Gumball and Darwin. The former is a cynical, irritable Deadpan Snarker, while the latter is a friendly, optimistic Cheerful Child.
Much like Gumball and Darwin, Nicole and her husband Richard have this dynamic as well. While Nicole is often temperamental and serious, Richard is generally a happy-go-lucky Manchild who likes to have fun.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Robinson are disgruntled Perpetual Frowners who hate everyone equally. By contrast, their son Rocky is a fun-loving guy who gets along with everyone.
Stan and Francine. Stan is a bigoted, temperamental man obsessed with enforcing rules and discipline, while Francine is usually cheerful, playful, carefree, and eccentric.
Hayley and Steve have a rather similar dynamic, with the former being a cynical, lethargic Soapbox Sadie and the latter being an enthusiastic, extraverted nerd.
American Dragon: Jake Long: The Oracle Twins. Ironically, they see the future outcomes of their opposite personality. Sara, the optimistic twin named "Little Miss Sunshine", sees the bad stuff that's going to happen, while Kara, the cynical twin named "Miss Gloom and Doom", sees the good stuff.
The Angry Beavers: Norbert is laid back and affectionate, while Daggett is temperamental and aggressive.
The Warners are annoyingly cheerful, while Dr. Scratchensniff is a Nervous Wreck who has to put up with them, much to his frustration.
Pinky is cheerful and carefree, Brain is grumpy and irritable. They are still this in their own show, Pinky and the Brain.
Slappy Squirrel is a sarcastic and resourceful old lady while her nephew, Skippy, is a nice and happy young boy (even if he does adopt some of his aunt's mannerisms as the series progresses).
While both of the main characters are clueless morons, Beavis is rather hyperactive and cheerful, while Butt-Head is more cynical and snide.
Of the Highland High staff, the mild-mannered and tolerant Van Driessen has this dynamic with both McVicker and Buzzcut, who hate Beavis and Butt-Head with a burning passion.
Best Ed: The upbeat and sociable Ed and the easily irritable but often realistic Buddy.
BoJack and Mr. Peanutbutter serve as foil characters due to their different outlooks. BoJack is a snarky, depressed, washed-up sitcom star who tends to see the worst in the world due to his harsh upbringing, while Mr. Peanutbutter is a ridiculously peppy former sitcom star who constantly finds success without even trying and treats BoJack like his best friend despite the latter wanting nothing to do with Mr. Peanutbutter. They also double as a Cynic–Idealist Duo.
BoJack is also contrasted against his roommate Todd, a cheerful slacker who constantly has wacky ideas that get on BoJack's nerves. However, BoJack's cynical, overly judgmental attitude often makes Todd feel less confident, and part of his story arc is learning to break away from BoJack.
Deconstructed with Mr. Peanutbutter and Diane's marriage. While Diane is chronically depressed and always sees the worst in the world (Sarah Lynn even compares her to Daria at one point), Mr. Peanutbutter is very loving and tries to get Diane to have fun, such as by throwing her an incredible surprise birthday party. However, Diane gets frustrated that Mr. Peanutbutter expresses his love in such grandiose ways despite her constantly insisting that she doesn't like that sort of thing, while Mr. Peanutbutter gets offended that Diane never appreciates his optimistic worldview and keeps getting involved in very depressing and risky causes. This inability to reconcile their attitudes eventually leads to their divorce.
Bonkers: The titular character and Lucky Piquel have this respective dynamic. The duo are a pair of cops who work together to solve crimes in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. Bonkers is an overly energetic and hyperactive cartoon bobcat who frequently tries to win Lucky's praise, but usually just ends up ruining their missions with his goofy antics, until said antics prove to save the day. Lucky is a grim and ill-tempered human who hates toons and is often annoyed by Bonkers' antics.
Care Bears: If Grumpy Bear is paired with another Care Bear (or Cousin) for an episode, he obviously becomes the grumpy part of the duo. Especially prominent when he's juxtaposed to Cheer Bear, the primere Genki Girl of the franchise. Care Bears: Unlock the Magic is also particularly noticable for his bond with Cheerful Child Dibble, who's practically an adopted daughter to him.
Courage the Cowardly Dog: Muriel and Eustace Bagge are a husband and wife example. Muriel is sweet, kind-hearted to a great extent and is much more open to fun and trying new exciting things than Eustace, a grouchy, demanding Jerkassold man.
Dan Vs.: Dan is regularly angry at everyone and everything, and his best friend Chris is a chipper, upbeat Big Eater.
