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== Garfield ==
{{quote box|[[File:176px-Garfield_the_Cat_svg_8434.png|framethumb|200px]]}}
The strip's title character. Most of the time, he's a fat, lazy, cynical cat, with Jon being the main victim of his constant sarcasm. Many of the strip's gags revolve around his constant eating and/or sleeping, as well as offering plenty of sarcasm towards Jon and abuse towards Odie.
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by Garfield include:}}
 
* [[Acid Reflux Nightmare]]: Garfield [https://web.archive.org/web/20110811205054/http://garfield.nfshost.com/1987/01/11/ had] [https://web.archive.org/web/20110811210317/http://garfield.nfshost.com/1988/01/10/ several] [https://web.archive.org/web/20110811220930/http://garfield.nfshost.com/1984/10/14/ of] [https://web.archive.org/web/20110811203648/http://garfield.nfshost.com/1988/09/25/ these], one interestingly from [https://web.archive.org/web/20110811201942/http://garfield.nfshost.com/1998/09/13/ drinking too much coffee.]
* [[Acrofatic]]: For a cat who is supposedly morbidly obese, Garfield is surprisingly athletic when he wants to be. [[Lampshade Hanging|Subtly lampshaded]] in an early strip when Garfield ran so fast that he went ''straight up one wall, across the ceiling, and down the opposite wall''! Jon noted that "I know cats are fast, but that's ridiculous."
** Another strip shows Garfield voluntarily jogging, of all things. He tells the reader that even he can run when he has the proper motivation, and in the last panel we see that he's chasing an ice cream truck.
* [[Anti -Hero]]: Type [[V/Villain Protagonist|V]], at least in the comic strip. [http://www.garfield.com/comics/vault.html?yr=1988&addr=881209 This unedited comic]{{Dead link}} exemplifies this well, as it is very typical of how Garfield does things in the comics. It was once used for [[Crosses the Line Twice]], and for good reason.
** He [[Took a Level In Kindness]] for [[The Garfield Show]], bringing him down to Type III/IV, depending on the show.
* [[Anti Role Model]]: Undoubtedly.
{{quote| '''Garfield''': Remember kids, crime does not pay!<br />
''(Garfield steals Jon's doughnut)''<br />
'''Garfield''': Although it can be pretty tasty. }}
* [[Anthropomorphic Shift]]: In the early days of the strip, he looked more like a normal housecat. By 1984, his body had become more humanoid in shape.
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* [[Brilliant but Lazy]]
* [[Born Lucky]]: Almost everything goes right for him.
{{quote| '''Jon''': Life's not fair, Garfield.<br />
'''Garfield''': Let's be realistic. Remember, you can't always get everything you want. '''You''' can't. '''I''' can. }}
* [[Carnivore Confusion]]: Garfield has eaten sentient birds, fish and flowers, and has been known to kill talking spiders.
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* [[Cats Are Snarkers]]
* [[Cats Are Superior]]: And try telling him otherwise.
* [[CentipedesCentipede's Dilemma]]: The first time Garfield moved around on only two legs, Jon pointed out that cats couldn't do that, invoking this trope, in a way. Doesn't stop him from making bipedalism his preferred mode of travel in the new strips, though.
** In [http://garfield.nfshost.com/1983/05/09/ one strip]{{Dead link}}, Jon asks Garfield which way he puts his feet down when he walks. Garfield is then paralyzed, saying, "I'll never walk again."
* [[Child -Hater]]: Though he has [http://garfield.nfshost.com/1985/05/03/ a good reason for it]{{Dead link}}
* [[Deadpan Snarker]]: Most of the time.
* [[Does Not Like Spam]]: His least favorite foods are raisins and spinach.
** He also doesn't like mice, and makes friends with them occasionally. Other standard cat prey such as birds and fish aren't so lucky.
* [[The Drag Along]]: At times.
* [[Everyone Has Standards]]: As a cat, he's known to chase birds, which it's common. However, he won't go after those who are "part of the family". He was upset with Jon's family for turning Jon's pet chicken into soup.
* [[Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas]]: Despite his general cynical attitude, Garfield loves his mother very much. He also loves ''Jon's'' mother quite a bit too, due in no small part to the amount of food she makes at family gatherings.
* [[Extreme Omnivore]]: Occasionally. Non-food things he has eaten include his own food dish (accidentally while shoveling down his food super-fast), the TV remote (to prevent Jon from taking it), Jon's wallet ("Genuine cowhide."), and an unknown object Jon was carrying on a plate ("I hope that was food!")
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* [[Hiccup Hijinks]]: Occurs in a week from 1998 where he starts "freestyle hiccuping".
* [[Jerkass]]
* [[Jerk Withwith a Heart of Gold]]: Although he constantly abuses both Jon and Odie, he does seem to love them both deep down. His softer side is most prominent around Christmastime.
* [[Karma Houdini]]: A extreme example - he can bully Jon, Odie, and Nermal (verbally and physically) and '''NEVER''' receive any punishment whatsoever. (Every rule has its exceptions, though, and [http://garfield.nfshost.com/1980/10/29/ sometimes]{{Dead link}} [http://garfield.nfshost.com/1984/08/11/ karma]{{Dead link}} ''[http://garfield.nfshost.com/1984/01/15/ does]''{{Dead link}} [http://garfield.nfshost.com/1986/10/26/ get]{{Dead link}} [http://garfield.nfshost.com/1987/10/09/ him]{{Dead link}}.)
** Not so much in [[The Garfield Show]], where Jon tends to suspect Garfield of wrongdoing when something bad happens... and he's often right.
* [[Klatchian Coffee]]: One of his favorite ways of staying awake.
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* [[Never My Fault]]: His typical form of self-chastisement.
* [[Not a Morning Person]]
* [[Out -of -Character Moment]]: [https://web.archive.org/web/20111112050820/http://garfield.nfshost.com/1979/05/28/ This strip]. Keep in mind that he had already established "I hate Mondays" as a [[Catch Phrase]].
** [[Invoked Trope]] in [http://images.ucomics.com/comics/ga/2002/ga021012.gif this strip].
** Also invoked at the end of ''Garfield's Halloween Adventure'':
{{quote| '''Garfield:''' Odie, I'm about to do something that's really out of character for me. But seeing that you saved my my life about 10 bazillion times tonight, I'm going to give you something that's very close to me. Something that really represents who I am. Here's your half of the Halloween candy.}}
* [[Perpetual Frowner]]: Almost.
* [[Pie in Thethe Face]]: Garfield used to be the frequent target of "Splut!" pies, which made that noise when they hit his face.
* [[Ring Ring CRUNCH]]: He does this regularly to his alarm clock, but has also done it to a telephone and an ''ice cream truck''.
* [[Screwy Squirrel]]
* [[Security Blanket]]: He sometimes cuddles up with his teddy bear, Pooky, and/or his blue blanket.
* [[The Stoic]]: Most of the time.
* [[Talking Animal]]: Subverted; his speech is represented through thought bubbles, a-la [[Peanuts (Comic Strip)|Snoopy]]. Due to the [[Rule of Funny]], Jon can understand him only if Jon's understanding is necessary for the punchline.
* [[Trademark Favorite Food]]: Lasagna. However, it's rarely mentioned nowadays and seems to have been replaced with pizza.
* [[Unsympathetic Comedy Protagonist]]: The absolute king of this trope.
* [[Your Mom]]: In one strip, when Garfield stands on the talking scale:
{{quote| '''Scale''': Let me put it this way... Have you ever considered a career as a river barge?<br />
'''Garfield''': Your mother was a blender!<br />
'''Scale''': That hurt. }}
** In another strip, when he does his act on the fence, he tells his audience: "All you your mothers wear army boots!"
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== Jonathan Q. "Jon" Arbuckle ==
{{quote box|[[File:668px-Jon_arbuckle_svg_8268.png|framethumb|200px]]}}
 
