Anti-Villain: Sure, he's a slimy, contemptible, amoral schemer... but given that his father alternately despises him and forgets he exists, his peers treat him with pity at best and disgust at worst, and his only friends are sycophantic Yes Men... it's not hard to see why.
Blackadder: As you can see, these letters are dated — Harry: Nine months after I was born! McAngus: Or nine months before you were born, Edmund. Blackadder: You... bastard! Harry: No, I think you'll find that you're the bastard, Edmund.
I Am Not Shazam: Inverted. Other characters rarely call him "Blackadder".
My Name Is Not Durwood: His father addresses him as Edwin, Edgar, Edward, Edith, Egbert, Osmond or Edna... at least, when he can be bothered to remember that Edmund exists.
And of course: "THE BLACK... DAGGER!"
Not So Harmless Villain: In The Black Seal he actualy comes close to gaining the throne... until his minions betray him, in a fit of cosmic irony.
Gag Penis: Supposedly not very big, if the Queen is to be trusted.
Historical Domain Character: He's one of the "Princes in the Tower" grown up (in this imagining, not only is Richard III being evil a slander by Henry VII, but Henry also erased the existence of a dynasty). Part of the joke is the contrast between the sweet kid he used to be and how he is now.
Implacable Man: Having the Plague simply sends him into a berserker rage, believing everyone to be Turks. Doesn't save him from the poison in the finale.
With This Herring: He manages to defeat ten thousand Turks armed with only a small knife used for peeling fruit.
Harry, Prince Of Wales (Robert East)
"The verdict of this court is that the accused are found guilty of witchcraft. The maximum penalty that the law allows is that you be burned to death. However, in view of your previous good background, I am disposed to be lenient. Therefore, I sentence you to be burned alive."
Completely Missing the Point: Has a habit of doing this. The most notable being in The Witchsmeller Pursuivant when the Witchsmeller is burning alive, he doesn't even notice and makes comments about his cloak.
Fridge Horror: She probably died along with the rest of the court at the end.
On the other hand, the later Blackadders are supposed to be this one's descendents, so ... Come to think of it, I'm not sure that's any better.
In fairness, not only is it likely that at her age she wouldn't be drinking wine, the illegitimate sons of Princes and Kings tended to be made lords, hence his nearest descendant being a lord.
Morality Pet: Edmund is noticably nicer towards her than he is towards anyone else.
The Black Seal*
Sir Wilfred Death (John Hallam), Three-Fingered Pete (Roger Sloman), Guy de Glastonbury (Patrick Malahide), Sean the Irish Bastard (Ron Cook), Friar Bellows (Paul Brooke), Jack Large (Mick Walter).
Guy de Glastonbury: "Good evening... and surrender. Your money or your life. Damn!! I'm always doing this. Did I say "Your money or your life? Sorry, slip of the tongue, your money and your life. Sorry."
Affably Evil: Guy de Glastonbury is perfectly polite and charming when holding up travellers for their money and their life.
Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: Edmund has a hard enough time keeping them in check, but when they realise that The Hawk is the biggest bastard of them all, they turn on Edmund in an instant.
"I return at last after fifteen years. Waiting, plotting, nurturing my hatred and planning my revenge. Yes, fifteen years of living in France teaches a man to hate. Fifteen years of wearing perfume, fifteen years of eating frogs, fifteen years of saying 'Par-don' and all because of you."
Latex Perfection: He somehow disguises himself as a tiny old morris dancer, but when he removes his disguise Edmund still doesn't recognise him until...
"Well, it is said, Percy, that civilised man seeks out good and intelligent company, so that through learned discourse he may rise above the savage and closer to God... Personally, however, I like to start the day with a total dickhead to remind me I'm best."
Impoverished Patrician: A good example of this trope in its early stages - he still has a title and a place at court, but no actual money or estates. Seemingly his father blew the family fortune on "wine, women and amateur dramatics." Alhough he's still better off than his descendants in this respect.
Vitriolic Best Buds: Percy thinks that he and Edmund are best friends and would give his last coin to him, and refards Edmund's constant insults as nothing more than a sign of Edmund's "wit".
