Timmy and Tommy are two of the first characters players meet in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and in many recent games they’ve taken up the role of running Tom Nook’s shop while he manages other affairs such as housing. Despite their similar appearances, however – all three are the only Tanuki characters featured in the Animal Crossing series – it isn’t entirely clear if or how they might be related to Tom Nook.
In most Animal Crossing games, Timmy and Tommy appear in Tom Nook’s shop once it’s been upgraded enough to have a second floor. There, they take up a similar role to Tom Nook himself, selling furniture and other items to the player. In New Leaf, they now manage the shop entirely while Tom Nook works at Nook’s Homes providing housing loans and upgrades. This trend continued in Animal Crossing: New Horizons.
Given how closely they work together in the world of business, it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise to learn that Timmy and Tommy have a previous history with Tom Nook. Some fans have even speculated that they could be Tom Nook’s sons, nephews, or even clones, but multiple sources throughout the Animal Crossing series seem to dispute that. In fact, the most common answer provided in-game is that they aren’t actually related at all.
How Timmy, Tommy, & Tom Nook Are Related
While earlier references in the games seemingly make Timmy and Tommy Tom Nook’s nephews, according to Looper, there’s no actual blood relation. In fact, it’s commonly believed that in Animal Crossing: Wild World, Tom Nook will explain to the player that he’s not directly related to Timmy and Tommy by blood, but instead refers to them as his apprentices and employees. He states that he’s mentoring them for the sake of teaching good economic principles. This is backed up by Nintendo’s site, which calls Tom Nook a mentor specifically, and by Nintendo’s Japanese site, which states clearly that the pair are not Nook’s children, with Nook emphatically adding, “ボクはまだ独身だなも！” or “I’m still a bachelor!” It could be that Tom Nook knows them from the town he grew up in, or may have met them while he was living and working in the city before starting up his own business. Tom Nook’s backstory explains his lack of success in that place before moving on, which could be why he wants to teach the Nooklings to avoid the same business pitfalls he fell into.
Another option is that he took them in and is raising them. It’s confirmed in-game that Timmy and Tommy have the same last name as Tom Nook, though whether it’s just a coincidence is hard to say. The Animal Crossing series tends to gradually change over time, and its characters often change with it, meaning that new answers could be provided by the time a new Animal Crossing game is released. A New Horizons sequel might even have Timmy and Tommy taking up a more significant role in the town, potentially shining more of a spotlight on their history and connection to Tom Nook. For the time being, though, all evidence seems to point towards the fact that they’re simply his pupils.
Source: Looper, Nintendo (1, 2)
About The Author