The titular character of Daria have this dynamic with her best friend Jane Lane. While they both have cynical world views and believe they are Surrounded by Idiots, Jane is much more jovial and outgoing than Daria, who is best described as melancholic and reserved.
Dragon Tales has Zak and Wheezie, the two-headed dragon. Wheezie is peppy and hyper, while Zak is stubborn and worrysome, and Wheezie's antics often end up unintentionally annoying Zak.
DuckTales (1987): Just about anybody Scrooge McDuck hangs around with will be more cheerful than he is, given his cynical and snarky personality.
The kids (Huey, Dewey, Louie, and Webby) are, of course, kids, making them more playful and innocent than their grouchy uncle. It even rubs off a little on him as he warms up to them.
Launchpad McQuack, Scrooge's personal pilot/muscle, possesses extreme patience and almost always looks on the brighter side. His kookiness and Scrooge's temper mean the older duck spends a lot of screen time yelling and snarking at him, despite the Interclass Friendship between them.
Snarky Lena initially befriends gleeful Webby for less-than-honest reasons as part of her Aunt Magica's evil plot to get to Scrooge McDuck. But Webby's unconditional love and self-sacrifice lead Lena to reject this plan.
The kids and Launchpad often act as the gleeful ones to grumpy Uncle Scrooge as well.
Della Duck is revealed to be the gleeful one with her twin brother Donald, especially when they were kids (though they both inherited the Duck family's Hair-Trigger Temper).
On the evil side there are the no-nonsense Phantom Blot who gets outright annoyed when he is partnered by F.O.W.L. with the very chatty and excited Pepper - until he learns that she is the only Egghead willing to work with him, prompting a deep friendship between the two of them.
Ed, Edd n Eddy: The happy-go-lucky and carefree Ed and his perpetually angry sister Sarah. Ed is also a foil to his grouchy and cynical best friend Eddy.
The Fairly OddParents!: In season 10, Timmy has to share his fairies with Chloe Carmichael, who is an excitable Genki Girl, while Timmy is more cynical and not exactly happy to have Chloe around. Lampshaded in the season 10 theme song:
Chloe: World peace, kale treats, bunny feet, real neat! Timmy: What? No! Leave me alone! My fairies! Get your own!
The Flintstones: Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble. Barney is a jovial and amiable fellow, even amid adversity, whereas Fred tends to have a short fuse that gets shorter as events start going awry. Barney typically chuckles while Fred usually grumbles. Nevertheless, the two are best buds.
The Ghost and Molly McGee features the eponymous duo, the miserable and mischievous Scratch (the ghost) and energetic, optimistic tween Molly McGee, whom Scratch has bound himself to after cursing her to be eternally haunted by him. Despite their differences, Molly is endlessly patient with Scratch's cynical demeanor, and deep down, Scratch genuinely loves Molly for being such a supportive friend, even if he has a unique way of showing it.
Mabel is an optimistic and energetic people person with outlandish interests, while her brother Dipper is intellectual, often snarky, and more down to Earth.
Dipper also has this dynamic with the lovable goofball Soos.
Green Eggs and Ham: The fun loving and happy Sam-I-Am paired with the grouchy and self-loathing Guy-Am-I. Then, there are the BADGUYS; the serious and grizzled McWinkle, and his Genki Girl rookie partner, Gluntz.
The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy: Billy is the optimistic and cheerful one who's often naïve, while Mandy is the devious, mean, and grumpy one known for wearing an ironically cutesy wardrobe.
Hazbin Hotel: Charlie Morningstar is cheerful, optimistic, and enthusiastic, maintaining a positive outlook on redeeming sinners in Hell. In contrast, her girlfriend Vaggie is more serious, pragmatic, and skeptical, often wary and distrustful of others.
Downplayed with Hilda and Frida; Hilda is a fearless adventurer girl who loves the outdoors, and Frida, while friendly, is The Perfectionist and Control Freak who becomes a nervous wreck and loses her temper when things don't go her way. Becomes a deconstruction when it ends up causing a Plot-Mandated Friendship Failure between them. When they reconciled with each other, it became a reconstruction; Frida learned that she doesn't have to be perfect, while Hilda learned to take things into consideration.
Following the Plot-Mandated Friendship Failure mentioned above, Frida has this dynamic with Kelly who is grumpy and cynical, in contrast with her affable and sociable personality. It becomes a deconstruction when it's clear that Kelly is only trying to befriend Frida in an attempt to turn her into a Marra, so when the attempt fails she resorts to pushing her towards the Black Hound in order to save her own skin.
