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Patriarch of the family. A rather over-dramatic who ''will'' make any issue about race.


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Dre's wife. A doctor and much less uptight. But also a complete dork.


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The oldest Johnson child. The most normal one out of the bunch.


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The oldest son and exact opposite of his dad. Meek, spacey and a gigantic nerd.


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* OneHeadTaller: Puberty hit him like a ton of bricks later in the show, where he easily outsizes his dad in height.


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The male half of the twins. A bit of a doofus.


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The female half of the twins. An unusually scary child.


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Dre's dad. An mildly amoral man who crashes in the guest house.


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Dre's mom. A Jesus freak with some less than christian habits.
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* HalfbreedDiscrimination: Discussed. Rainbow's MixedAncestry caused her to feel like an outsider no matter where she was for most of her life, causing her to lean hard into the stereotypes of a ValleyGirl and a SassyBlackWoman in high school and college, respectively, in order to avoid being ostracized by her peers.

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* HalfbreedDiscrimination: HalfBreedDiscrimination: Discussed. Rainbow's MixedAncestry caused her to feel like an outsider no matter where she was for most of her life, causing her to lean hard into the stereotypes of a ValleyGirl and a SassyBlackWoman in high school and college, respectively, in order to avoid being ostracized by her peers.
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* BadassGrandpa:

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* BadassGrandpa:CombatPragmatist:
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* CharacterDeath: [[spoiler: He dies offscreen in the fourth season finale, and his memorial service is shown briefly]].
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* OutOfFocus: Leaves for college in season 4. Subverted in that in doing so she received her own spin-off in the form of ''Grown-ish''.

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* OutOfFocus: Leaves for college in season 4. Subverted in that in doing so she received her own spin-off in the form of ''Grown-ish''.''Series/GrownIsh''.

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* DumbassTeenageSon: Different from most examples as he's actually an academically-gifted nerd, but he's still an awkward, horny and hopelessly naive dope that the rest of the family tends to look down on.



* ManChild: Acts more like a gradeschooler than a college-bound 17-year-old.
* MommasBoy: As if to compensate for his rocky relationship with Dre, he tends to cling to Bow. While Bo is generally happy to accommodate him, even she can find the attention he gives her to be a bit much.



* NotSoDifferent: He's in the middle of a HilariouslyAbusiveChildhood with a father that mocks him and a mother who he is blindly devoted to, regardless of whether or not she's in the right, not entirely unlike Dre's life growing up.



* SadClown: His status as TheUnfavorite WellDoneSonGuy is generally played for laughs, but the show occasionally goes into detail about just how hard he has it.

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* SadClown: His status as TheUnfavorite WellDoneSonGuy is generally played for laughs, but the show occasionally goes into detail about just how hard he has it.it as a result.
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* ExtrovertedNerd: In spite of his supreme nerdiness, he is actually quite outgoing, if incredibly awkward.

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* ExtrovertedNerd: ExtravertedNerd: In spite of his supreme nerdiness, he is actually quite outgoing, if incredibly awkward.
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* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling:

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* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling:FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: Played with in his relationship with Zoey. While Junior is the more studious and authority-respecting of the two, he also tends to crack under pressure where Zoey remains levelheaded. After Zoey leaves for college, Junior begins to step up his game and become more reliable, though he's still pretty bad under pressure.

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* BigEater
* HappilyMarried: To Bow.
* HilariouslyAbusiveChildhood

