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Change isn't always a [[Tropes Are Not Good|good thing]], nor necessary. Likewise some characters, be they [[Round Character|Round]] or [[Flat Character|Flat]], will end a story with much the same personality and traits they began with. These Static Characters can go entire seasons or books without changing or experiencing the [[Character Development]] that a more [[Dynamic Character]] does.
This is
Also note that a
Having said that, Flat Characters who are also Static may get dull unless the author takes care to make them entertaining somehow, be they the [[Butt Monkey]] or perpetual [[Fish Out of Water]].
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Despite their unchanging nature, [[Early Installment Weirdness]] is still a distinct a possibility; Static Characters are frequently the result of [[Flanderization]].
{{examples
== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ==
* Ogami Itto from ''[[Lone Wolf and Cub]]''.
* Shu from ''[[
* ''[[Sayonara, Zetsubou
** Sort of. Nozomu underwent a sort of reverse [[Flanderization]] as he tries to commit suicide less as time went by and has his [[Jerk
* ''[[Cowboy Bebop]]'' has Ed and Ein, contrasting the more dynamic main trio. Jet is also arguably rather static as he goes through several instances of cleaning up his own past without it affecting his current outlook and lifestyle.
* ''[[Bleach]]'' has a tendency to do this to anyone who isn't important, making them into this, [[Flat Character
* Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane from ''[[Naruto]]'' do not change a bit in the series. While nearly every major character in Konohagakure has the Will of Fire, the two are more militant and only concern themselves with protecting the actual village itself, and often lean in favor of Danzo's view points. Their static status is possibly due to their little interaction with other characters (aside from Hiruzen, Danzo, Tsunade, Shizune, and Itachi) and the fact that Naruto has yet to influence them like everyone else he has come in contact yet.
* Suzy Mizuno from ''[[Zatch Bell]]'' is a prime example, seeing as how she remains a [[Cloudcuckoolander|ditz]] throughout the whole series, while receiving no character development or any involvement in the Mamodo battles.
== Comic Books ==
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* [[Batman]] usually suffers from little [[Character Development]] except in some [[Alternative Continuity]] stories like ''[[The Dark Knight Returns]]''.
* Most comic book villains, at least after their tragic backstories. And that's part of what makes them villains; they don't change. [[The Joker]] will always be a [[Complete Monster|psychotic murdering clown]], and he shouldn't be anything else.
* [[Wolverine]] from the [[X
* The entire cast of ''[[Peanuts]]'' haven't changed much throughout their extremely long run. Frankly, it would be fairly disturbing if they did.▼
* Many other daily cartoons behave this way.▼
* This is the trope driving Dream from ''[[Sandman]]'' to {{spoiler|his choice to commit suicide}}
* In ''[[
== [[Film]] ==
* A subversion of a subversion is played beautifully by Michelle Pfeiffer in ''[[Stardust (
* [[James Bond]]. Although 007 is portrayed differently by each actor (Connery and Brosnan are more suave, Lazenby is subdued, Moore is comical, Dalton and Craig are brutish), but not in a way it changes the character too much.
== [[Live Action TV]] ==
* The titular character of ''[[Monk]]'' went through almost the entire show without much of a change, despite a dizzying array of both traumatic and hopeful events. It was only at the end that he overcame many of his difficulties.
* ''[[M*A*S*H (television)|M*A*SH]]'': From his first episode to his last,
* ''[[Star Trek: Voyager]]''. Ensign Harry Kim starts off as [[Ensign Newbie]] and '''seven years''' later is still portrayed the same way, despite being one of the main characters and thus subject to all the traumatic events that befall a [[Star Trek]] character (including dying enough times it became a fan joke).
* Joey from ''[[Friends]]'' is a prime example of this. When he was one out of six characters in an ensemble, and had little (to no) development, he was great. And when he received a [[Spin
* All the main (and most of the supporting) characters from ''[[Seinfeld]]'', being the [[Sadist Show]] that it was. While the status quo did change, it mostly had to do with how much the characters could get away with rather than any actual [[Character Development]]. Kramer, being [[The Fool]], usually managed to [[Karma Houdini|avoid the consequences of his actions]] and, therefore, develop the least.
* Pretty much all the members of ''~The A-Team~'' were fairly rounded, but they never really developed, except for Face, possibly, who started out as a fairly generic [[Con Man]] and ended up a [[Handsome Lech]] who was in touch with his [[Hidden Depths|inner math/finance geek]] (and reveled in that).
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* Sheldon Cooper in ''[[The Big Bang Theory]]''. He suffers from some episodic out of character behavior, but he always reverts to his "normal" self.