Queen Elizabeth "Queenie" I (Miranda Richardson)
Sometimes I think about having you executed, just to see the expression on your face."
Alternate History: Murdered by Evil Prince Ludwig, who spent the rest of his life pretending to be her.
Ax Crazy: She loves to order people to be executed.
"Out you popped, out of your Mummy's tummy and everybody shouting : "It's a boy, it's a boy!". And somebody said "But it hasn't got a winkle!". And then I said "A boy without a winkle? God be praised, it is a miracle. A boy without a winkle!" And then Sir Thomas More pointed out that a boy without a winkle is a girl. And everyone was really disappointed."
The Cast Showoff: Rick Mayall's recollection of the role was that he asked to get more laughs in the last 3 minutes than anyone got all episode.
Dynamic Entry: Swings down from the celing, smashes Percy through a door, and steals Blackadder's fiance, all in about five minutes.
Fake Ultimate Hero: Both incarnations of Flashheart are this. Brave and dashing, handsome, bold, admired by all, adored by the ladies, and laughed in the face of danger. Also an arrogant prat who boasted constantly, lied, sucked up to his superiors, patronised his admirers, and treated women as sex objects. And the only reason he always won was because he was an underhanded bastard who cheated and played dirty.
"Father, I must speak. I can be silent no longer. All day long you muttered to yourself, gibber, dribble, moan and bat your head against the wall, yelling "I want to die". Now you may say I'm leaping to conclusions but you're not completely happy, are you?"
Paper-Thin Disguise: The only thing she did that even remotely resembles disguising as a man is calling herself "Bob". Still fooled Edmund though.
Shout Out: To Shakespeare's frequent use of crossdressing women as well as is frequent use of Kate as a name for feisty young women.
Fat Bastard: But don't call him "Fatso" if you know what's good for you.
Loan Shark: Assistant manager of the Bank of the Black Monks of St. Herod ("Banking with a smile and a stab"). Their motto: "Repayment or revenge." He admits to Blackadder that he hates it when people pay up, as he rather enjoys what he gets to do to those who don't.
Villain with Good Publicity: In spite of the aforementioned baby-eating, he's apparently of good standing with the Queen and his parishioners. "As far as my flock is concerned, my one vice is a tipple before evensong." Blackadder gets the upper hand by endangering his reputation.
"We have met many times, although you knew me by another name. Do you recall a mysterious black marketeer and smuggler called Otto with whom you used to dine and plot and play the biscuit game at the Old Pizzle in Dover? Yes! I was the waitress."
"Am I jumping the gun, Baldrick, or are the words "I have a cunning plan" marching with ill-deserved confidence in the direction of this conversation?"
"A man may fight for many things: his country, his principles, his friends, the glistening tear on the cheek of a golden child. But personally, I'd mud-wrestle my own mother for a ton of cash, an amusing clock and a stack of French porn."
Villain Protagonist: Arguably the most cold hearted member of the dynasty; he kills or has killed at least seven people in six episodes ( the voter and returning officer for Dunny-on-the-Wold; Lords Topper and Smedley; the actors Keanrick and Mossop; and Amy Hardwood, the Shadow.)
"Only the other day, Prime Minister Pitt called me an "idle scrounger," and it wasn't until ages later that I thought how clever it would've been to have said, "Oh, bugger off, you old fart!" I need to improve my mind, Blackadder. I want people to say, "That George, why, he's as clever as a stick in a bucket of pig swill.""
Informed Flaw: Much is made of his supposed fatness, and while the historical Prince George was indeed quite the pig, the same can't be said for Hugh Laurie.
Prince Charming / Prince Charmless: Debatable. While he is a crass, dense, loudmouthed buffoon with; "all the intellect of a jugged walrus and all the social graces of a potty", he has been known to seduce bombshells on occasion.
Cultured Warrior: His snarky remarks often border on poetic. His lines in the last episode in particular:
Blackadder: The guns have stopped because we're about to attack. Not even our generals are mad enough to shoot our own men. They think it's far more sporting to let the Germans do it.