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* BigEater
AbusiveParents: While he generally averts (and in the best of times [[GoodParents reverses]]) this trope with most of his kids, he frequently outright bullies Junior, which has led to his oldest son developing a sizable chip in his shoulder.
* BigEater: Food is one of his greatest pleasures in life, so much so that it was all he took with him when he was forced to evacuate his office.
* BumblingDad: Tries his best to be an attentive, balanced father, but has a terrible tendency of taking well-intentioned efforts to support his kids way too far.
* EverythingIsRacist: Dre tends to seek out racism within every situation he finds himself in. [[AllIssuesArePoliticalIssues While his suspicions are frequently proven right]], he has a bad habit of attempting to resolve them in the worst ways possible, and annoys friends and family alike with his constant railroading of conversations into being about race.
* TheFashionista: A rare male example. He has an obsession with sneakers and enjoys color-coordinating his outfits to look as stylish as possible.
* FreudianExcuse: He had an extremely rough upbringing, which causes him to occasionally coddle his kids in an effort to make sure that they don't suffer like he did. At the same time, his fear of his kids becoming ''too'' pampered and taking the privileges that he worked his whole life to get for them for granted can occasionally cause him to be unnecessarily hard on them. His blind devotion to his mother can also be explained by the fact that, as flawed as she is, she always worked ''extremely'' hard to support and take care of him growing up.
* HappilyMarried: To Bow.
Bow. While jokes are occasionally made about their marriage being on the rocks, they're regularly shown to be a perfect match for each other and always manage to overcome whatever problems they face in their relationship.
* HilariouslyAbusiveChildhoodHilariouslyAbusiveChildhood: His father bullied him, his mother was overbearing, and his family barely had the money to scrape out a living. Played with somewhat, as Dre's tough childhood is played as a serious FreudianExcuse for his behavior almost as often as it's PlayedForLaughs.
* ItsAllAboutMe: While he loves his family, he admits that he tends to put his own interests above theirs.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He's selfish, stingy and a bit of a bumbler, but Dre has a strong desire to make sure that he can provide his family with as fulfilling and happy lives as he possibly can.
* LargeHam: Has an extremely theatrical and lyrical way of speaking, which makes most of his lines rather hammy.
* LetsGetDangerous: Dre almost always becomes substantially more competent and insightful when the situation demands him to, dropping any traces of being a BumblingDad.



* MommasBoy
* TheNarrator

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* MommasBoy
ManChild: Downplayed but still very present. Dre is a devoted MommasBoy who has a tendency to throw hissy fits when he doesn't get his way. He's described as a "manbaby" at multiple points.
* TheNarratorMommasBoy: He places Ruby on a pedestal, to the point of completely overlooking her very hostile treatment of Bow.
* TheNarrator: Almost every episode is narrated by him. He occasionally takes on qualities of an UnreliableNarrator in order to make himself look better in situations where he's clearly in the wrong, but this is always PlayedForLaughs.



* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname

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* OnlyKnownByTheirNicknameNotSoDifferent: Every so often, Dre is able to find common ground with both Pops and Junior.
* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: Almost never referred to as Andre.
* OnlySaneEmployee: His (frequently justified) habit of tying everything back to racism notwithstanding, he is by far the least insane person at his workplace.
* OverprotectiveDad: Often becomes passionate about fighting for his children even when his children vehemently don't want him to.
* ParentalFavoritism: Very openly considers [[DaddysGirl Zoey]] to be the child that he is closest to and most proud of. Jack is a distant second, as, while they don't really connect all that much, he can at least play sports well.
* SelfMadeMan: Worked his way up from poverty to modest wealth through hard work and determination.
* SitcomArchNemesis: Absolutely hates Johan's guts, and isn't shy about telling him it to his face, but their relationship is mostly harmless.
* SoapboxSadie: His tendency to constantly speak out against things that he perceives as injustices frequently annoys his co-workers and, to a lesser extent, his own family. Subverted to a degree, as while he's frequently shown to be overzealous, he's also generally right to complain.
* TokenMinority: Enforced in his workplace, where he is in charge of the "urban" department. Subverted somewhat in practice, as both Charlie and Daphne are regulars in boardroom meetings.
* UglyGuyHotWife: A downplayed example. While Dre himself is far from ugly, jokes are frequently made about how Rainbow is completely out of his league.
* WellDoneSonGuy: Was one growing up, and still shows traces of it as an adult.
* WhatDoesSheSeeInHim: Dre's own children occasionally wonder why their mom decided to marry him. The show makes it clear that the two have excellent chemistry with each other that hasn't diminished since when they first met.
* WhyCouldntYouBeDifferent: He's very disappointed that Junior has grown into a clumsy nerd rather than the sporty jock he wanted him to be.



[[folder:Rainbow Johnson]]

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[[folder:Rainbow 'Bow' Johnson]]



* TheAce: A light example, but it's hard to argue that Rainbow ''doesn't'' have it all together, considering that she's a beautiful and successful doctor who is also a HappilyMarried mother of five that is generally significantly more competent and rational than her husband is. Her status as this is that major source of her {{Pride}}, as it causes her to completely overlook when she actually makes mistakes or is in the wrong.



* GranolaGirl: Downplayed. Her parents were hippies.