In season 2, Hilda seems to have this dynamic with her mother Johanna, albeit downplayed as well. While friendly herself, Johanna ends up getting upset about Hilda keeping her in the dark about her adventures that she grounds her as a result.
Iron Man: Armored Adventures: Pepper is warm, energetic, and hopeful, while Gene is colder, calculating, and snarky. The two dislike each other initially, but Pepper becomes the only person Gene doesn't want to hurt.
Jellystone!: The cheery and energetic Jabberjaw is best friends with the sarcastic and composed Loopy De Loop.
Kaeloo: Kaeloo is cheerful, energetic, and friendly, as opposed to her best friend Mr. Cat who is a sarcastic, grumpy pessimist.
Kim Possible: Downplayed with Kim and Ron. Kim is friendly and outgoing, but she is quite snarky, overly competitive, and can be easily frustrated. Ron, meanwhile, is an easygoing Keet.
Grumpy Eska (voiced by Aubrey Plaza) and gleeful Bolin spend Book 2 in a relationship.
Bolin and his brother, Mako, who's described as a "grouch," also take on this dynamic, particularly in the early seasons.
Lippy the Lion and Hardy Har Har form this dynamic. Lippy is always optimistic and doesn't think deeply about things, and Hardy is pessimistic and always complaining.
In the early shorts, Daffy is the gleeful screwball who always laughs, while Porky is the Nervous Wreck who has to put up with him.
In the later shorts, Bugs is a carefree and easygoing trickster, while Daffy is a bitterly sarcastic and frustrated loser who hates Bugs.
Bugs is also the gleeful when paired with Yosemite Sam, who has a Hair-Trigger Temper.
The Looney Tunes Show: Lola is cheerful and hyperactive, while Bugs is her reluctant boyfriend who finds her annoying.
The Loud House: Most roommate pairs of Lincoln's sisters. The irritable and short-tempered Lori with the always happy Leni, the outgoing Passionate Sports Girl Lynn with the borderline nihilistic Lucy, the happy and easy-going Lana, and the judgmental and petulant Lola, and the serious and melancholic Lisa with the Cheerful Child Lily. Averted with Luna and Luan. Luan would indeed count as gleeful, but Luna is in no way grumpy and is nearly as gleeful as Luan, if not more so.
Over the Garden Wall: Wirt and Greg. The former is a level-headed and strict Nervous Wreck, while the latter is constantly happy and cheerful and never gives up.
The Owl House: Protagonist Luz Noceda forms the gleeful half with her girlfriend, Amity Blight. Luz is friendly, joyful, and fascinated by the world around her. Amity is more serious, pessimistic, and condescending, although she opens up with the help of Luz. However, the roles end up switching in "Thanks to Them"; Luz becomes gloomy and self-pitying due to her Trauma Conga Line, while Amity becomes more upbeat and confident. That said, the Distant Finale has both girls becoming cheerful and upbeat adults after finally defeating the cause of their pain.
Phineas and Ferb: Phineas is an outgoing Cheerful Child who loves inventing and having fun with his friends, while his sister, Candace, is a cynical Fiery Redhead who disapproves of his ideas of fun.
Jet is a ray of sunshine who is perpetually optimistic, energetic, and friendly. Seannote Who has a subtle crush on him isn't all that grumpy, but he can be stubborn, a Nervous Wreck, and is prone to bouts of angriness and upsetness.
Mindy and Mitchell's relationship directly mirrors Jet and Sean's. Mindy is a Cheerful Child who is enthusiastic and curious about everything. Mitchell is a snarky, deadpan, egotistical, antisocial know-it-all. Mindy helps draw Mitchell out of his shell and become a better person over the course of the show. Like Jet and Sean, they also have Ship Tease here and there.
The Ren & Stimpy Show: Ren is short-tempered and usually not in the best mood. Stimpy, however, is almost always happy, even when Ren is taking his anger out on him.
Ruby Gloom: The adventurous and energetic Iris is often paired up with the dreary and cynical Misery.
Rugrats: Downplayed for the adoptive siblings Chuckie and Kimi Finster. Kimi is very cheerful and energetic, but Chuckie, while nervy and a bit of a pessimist at times, isn't all that grumpy.
Ned Flanders and Homer Simpson have this respective dynamic. Ned is very jovial and kind, even when he is being mistreated, and has two well-behaved children. Homer abhors Ned out of jealousy for both his good lifestyle and popularity, as well as Ned's insufferably pious and goody-goody demeanor. Homer is also quick to get angry, especially when his three children (particularly Bart) misbehave.
