rowlando - by toon do you mean actual cartoon characters or a comicbook style render?

Les's "transmap" solution could be easily used to create both. Render some seated (cartoon or human) figures, postwork them using a toon style action in photoshop (The RMP and RNDA has some) and create some transmaps.

Or just apply the PS action over the whole render to give a comic book style render.

If you need actual meshes, then polycount will be an issue, but thats solveable...

For human figures Predatron's LoRez figures would be great, incredibly lowpoly and also poseable, or use Dork and Posette.

Another option (if you have Vue) is it's EcoSystem feature to create and populate a crowd. Either by using vues own low poly models, or if you needed toon characters use some imported poser models. Then export the finished crowd out as an OBJ and import that into poser.

Or if you're feeling really flush, theres always dedicated crowd building software like Massive Jet, a snip at $5,999 :)

Pinky - you left the lens cap of your mind on again.