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* BreakTheHaughty: Episodes frequently feature her realizing that she isn't the perfect "super mom" that she occasionally prides herself for being.
* CareerVersusFamily: A recurring topic of contention for her. Rainbow loves being a doctor just as much as she loves being a mom, and the pressure society places on her to give up one for the other regularly frustrates her.
* CannotTellAJoke: A RunningGag has her attempts at humor always falling completely flat.
* CloserToEarth: Downplayed compared to most TV moms. While Rainbow is far from infallible as a parent and spouse, she's a hell of a lot better at it than Dre is.
* GranolaGirl: Downplayed. Her parents were hippies.hippies, and she herself has retained traces of their upbringing.



* HappilyMarried: To Dre.
* HippieParents: Her parents live in a van, for starters.
* MamaBear
* TheMedic

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* HalfbreedDiscrimination: Discussed. Rainbow's MixedAncestry caused her to feel like an outsider no matter where she was for most of her life, causing her to lean hard into the stereotypes of a ValleyGirl and a SassyBlackWoman in high school and college, respectively, in order to avoid being ostracized by her peers.
* HappilyMarried: To Dre.
Dre. While jokes are occasionally made about their marriage being on the rocks, they're regularly shown to be a perfect match for each other and always manage to overcome whatever problems they face in their relationship.
* HippieParents: Her parents live in a van, for starters.
starters. One that's powered by human feces.
* MamaBear
LustObject: Charlie frequently voices his desire to see her in a swimsuit.
* TheMedicMamaBear: Loses her usual cool when she sees her children being treated unfairly in front of her.
* TheMedic: She works as a doctor.



* OnlySaneWoman: While Bow's ego has a habit of clouding her judgement of her own actions, she just as frequently serves as a voice of reason to the rest of her family.
* OverprotectiveMom: Much more in favor of risking pampering her children for the sake of their protection than Dre is.
* {{Pride}}: Her biggest flaw. While Rainbow ''is'' genuinely a well-rounded and competent person, her belief that she is the perfect mother and wife often causes her to overlook when she is in the wrong.
* SitcomArchNemesis: With Ruby. To say their relationship is rocky would be a severe understatement.
* UglyGuyHotWife: Downplayed. While Dre is hardly ugly, Bow is still regularly said to be way out of his league looks-wise.



* AloofBigSister: Generally fairly distant from her siblings, particularly Junior, who she avoids associating with at all costs when at school. She doesn't do it out of any kind of dislike, however, and is shown to be a caring and helpful sister when they need her.



* DaddysGirl

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* DaddysGirlBrattyTeenageDaughter: Played with. While she engages in much of the behavior regularly associated with this trope (throwing/going to [[WildTeenParty Wild Teen Parties]], dating questionable boys, etc.), she's also frequently shown to be much more responsible than her parents give her credit for.
* BrilliantButLazy: Downplayed. She does well in school, but isn't the outstanding honor student that Junior is and does almost no extracurricular activities. Despite this, she's shown to arguably be the smartest person in her family time and time again.
* CoolBigSis: Proves herself to be very capable of assuming this role when her siblings need her, most notably when Diane had her first period, where she ended up being much better at discussing it with her than Rainbow herself was.
* DaddysGirl: Dre openly considers her to be his favorite, and the two are generally shown to be very close.
* DeadpanSnarker: Most of her lines are droll quips at her family's expense.



* TheFashionista
* HollywoodToneDeaf

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* TheFashionista
TheFashionista: Has an interest and talent in design.
* HollywoodToneDeafFoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: Played with in terms of her relationship with Junior. While she's the indifferent, popularity-obsessed sibling, she is also regularly shown to be much more reliable, intelligent and competent than people give her credit for, while Junior tends to flounder when under pressure.
* HiddenDepths: Beneath her uncaring exterior lies an extremely capable and reliable person.
* HollywoodToneDeaf: Her voice needs to be heavily auto-tuned in order to sound even remotely decent while singing.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Can be very mean and dismissive towards the rest of her family, but she loves them all deep down.
* MellowFellow: A female example. Her mood rarely rises beyond an indifferent calm.



* TheReliableOne: A trait which is frequently veiled by her indifferent attitude. Zoey is genuinely a very intelligent, capable and independent person who is fully capable of making wise decisions for both herself and her siblings when her parents cannot.



* OutOfFocus: As of S4 due to moving out to college. Also averted since she got her own spin-off.

