Dr. Shrunk

"The doctor is OUT!"

- Dr. Shrunk

Dr. Shrunk, also known as simply Shrunk, is an axolotl who first appears in. He appears in all subsequent games except and, and he also makes a cameo in. Shrunk is a comedian who allows the player to learn emotions based on his jokes. His name likely refers to shrink, a slang word for a psychologist, relating to his Dr. title.

Appearance
Dr. Shrunk is a pink axolotl with six red gills, a red tuft of hair, two front teeth, and what appears to be a unibrow. Beginning in, he also has a mustache. In and  Shrunk wears a yellow suit jacket with red circles and a blue dress shirt and bowtie, while beginning in  he wears a dark purple suit jacket with a white undershirt and red bowtie.

Personality
Dr. Shrunk is a stand-up comedian whose jokes are poorly received by the villagers who view his performances. He is aware of his reception, mentioning it in some of his jokes in, such as "Why did the chicken cross the road? To avoid Dr. Shrunk!". The track "Shrunk's Dream" from the soundtrack CD Animal Crossing: Your Favourite Songs - Original Soundtrack implies that Shrunk wishes to have audiences appreciate his jokes; the song is a dream by Shrunk where he tells jokes to an applauding audience before abruptly waking up. Shrunk is usually cheery, though his emotions fluctuate when he is telling jokes.

In and, Shrunk is revealed to be the author of book titled Dr. Shrunk Explains it All.

Wife and children
In, Shrunk reveals he has a wife and son in one of his performances. He says that his wife is apathetic toward him and does not enjoy his jokes; this is further evidenced in, where he tells the player "There's a reason she's never around [the house] to meet you." In one of his jokes in, Shrunk reveals that he has a young daughter.

Frillard
Shrunk learned his comedy from Frillard, and it is implied that Shrunk admires Frillard and views him as a master of the craft. In, before Shrunk performs a joke that is by Frillard in , he becomes nervous that he will not perform it as well as his teacher.

In
In, Dr. Shrunk visits town once a week on a random weekday between 6 AM and 12 AM. When spoken to, Shrunk tells the player a joke and teaches them an emotion based on it. On his first visit, the emotion is random, but on all subsequent visits, he asks "How has emotional exploration been going?", and if the player chooses "I'm in a slump," four of 29 total responses appear for the player to choose, each corresponding to an emotion.

In
In, Dr. Shrunk performs at The Marquee in the city. His shows can be viewed for 800 Bells, and before paying, the player can choose which performance to see. During the performance, Dr. Shrunk tells a joke and the player learns a corresponding emotion afterward. Villagers usually view the performances and will complain about the show when spoken to.

In
In, Dr. Shrunk appears outside the player's house after T&T Mart is built, and he asks for six signatures to approve the construction of Club LOL on Main Street. Once the club is built, Dr. Shrunk appears in it from 12 PM to 8 PM. He states that he is a retired comedian, but if the player brings him a food item such as fruit, he gets on stage and performs a joke, teaching the player the corresponding emotion. Once the player learns all but one emotion, Shrunk teaches them the "Shrunk Funk Shuffle," which is the dance he does after each performance; he also gives the player a. Shrunk also appears in Club LOL as a host when K.K. Slider or DJ K.K. are performing.

Dr. Shrunk can appear at the bar at The Roost Café from 8 AM to 9:30 AM all week, and when he visits during the player's part-time job, his coffee preferences are Kilimanjaro beans, a little milk, and two cups of sugar.

In
Although Dr. Shrunk does not appear in, can be obtained from Nook Shopping after attempting to invite him to Photopia via his amiibo.

Along with his poster, there are some references to Shrunk in the game, such as the "Comedian's Signature" customization of the item containing a drawing of him, as well as dialog from normal villagers mentioning his book, Dr. Shrunk Explains it All, as a subject for a book club they intend to go to. Additionally, a sticker of Shrunk can be seen on the back of K.K. Slider's guitar, along with a sticker of Brewster.

In
Dr. Shrunk appears as a visitor in the Board Game mode of. If a player lands on a special-event space while he is visiting, he chooses a joke at random out of four—three dice and one "special schtick"—and tells it to the player. If he chooses a joke about the die number, he gives the player a move card with a matching die value. If he chooses to do his "special schtick", he gives the player a random non-move card.

In
Dr. Shrunk makes a cameo in, sitting next to Lyle in the audience at the Fireworks Festival.

Trivia

 * Although Dr. Shrunk is physically absent from, placeholder data for his NookPhone exists and uses the "FtrCmnFabricSwirl01" fabric pattern, a pink-and-black checkered design with yellow spirals on the black squares.