Branch

Branch is the deuteragonist of the animated films, Trolls and Trolls World Tour.
== Appearance ==
<tabber>
 |-|Trolls=
During most of the film, Branch has blue-gray skin with blue-black hair that is shorter than most of the trolls. His nose is a lavender, and his eyes are a blue. He wears a vest made of dark green leaves and dark brown shorts that are very worn and clumsily stitched up. Like the other trolls, he has four fingers on each hand and four toes on each foot, and he almost always wears a frown on his face.
Branch's model has a unique head with some unique details. For example, most of the Troll models have ears that point upwards and are against their head, while Branchs protrude and lay more downwards, as a result they stick straight out. In his flashback it was shown that his ears used to stand up straight like a normal Trolls but lowered when he became sad and has remained that way ever since resulting in a permanent physical deformity. The shape is also sharp and has has less of a round hanging lobe. In addition, Branch's ears have a slight transparency to them, though this is common in the other Troll models, it is very apparent in Branch's. The head itself is wider then many other Trolls models, his head and color make him much more "goblin-like" then other Trolls. His shoulders are slightly broader then most of the other Troll moderns of his size and while he has the plump Troll shape, it is not as plump as some of the other Trolls. His outfit is unique to his model.
One thing to note about his Grey version of his 3D model is that it is not as grey as it looks. In the "True Colors" scene when the other Trolls are all grey, it can be seen he still has a slight blue tint to his model while the other Trolls have none at all. This is the same for all of the movie which is why in Poppy's cover of "Sound of Silence" blue can be seen on his left ear.
In Branch's "True Colors", he has bright blue hair with slight purple tints to it. His skin is likewise a blue coloration. His hair is also longer.
As a child, Branch is shown with short, sticking up, indigo hair. He is seen wearing light brown shorts, with a strap around his right shoulder with a few green patches, quite similar to the shorts he wears when he gets older. He also wore a blue hug-time bracelet. His model is a standard Child model used throughout the film, just with unique textures on his pants.
Trolls charactershot8.jpg|Branch is known for his grey colouration, a sign of an unhappy Troll
branhgreysyrrounded.png|Branch's model stands out from the other grey trolls because its not as grey as the others
</gallery
 |-|Trolls Holiday=
He mostly is the same as the start of the Trolls movie, having almost reverted completely back to his grey self. It is seen that his colors do vary, however, between grey and his True Colors. Branch's model reacts to light and, depending on the scene light, he will appear more bluish. Towards the end of the special, when he is trying to cheer up Poppy, he is blue again.
He is also seen at one point in a dressing grown when Poppy Broke into his bunker.
<gallery>
IMG 20191202 093523.jpg|Branch in his bunker in his dressing gown
IMG 20191202 094014.jpg|Compared to Trolls, Branch's model will react to light, while its grey at first glance, the lighting shows its actually a a lot more blue then it looks and how it looked in Trolls. 
 |-|Trolls: The Beat Goes On! =
Branch is depicted as having blue hair and green skin, which is the common coloration Dreamworks has chosen for him after the events of Trolls. He does not change color at all in this version. In addition, he has the same type of ears as most other Trolls, instead of his more unique ears he has in the 3D animation and lack their usual transparency.
IMG 20191202 095728.jpg|Branch as he appears in the series
IMG 20191202 102643.jpg|Branch's Gem Day outfit
 |-|Trolls World Tour=
Branch is using a green-grey model, his hair is grey with slight blue undertones. His model coloration still varies in lighting conditions in appearance.
In some scenes he has a hug bracelet, though it is more green then in the Netflix series. He also has more stitches in his pants. His vests "leaves" vary more in shades of green then past versions and more visible stitching can be seen.
In merchandise related to the movie, it is seen that he still maintains the blue-hair, green skinned coloration from Trolls: The Beat Goes On!.
branchworldtour.png|Branch World Tour
Branchworldtourpopstar.png|Branch dressed up in at Lonesome Flats, the home of the Country trolls
</tabber>
== Personality ==
Branch is one of the more complicated Trolls due his complex emotions. On the outside he appears to be a grump who only looks out for himself, on the inside he really does care for other Trolls but hides his true feelings by being sarcastic. He came out of Bergen town with Psychological trauma that would follow him around throughout most of his life. It made it impossible for him to be a normal Troll because he felt responsible for the event. It also left his frightened of being caught unprepared ever again and is a source of paranoia to the annoyance of the other Trolls.
