History Characters / FargoFilm

* WrongGenreSavvy: He thinks he's a hardened tough guy in a Creator/LiamNeeson style action film who will rescue his daughter and put her kidnappers in the ground. In reality, his attempts at intimidating Carl do nothing but [[spoiler:get him killed and wouldn't have helped Jean at all, even if she wasn't already dead.]]

* BewareTheSillyOnes: Her cheerful, friendly personality doesn't conflict with her natural talent for policework.

* EvenEvilHasStandards: Even he seems unsettled by Gaear's brutality and ease with killing people as easily as breathing and [[spoiler:upon learning that he murdered Jean simply for crying]].

* JerkassHasAPoint: He correctly points out the flaws in Jerry's plan and wonders why he can't simply swallow his pride and ask Wade for the money and later gets justifiably annoyed at his poor planning and failure to get the money together. His frustration with Gaear is also justifiable.

* FatalFlaw: His combination of pride and lack of foresight drives him to commit a serious felony without thinking the whole thing through. [[spoiler: Once he completely loses control of the situation, he flees his home and is eventually arrested]].

* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: The man "just" planned a kidnap-and-ransom scheme...which quickly spiraled into several murders, [[spoiler: his wife being murdered, his father-in-law being shot, and his own imprisonment]].

* VillainHasAPoint: His insistence that Wade stop trying to stray from the kidnapper's demands. He's doing it so that his scheme goes off without a hitch, but he's still right in doing so. As far as Wade knows, Jerry is correct in saying the kidnappers hold all the cards and following their instructions is the safest option. Wade deviating from the plan results in [[spoiler: his and an innocent parking attendant's murders.]]

* WrongGenreSavvy: He thinks he's a hardened tough guy in a Creator/LiamNeeson style action film who will rescue his daughter and put her kidnappers in the ground. In reality, his attempts at intimidating Carl do nothing but [[spoiler: get him killed and wouldn't have helped Jean at all, even if she wasn't already dead.]]

-->''"Shut the fuck up! Or I'll throw you back in the trunk, you know?"''

* DeconstructedCharacterArchetype: Of the [[PsychoForHire brutal and sociopathic hitmen]] usually seen in crime films. Gaear is so volatile and brutal that he ends up creating more problems than he solves and is responsible for bringing the case to the attention of authorities. [[spoiler: He also murders Jean for making too much noise, meaning the whole scheme would have been for nothing even if Marge hadn't tracked him down, and then murdering Carl out of similar petulance.]] Gaear is less an effortlessly efficient criminal than a volatile sadist with almost no impulse control.

* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter: [[spoiler: Downplayed. The guy he vouched for is easily the more sociopathic and violent of the two, but both are criminals and pretty horrible people overall, and Grimsrud ''is'' competent when his temper isn't overtaking his judgment.]]

* SmallRoleBigImpact: He is only featured in a couple of scenes. However, Marge's brief time with him serves as the catalyst for her CharacterDevelopment. [[spoiler: Upon discovering that everything Mike told her about his life was a lie, Marge is inspired to see through Jerry's fabrications. This leads to Jerry's role in the kidnapping being discovered and the case being solved.]]

* StrawLoser: [[spoiler: He's an unemployed, stalking creep who has to pitifully exploit the kindness of Marge to have any human connection. He makes ''Jerry'' look like a success story]].

* RightForTheWrongReasons: Wade's right in not wanting Jerry to handle the trade. However, that's only because of Jerry being in on the kidnapping, which is info unknown to him.

* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: He tells Shep Proudfoot to "go smoke a PeacePipe" when the latter angrily confronts him over threatening his parole.

* AmbiguousDisorder: He combines moments of stoic silence with ''incredibly'' violent and murderous behavior toward pesky witnesses. It is impossible to peg him as a complete psychopath, though, since he does seem to be good friends with Shep.

* AxCrazy: He can be set off into murderous rages by seemingly the slightest things. As Carl finds out, he can be this in a very [[AnAxeToGrind literal]] way.

* FatalFlaw: His constant need to put down and belittle others [[spoiler: ends with him finally provoking Grimsrud into burying an ax into his neck]].

