up. And he falls asleep at his post, just like Homer Simpson. Good job, Mister Watchful.

Can't think of the one who fits these clues.

Well, that gets the hard, cryptic clues out of the way. Time for the intermediates.

4) The feature film, which is 100% animated, does not have a full-on villain per se. This character is certainly the antagonist, but he's not evil by any means. He's just really bad at his job.

5) The closest to Bad Guy might be the title character, since he does go on a roaring rampage of revenge. Then makes amends for it later. It's the Mystery Character's meddling that stirs up oodles of trouble.

6) This character's boss sums up his excited-puppy incompetence best: "[Mystery Character], you idiot, that won't help."

This is a hard one. Think, think think.

I'm still totally baffled. Can't say I even saw this one.

Playtime's over. Chairs in the upright position, hands on yer buzzers.

7) Chocolated laxatives work fast.

8) First seen on Friday 6 August 1999.

9) Takes direction from Brad Bird. Yes, that Brad Bird.

Thanks for those last three clues, OUB. It's Mansley, from "The Iron Giant." Kent Mansley, to be precise.

Ah, this is what happens when I avoid making clues "too easy." Yes, this is peculiar investigator Kent Mansley from Brad Bird's The Iron Giant. Mansley is sent there to investigate a meteor splashdown near a harbor town in Maine. By accident, he stumbles upon a photo of a boy with a huge robot looming behind him. Determined to uncover the masquerade, Kent summons an Army regiment to thwart the obviously-Communist juggernaut. General Rogard comes as a precaution, but he knows from experience that Mansley tends to go overboard with conspiracy theories. Mansley tries to keep the precocious boy bottled in his bedroom, but Kent falls asleep at his post, and Hogarth escapes to warn his mechanical friend that the Army is on its way. So, Mansley's not really evil, he's just an annoying Well-Intentioned Extremist. General Rogard admonishes him with the phrase, "Mansley, you idiot, that won't help."

I'll help by adding another +1 to your score, EI. You can take control of the game board.

Thanks, OUB. Boy, have I got a good one now:

1. I invariably accompany the title character.

2. Don't let my name fool you--I'm not a dog, and I have stripes.

3. My friend is 100% delusional--thinks he's the number one Super Guy.

Of course! Spot the cat from Hong Kong Fooey. Spot was the true hero if you ask me.

Glowworm, your answer is spot on(no pun intended). So you get another turn. Good job.

And all three clues are self-explanatory.

Thanks. I need a little time to think something up, and I've got work soon. Please bear with me.

No problem, GW. This is a casual forum game; nobody's going to hold you to a timer, or anything like that. Especially with me, since I have an aversion to penalizing. Plus, I'm tickled that you picked Spot the cat from Hong Kong Phooey, as Commander Data from Star Trek The Next Generation also has a cat named Spot. Whether it's robot logic, or a humorous homage may never be known.

Okay, I have one.
1. We are a duo.
2. One of us is basically the fanboy of the other--but this reverses at the end.
3. We were in two shorts.

Spike and Chester. The two cartoons are, Tree for Two, and Dr. Jerkyl's Hide.

Indeed--although in "Dr. Jerkyl's Hide" Spike has been renamed Alfie.

Great, now here's mine.

I'm based off a folklore tale.
I acquire an unconventional pet.
Contrary to a particular song about us, we do not wear women's clothing.

Sorry, but this is one I don't know. I can't place women's clothing in a song.