American Dad/Characters: Difference between revisions

* {{spoiler|[[Bald of Awesome]]: One episode revealed that Stan is completely bald, and has been trying to keep it a secret from everyone. Except everyone already knew, and none of them cared. He then decided to keep wearing his wig and no one ever cared enough about it to mention it again afterwards.}}.

* {{spoiler|[[Dropped a Bridge on Him]]: This happens to him at the end of "Hot Water" for no real reason, but like [[South Park|Kenny McCormick]], he is alive and well in the next episode.}}.

** {{spoiler|[[Word of God]] is Stan died because they expected Hot Water to be the series finale, and reasoned "what better way to end the show by killing the main character?" The show wasn't cancelled, so ''"Hot Water''" became a season premier.}}.

* [[Eagle Land]]: Type 2 ''Incarnate.''.

* [[Flanderization]]: Believe it or not, Stan in the first episode was the example of a stereotypical conservative, obsessed with politics, Ronald Reagan, America and keeping his family safe, he was an extremist, but deeply cared about his family and was really overprotective, but by the second episode, he began to evolve into a [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold]], however at the end of the day, despite his selfish aspects, feels bad about it and learns a lesson every episode, even though it's [[Aesop Amnesia]].

* [[Jerkass]]: Most of the time. His [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold]] moments are usually overshadowed by some of his cruellercrueler acts, such as a scheme to get back at a car salesman that happened to involve abandoning his own family as prequisiteperquisite.

* [[Know-Nothing Know-It-All]]: Numerous episodes go out of their way to emphasize this, especially ''"The Most Adequate Christmas Ever''", where God actually had to tell Stan face-to-face that no, he does not know everything and he can't.

* [[Small Name, Big Ego]]: Frequently acts narcisisticnarcissistic about his looks and "[[Know-Nothing Know-It-All|intelligence]]". May also apply as [[Inferiority Superiority Complex]] when it's found out he wasn't always "the stallion he is today".

** In a DVD-exclusive special on the creation of ''American Dad!'', [[Seth [MacFarlane]] describes the show as "What would happen if a 1950s anti-Communism short film announcer had a wife and kids?"

* [[Stop Helping Me!]]: ''"Hurricane!''" drastically shows that Stan has got no idea what to do in a crisis situation, and despite Francine's plea to stop helping, Stan doesn't listen and [[It Got Worse|keeps making the situation worse.]]

** Let's just say, even Stan (who usually has a very low sense of self-preservation) is smart enough to be scared of her when she gets angry. Example? Season 1, episodeEpisode 4.

* [[Blonde Republican Sex Kitten]]: ''Sort of''. Compared to Stan, Francine is much more apolitical (she likely doesn't understand politics in general.).

** The episode Live Andand Let Fry is a rather noteworthy example. In that one, Francine [[Flanderization|comes off as borderline insane.]]

* [[Genius Ditz]]: For the brief periods of time when she tried to pursue something outside of being a housewife, she is ''ridiculously'' good at what she does. To the point where she once became and oceanologist, and ''published a paper on how she found a thought-to-be-extinct species!''! Of course, Stan always brings things back to a screaming halt (to the point where he ''deliberately sabotaged the American economy'' because that was the only way to stop her career as a real estate agent).

{{quote|'''Stan:''' What the hell, Francine! You t-boned me bro! }}

* [[Stalker with a Crush]]: When she was younger, she had a crush on her algebra teacher, Mr. Feeny. He didn't take her seriously, and then his wife found her in their closet smelling his clothes and cutting herself. Francine lied to the police about them being lovers, so he was arrested and eventually killed himself in prison.

** [[Not So Above It All]]: While she is much more sane than Stan, she still engages in zany schemes, like trying to assassinate [[George Clooney]] because she felt he upstaged her (seasonSeason 1 finale).

*** Recent episodes [[Averted Trope|avert]] this by making her more socially-awkardawkward and Stan closer to Earth.

==== Hayley Dreamsmasher Smith {{spoiler|Fischer}} ====

* [[Brainwashed and Crazy]]: Stan {{spoiler|enrolled her in a program to become a CIA sleeper agent when she was 5.}}. If you say the right combination of words, [[Let's Get Dangerous|she becomes a trained killer]].

** [[Manchurian Agent]]: theThe trigger words: {{spoiler|"I'm getting fed up with this orgasm."}}

* [[Embarrassing Middle Name]]: Dreamsmasher.

* [[Hypocrite]]: A lot of humor tends to revolve around this. In some cases, she is incredibly shallow about her own ethics and views, albeit [[Depending on the Writer]].

** She dumps boyfriends, frequently Jeff, coldly and nonchalentlynonchalantly on numerous occasions (perhaps most notably dumping Avery Bollock over phone, mid way through a presentation, on live TV, ''a second'' before he was going to promote Stan) and is occasionally outright termed as a "slut". When a boy dumps ''her'' however, she goes out and out [[Ax Crazy]] (to the point that the police have threatened her to have her put in jail for life if she gets dumped again).