Garfield's owner and the most prominent human in the strip. For most of the strip, he was a simple enough bachelor who cared for Garfield, but eventually grew to be portrayed as a total loser. His personality hit a watershed in the late 2000s when he and Liz finally became the [[Official Couple]].
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by Jon include:}}
 
* [[Awesome McCoolname]]: Davis took Jon's name from a coffee commercial.
* [[Aside Glance]]: The other prime user of this trope, usually in response to one of Garfield's remarks.
* [[Butt Monkey]] / [[The Chew Toy]] / [[Cosmic Plaything]]: It seems the whole universe hates him.
* [[Born Unlucky]]: Almost nothing goes right for him.
{{quote| '''Jon''': You wouldn't believe my day, Garfield. First, I tripped and fell down six flights of stairs. When I landed, I got my head stuck in a bucket of pork chops. Then, a roaming pack of hungry wolves mistook me for lunch...and chased me into an open elevator shaft, which wouldn't have been so bad had it not been for the rabid shaft badgers.}}
* [[Bow Ties Are Cool]]: He frequently dons them.
* [[Casanova Wannabe]]: Until Liz finally caved in and became his willing girlfriend.
** Good thing, since his dates with other women also used to end in tragedy.
* [[Can't Get Away Withwith Nuthin']] / [[Laser -Guided Karma]]: Almost anytime he outsmarts, tricks or taunts Garfield, karma strikes him down "like a one-winged duck." (When Garfield's the one who outsmarts/tricks/taunts Jon, [[Karma Houdini|karma is Garfield's friend.]])
* [[Cloudcuckoolander]]
{{quote| '''Jon:''' I think my toes are jealous of my fingers because they get to point at things.}}
* [[Failure Is the Only Option]]: The Jon/Liz relationship until the late 2000s.
** Also whenever he tries to outsmart Garfield.
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== Odie ==
{{quote box|[[File:136px-Odie_the_Dog_svg_2306.png|framethumb|200px]]}}
 
