History Characters / ShaunOfTheDead

* ButtMonkey: He gets a lot of abuse from people. Given what a jerk he is, it's hard to see he doesn't deserve it.

%%* GranolaGirl

* HeterosexualLifePartners: With Shaun.

* HateSink: He's completely devoid of redeeming qualities, spending the movie complaining about Shaun's plans and decisions, acting like TheLoad, only caring about himself, forcing Shaun to MercyKill his zombified mother, and in general being a complete twat. To drive the point home, people in the test audiences actually ''cheered'' when David [[spoiler:was ripped apart by a horde of zombies]].

* KarmicDeath: [[spoiler:In a panicked state, he begins to unlock the pub doors despite a horde of zombies being on the other side. The horde could have easily killed the main characters but he's instead torn apart by those zombies and only succeeds in infecting Ed. If David wanted Shaun to be killed by the zombie in the garden, then it's pretty cathartic how he's dismembered by zombies as Shaun tries to save him.]]

* UndignifiedDeath: [[spoiler:However, much of a KarmicDeath it was, he was still dragged out a window and ripped to shreds, begging for mercy.]]

* ActionSurvivor: Despite being a typical, unhealthy layabout, he still manages to survive the film.

* BewareTheLiving: A surprisingly straight use of this trope for a romantic comedy with zombies. His uselessness as a party member is completely driven by his envy of Shaun, [[spoiler:he attempts MurderByInaction (and zombie) of Shaun at one point]], and the acts of idiocy he does at the climax [[spoiler:directly lead to everybody except for Shaun and Liz (and Dianne in deleted scenes) getting killed.]]

** Of the DoggedNiceGuy. [[spoiler:Deep down, David never accepted Liz's rejection and chose to be with Dianne just so he can be closer to Liz and prove himself as a better man than her current partner. His support towards Liz after breaking up with Shaun is akin to a vulture circling around a dying animal. When Shaun is attacked in the garden, David doesn't help and excuses his cowardice by saying "Didn't wanna' to cramp your style". When a heartbroken Shaun and Dianne outs David's feelings for Liz, David meekly forces Shaun to shoot Barbara, Shaun's own mother. After being punched by a grief-stricken Shaun for coldly dismissing Barbara's death, David retaliates by attempting to shoot him with an empty Winchester Rifle. He then attempts to escape the pub through the front door despite the horde of zombies on the other side, trying to convince Dianne and Liz to go with him. This cowardly act reveals David as a predator who leaches off of Dianne's kindness in order to salvage whatever he could from Liz's rejection. This also recontextualizes the garden scene and his reason for going along with Shaun's plan. David was going to let a zombie kill Shaun so he can seduce a mourning Liz. He left with Liz and Dianne so he can play the white knight who saves the girls from danger, but he is ultimately revealed to be a cowardly contrarian who finds it easier to point out Shaun's shortcomings than prove his own superiority.]]

* HopelessSuitor: Deconstructed. [[spoiler:He's clearly been in love with Liz for years, ignoring all the signs she has no interest in him and prefers being with Shaun, though his laziness does grate on her. At the time of the movie she just considers him Dianne's boyfriend, though even Dianne can tell he'd rather be with Liz. His attempts to woo Liz are pathetic and juvenile, and downright creepy. And when he's forced to reveal his feelings, she shuts him up since it's a very serious moment to deal with something so pointless.]]

** Deconstructed. He's right about Shaun's inept leadership and that the Winchester ''really'' isn't a good place to hide from the undead, [[RightForTheWrongReasons but he's only saying it]] [[GreenEyedMonster because he's jealous that Liz hooked up with Shaun instead of him and doesn't want them to have any opportunity to make up]]. The other characters also point out that Shaun is at least ''trying'' to get everyone somewhere safe, while all David does is [[TheLoad complain and never actually do anything to help their situation]] and the only reason he went along with Shaun's (admittedly foolish) plan is that he didn't have any ideas of his own.

'''Ed:''' Yeah, why didn't you?\\

** He's also right about having to shoot Shaun's mother, who's been bitten. Even Shaun deep down knows he's right, but can't bear to imagine shooting his mom. Liz lampshades both the "has a point" and especially the "jerkass" parts:

** Despite all the above, he does have ''one'' valid point; when Shaun claims that Liz's flat isn't safe because more zombies will come and eventually break in, David points out they were perfectly safe with only a few unsuspecting zombies outside; then Shaun turned up and started attracting attention and more zombies, and because of him the undead now know where they are.

A 29-year-old slacker who works as an electronics shop salesman. He lacks direction in his life, is mired in his boring routines, his colleagues shows him no respect, and he has a strained relationship with both his girlfriend, Liz and his stepdad Philip. He spends most of his free time playing video games and getting drunk with his best friend Ed, who's an even bigger loser than he is, as well as dealing with shuffling, braindead consumers. [[BaitAndSwitchComparison Then the zombies attack.]]