* [[Mama Bear]]: In ''"Season's Beatings''", despite denying any maternal instincts, the minute she sees the baby Jeff adopted she starts sobbing uncontrollably with joy over "her baby". {{spoiler|To the point that she was willing to kill Stan to protect Nemo, even if he is the Anti-Christ.}}.

* [[Out of Focus]]: Since about seasonSeason 3 onward, compare her screen time and plot/sub-plot focus to Stan, Francine, Steve and Roger. In some episodes, she's lucky to have comparable screen time and lines to Klaus. See [[The Artifact|Artifact]] above.

* [[Teeth-Clenched Teamwork]]: Surprisingly, averted. In ''"Roy Rogers McFreely''", Hayley points out to Stan that, since Roger's in charge and his views are counter to his, Stan is now part of the counterculture, and therefore on the same side with Hayley. Rather then argue, Stan realizes she's right and the two form a group to undermine Roger's control on the neighborhood. The episode showed that, if not for their clashing points of view, Stan and Hayley would get along great.

** Averted in the episode "American Dream Factory", where illegal Mexican immigrant Paco breaks off a relationship with her, with no adverse effects. Of course, this is likely due to the fact that this episode is almost two years older than "Pulling Double Booty", the episode where this trait made its debut.

*** She does however go to desperate lengths to have him prosecuted by the INS. [[Depending on the Writer|Though the reactions are different throughout the show]], Hayley at least consistantlyconsistently handles being dumped in an extremely callous manner, [[Hypocritical Humor|especially considering the number of times she has]] [[Double Standard|coldly dumped Jeff]].

==== Steven "Steve" {{spoiler|Anita}} Smith ====

* [[Embarrassing Middle Name]]: Turns out his sister isn't the only one with one: {{spoiler|Anita}}.

* [[Small Name, Big Ego]]: He wrote a ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' sketch called "Quantum Rape", about a guy in jail for raping Scott Bakula who tries to explain to his cellmate what ''[[Quantum Leap]]'' is and failing. Steve finds this hilarious. Jon Stewart didn't. Steve comes to the logical conclusion that Stewart was raped as a child which is why he thinks it's so awful.

* [[Beyond the Impossible]]: He has a persona named Ricky Spanish who's even '''more''' of a [[Jerkass]] than Roger himself and is hated by every single person in Langley Falls. {{spoiler|At the end of that episode, you can add Steve to the list, since "Ricky" framed him for robbery and got him sent to jail.}}.

* [[Bi the Way]]: Confirmed as of "You Debt Your Life." After realizing that realizing Andy Dick took his place after he moved out {{spoiler|[[Status Quo Is God|(temporarily)]]}}, we get this quote:

{{quote|'''Roger''': Oh my God! Another fey, pansexual, alcoholic nonhuman... I've been replaced!}}

* [[Dark and Troubled Past]]: For the large part, the more we learn about Roger's background, the more depraved an indvidualindividual he seems.

* [[Determinator]]: If his motives are selfish enough, he can achieve ANYTHING. He pursues {{spoiler|Haley and Jeff with the money they cheated Stan out of}} across the entire planet. When he's convinced to kill the Smith family, he's able to escape from an [[The Alcatraz|excessively secure underwater prison]]. Not even leaving the planet is enough to escape him.

* [[Flanderization]]: His affinity for costumes and dress up acts, to the point some ''literally'' [[Becoming the Mask|take over]] [[Funny Schizophrenia|his personality]]. His [[Jerkass]] traits also initially just came with [[Cloudcuckoolander|the quirkiness]] of his personality and were much more toned down. As time progressed, his callousness is canonically accepted as his defining trait (to the point [[In the Blood|he'll actually die]] [[The Power of Hate|without acting consistantlyconsistently cruel]]).

* [[The Gump]]: In his lifetime, he's responsible for creating disco in the 1970s (through a time paradox, admittedly), instigating the death of Biggie Smalls, creating [[Star Wars|Jar Jar Binks]], inventing ecstasy in the 1990s, and turning Raven-Symone into an actress (after he kidnapped her from a park when she was a child).

* [[Heroic BSOD]]: In "Wiener of ourOur Discontent", he is put out of action when he finds out he was supposed to be a crash test dummy.

*** In spite of Taken a level of [[Jerkass]]. he still has moments of clarity

*** [[Pet the Dog]]: Despite having little to no sense of empathy the majority of times, he is often shown to genuinely care about Stan. The entire reason he came to be with the Smiths is because he went out of his way to save Stan from a botched CIA attack. Even in later episodes, Roger's friendship is sometimes exploited by Stan, which is saying a lot considering the former's [[Manipulative Bastard|usual tendanciestendencies]].

** There are however some episodes where he fails to get away with his atrocities. For example in 'The People vs. Martin Sugar'", Stan had the jury vote him guilty thus leading the judge (tearfully) to sending him to prison.