* DidntThinkThisThrough: It turns out that [[spoiler: trying to play the hero and act tough with a trigger-happy criminal who's already in a bad mood won't end well. Even when he manages to get a shot off after Carl shoots him point-black in the chest, he's so dazed that he only grazes Carl, and still winds up dead for his trouble.]]
* DyingMomentOfAwesome: He adamantly refuses to hand over the money if he doesn't get his daughter back first. [[spoiler:As a result, he gets shot in the stomach for trying to be a hero, but before dying he squeezes off a shot that grazes Carl's cheek, leaving Carl whining, bleeding all over the place, and screaming in pain.]]
* FatalFlaw: His {{pride}} and ControlFreak tendencies [[spoiler: lead him to try and confront Carl at gunpoint over his daughter's ransom instead of listening to Jerry. This gets him killed]].

[[caption-width-right:350:''[[ShuttingUpNow "Oh, fuck it, I don't have to talk, either, man! See how you like it. Just total fuckin' silence. Two can play at that game, smart guy. We'll just see how you like it. Total silence."]]'']]

* AssholeVictim: He's killed by his own partner (i.e. Grimsrud) after he betrays him by telling him that he's keeping all of the money for himself.

* BigBadDuumvirate: Downplayed. Carl and Grimsrud are the two main villains of the story. However, the [[BigBadWannabe consistently clumsy Carl]] is constantly overshadowed by Grimsrud, the real stone-cold killer.

* ButtMonkey: Despite being a crook, he gets the short end of the stick from pretty much everyone even his partner. It doesn't help that he dies in a very humiliating way [[spoiler:(i.e. chopped to pieces and then having his body parts getting shredded in a woodchipper.)]]

* DeadpanSnarker: Averted. He ''seems'' like one because he's played by Creator/SteveBuscemi, and he does constantly make sour little remarks in a tone that suggests snarkery, but they're seldom witty or even funny; he just bitches constantly, and it drives his partner up the wall. He is shown elsewhere to be a hopeless dork who thinks that the music of José Feliciano is the height of sophistication.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Even he seems unsettled by Gaear's brutality and ease with killing people as easily as breathing and [[spoiler: upon learning that he murdered Jean simply for crying]].

* TooDumbToLive: Later, he argues with his psychotic accomplice over a car ([[spoiler:despite having just made almost $1 million in secret]]). Arguably justified, [[spoiler: since he did just get shot and spent several hours bleeding out without seeking medical attention, so he may not have been thinking straight.]]

* DidntThinkThisThrough: Exactly what he planned to do after [[spoiler: grinding Carl's body up in the woodchipper is unclear, given the massive bloody red stain it left all around it in the snow.]]

* FatalFlaw: Gaear is definitely a competent criminal...but his sociopathic wrath means he needlessly creates more bloodshed than necessary. [[spoiler: He straight up murders Jean for being a nuisance, and after killing Carl, he takes the time to grind his body in a woodchipper, which is what exposes him to Marge since he left quite a bloody mess]]. It's also his murder of the state trooper and the witnesses that gets the case noticed by Marge and ends up bringing everything down, as Jerry had been able to convince Wade and Stan not to go to the cops.

* KickTheDog: [[spoiler: He murders Jean out of sheer petulance, and Carl afterwards over the car.]]

* NoHonorAmongThieves: [[spoiler: He brutally murders Carl the second they no longer need to work together and after Carl gets on his bad side.]]

* SkewedPriorities: He decides to go upstairs and go rifling around for ointment for his wounded hand...in the ''middle of a kidnapping''.

->'''Played by:''' Creator/SteveReevis

* AffablyEvil: He's a career criminal, but he's also pretty friendly during his interactions with Jerry, and speaks highly of Gaear Grimsrud, which would imply a friendship between them. The only person he isn't polite to is Carl Showalter, and only because his presence threatened his parole.[[labelnote:note]]Showalter telling him to [[PoliticallyIncorrectVillain smoke a peace pipe]] certainly didn't help his case[[/labelnote]]

-->''"You were such a super lady... and I'm, I'm so lonely."''

->'''Played by''': Gary Houston

[[/folder]]

* FatalFlaw: His combination of pride and lack of foresight drives him to commit a serious felony without thinking the whole thing through. [[spoiler: Once he completely loses control of the situation, he flees his home and is eventually arrested].

* RedOniBlueOni: The talkative, hot-tempered red to Gaear's icy blue.

* RedOniBlueOni: The stoic, quiet blue to Carl's red.

* ItsPersonal: He aims to swindle his father-in-law not only out of need, but also because he really hates the old bastard.

* AwesomeMcCoolName: A police officer has to clarify that it's a name.

->'''Played By:''' Creator/FrancesMcDormand

-->''"And for what? For a little bit of money. There's more to life than a little money, you know. Don'tcha know that? And here ya are, and it's a beautiful day. Well. I just don't understand it."''