* PoorCommunicationKills: If he'd mentioned [[spoiler:the cellar beneath the Winchester sooner, the gang could have hidden there instead of trying to hold off the horde with one rifle and he, David and Dianne (depending on whether you think the DVD extras are canon) might have survived...though admittedly, Barbara was going to die and resurrect as a zombie, and need to be dealt with, regardless.]]

** Despite all the above, he does have ''one'' valid point; when Shaun claims that Liz's flat isn't safe because more zombies will come and eventually break in, David points out they were perfectly safe with only a few unsuspecting zombies outside until Shaun turned up and started attracting attention, and because of ''him'' the undead now know where they are.

** Deconstructed. He's right about Shaun's inept leadership, [[RightForTheWrongReasons but he's only saying it]] [[GreenEyedMonster because he's jealous that Liz hooked up with Shaun instead of him]]. The other characters also point out that Shaun is at least ''trying,'' while all that David does is [[TheLoad complain and never actually do anything to help their situation]] and the only reason he went along with Shaun's (admittedly foolish) plan is that he didn't have any ideas of his own (and likely didn't want Shaun to have any opportunity to make up with Liz).

* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: When Shaun is trying to get her and Philip out of the house, he can't bring himself to say that there's a zombie apocalypse [[spoiler:and that Philip is SecretlyDying. So he decides to tell her that he touched him when he was younger. He immediately regrets it and admits to the mistake.]] It's the only time we see Barbara become legitimately pissed.

* WickedStepfather: Subverted. Shaun certainly views him as such at first, but Phillip is ultimately good-hearted, if not slightly abrasive, fellow.

* PoorCommunicationKills: [[spoiler:If she'd admitted to have started smoking again in secret, Ed ''probably'' would've had less of a problem staying at their flat than he did and not have gone to the Winchester.]]

* RageBreakingPoint: She gets majorly fed up with David's whining and tantrum and goes into a ColdHam rant.

* ItsAllMyFault: In the cellar, he blames himself for his friends' deaths, which he attributes to his decision to go to the Winchester rather than stay at Liz's apartment (nevermind that he only did this because Ed insisted).

** Deconstructed. He's right about Shaun's inept leadership, [[RightForTheWrongReasons but he's only saying it]] [[GreenEyedMonster because he's jealous that Liz hooked up with Shaun instead of him]]. The other characters also point out that Shaun is at least trying, while all that he does is [[TheLoad complain and never actually does anything to help their situation]] and the only reason he went along with Shaun's plan is that he didn't have any ideas of his own.

'''Liz:''' ''Even if he is being a twat.''

* LethallyStupid: It's possible some of the deaths could've been prevented if Ed hadn't insisted on going to the Winchester instead of Liz's apartment.

'''David:''' Well how did you get ''in''?\\

'''David:''' ''[Defensive]'' Well, I wasn't the one who gave a way our positiin by having a tift with my boyfriend.
* PlotIrrelevantVillain: [[spoiler:He serves as the contrarian who berates Shaun at every opportunity, he seemingly tries to kill Shaun twice in the movie. The first time is when he refuses to save Shaun from a zombie, and a second time when he tries to shoot Shaun after Barbara's death.]]

* RightForTheWrongReasons: While it's clear David [[JerkassHasAPoint has a point]] when he remarks that Shaun's plan isn't very well thought-out, and his ultimate goal amounts to little more to sitting around and waiting for rescue, his criticisms of said plan are more out of personal dislike for Shaun than him actually having any idea of what to do. On top of that, he himself [[TheLoad rarely has anything to offer but unhelpful snark and just makes things worse on the rare occasions he actually tries to do something]]; Dianne even [[LampshadeHanging lampshades it]], remarking that if David really was as capable as he was trying to act whenever he was putting Shaun down, he would have taken charge of the group himself rather than just following along with whatever Shaun was doing.

Shaun's housemate and best friend. He is unemployed, quite the slob, and has even less direction in life than Shaun.

* AwesomenessByAnalysis: As a salesman for a tech shop, Shaun is the tech-savviest person in the group. As soon as he sees the streetlights come back on, he quickly deduces that the electrical grid is still working and that the Winchester is only out of power due to circuit breakers. He then proceeds to effortlessly restore electricity to the bar without turning on the bright Neon signs, which he correctly guesses are on a separate power grid. [[spoiler: Unfortunately for the gang, David doesn't share his savviness.]]

* RefuseToRescueTheDisliked: Pointedly averted; [[spoiler: Despite David being a colossal JerkAss to him and everyone else throughout the story, Shaun proves himself the bigger person when he tries to save David from being DevouredByTheHorde. He failed, but still gets points for trying]].

* {{Catchphrase}}: "Two seconds!"
** Also "Cock it!", usually said when annoyed ([[spoiler:[[MeaningfulEcho or when telling Shaun how a rifle works]].]])
* {{Chaotic Stupid}}: He's a part-time drug dealer with a clear lack of common sense.