** Justifiably in "Stanny Tendergrass", it's revealed that there is at least one persona that a person CANNOT see through, and instead sees Roger actually as that person. For Stan, it is Mr. Vanderhill, Francine, a Korean kid who shoots pool with a giant chopstick, Hayley's is her sandal repair man and Steve's is Elisha Wiltner, who Steve went on 9 dates with.

* [[The Sociopath]]: Self-confessed, no less. When he becomes a [[Dirty Cop]] (after being on the force for 3 hours) he says that.

* [[Super Speed]]: Allowed him to fake the death of a persona in Season 6.

* [[Token Evil Teammate]]: None of the Smiths are particularly saintly in behaviourbehavior, however Roger is the most consistently malicious of the cast. Less evident in earlier episodes where Roger was more sympathetic with Stan or Klaus usually acting as the more malvolentmalevolent of the family.

* [[Accent Adaptation]]: In the German dub, he has a Saxon accent. ([[Fridge Brilliance|Klaus was East German, afterall]].).

'''Francine:''' Oh how can you help? You're a fish! }}

* [[Bald of Awesome]]: Though considerably less that Stewart Himself.

* [[Chubby Chaser]]: He "has a thing" for [[Big Beautiful Woman|chubby asianAsian chicks.]] Although it usually helps if they're also skanks.

* [[Moral Myopia]]: See [[Papa Wolf]] below. Said revenge was a case of [[Disproportionate Retribution]], especially since they were no better in the first place, and it was all because of a case of [[Misplaced Retribution]] on Steve's part. Steve even explained it was his friends' fault, and they still wanted Steve as well, making it a case of [[Misplaced Retribution]] on their part as well.

* [[Where Did We Go Wrong?]]: Is deeply ashamed of his daughter Janet, for "more reasons than you can imagine"."

* [[Clear My Name]]: After {{spoiler|Steve pins a barmitzvabar mitzvah heist on him in "Bar Mitzvah Hustle"}}.

* [[Noodle Incident]]: One time, he and Steve encountered a mystery of the disappearance of his bicycle, but they dropped it after the case turned into a double rape homicide.

{{quote|Steve's mentally retarded friend. Voiced by Eddie Kaye Thomas. {{spoiler|He's actually a criminal mastermind when off his meds, and his evil side is voiced by Craig Ferguson}}. }}

* {{spoiler|[[Evil Brit]]: He is secretly one of these.}}.

* [[Good Is Dumb]]: Looking into his history, he represents this well. He's also arguably the most docile of Steve and his friends and the dumbest. {{spoiler|...with his meds anyway. Without them he's an [[The Evil Genius|evil genius]].}}.

* {{spoiler|[[It's All About Me]]:}} : {{spoiler|His untraquilized persona [[Up to Eleven|actually takes this to an even more psychotic level than Roger]] after gaining a bond with Stan, becoming intent on destroying anyone that pulls them apart.}}.

* [[Parental Neglect]]: Suggested off screen. Though the fact that he's {{spoiler|a calculating possessive psychopath off his medication}} might explain why they want to keep their distance.

* [[Badass Bookworm]]: See [[Katanas Are Just Better]] below.

* [[Katanas Are Just Better]]: He uses one to cut apart two serial killers in the Halloween episode "'''Best Little Horror House in Langley Falls'''".

** He has once complimented Steve when they dressed up in Star Trek attire, that he was not the one to play Sulu- That role was given to Barry, who ironically made 'me chineseChinese' eyes for this purpose.

Toshi’s sister, who often acts as a translator. Voiced by [[Grey DeLisle]] &and Grace Park.

* [[Disappeared Dad]]: toTo Stan.

* [[No Name Given]] / [[Bilingual Bonus]]: Māma is simply the Chinese word for 'mother'.

* [[Badass Gay]]: Both Terry and Greg at times, such as when {{spoiler|Terry punches Stan in the face for kidnapping their daughter.}}.

An Iranian-American neighbourneighbor and friend of Francine. Voiced by Megyn Price.

* [[Bi the Way]] or [[Lipstick Lesbian]]: Made out with Francine in "Not Particularly Desperate Housewives" as a way of saying a goodbye, despite being married to a man. {{spoiler|[[Crowning Moment of Awesome|Miraculously, this saves Francine from getting killed by the Lady Bugs,]] }} and Francine thanks Linda, thinking the kiss was a plan to save her. Linda, clearly disappointed, just goes along with that and claims she needed to get back home to her husbands that "she loves". Overall, it's suggest that Linda's not truly attracted to her husband and is a closeted lesbian, and it's revealed that her husband is aware of her preferences.

* [[Adult Child]]: In "For Whom The Sleigh Bell Tolls", Stan is incensed that Jeff still believes in Santa Claus. He turns out to be real later in the episode.

* [[Noodle Incident]]: In one episode, Hayley is pissed and fed up with him trying to win her back, but Jeff tells her something offscreen that apparently {{spoiler|causes her to fall in love with him and elope.}}. What he said is never revealed, probably because there's no believable way they could write something that emotional.