The result is that he has been unhappy for at least 20 years, as he first turns grey as a child while the Trolls are still living in the Troll Tree and is very negative. Thus by the time the movie begins, Branch is a Troll that doesn't sing, dance, hug or attend parties making him an oddball among his people and the only one who seemed to be carrying a burden from the past. Both a loner with no friends and an self induced outcast, he choose to live alone rather then in Troll Village. He stats that he likes silence and that he doesn't relax.
Branch isn't the one to rush into danger and only goes with Poppy to Bergen Town to get back his Bunker. He spends every moment until they rescue the captured Trolls being negative and trying to stop Poppy from getting on his nerves. Branch only confesses why he doesn't Sing when his lack of singing causes doubt in Bridget that Poppy's plan to get a date with King Gristle Jr. to get everyone off his case and explain the reason for his lack of singing. As the events of the movie progress he slowly learns that he can be happy.
By the time of the Trolls Holiday special, Branch is shown to be putting a lot more effort into life then in the past. He is not only seen trying to practice his smile but also willing gets on board Poppy's plan. He tags along mostly because he knew her plan to give the Bergens a new holiday would fail and he attempts to try and help her understand why it failed.
Trolls: The Beat Goes On!
Branch spends most of the series trying to learn to be a better Troll, often helped by Poppy. When he isn't being helped to be "normal", he is seen helping the other Trolls. He still has a lot to learn about being a Troll and often goes over board trying to achieve minor goals. He still prefers his personnel space and likes his peace and quiet.
In Season 7 episode "Gem Day", Branch's Troll gem flower blooms and Branch finally has his Gem, signalling he has (finally) grown as a Troll. When Poppy causes it to break, it takes a extra special strong round of happiness to grow another, of which Trolls Poppy, Smidge, DJ Suki and Cooper all manage to make happen by offering up their own. By the end of Season 8 in Bye Bye Bunker, Branch is almost a normal Troll and even has his own Hug Bracelet, fully embracing Troll lifestyle. However, he finds it impossible to leave his Bunker, stating that its a part of him and who he is, and that he doesn't want to let that go, nor should his friends make him.
A trait seen in both Trolls and the series is that Branch is good with his words and a smooth talker. In Trolls he was able to tell Bridget what to say to please Gristle, in Trolls: The Beat Goes On episode Sorry Not Sorry, he tells Gristle what to say to make Bridget happy.
== Relationships ==
=== Queen Poppy ===
Trolls
Poppy was the only member of Troll Village to attempt to befriend Branch after he went to live in his Bunker, she would send him invitations to her parties hoping he would come. Branch seemed to appreciate them as he kept them.
He was generally annoyed at her careless free spirit and happy-go-lucky attitude, she generally was a foil to his own personality being his opposite. He refused all advances from her to get him to sing or dance and tried many thing to stop her singing, getting more and more fed up with her attempts to get him to sing. He believed her actions would lead to them getting eaten, was sceptical at all of her plans and her inability to see the serious side of each situation.
Branch eventually realised that she cared about every Troll and every Troll likewise cared about her. When she lost her True Colors was the only Troll to try to bring out her positive emotions again, even confessing he loved her, which in turn made him happy. The film ends with them on good terms.
As he spends more time with Poppy, it is implied that he has developed feelings for her.
Trolls Holiday
Despite not being on board with Poppy's plans, he still tags along anyway. Branch spends most of the Special still trying to foil to Poppy's plans to give the Bergens a new Holiday to replace Trollstice until he eventually makes her understand over over board she had gone with the idea.
Troll 2 Troll
The pairs apparent opposite personalities are displayed in the shorts Troll 2 Troll, where the interactions of the pair cause every question of debate to be derailed leaving none answered correctly.
Trolls: The Beat Goes On!