* CharacterDevelopment: It's done very subtly, but Marge does grow as a character over the course of the story. While initially a perpetual optimist, eager to blindly trust and see the best in people, her meeting with Mike Yanagita changes her perception on human nature. [[spoiler:After learning that everything Mike told her about his life was a lie, she returns to Jerry's office and is much more assertive with her line of questioning. This ultimately leads to Jerry's part in the kidnapping being discovered and the case being solved.]]
* {{Determinator}}: Being seven-months-pregnant won't stop her from solving a bizarre crime mostly by herself.
* DissonantSerenity: To comedic effect. Marge conducts keen police work with unbending persistence, all while having a sunny disposition and being in a most delicate state while being pregnant.
* FamilyVersusCareer: She's a consummate policewoman, but her priority is Norm. [[spoiler:So much that not a peep comes from her masterfully solving a kidnapping and multiple murder case when she gets home. That gruesome stuff doesn't belong at their marital haven, so it doesn't even occur to her to bring it up.]]
* GoodCannotComprehendEvil: One of the most famous quotes of hers alludes to this, when speaking to Grimsrud. [[spoiler:After arresting him at the end of the movie, Marge can't understand why he and his partner would get so many people killed, all for money.]]

* ImprobableAimingSkills: Toyed with, when she [[spoiler:finally finds Gaear Grimsrud. It takes ''skills'' to pull off a leg shot at 50+ feet with a snub-nose, and she only hits him the second time]].
* NervesOfSteel: About what you'd want in a good law enforcement officer, but then you consider what the likelihood is that there's been any multiple homicides in Brainerd recently (especially ones as [[OverdrawnAtTheBloodBank violent]] as these), and this quality suddenly stands out much more.

* SherlockScan: Arriving at a few hours old crime scene, Marge deduces exactly what happened with a quick survey of the area, then figures out that the perp's car had dealer plates from the dead state trooper's memo.

->'''Played By:''' Creator/BruceBohne

-->''"Yah."''

* NiceGuy: Seems to be genuinely friendly.

->'''Played By:''' Creator/WilliamHMacy

-->''"It's my deal here, see."''

* BitchInSheepsClothing: In public, Jerry appears to be a meek and ingratiatingly polite milquetoast whom one would never suspect of breaking the law. In reality, Jerry's pleasant demeanor is merely a facade for his true nature as a highly [[TheUnfettered amoral]], petty individual who's willing to harm his own family to appease his grandiose sense of entitlement.
* ButtMonkey: Nothing ever goes right for Jerry and very few people even pretend to give him any respect. [[JustifiedTrope For good reason,]] since all of his decisions both before and during the movie wind up making things worse for everyone.
* TheChessmaster: Jerry thinks he's this, [[AvertedTrope he's not]]. From the very first scene, it becomes clear that his scheme was [[DidntThinkThisThrough horribly thought through]], and a number of glaring issues stand out. If Jerry needed the money so bad, and if getting a ransom from his father-in-law was his only option, he just as easily could've staged his wife's kidnapping and sent her to a safehouse to hide in. Needless to say, [[PlethoraOfMistakes everything goes wrong.]]
* DecoyProtagonist: The early scenes focus mainly on Jerry, as if to set him up as the film's VillainProtagonist. This changes when Marge, a more clear-cut hero, enters the picture.

** Jerry's entire plan. He hires two thugs whom he doesn't know and can't control on the recommendation of a violent parolee to kidnap his wife, apparently without considering the traumatic effect it might have on her. Or that the thugs might try to blackmail him for more money once [[IHaveYourWife they have his wife]] and know that he is scamming his father-in-law. Or that his stingy, bossy and distrustful father-in-law might try to interfere rather than just hand over a million dollar ransom. Jerry also completely forgot about how his semi-estranged teen son would take the kidnapping (and possible murder) of his mother.
** Jerry thought that bringing his financial proposal to Wade would award him the total profits of the deal, as if Wade would have just handed it to him with no compromises. Jerry wanted to have the cake and to eat it too.

* EvilIsNotAToy: Finds this out the hard way when [[spoiler:his wife and father-in-law are murdered, along with four other innocent people, and he himself is arrested, leaving his teenage son parentless]].

* HiddenDepths: Jerry is defined by his callous stupidity. However, he does manage to come up with a decent proposal for a real estate deal, that impresses his usually mean-spirited father in law and his business partner. Unfortunately, he didn't anticipate them choosing to go about the deal themselves, while offering Jerry a small finder's fee. The implication is that Jerry could be successful if he bothered to put more thought and work into his actions.

* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: The consequences of his actions seem to affect him [[spoiler:when he finds the corpses of Wade and the parking attendant]].

->'''Played By:''' Kristin Rudrüd

-->''"Hi, hon. Welcome back. How was Fargo?"''

* DemotedToExtra: She starts out as an important character, but the second she is kidnapped, she becomes nothing more than a HostageMacguffin without any lines. [[spoiler:Though she continues to survive for most of the film as a LivingProp, she is offhandedly killed offscreen by Grimsrud, almost as if her death was an insignificant event ''even to the Coens''.]]
* FlatCharacter: Her purpose in the film is to serve as the HostageMacguffin. She doesn't receive much characterization.
* {{Housewife}}: Doesn't receive much more characterization than wife and mother.
* KilledOffscreen: [[spoiler:Beaten to death by Grimsrud for shrieking too much.]]

->'''Played By:''' Creator/TonyDenman

* BrilliantButLazy: Downplayed. He's apparently not living up to his academic potential and would rather play hockey and hang out at [=McDonald's=] with his friends.

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: [[spoiler:His mother and grandfather are murdered and his father is sent to prison. He likely inherits money from Wade and will be financially secure, but it's not clear what will happen to him until he turns 18.]]

->'''Played By:''' Creator/HarvePresnell

-->''"I'm thinkin' we should offer 'em half a million."''

Jerry's wealthy father-in-law and boss, who owns a car dealership.

* CharacterDeath: [[spoiler:Shot seven times by Carl Showalter.]]

* DidntThinkThisThrough: Turns out that [[spoiler: trying to play the hero and act tough with a trigger happy criminal who's already in a bad mood doesn't end well. Even when he manages to get a shot off after Carl shoots him point-black in the chest, he's so dazed that he only grazes Carl, and still winds up dead for his trouble.]]

->'''Played By:''' Creator/SteveBuscemi

-->''"Okay, you're tasking us to perform this mission, but you won't tell us what... oh, fuck it. Let's have a look at the Ciera."''

* BaitTheDog: Immediately points out what a bad idea Jerry's plan is, and even starts trying to talk him out of it — before saying "fuck it" and committing to the kidnapping.
* BigBadDuumvirate: Downplayed. Carl and Grimsrud are the two main villains of the story. However, the [[BigBadWannabe consistently clumsy Carl]] is constantly overshadowed by the stone-cold killer that Grimsrud is.
* BoisterousWeakling: Fancies himself a hardened criminal. Needless to say, the tough guy image he tries to present fools nobody.

* ButtMonkey: Despite being a crook he gets the short end of the stick from pretty much everyone even his partner. It doesn't help that he dies in a very humiliating way [[spoiler:(i.e. chopped to pieces and then having his body parts getting shredded in a wood-chipper.)]]

* CoDragons: He and Grimsrud were supposed to be this to Jerry. It didn't play out that way.

* KarmicDeath: He ends up getting chopped to pieces by Grimsrud after he betrays him by telling him that he's keeping the car and money for himself as well as insulting Shep right into his face. His chopped up body then gets shoved into a wood-chipper for good measure.
* KickTheDog: Heartlessly laughs as a scared and desperate Jean attempts a hopeless getaway, falling down in the snow.
* KickTheSonOfABitch: He shoots Wade in cold blood when the latter meets up with him at parking lot and refuses to hand the money over to him unless he gets his daughter back.
* LaughablyEvil: He may be a foul-mouthed and rather perverted crook but despite that he's got comedic moments from time to time in contrast to his partner (i.e. Grimsrud) who's more of a KnightOfCerebus.

* MouthOfSauron: Does all the talking, despite the fact that, as Shep later reveals, Grimsrud is supposed to be the one in charge.

* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: Tells Shep Proudfoot to "go smoke a PeacePipe" when the latter angrily confronts him over threatening his parole.

* ScreamsLikeALittleGirl: He screams like this when he turns around and sees Grimsrud who's about to attack him with an axe after he insults both him and Shep.
* SirSwearsALot: His swearing increasing in frequency as the film goes on. It helps that he's portrayed by Steve Buscemi who's famous for playing very foul-mouthed characters.
* StupidCrooks: He sets up a clandestine meeting in a parking lot, despite there being an obvious witness (the parking attendant) that he'll have to kill, thus creating another murder scene. He also forgets to switch the license plates on the car, which a cop notices and thus sets off an escalating series of fuck-ups. He buries the money in a field by a fence post, with the only marker being a pathetic ice scraper.