When he's in a good mood, Homer can also be the gleeful Big Fun at times, especially compared to Moe, who is more bitter and grumpy, and less fun-loving than Homer.
In "Homer's Enemy", Homer is the gleeful one who wants to befriend a new co-worker in a clingy and annoying way, while Frank Grimes is a cynical No-Respect Guy who despises Homer.
South Park: Stan Marsh has this dynamic with Butters Stotch whenever they team up. To a larger extent, Cartman also has this dynamic with Butters when the latter partakes in his schemes.
The titular character and his neighbor/co-worker, Squidward. SpongeBob is cheerful and optimistic, and considers Squidward to be his close friend. Squidward is grumpy and cynical, and hates SpongeBob with a passion.
SpongeBob has this dynamic with Mrs. Puff in the "Boating School" episodes. SpongeBob retains his position as the Gleeful one, as he is determined to get his boating license even though he never succeeds because he Drives Like Crazy. Mrs. Puff is the Grumpy one who dreads having to teach SpongeBob because his driving usually results in her getting injured and/or arrested.
The Bad Batch: Season 3 of the show has this dynamic with Omega, the Cheerful Child of Clone Force 99, and Crosshair, the Cold Sniper of the squad who was formerly of the Empire before betraying them. Omega is the idealistic clone who believes she and Crosshair can escape Mount Tantiss on Wayland, while Crosshair is depressed of being a captive alongside other Clones who disobeyed the Empire and are being subjected to being lab rats of Doctor Royce Hemlock. During "Shadows of Tantiss", Omega's optimism eventually snaps Crosshair out of his depression and he aids her in the escape from Tantiss.
Steven Universe: Mr. Smiley, owner of the Beach City Funland amusement park, used to be in a comedy duo with a man named Mr. Frowney. Both their stage personas and their real-life demeanors match their last names. In the show's art book, notes for the episode in which they briefly reunite describe them as having even been lovers.
Sodor's two medium-sized tender engines, Edward and James have this dynamic. Edward is kind and patient, and doesn't mind what work he does, whereas James is vain and temperamental, hates doing jobs that are dirty, and prefers pulling coaches.
Sodor's two express engines, Rebecca and Gordon, also have this dynamic, perhaps best exemplified in "Gordon and Rebecca, Coming Through!". Gordon has been working on Sodor for a very long time, loves to go fast, hates pulling goods trains, and is sometimes bossy to the other engines, especially if they're on his tracks, whereas Rebecca came to Sodor much later than Gordon, loves to travel at her own pace, doesn't mind pulling goods trains, and is very polite to the other engines, often letting them go ahead of her.
The two engines who work on the Arlesburgh/Harwick branch line, Ryan and Daisy, also have this respective dynamic. Ryan is a cheerful and hard-working tank engine who is kind to everyone he meets and doesn't mind what work he does. Daisy, on the other hand, is a classy, sassy diesel railcar who prefers to do just what work she chooses and no more. She spends a lot of her time resting in her shed, doesn't like pulling coaches or trucks, and is particularly rude to coaches like Annie, Clarabel, and Henrietta.
Salty the Dockyard Diesel and Cranky the Crane have this respective dynamic whenever they work at Brendam Docks. Salty is a cheerful diesel who enjoys working by the sea and telling tales of the sea to the engines who visit. Cranky, as his name implies, is a cranky harbor crane who works both day and night, never getting a rest (which actually becomes a plot point in "No Sleep For Cranky"), and he doesn't particularly enjoy listening to Salty's stories.
In "A Bad Day For Sir Handel", Peter Sam and Sir Handel have this respective dynamic. Peter Sam compliments the shed he and Sir Handel stay in and is quick to apologize to Skarloey when Sir Handel calls him rubbish. He also doesn't mind what work he's given and is happy to do it. Sir Handel is very bad-tempered, calling the shed he and Peter Sam stay in too small, Skarloey rubbish, and the coaches he pulls on his passenger run cattle trucks. He also hates pulling trucks and derails himself so he doesn't have to pull them.
The formally, abrasive, and moodyGoth Girl, Gwen, twice, during the Island season. First with the cheery hopeless romantic, Cody, and then with the fun-loving party dude Geoff.
Wander Over Yonder: Wander is a happy-go-lucky alien who always acts friendly and upbeat to everyone, even his enemies. His steed Sylvia is more cynical and worldly, and believes that sometimes you have to bust a few heads to get things done. She is often annoyed by Wander's seeming naiveté but is still loyal enough to follow his lead.