Poppy and Branches relationship is now respectful, he notes in several episodes that he considers Poppy his best friend. Poppy spends most of the series trying to make Branch "normal" even going so far as to make a "Bunker List" of goals for him to do to make him a true Troll. He appreciates every effort she puts into making him more a normal Troll even when it annoys or causes him problems. In Meet the Peppy, Poppy's father Peppy noticed Poppy has been spending a lot of time with him lately and even made it into her "Best Friends" board.
In Trolls, Poppy carries around a slide open picture frame set. The main photo on top shows Creek with a heart motif in a corner, while other frames that slide out contain photos of all her friends. In Trolls: The Beat Goes On, the same set can be seen in a few episodes such as Meet the Peppy, in the background. Though the frames are blurred at times, it is possible to make out the colouration of Branch, indicating that he has since replaced Creek in her main frame.
Picturesf friends.png|Poppy's best friends with Creek present (bottom middle)
IMG 20191207 160315.jpg|As they appear in Trolls: The Beat Goes On!, with Branch replacing Creek
=== Creek ===
Trolls
Branch showed general annoyance at Creek's positive energy approach to life and was subject to criticism from him. Branch was the only Troll to react instantly when Creek betrayed them.
Trolls: The Beat Goes On!
Branch shows tough mistrust towards him when he reappears in the village and refuses to trust him at all. Though they come to a mutual understanding the two do not get along and often compete with each other, he's the only Troll to remain unforgiving towards his actions in Trolls.
=== Grandma Rosiepuff ===
Grandma Rosiepuff is Branch's grandmother and so far his only family member that is in appearance.
Branch originally turned grey after being responsible for her death, noting that their relationship was quite close. She obviously cared for him as she was willing to sacrifice herself for him.
=== Cloud Guy ===
Branch can't stand the antics of Cloud Guy and often loses his temper with him. Being the only Troll who has an issue, this actually makes Cloud Guy want to torment him more because Branch does find him annoying.
===Other Trolls===
Trolls
Branch did not consider any of the other Trolls his friends at the start of the film and wished to be alone. For the most part, the other Trolls found him strange and mocked his inability to act like a normal Troll, calling him a "Party pooper" and generally ignoring him. The members of The Snack Pack became more empathetic towards him after hearing why he didn't sing or dance.
Trolls: The Beat Goes On!
The Trolls are a lot more understanding of his desire to keep his distance. As the series progresses, it becomes apparent to the entire Village by season 7 that, while he can seem hard to approach at times, when he does put the effort in to help his friends, he gives it his all and they appreciate his efforts, even when it interferes with his own interests.
==== Tug Duluth ====
Tug comes to respect Branch after the events of Tour Guide of Duty. Branch goes out of his way to find her a new tour location, and when he fails, he gives her permission to tour his bunker. When she realizes that the tour is far too much for him to handle, she stops the tour and states that he is the kindest troll. She asked him for help and he gave her everything he had, going above and beyond duty to fulfil her needs. She considers him a goof friend.
==== Baha ====
Branch befriends Baha after the pair end up being eaten by Finn Cascade, a giant fish that was visiting Troll Village. He attempted to get a photo with the fish only to be swallowed.
==== Herman the Hermit ====
In Biggie and the Disastrous Dance, one of the Trolls Chapter Books, King Peppy states that Branch had befriended a hermit Troll called "Herman". Herman happen to be the only Troll alive who knew the Dancemaster's song. Guy Diamond, Biggie and Cooper had to seek Branch's help in befriending Herman to learn the Dancemaster's song. Branch befriended the Troll because both of respect for his fellow isolationists.
== Skills & Abilities ==
He has most normal Troll abilities.
Socialization
Branch's social skills and ability to show affection are seriously lacking and in Trolls, when first introduced it is shown he has virtually none.
Branch still has far to go to learn fully how to be a "normal" troll in terms of basics socializing. His habit of not expressing affection impacts his day to day life at times and always puts distance between him and other Trolls, including his friends. These are skills Branch has to slowly work on. When Poppy has to confess what happened to his Troll Gem in "Gem Day" as his friends offer theirs in place of his lost Gem, stating "your the last Troll that should go without a gem Branch". Branch has had to really work much harder then other Trolls to get where he is.