* TooDumbToLive: Later, he argues with his psychotic accomplice over a car ([[spoiler:despite having just made almost $1 million in secret]]). Arguably Justified, [[spoiler: since he did just get shot and spent several hours bleeding out without seeking medical attention, he may not have been thinking straight.]]

->'''Played By:''' Creator/PeterStormare

* AmbiguousDisorder: He combines moments of stoic silence with ''incredibly'' violent and murderous behavior toward pesky witnesses. It is impossible to peg him as a complete psychopathic since he does seem to be good friends with Shep.
* AxCrazy: Set off into murderous rages by seemingly the slightest things. As Carl finds out, he can be this in a very [[AnAxeToGrind literal]] way.

* BerserkButton: Threatening his friend and fellow criminal Shep Proudfoot is a good way to set him off. [[spoiler:Carl found this out the hard way. Though this seems more about his refusal to give Carl the Cierra.]]

* BigBad: [[BigBadDuumvirate Technically shares the role with Carl]], but Grimsrud is the most violent and pressing antagonistic force. Jerry may be the one who hired him, but Grimsrud turns the simple kidnapping into a brutal spectacle, murdering his way through any problems he encounters. In the end, after he [[spoiler:kills Carl and Jerry flees]], he becomes the final enemy for Marge to face.
* BigShutUp: Gives one to Jean Lundegaard after she starts whimpering after he shoots the cop.

* CoDragons: He and Carl were supposed to be this to Jerry. It didn't play out that way.

* DidntThinkThisThrough: Exactly what he planned to do after [[spoiler: grinding Carl's body up in the woodchipper is unclear, given the massive bloody red stain all around the snow it left.]]

* EstablishingCharacterMoment: He kills a cop who refuses Carl's bribe and then two unfortunate witnesses who happen to drive by the crime scene. All that [[TheStoic without showing any emotion at all.]]

* EvilIsPetty: [[spoiler:Kills Mrs. Lundegaard because her shrieking was annoying.]]
* EvilSoundsDeep: In the German dub his voice is deeper than the original who is more low than deep.
* FatalFlaw: Gaear is definitely a competent criminal...but his sociopathic wrath means he needlessly creates more bloodshed than necessary. [[spoiler: He straight up murders Jean for being a nuisance, and after killing Carl, he takes the time to grind his body in a woodchipper, which is what exposes him to Marge since he left quite a bloody mess]]. It was also his murder of the state trooper and the witnesses that got the case noticed by Marge and ended up bringing everything down as Jerry had been able to convince Wade and Stan not to go the cops.

* HyperCompetentSidekick: It's little wonder that Shep would only vouch for Gaear. He frequently shows himself as smarter and more efficient than Carl, quickly taking care of 'problems' like a state trooper. In retrospect, things might have progressed a little more smoothly if Gaear had been the one to make the exchange. His bad temper eventually gets the better of his competence, however.

* KickTheDog: [[spoiler: He murders Jean out of sheer petulance and Carl afterwards over the car.]]
* LackOfEmpathy: The fact he killed people left and right without even blinking and [[spoiler:justified Mrs. Lundegaard's murder by saying simply that "she started shrieking" without remorse]] shows how little he respects the lives of the others.

* SkewedPriorities: Decides to go upstairs and go rifling around for ointment for his wounded hand...in the ''middle of a kidnapping''.

* SoftSpokenSadist: The few times he talks he sounds very calm and collected.
* TheSociopath: The guy has no problems casually committing murder to solve his problems, which include even the pettiest offenses. It might be downplayed a bit as he seems to be legitimate friends with Shep Proudfoot.

* TeethClenchedTeamwork: He and Carl can't stand each other. Their personalities clash constantly while their circumstances force them to work together. [[spoiler:It all comes to a head when Carl pushes his luck one too many times and is murdered for his troubles.]]
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: He loves pancakes. Enough that he makes Carl stop over so he can have some.

* TranquilFury: Even when he's angry or upset he doesn't raise his voice at all with the exception of when he gives a BigShutUp to Jean Lundergaard when she whimpers in the back of the car.

->'''Played By:''' Creator/SteveReevis

-->''"Never heard of him. Don't vouch for him."''