Introduced in the strip's first year as Lyman's pet dog (see below), but later [[Retcon|Retconned]] to be Jon's dog. He's pretty much portrayed as wide-eyed, drooling and dumb.
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by Odie include:}}
 
* [[Achievements in Ignorance]]: He once climbed a tree because he didn't know that he couldn't.
* [[Anthropomorphic Shift]]: Not as extremely as the other characters, he is sometimes seen walking on two legs but mostly still walks on fours.
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== Nermal ==
The self-proclaimed "world's cutest kitten". Initially a kitten owned by Jon's mom, Nermal also had his origin blatantly retconned. He's now just a neighborhood cat who wanders into Garfield's house at random times.
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by Nermal include:}}
 
* [[Bitch in Sheep's Clothing]]: He never misses an opportunity to mock Garfield about his weight and/or age.
* [[Chuck Cunningham Syndrome]]: Since the '90s, Nermal has a tendency to disappear from the strip for a long period of time then return.
* [[Comic Book Time]] / [[Not Allowed to Grow Up]]: Parodied. Nermal has been a kitten since the strip's second year. In several strips, Garfield has asked Nermal how he stays young, and Nermal has revealed that he's a midget who uses extensive anti-aging therapy.
* [[Cute Kitten]]
* [[Dude Looks Like a Lady]]: Made even more obvious on ''[[Garfield and Friends]]'', where he has a very obviously female voice actor. The Spanish dub even called him ''gatita'' (female kitten) before correcting it later on.
* [[Generic Cuteness]]
* [[Kawaiiko]]
* [[Took a Level Inin Jerkass]]: In the CG specials and series, his [[Bitch in Sheep's Clothing]] tendencies have been amped up.
 
== Lyman ==
Jon's roommate, who appeared two months into the strip. He was initially Odie's owner, and was intended to provide the role of someone that Jon could talk to, until Garfield took over in that role. As a result, Lyman totally disappeared from the strip.
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by Lyman include:}}
 
* [[Black Bead Eyes]]
* [[Chuck Cunningham Syndrome]]: Such a prominent example that the trope could easily be called The Lyman. He appeared less and less between 1981 and 1982, not appearing or mentioned in ''Here Comes Garfield'', before vanishing after April 1983. According to Jim Davis, he joined the Peace Corps and was never heard from again (possibly [[Killed Off for Real]]).
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== Dr. Elizabeth "Liz" Wilson ==
Garfield and Odie's vet, and the frequent target of Jon's affection. Although Jon spent a good quarter century trying to date her with minimal success, she finally gave in.
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by Liz include:}}
 
* [[Ascended Extra]]
* [[Character Development]]: After she finally gave in and became Jon's girlfriend, she changed from being little more than [[The Comically Serious]] to a more sympathetic type.
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== Arlene ==
Garfield's onetime girlfriend. She would appear on and off, and Garfield would constantly be as unsuccessful in trying to get her love.
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by Arlene include:}}
 
* [[Chuck Cunningham Syndrome]]: Before her reappearance in 2008, she could've been this as she didn't appear in the strip for ''nine'' years.
* [[No Accounting for Taste]]
* [[Pink Girl, Blue Boy]] / [[Tertiary Sexual Characteristics]]: She is [[The Nostalgia Chick|piiiink]], has long eyelashes, and seems to wear lipstick.
 
== Irma ==
The owner of Irma's diner, a [[Greasy Spoon]] that Jon and Garfield frequent.
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by Irma include:}}
 
* [[Black Bead Eyes]]
* [[Cloudcuckoolander]]
* [[Lethal Chef]]: Her chef may be one, literally. Her response to Jon ordering two tuna specials:
{{quote| '''Irma''': (sobs) Sorry, I get emotional... My first husband passed away while eating the tuna special.<br />
'''Garfield''': Cheese! I'll have a grilled cheese! }}
 
{{worksubpagefooter}}
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Garfield]]
[[Category:Characters]]
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