The characters inPeanutsare some of the most beloved in pop culture, as the likes of Charlie Brown, Linus, and Snoopy are timeless icons that practically everyone recognizes. However, just becausePeanutsconsists of some incredibly popular charactersdoesn’t mean every member of the Peanuts gang can boast global fame and recognition. In fact, there’sone characterPeanutsactually killed off, and since then, she’s all but been forgotten: Charlotte Braun.
Charlotte Braun was originally meant to be the female counterpart to Charlie Brown, as Charles M. Schulz set her up to become just as prominently featured as Chuck himself. However, Charlotte Braun was not received well by fans, and a number of them even wrote to Schulz directly asking him to get rid of her. So, Charles Schulz did just that, in decidedly brutal fashion.
Above is a letter Charles M. Schulz wrote to a fan who asked him to get rid of Charlotte Braun. In it, Schulz tells the fan that he’s taken her criticism into consideration, and has decided to remove Charlotte fromthePeanutsuniverse. And at the bottom of the letter, Schulz included a drawing of Charlotte Braun with an ax in her head, indicating that he’d given her character ‘the ax’ while also offering a dark in-world reason why she wouldn’t be showing up inPeanutscomics from that point forward.
“Good Grief!": Charlie Brown’s Catchphrase Takes New Meaning After Hearing Its Origin Story
“Good Grief!” is Charlie Brown’s iconic catchphrase in Peanuts, and after Charles M. Schulz revealed its origin, that fact becomes incredibly sad.
Charles M. Schulz effectively killed Charlotte Braun with an ax, making history as the onlyPeanutscharacter Schulz ever actually killed off. Now that she’s gone, the only 10 comics she appeared in have become way more interesting. Here’s everyPeanutsstrip (in order) featuring the only character the comic ever killed off, Charlotte Braun!
10Charlotte Braun Establishes Herself as the ‘Female Charlie Brown’ Right from the Start
Peanuts- June 11, 2025
ThisPeanutscomic strip marks the debut of Charlotte Braun, and she’s greeted by Charlie Brown himself. An established Peanuts character introducing themselves to a new one isn’t anything new, as that’s how the likes of Pig Pen and Franklin made their debuts inPeanutsas well. However, in this case, it seemed more like a statement than a natural introduction, as Charlotte Braun didn’t just introduce herself, she stated that her friends call her “Good Ol' Charlotte Braun”.
The ‘Good Ol’' title is something that’s become synonymous with Charlie Brown specifically, so seeing it given to another character - a brand-new character, at that - is certainly a statement. Charlotte Braun was meant to be Charlie Brown’s official counterpart, after all, and that is made immediately clear upon her debut.
9Charlotte Braun May Be the ‘Female Charlie Brown’, but She is NOT Related to Him
Peanuts- July 05, 2025
When Violet decides to make Charlotte Braun her friend upon meeting her, she compliments the new character’s name while pointing out how similar it sounds to Charlie Brown. Due to their similar-sounding names, Violet asks Charlotte if she’s at all related to Charlie Brown. Charlotte tells Violet, “Good grief, no!” before going into a loud tirade about how she isn’t related to Charlie Brown in any way, shape, or form.
This entire comic strip is a hilarious meta joke about how Charlotte Braun was meant to be the ‘female Charlie Brown’ (something that’s obvious by her name alone), and the fact that Charlotte is going on and on about how she has no connection to Charlie Brown only brings further attention to the joke.
8Peanuts Establishes Charlotte Braun’s Main Character Trait
Peanuts- August 14, 2025
Despite his annoyance with her in the previous comic, Charlie Brown decides to take it upon himself to introduce Charlotte Braun to the other members of the Peanuts gang. In this comic, he introduces Charlotte to Patty. Upon meeting Charlotte - and hearing her speak - Patty comments on how loud Charlotte is. Rather than getting embarrassed or insecure, Charlotte Braun owns her loudness, telling Patty that being loud is “the way to put over a point!”.
Up until this point, the fact that Charlotte Braun is always speaking at a loud volume is understated, as no other character calls it out until this comic. And once that happens, being loud becomes Charlotte’s main character trait throughout the remainder of her (short)Peanutscareer.
7Charlotte Braun Isn’t the Same as Charlie Brown, She’s the Exact Opposite
Peanuts- July 14, 2025
Charlie Brown and Charlotte Braun are sitting together on the curb, and Chuck asks Charlotte why she always talks so loudly. Charlotte explains (loudly) that that’s just her normal tone of voice. Charlotte then proves it by making herself even louder than she already was before doubling-down and making her voice a higher pitch. Both Charlie Brown and Snoopy are visibly in pain because of the sound of Charlotte’s voice, and the sight of their reactions is pretty hilarious.
While this comic strip only reinforces what was already established about Charlotte Braun, it also brings to light an interesting point: Charlotte Braun is the exact opposite of Charlie Brown. Charlie Brown is quiet and unsure of himself, while Charlotte Braun is loud and confident. She wasn’t just the ‘female Charlie Brown’, Charlotte Braun was the ‘opposite Charlie Brown’.