** Well, it is worth noting that he did somewhat evolve over time. From being a very stiff [[The Spock|spock]] with [[No Sense of Humor]], to being slightly more prone to joking (even though he still fails at the sarcasm department sometimes). By season 5 he's even {{spoiler|upgraded his [[She Is Not My Girlfriend]] status with Amy!}}
* Many of the
== [[Literature]] ==
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** Mr. Collins is a static character too. Frankly, he wouldn't be nearly as entertaining if he wasn't.
* [[Sherlock Holmes]] is basically the same in ''every single book''.
* [[
** He put this theory into practice in ''[[The Hobbit]]'' and ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'': the modern, [[Classical
** For example, at the end of ''The Lord of the Rings'' we know a lot more about Aragorn (and he knows more about himself) than when we met him in Bree, but who he is hasn't changed. Ditto for Legolas, Gimli, and Gandalf. Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pippin, on the other hand, have changed a lot. Note that [[Peter Jackson]] changed this in [[The Lord of the Rings (
* ''[[Harry Potter (novel)|Harry Potter]]'': Neither Dumbledore or Voldemort change during the novels. Their backstories are revealed, though.
== Newspaper Comics ==
▲* The entire cast of ''[[Peanuts]]'' haven't changed much throughout their extremely long run. Frankly, it would be fairly disturbing if they did.
▲* Many other daily cartoons behave this way.
== [[Video Games]] ==
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* Keyblade Master Aqua of ''[[Kingdom Hearts]]'' fame. She stays the same kind, strong-willed, [[Badass]] invidual that made her presence known in the very beginning and doesn't change, whereas her two male friends Terra and Ven end up different (and much less happy) people.
* [[Knight in Sour Armor|Jacob]] [[Only Sane Man|Taylor]] fits this in ''[[Mass Effect 2]]''. [[Dysfunction Junction|Unlike his teammates]], Jacob doesn't carry any emotional baggage, so most of his dialog tends to be focused on the present mission. It's even lampshaded in his Shadow Broker file, which notes that he was put on Shepard's team as much for the stabilising elements of his personality as his combat skills.
* ''[[The King of Fighters
** Members of Ikari and Art of Fighting teams are '''also''' these, except you couldn't expect Robert and Leona changing outfits all of a sudden.
* Franziska Von Karma from ''[[Phoenix Wright]] [[Ace Attorney]]:Justice for All'' is pretty much the same through the series as of ''[[Ace Attorney Investigations]]'', the most development she gets are the revelations of some [[Hidden Depths]] regarding her rivalry with Edgeworth.
* Although Mao of ''[[Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice]]'' goes through several character revelations, by the following scene he returns to acting to his old stuck-up friendship-hating violent ill-tempered rude demon self.
* While most character in ''[[Tales of Rebirth]]'' end up developing their characters in one way or another, [[Panthera Awesome|Eugene Gallardo]] remains the sensible [[Team Dad]] and [[Cool Old Guy]]. This is even lampshaded in a skit.
== [[Web Comics]] ==
* The cast of ''[[Sheldon]]'' is fairly static. As one
* Portrayed on [http://www.cracked.com/article_18741_the-evolution-fictional-characters-by-medium-5Bcomic5D.html the second example of this comic strip].
* Durkon from
== [[Western Animation]] ==
* The overwhelming majority of over-the-top comedic characters, from [[Bugs Bunny]] to [[Donald Duck]], to [[Animaniacs
* Many of the secondary characters from ''[[Avatar: The Last Airbender]]'' — Suki, Ty Lee and Iroh in particular — precisely ''because'' they're secondary characters. However, Toph doesn't particularly evolve either, able to get through the entire series on her existing personality (except for becoming a bit softer and more willing to work with others).
** Iroh is justified as he had already gone through a life-changing experience before the series started. His job was [[The Mentor|to help others, primarily his nephew Zuko, develop]].
* Skeletor, from pretty much any incarnation of ''[[He
* Most of the characters on ''[[Phineas and Ferb]],'' though Phineas has a bit of [[Characterization Marches On]] from his first appearance.
* Gizmo from ''[[Teen Titans (
* Soundwave of ''[[Transformers]]'' fame, especially in the show ''[[Transformers Prime]]'', where his status as [[The Voiceless]] (not to mention [[The Faceless]]) and well nigh [[The Stoic|emotionless]] listener adds a lot to his creepy factor. Although [[Word of God]] states this might be subject to change.
* There is very little character development in ''[[Code Lyoko]]'' to begin with aside from Aelita, Jeremy and (surprisingly) Sissi, but Odd is a particularly [[Egregious]] example. He [[Big Eater|eats a lot]], he dates a lot, and he [[So Unfunny
* [[The Stoic|Sergeant Cosgrove]] from ''[[Freakazoid!]]!'' is mostly this, until you realize that he is the sole character in the series capable of calming down the [[Cloudcuckoolander|manic superhero]].
{{reflist}}
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[[Category:Lit Class Tropes]]
[[Category:Omnipresent Tropes]]
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