In Bye Bye Bunker, Branch hosts his first party, to the shock and alarm of his friends. Poppy sees the moment as a momentous event since Branch was now a normal Troll.
Music
While this may seem odd to consider, since that this is a part of Troll habits, for more then 20 years of his life, he did not sing a note. Thus, he did not partake in a basic thing that Trolls like to do in their every day life. His lack of singing was put down to Poppy as simply he couldn't sing, to which he corrects her and says "no, I sung like an angel".
Branch sings with a bright tenor vocal, he has an exceptional knack for singing in Trolls. In the series, due to having a different singer, his tone is a little deeper.
In the Trolls Shorts episode Trolla-Palooza Tour, Branch is seen playing a electric bass guitar.
Despite Poppy stating in Trolls he doesn't dance, in ASK POPPY, he states he is a good swing dancer, he just needed a partner who could keep up with him. In Trolls World Tour, he is seen able to keep up the Reggaeton Trolls after Tresillo pulls him in to dance with them.
Survival Skills
Branch built his Survival Bunker and gathered all his supplies and set his traps all by himself. He states in Trolls that he has enough supplies to last 10 years, 11 if he drank his own sweat. He is prepared for most disasters and fairly knowledgeable on survival skills. Poppy claimed in Trolls that he was the only one who knew about Bergens more than anyone else.
Though his safety measures do get out of hand, even Poppy admits in Bye Bye Bunker, the Trolls are a lot safer these days with Branch around then they used to.
Craftsmanship
Going hand in hand with his survival skills, Branch is good with practical skills in building. Throughout Trolls: The Beat Goes On!, he is seen building things, from a fake Greygon to a glass ball for Biggie & Mr. Dinkles, to a boat he built within moments from a single log.
== History ==
As a child, Branch lived in the Troll Tree during the time the Trolls were still trapped in Bergen town. At one stage, he got lost in song and wasn't paying attention to his surroundings, which caused Chef to notice him and attempt to grab him. His grandma noticed this in time and rushed to save him, pushing him off the branch he was standing on. Though this saved his life, his Grandma was taken away and presumed eaten. The result caused his heart to sadden and he became grey.
Although not seen in the escape, he escaped with the other Trolls during the last Trollstice. In the Trolls: The Beat Goes On! episode A Flower for Poppy, Branch mentioned losing his favorite toy in the escape from Bergen Town, confirming he was present in the escape.
Over time, he realized he didn't belong in the village and 10 years before the storyline started, he went to live in his Bunker, having almost no contact with other Trolls except to warn them of danger out of paranoia. For the most part, everyone ignored him and even went so far as to mock him over active paranoia. In The Giver, it was stated that he still wanted a connection to the other Trolls and would deliver gifts once a tree to every Troll house, he did this in secret and wanted to remain anonymous.
On the 20th anniversary of their escape from Troll town, Poppy invites him to their celebration of freedom, which he refuses and warns them it will attract the Bergens. They do not heed his warning and later that night throw the biggest, loudest, and craziest party ever. This causes Chef to find them, causing Branch's warning to come true with all of Poppy's friends being captured.
Poppy turns to Branch for help, only to find Branch unwilling to help save her friends as he planned to spent 10 or 11 years in his Bunker instead. His plan is foiled by Poppy hiding the entire Troll Village in his bunker. Poppy goes off on her own and leaves him to deal with Hug time.
He joins her effort later and saves her from a group of spiders by whipping them into a cave with his hair, which turns out to be the mouth of a large creature. He then rescues and revives Poppy and goes with her to Bergen town. During their travels, he gets annoyed with her antics and habit of singing and being positive constantly, stating that she didn't know the "World isn't made of cupcakes and rainbows".
They arrive at the Route Tunnels, meeting Cloud Guy, who states one tunnel leads to Bergen town and the rest to certain death. After losing his temper with the cloud, he chases him until they run through the tunnel to Bergen town.
They enter the castle to rescue the missing trolls. They find them alive, despite Branch predicting they would be eaten, only to witness Creek getting eaten. Branch attempts to bring Poppy down to Earth about Creek still being alive as they all saw him getting eaten.