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* OutOfFocus: As of S4 due to moving out to college. Also averted since Leaves for college in season 4. Subverted in that in doing so she got received her own spin-off.spin-off in the form of ''Grown-ish''.
* SiblingYinYang: With Junior. She's cool, calm and aloof while he's dorky, excitable and prone to getting caught up in the little things.
* SmarterThanYouLook: Countless episodes focus on her parents worrying about her behavior only to realize that she's much more on top of her life than they give her credit for.



* BlackAndNerdy. Not just him but starting in S4 he has an entire clique of blerds.
* GeniusDitz: Acts awkward and socially stunted at times, but his intelligence is way above average.
* HormoneAddledTeenager

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* BlackAndNerdy. Not just him but starting BlackAndNerdy: Obsessed with practically every nerdy interest under the sun.
* ButtMonkey: The biggest one
in S4 the family. Even ''Rainbow'' occasionally gets in digs at him.
* CharacterDevelopment: Steadily becomes a more respected and capable person as the series goes on, becoming his student body president, getting a girlfriend, and stepping up as TheReliableOne after Zoey leaves for college.
* ExtrovertedNerd: In spite of his supreme nerdiness,
he has an entire clique of blerds.
is actually quite outgoing, if incredibly awkward.
* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling:
* GeniusDitz: Acts awkward He's a goofball with NoSocialSkills and socially stunted at times, the mind of a little kid most of the time, but he's an excellent student and can be pretty insightful when he wants to be.
* HormoneAddledTeenager: Jokes are occasionally made about
his intelligence is way above average.
* HormoneAddledTeenager
chronic horniness.



* NewTransferStudent: As of season 4.
* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname

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* NewTransferStudent: As of After getting wrongfully expelled from his private school in season 4.
4 (it's a long story), he begins enrolling in public school. Even after he's allowed back at his old school, he continues to attend public school due to feeling more accepted there.
* OnlyKnownByTheirNicknameNiceGuy: Generally a well-meaning and friendly guy.
* NoRespectGuy: Picking on him seems to be fair game for everyone in the family.
* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: Always referred to as Junior.
* TheReliableOne: After Zoey leaves for college, Junior begins to take on a much more active role in taking care of his younger siblings while Rainbow is busy with work.
* SadClown: His status as TheUnfavorite WellDoneSonGuy is generally played for laughs, but the show occasionally goes into detail about just how hard he has it.
* SiblingYinYang: With Zoey. He's a goofy, excitable nerd while she's calm, aloof and very popular.
* TheUnfavorite: Dre is openly disappointed in him and often bullies him as a result, his siblings generally think of him as a loser and even his own mother can't help but mock him at times.
* WellDoneSonGuy: Dre's lack of respect for him and his desperate attempts to win his approval are a defining part of his character.
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* OutOfFocus: As of S4 due to moving out to college. Slightly averted since she got her own spin-off.

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* OutOfFocus: As of S4 due to moving out to college. Slightly Also averted since she got her own spin-off.
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* Out of focus: As of S4 due to moving out to college. Slightly averted since she got her own spin-off.

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* Out of focus: OutOfFocus: As of S4 due to moving out to college. Slightly averted since she got her own spin-off.
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* Out of focus: As of S4 due to moving out to college. Slightly averted since she got her own spin-off.
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* InformedJudaism: Although never specified, Bow and her siblings are all played by actors who are notable for being Nlack and Jewish.

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* InformedJudaism: Although never specified, Bow and her siblings are all played by actors who are notable for being Nlack Black and Jewish.
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* InformedJudaism: Although never specified, Bow and her siblings are all played by actors who are notable for being Nlack and Jewish.
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* TheDitz: Subverted; with her very teen interests and a relaxed aloof attitude, she gives off the vibe of a ditz but repeatedly is revealed to be aware and mostly on top of everything. Still, somehow it took Rainbow till Zoey's senior year to realize she has depth.

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* TheDitz: Subverted; with her very teen interests and a relaxed aloof attitude, she gives off the vibe of a ditz but repeatedly is revealed to be aware and mostly on top of everything. Still, It somehow it still took Rainbow till Zoey's senior year to realize she has depth.
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* TheDitz: Subverted; with her very teen interests and a relaxed aloof attitude, she gives off the vibe of a ditz but repeatedly is revealed to be aware and mostly on top of everything. Still, somehow it took Rainbow till Zoey's senior year to realize she has depth.

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* BlackAndNerdy

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* BlackAndNerdyBlackAndNerdy. Not just him but starting in S4 he has an entire clique of blerds.