* ColdHam: {{Justified}}. She's whispering very loudly towards David during her RageBreakingPoint due to the zombies outside.

* GrievousHarmWithABody: She attacks zombies using [[spoiler:one of David’s torn off legs.]]

* NoPartyLikeADonnerParty: [[spoiler: Survived the ZombieApocalypse sitting in a tree eating David's leg whenever she was hungry.]]

* ReplacementGoldfish: [[spoiler:{{Deconstructed}}. She knows that David loved (and still loves) Liz, and went into a relationship with him anyway. However, he continues to put Liz on such a high pedestal that he almost completely ignores her, making it a very loveless relationship. What's worse is that she just won't abandon him.]]

->''"Basically, I'd say your nine lives are up, Shaun."'' [[note]]"GET FUCKED, FOUR-EYES!"[[/note]]

* TheApocalypseBringsOutTheBestInPeople: [[spoiler:{{Inverted}}. It brings out the worst in him.]]

** Tries to [[InvokedTrope Invoke]] this with Shaun, calling him this [[spoiler:when he refuses to shoot his zombified ''mother''!]]

--> '''David:''' There's also a huge hole in the window.\\

* SecondLove: Philip.

!!Phillip

* DyingDeclarationOfLove: [[spoiler:After getting bitten twice, a dying Phillip apologizes to Shaun for making him hate him, assuring that he always loved him, and asks that he takes care of his mum.]]

->''"Glad to see somebody made it!"''

** He also deconstructs the [[BrutalHonesty brutally honest]] [[JerkassHasAPoint asshole-with-a-point]] often seen in comedy films. True, his criticisms of Shaun's character aren't entirely off-the-mark at first, but [[spoiler: his hatred of Shaun is motivated by envy that he "stole" Liz from him rather than any legitimate grievance]], and Shaun's CharacterDevelopment proved he had far more good qualities than David was willing to give him credit for. It doesn't help that, beyond being a petulant {{manchild}} [[SmallNameBigEgo who vastly overestimates his intelligence]] [[TheMillstone and whose sheer incompetence actively endangers the group]], David is just such an over-the-top asshole that even characters who agree with him are reluctant to take his side.

* ForWantOfANail: [[spoiler:If she'd admitted to have started smoking again in secret, Ed ''probably'' would've had less of a problem staying at their flat than he did and not have gone to the Winchester.]]

** Of the DoggedNiceGuy. [[spoiler:Deep down, David never accepted Liz's rejection and chose to be with Dianne just so he can be closer to Liz and prove himself as a better man than her current partner. His support towards Liz after breaking up with Shaun is akin to a vulture circling around a dying animal. When Shaun is attacked in the garden, David doesn't help and excuses his cowardice by saying "Didn't wanna' to cramp your style". When a heartbroken Shaun and Dianne outs David's feelings for Liz, David meekly forces Shaun to shoot Barbara, Shaun's own mother. After being punched by a grief-stricken Shaun for coldly dismissing Barbara's death, David retaliates by attempting to shoot him with an empty Winchester Rifle. He then attempts to escape the pub through the front door despite the horde of zombies on the other side, trying to convince Dianne and Liz to go with him. This cowardly act reveals David as a predator who leaches off of Dianne's kindness in order to salvage whatever he could from Liz's rejection. This also recontextualizes the garden scene and his reason for going along with Shaun's plan. David was going to let a zombie kill Shaun so he can seduce a mourning Liz. He left with Liz and Dianne so he can play the white knight who saves the girls from danger, but he is ultimately revealed to be a cowardly contrarian who finds it easier to point out Shaun's shortcommings than prove his own superiority.]]

** Tries to [[InvokedTrope Invoke]] this with Shaun, calling him this [[spoiler:when he refuses to shoot his zombie ''mother''!]]

* KnowNothingKnowItAll: He criticizes Shaun over every decision he makes, yet when the time comes for him t actually o be useful to the group, he completely bungles it by not even knowing how to operate circuit breakers, something Shaun does casually.

** Deconstructed. He's right about Shaun's inept leadership, [[RightForTheWrongReasons but he's only saying it]] [[GreenEyedMonster because he's jealous that Liz hooked up with Shaun instead of him]]. The other characters also point out that Shaun is at least trying, while all that he does is [[TheLoad complain and never actually does anything to help their situation]] and the only reason he went along with Shaun's plan is that he didn't have any ideas of his own

'''David:''' ''[Defensive]'' Well, I wasn't the one who drew their attention by having a tiff with my boyfriend.

* SmallNameBigEgo: Clearly thinks of himself as the smart one of the group whose guidance will lead them to safety instead of Shaun. In reality, he never provides anything more than unhelpful snark and shows he's if anything ''more'' of a liability than Shaun and [[DirtyCoward doesn't even have Shaun's surprising bravery to make up for it.]]