Chef gives Bridget the Trolls to watch and the pair go after them. They witness Bridget break down about her crush on King Gristle Jr. and after freeing the other Trolls, decide to help Bridget. When the other trolls begin to sing and cheer her up, she notices Branch isn't singing and questions the plan. Finally after Poppy pressures him enough he reveals what happened to his Grandma and how he was responsible for her death. Poppy and the others finally realise why he is never happy.
He agrees to go along with the plan, which successfully gains Bridget a date with the King. During the date, the Trolls and Bridget struggle to help her with words, causing Branch to step in and tell her what to say.
Later, after confirmation Creek was alive, the Trolls state they need to go, leaving Bridget heart broken due to a lack of confidence without the Trolls. They rescue Creek, only to find he is not in the locket he had been kept in by Gristle. Distracted, Chef captures them all.
Back in the cage, this time including Poppy and Branch, it is revealed that Creek agreed to sell out the rest of Troll Village for the sake of his own life.
During the Trollstice preparations, Branch witnesses Poppy finally give up and watches her and the rest of the Trolls turn grey like him. Finally he breaks his vow to not sing and sings to cheer her up, restoring her colors. In the process, he regains his own True Colors, as the other Trolls watch they also return to their original colors. He states he is finally happy, causing Poppy to say show confusion at the moment he picked to finally be happy.
Bridget open the pot and sets all the Trolls free outside, sacrificing her life to save them, knowing there will be dire consequences. Poppy, Branch and the rest of the Snack Pack go back to rescue her when Poppy is unable to just walk away. Poppy reveals the Bergens do not have to eat Trolls to be happy as Happiness is inside of everyone. Chef makes an attempt to continue as planned, trying to get Gristle to eat Branch, but Poppy saves him. The rest of the Bergens dance with the Trolls and realising that they do indeed have happiness inside of them. Branch and Poppy are seen together at the end of the movie.
== Songs ==
=== Trolls ===
*True Colors
*Can't Stop the Feeling!
=== Trolls: The Beat Goes On! ===
Theme song
*Hair In The Air
Season 1
*Happily Ever After
*Branch's Apology Song
*Other Side of The Storm
Season 2
*Branch's Big Boy Dance
Note; incomplete
== Character Concept ==
Branch was designed after Poppy. Whereas Poppy was designed to be bright and cheerful, Branch was a contrasting Grey color. He was meant to have green cool purple accents an his hair is purposely shorter then other Trolls to foreshadow character development. Whereas Poppy was an exploding volcano, Branch is a contained one.
Branch was quite easy to design for the team as they already had made Poppy, his counterpart, and he was designed to be her opposite. Since he lived a antisocial hermit, he was designed to wear home made clothing. Early designed concepts had the Trolls dulling when they were scared or sad. As Branch was always grey, he would blend in, he was designed to be a survivalist at his core. He was a young adult Troll who prepared for the worst. Justin Timberlake was also chosen as the voice of Branch because his voice was naturally perky sounding, to contrast how grumpy Branch himself was."The Art of the Trolls", ISBN no.;9781785653025
While unconfirmed, it has also been seen that the concept team also had intended to have a blue-skinned Troll in The Snack Pack with blue hair. Various members of the group were given the design before it was settled for Branch. Branch was also initially conceptualised to be completely green when showing his "true colors". Some concepts also had him with a Good luck gem on his bellybutton, others show him with weapons and for many he carried a bow and arrow.
=== Concept Art ===
branch concept1.png|One of several rejected concepts for Branch, from The Art of the Trolls
branch concept2.png|Ditto, here Branch is seen riding concept for Cooper
=== Etymology ===
"Branch" means "diverge from the main route or part", referring to his diversion from the other Trolls and how he separated from them almost entirely by the beginning of the main storyline of Trolls.
"Branch" is also the name of part of a tree which matches Poppy's plant name, Poppy being a type of flower.
*In Tour Guide of Duty, Branch states he founds his own name strange when Tug plays one of his private journals from his Bunker days.
*In Branch and the Cooking Catastrophe, the author David Lewman suggested that Branch got his name from his ability to swing through the trees by wrapping his hair around each tree branch, gaining speed and momentum as he did. He was able to out run King Gristle Jr. via this method despite the Bergen running at full speed.