6Peanuts Points Out How Charlotte Braun Could Legitimately Take Charlie Brown’s Name
Peanuts- August 15, 2025
When Charlotte Braun is sitting by herself, Violet walks up to her and tells her what would happen if she married Charlie Brown when they grow up. Violet explains that she’d no longer be ‘Charlotte Braun’ anymore, she’d be ‘Charlotte Brown’. The idea of that is so horrible to Charlotte that she immediately marches over to Charlie Brown and screams at him to get out of her life.
This is another meta joke pointing out how similar the names of Charlotte Braun and Charlie Brown are, as it’s poking fun at how it seemed like Charlotte Braun ‘took’ Charlie Brown’s name upon her debut by having one that was so similar (along with the ‘Good Ol’' moniker). And now,Peanutspoints out how she can ‘take’ his name again - this time, legitimately.
5Charlie Brown Tries His Best to Be Charlotte Braun’s Friend (to No Avail)
Peanuts- July 18, 2025
Charlie Brown is sitting by himself on the curb when he sees Charlotte Braun approaching him. He decides that he should say something nice to her as she passes, as he wants to stay on her good side and maintain a friendship with the new member of the Peanuts gang. Chuck compliments Charlotte’s hair, but it, unfortunately, doesn’t have the desired effect. Charlotte thinks that Charlie Brown is being sarcastic, and starts yelling at him for this ‘insult’.
Charlie Brown was literally trying to avoid an interaction like this one with Charlotte by complimenting her hair, but the compliment is exactly what provokes her. Chuck was just trying to be her friend, but that didn’t work out so well for him, as he just got yelled at instead.
4Charlie Brown Hilariously Calls Out Charlotte Braun’s Signature Trait
Peanuts- Jul 24, 2025
Charlotte Braun approaches Charlie Brown, telling him that the other girls won’t play with her because they think that she is too loud. So, Charlotte asks Charlie Brown if the other girls are right, if she is, in fact, too loud. Before answering, Charlie Brown tells Charlotte to “Wait a minute… stay right where you are…” and starts walking away from her, leaving Charlotte confused. Charlie Brown then asks Charlotte to repeat her question, and he does so while standing a few yards away.
Obviously, Charlotte Braun didn’t need to repeat her question, as Charlie Brown answered her by this action. She was screaming right in his ear, so he moved further away, which confirmed that Charlotte was, indeed, too loud.
3Charlie Brown Cannot Stand Charlotte Braun (Literally)
Peanuts- August 21, 2025
Charlotte Braun seemingly didn’t take the hint in the lastPeanutscomic she was featured in, so in this one, she’s once more asking Charlie Brown if she’s too loud. Before waiting for his response, however, Charlotte starts talking about how being loud is actually a good thing, and is indicative of a driving, confident personality. While Charlotte wasn’t giving Charlie an opening to answer her, it wouldn’t matter if she did, because Charlie Brown just started to slump where he sat with every word Charlotte screamed at him.
Charlotte Braun is clearly fine with the fact that she’s loud, as that’s something she made clear from the very beginning. Unfortunately for Charlie Brown, he continues to find himself on the receiving end of her loudness. And, as shown in this comic, he literally cannot stand it.
2Linus’ Blanket Really Comes in Handy Around Charlotte Braun
Peanuts- August 01, 2025
In thisPeanutscomic, Charlotte Braun’s reputation has already begun to spread, as Linus (who is just a little toddler at this point in time and hasn’t even met Charlotte Braun yet) knows exactly who she is as she approaches him. Linus says quietly to himself, “Ooo gee! Here comes that loud-talking Charlotte Braun…”, as if bracing for her arrival. When she sees him, Charlotte loudly calls Linus cute, and even comments on his blanket. But, before even saying a word to her, Linus reached his limit, and threw his blanket over his head until Charlotte went away.
Linus is and has always been very attached to his blanket, carrying it with him practically everywhere he goes. And, in this case, he’s certainly lucky to have had it, as it got him out of a conversation that he did not want to have with Charlotte Braun.
1Charlie Brown is the Last Member of the Peanuts Gang to See Charlotte Braun Alive
Peanuts- July 03, 2025
This is the finalPeanutscomic strip featuring Charlotte Braun before Charles M. Schulz revealed that she was killed by an ax to the head, and the last person to see her alive was the same person who introduced her inPeanuts: Charlie Brown. This strip shows Charlotte asking Charlie Brown where he’s been before cutting him off to say that she has to go home. Charlie Brown makes one final crack at how loud she is, and then she’s gone, never to be seen again.
Taking the idea that she was murdered with an ax out of the equation, this comic strip offers a nice farewell to Charlotte Braun. She doesn’t simply disappear, Charlotte Braun is given the chance to say goodbye to Charlie Brown and then go back home, where she could just be living an ironically quiet life in the background of thePeanutscomic for the rest of its publication history.
However, it’s impossible to take something like ax-murder out of any equation, meaning Charlotte Braun maintains her morbid standing as the onlyPeanutscharacter the comic ever killed off.
Peanuts
Created by Charles M. Schulz, Peanuts is a multimedia franchise that began as a comic strip in the 1950s and eventually expanded to include films and a television series. Peanuts follows the daily adventures of the Peanuts gang, with Charlie Brown and his dog Snoopy at the center of them. Aside from the film released in 2015, the franchise also has several Holiday specials that air regularly on U.S. Television during their appropriate seasons.