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* NewTransferStudent: As of season 4.

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* HappilyMarried

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* HappilyMarriedHappilyMarried: To Bow.



* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname



* HappilyMarried
* HippieParents

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* HappilyMarried
HappilyMarried: To Dre.
* HippieParentsHippieParents: Her parents live in a van, for starters.



* WhyDoYouKeepChangingJobs: Inexplicably goes from working in the ER, to being a surgeon, to an anesthesiologist.



* AmbiguouslyBrown: [[RunningGag Rick Fox MIGHT be her father]]

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* AmbiguouslyBrown: [[RunningGag Rick Fox MIGHT be her father]]father.]]



* PhoneaholicTeenager

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* PhoneaholicTeenagerPhoneaholicTeenager: Although downplayed in later seasons.
* OnlySaneMan: Much more level-headed than her parents and siblings.



* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname



* PolarOppositeTwins

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* PolarOppositeTwinsPolarOppositeTwins: With Diane.



* PolarOppositeTwins

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* PolarOppositeTwinsPolarOppositeTwins: With Jack.
* SitcomArchNemesis: PlayedForLaughs with her and Charlie.


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* ObnoxiousInLaws: If there is an opportunity to make fun of Rainbow, she will take it.
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* DemonicPossession: Possibly.
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* InsaneTrollLogic: got fired from a job for stealing mattresses, which he justified by stating it was slavery reparations. When told that the store never owed him reparations, he said "Not after I took the mattresses!"

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* WhereDidWeGoWrong: Averted. She is proud of all her children, even if 2 out of 3 of them aren't as conventionally successful as Wife, Mother, and Doctor Bow.



* LovableAlphaBitch

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* LovableAlphaBitchLovableAlphaBitch: She is sweet and her Mother notes her as being devoted to her father and teaching her aging parents how to use technology and social media.
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* TheGloriousWarofSisterlyRivalry: A mild case and more from Bow's end in "Sister, Sister".

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* TheGloriousWarofSisterlyRivalry: TheGloriousWarOfSisterlyRivalry: A mild case and more from Bow's end in "Sister, Sister".

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* SiblingYingYang: With both Bow and Joahan

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* SiblingYingYang: SiblingYinYang: With both Bow and JoahanJoahan
* TheGloriousWarofSisterlyRivalry: A mild case and more from Bow's end in "Sister, Sister".

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* HollywoodAtheist: Which caused a riff between him ad the rest of the family in "God".

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* HollywoodAtheist: Which caused a riff between him ad and the rest of the family in "God".



! Stevens & Lido

[[folder: Charlie Telphy]]
->'''Played By''': Deon Cole

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! Stevens & Lido

[[folder: Charlie Telphy]]
Santa Monica Johnson]]
->'''Played By''': Deon ColeRashidaJones



* BunnyEarsLawyer: Despite being an adman who does not know what ''Microsoft'' is, he has the highest account retention in the company.
* CloudCuckooLander

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* BunnyEarsLawyer: Despite being an adman who does not know what ''Microsoft'' is, he has FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: Santa Monica is the highest account retention in former, while Bow is the company.
latter.
* CloudCuckooLanderGoldDigger
* LovableAlphaBitch
* SiblingYingYang: With both Bow and Joahan



[[folder: Josh Oppenhol]]
->'''Played By''': Jeff Meacham

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! Stevens & Lido

[[folder: Josh Oppenhol]]
Charlie Telphy]]
->'''Played By''': Jeff MeachamDeon Cole


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* BunnyEarsLawyer: Despite being an adman who does not know what ''Microsoft'' is, he has the highest account retention in the company.
* CloudCuckooLander
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Josh Oppenhol]]
->'''Played By''': Jeff Meacham
----
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* GeniusDitz: Acts awkward and socially stunted at times, but his intelligence is way above average.


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* TheDitz: His family loves him, but they all know he's not the brightest bulb.

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* CreepyChild

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* CreepyChildCreepyChild: Has shades of this, particularly in Season 3.


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* HollywoodAtheist: Which caused a riff between him ad the rest of the family in "God".
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* AmbiguouslyBrown: [[RunningGag Rick Fox MIGHT be her father]]
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* TheNarrator
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* HollywoodToneDeaf
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* HiddenDepths: Used to live in New York and [[ActorAllusion was a backup singer for Bette Middler, even appearing in the movie Beaches.]]

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