* AffablyEvil: He's a career criminal, but he's also pretty friendly during his interactions with Jerry and speaks highly of Gaear Grimsrud, which would imply a friendship between them. The only person he isn't polite to is Carl Showalter, and only because his presence threatened his parole.[[labelnote:note]]Also Showalter telling him to [[PoliticallyIncorrectVillain smoke a peace pipe]] certainy didn't help his case.[[/labelnote]]

* BewareTheQuietOnes: Like Grimsrud he's a man of few words but he can be quite aggressive expecially at the thought of going back in prison as Carl finds out.

* GreaseMonkey: Works as a mechanic.

* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: He gives one to Showalter, including whipping and strangling him with a belt, when it becomes apparent that his parole is threatened by the man's presence. He's so enraged that he also assaults a prostitute and a man who comes to complain about the noise.

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: His whereabouts remain unknown after he beats up Carl.

->'''Played By:''' Creator/LarryBrandenburg

-->''"We're not horse-tradin' here, Wade."''

* ContinuityNod: [[spoiler:He becomes the first film character directly referenced in the series in the second episode of Season 3. Emmit Stussy mentions him as another businessman he knows.]]

* NiceGuy: He's also the only one who considers how the kidnapping will affect Scotty — his own father and grandfather on the other hand are just concerned with the money.

-->''"Hautman's blue-winged teal got the 29-cent. People don't much use the three-cent."''

* HappilyMarried: To Marge. They don't show any big proclamations of undying love; their love is shown in small moments, like Norm making eggs for her or Margie being so proud that his stamp was chosen.
* HouseHusband: He takes care of the house and works on his painting while his wife is off being a police chief.
* NiceGuy: A fundamentally sweet-natured guy who brings his wife lunch at work, contently spending his days fishing and painting.

->'''Played By:''' Creator/StevePark

* BitchInSheepsClothing: Mike appears to be a NiceGuy, [[spoiler:but, in reality, he's a creepy and obsessive man]].

* StalkerWithACrush: [[spoiler:He stalked a woman so much she had to move away, and then fabricated a story to Marge about how they were married but she died.]]
* StrawLoser: [[spoiler: He's a homeless, unemployed, stalking creep who has to pitifully exploit the kindness of Marge to have any human connection. He makes ''Jerry'' look like a success story]].

-->''"We sat right here, in this room, and went over this and over this."''

* KnowWhenToFoldEm: Seeing as how getting Jerry to sale him a sealant-free car is getting him nowhere, he agrees to pay for the overpriced car just to get things done with.

* EvenEvilHasStandards: Even he seems unsettled by Gaear's brutality and ease with killing people as easily as breathing.

* HairTriggerTemper: He seems to get angry real easily.

*** Furthermore, Jerry is trying to use the money from the kidnapping to repay a series of government loans he took out on non-existent inventory at the dealership, being hounded for the plate numbers of the nonexistent cars by the government. Simply paying back the loan doesn't get him off the hook for potential fraud charges when he's unable to point to the cars involved in his loan.

->'''Played By:''' Tony Denman

->'''Played By:''' Steve Reevis

->'''Played By:''' Steve Park

* DidntThinkThisThrough: Jerry's entire plan. He hires two thugs whom he doesn't know and can't control on the recommendation of a violent parolee to kidnap his wife, apparently without considering the traumatic effect it might have on her. Or that the thugs might try to blackmail him for more money once [[IHaveYourWife they have his wife]] and know that he is scamming his father-in-law. Or that his stingy, bossy and distrustful father-in-law might try to interfere rather than just hand over a million dollar ransom. Jerry also completely forgot about how his semi-estranged teen son would take the kidnapping (and possible murder) of his mother.

* DyingMomentOfAwesome: He adamantly refuses to hand over the money if he doesn't get his daughter back first. [[spoiler:As a result, he gets shot in the stomach for trying to be a hero, but before dying, squeezes off a shot that grazes Carl's cheek, leaving him whining, bleeding all over the place, and screaming in pain.]]
* FatalFlaw: His ControlFreak tendencies [[spoiler: lead him to try and confront Carl at gunpoint over his daughter's ransom instead of listening to Jerry. This gets him killed]].

* FatalFlaw: Gaear is definitely a competent criminal...but his sociopathic wrath means he needlessly creates more bloodshed than necessary. [[spoiler: He straight up murders Jean for being a nuisance, and after killing Carl, he takes the time to grind his body in a woodchipper, which is what exposes him to Marge since he left quite a bloody mess]].

* AwesomeMccoolName: A police officer has to clarify that it's a name.

* GoodIsDumb: He means well.