*In Trolls, his name is pronounced the American way (bræntʃ), however in the Netflix series Trolls: The Beat Goes On!, the characters often use a British pronunciation (brɑːntʃ).
== Merchandise ==
=== Official Website ===
Why the Trolls Love Branch!! TROLLS
Branchfacebook.jpg|Facebook accounts "Troll of the Month" spotlight on BranchFacebook account
Branch is the over-cautious paranoid survivalist in Troll Village, who lives in fear of invasion from the Bergens. The only troll in the village who doesn't sing, dance, or hug, Branch lives a disgruntled existence, constantly trying to prepare for the worst. He's constantly flummoxed by the over-the-top positivity of the other Trolls - is he the only sane one in this crowd of exuberantly happy Trolls?
Over the course of the film, Branch will be forced to embrace his inner Troll, even if it includes a dreaded burst of singing and dancing. Will he learn to find more inner happiness with Poppy at his side?
*ALWAYS PREPARED
*PRACTICAL
*ON THE LOOKOUT FOR DANGER
*OVERLY CAUTIOUS
*DETERMINED
*NOT A FAN OF HUG TIMEBranches Trolls official site bio
Facebook also uploaded an image of him with extra details as part of their "Troll of the month" series.
=== Trolls: Crazy Party Forest! ===
He was unlockable in Trolls: Crazy Party Forest!.
In the game, he was a "rainbow" Troll whose favorite activities were Hair Stunts and Trampoline. He had one of the lowest drop % rates at just 2% with 100 parts needed to collect him.
He also managed the Bunker acting as its manger and gave the tutorial on how to use it.
=== Kinder Egg Bio ===
From their Trolls World Tour Promo;
Branch often wonders if he’s the only sane individual in a town full of exuberantly happy Trolls. A reforming recluse always prepared for danger, Branch is learning to embrace his inner Troll so his true colours can shine.
== Trivia ==
* Branch is a few years older then Poppy, since she was a baby when they escape from the Troll Tree. Branch was a child at this point in time.
* In the 3D animations Trolls and Trolls Holiday, a running gag is that Poppy keeps spraying his face with Glitter.
**In Trolls Holiday, he shows to dislike glitter.
*As mentioned by Facebook; 
**his symbol is a "skull and crossbones". This appears on a number of his figurines. He is actually one of the few Trolls to have his symbol appear on merchandise.
**His Gem "Bunker Gem" was also the focus of the episode Gem Day.
*Branch appears the second most in related media, with Poppy in first due to being the main character of "Trolls".
**Some episodes of Trolls: The Beat Goes On! he doesn't appear are Party Crash Course, Glitter Loss, Extreme Sleepover Club, Vega Swift, Troll Rangers & CJ's Wooferbug.
*In Two-Party System, its revealed his Birthday is 1 day after Bridget's.
*There are a couple of note worthy things about his early Trolls introduction;
**In the early Trolls trailers, a scene of the Trolls dancing to "Can't Stop the Feeling!" is shown, but unlike in the movie itself, Branch is grey when he should have his True Colors. This was most likely done to avoid spoilers as the Bergens were also missing in that scene.
**Branch was kept mostly out of Trolls related merchandise very early on. For example, he wasn't mentioned at all in Follow Your Art with Creek taking his place as Poppy's supportive Troll instead. In the Trailer for the movie released in Jan 2016, he wasn't even featured either. This despite that his character was long fleshed out and part of the main storyline. While Dreamworks has never explained why Branch was absent, but was likely also to avoid spoilers.
*Branch and Nova Swift in Trolls:The Beat Goes On! both like Fluffleberry. Branch likes it in cake form and Nova enjoys a latte of it.
== Quotes ==
== Gallery ==
== References ==
== Page Poll ==
<poll>
Do you like Branch?
Yes I like him
No I don't like him
Undecided, I'm not sure
</poll>
pl:Mruk
Category:Characters
Category:Males
Category:Trolls
Category:Trolls World Tour Characters
Category:Trolls Characters
Category:Trolls: The Beat Goes On! Characters
Category:Troll 2 Troll Characters
Category:Trolls Holiday Characters
Category:ASK POPPY Characters
Category:Pop Trolls
Category:The Snack Pack