What exactly is a Snarf and what was the purpose of him in thunder cats?

Question

He just seems like a useless character?

Answer 1

Snarf is formally classified as a "I don't know".  No one does and he serves no purpose to the team he is the comic relief for the show.

Answer 2

Snarf was a really cool character he was the comic humor in serious moments where you were learning some valuable lesson. He was cute. He was thier pet only he talked I wish my pets would talk. I need to go out now!!! I take that back I wouldn't want them to rat me out!  

Answer 3

imagine if you will poky from gumby just fatter and gumby knows how how to use a sword and was a cat.

Answer 4

What really bothered me was naming him snarf.

Snarf is a slang term for the action of sniffing a freshly used bicycle seat.

Answer 5

From Wikipedia: (someone had a lot of time on their hands)

A race of intelligent cat-like creatures, Snarfs are plump, fuzzy and kind. Snarfs are native to Thundera, living in the Valley of Snarfs, and many of their number act as servants to Thunderan nobility, happily working as cooks, nursemaids, squires and so forth. When Thundera was destroyed, forty-nine Snarfs were able to commandeer a Mutant tanker and made their way to an uninhabited planet which they took as their own, dubbing it the "Planet of Snarfs". Later, when Mumm-Ra recreated Thundera, he captured the Snarfs and brought them back to their home planet, putting them to work searching for the Treasure of Thundera. Subsequently liberated by the ThunderCats, the Snarfs returned to living happily on Thundera.

Snarfs are the only creatures in the universe incapable of evil (except while possessed). Quick and clever, a Snarf is a loyal friend, though their small size often makes them a target for Mutants or other evil creatures. The Snarfs have proved to be valuable allies to the ThunderCats in times of peril. Though their fighting skills are more than wanting, the Snarfs have an inherent invulnerability/resistance to many (but not all) forms of magic and mind-control. This ability has enabled the Snarfs to save the other ThunderCats on several occasions. Snarfs are known to end their sentences with the squeaking exclamation for which they are named - "snarf, snarf!"

In the series, several are named prominently.

    * Snarf (Bob McFadden) — An elder snarf, properly known by his name Osbert (which he hates), Snarf served as a nursemaid and protector for Lion-O when he was a boy. After Lion-O grew up, Snarf found that often Lion-O didn’t want to have him ‘mothering’ or protecting him. Still, Snarf has remained loyal to Lion-O and the other ThunderCats. At times, he does come through in a pinch with an idea and takes action when it is needed. Despite his age, he does keep up with the others. Even though not a fighter by skill or nature, Snarf is very agile (he boasts he can outplay anyone at tailbail or kick-the-bucket). He also can communicate with other animals on Third Earth to enlist their help in his tasks and adventures.

    * Snarfer (Bob McFadden) — Young and excitable, Snarfer is Snarf’s young nephew. He was thought lost when Thundera exploded, but was one of the surviving Snarfs that made it to the Planet of Snarfs. Slightly more aggressive than his uncle, Snarfer is a keen mechanic and pilot in his own right, having been educated at "Snarf College" (Snarf once said he was a ‘college boy’). He does tend to babble when over-excited, but at times he can be just as level-headed as Tygra. Though smaller than Snarf, he doesn’t let that get in his way when he wants to help friends. It was through him that the ThunderCats learned that Snarf's real name was Osbert.

    * Snarf Oswald (Earle Hyman) and Snarf Eggbert (Larry Kenney) — Two of the Snarfs who survived the destruction of Thundera, this duo became the ThunderCats main Snarf "contacts" on New Thundera. Oswald was originally mentioned by Snarf during the first season, noting that he owed him "fifty thunder-dollars."