Fake Ultimate Hero: To quote the man himself on his service in Africa (which made his reputation as a competent soldier), "[T]he prerequisite for any battle was that the enemy should under no circumstances carry guns". He became known as the 'Hero of Mboto Gorge' in 1892, where he had faced "ten thousand Watutsi warriors armed to the teeth with kiwi fruit and dry guava halves". Needless to say, none of this prepared him at all for fighting in the trenches.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: To a very slight extent. He's still not remotely a nice person, but he can bring himself to feel sympathy for Darling and wish the others good luck in the final episode, and he does at one point compliment George's paintings. Also, despite being a soldier, he is the only Blackadder in the four seasons not to commit murder - unless you count Speckled Jim.
Lovable Coward: For a certain value of 'lovable'. If not for the entire backdrop, would probably be a Dirty Coward.
Though oddly he arguably isn't actually cowardly at all; he very definitely doesn't want to die but when unavoidably placed in genuinely very dangerous situations (crawling across a minefield, captured by Germans, facing a court martial, going over the top) he keeps his cool.
The Neidermeyer: A relatively mild example. He regards the men under his command as incompetent fools... which in his defense, they mostly are. They seem to admire him, however.
Pet the Dog: In the final episode Blackadder treats Darling very gently after Melchett sends him to the Front, respectfully addressing him as 'Captain Darling' when he shows up at the trench (somewhat reminiscent of King Richard and Edmund in the finale of the original series), and a few moments later asking him how he felt about going over the top. Pretty moving stuff considering they have spent the last five episodes hating each other.
It is possible that Blackadder's main reason for hating Darling was that Darling had succeeded in what Blackadder had been trying to do for the entire war; get the hell out of the trenches. When it became clear that both he and Darling were not getting out of it, he didn't have any reason to hate Darling any more (although there's not much chance of Blackadder liking him any more because of it.
Reluctant Warrior: He does everything in his power to avoid going into battle. A closer look at the series shows that he rarely carries his sidearm unless he has to (such as when visiting HQ) and even then, doesn't appear to keep it loaded (we see him loading it before going over the top in the finale).
Armor-Piercing Question: Despite his unprecedented idiocy, Baldrick also points out the utter insanity of World War One: at any point, the general soldiery on all sides could have simply banded together and refused to fight any more, and had shown such potential earlier in the war. He doesn't know why they don't do it, and nobody can tell him why, either.
Bumbling Sidekick: The stupidest and foulest Baldrick of all, which is no small feat.
Hidden Depths: He's not as much of a Patriotic Fervor filled twit as he initially seems- he's a gifted artist and ultimately admits to fear of dying in battle.
Sole Survivor: In the last episode, he mentions that he joined the Army with along with his friends from Cambridge, the "Trinity Tiddlers", and by then, he's the only one left alive of the group.
Which was Truth in Television. The pals battalions were a real thing, and the Great War was the last time friends joining en masse was allowed, as it led to whole villages, towns and communities being decimated.
Upper Class Twit: Not as upper-class as the Prince, but has the personality down, pat.
Vitriolic Best Buds: Seems blissfully unaware of Captain Blackadder's contempt for him.
Wham Line: In perhaps a first in television history, it actually occurs mid-line when George's bravado gives way to near panic. Any laughs from the audience for the remainder of the episode are nervous ones at best.
General Sir Anthony Cecil Hogmanay Melchett (Stephen Fry)
"You know, over these last few years, I've come to think of you as a sort of son. Not a favourite son of course, Lord no, more a sort of illegitimate back-stair sort of sprog, y'know, the sort of spotty squid that nobody really likes."
Bad Boss: When Darling said that he needed a convincing injury so that he could spy on a field hospital, Melchett shot his foot on spot. This is easily the least of his crimes.
Bait the Dog: As noted, he initially seems a lot more amusing and likable than he actually is.
Comedic Sociopathy: Melchett's played as though he's having the time of his life, and thinks everyone else is, too, with Darling and Blackadder as straight men to his antics. Brutally subverted in the final episode when he sends Darling to his death with barely a thought.
General Failure: A parody of WW 1 Generals, meaning that his particular brand of strategic incompetence wasn't very removed from real life...
Hot Blooded: A far cry from his soft-spoken ancestor.
Identical Grandson: Obviously of the Melchett of the second season, but also an expy of the Duke of Wellington in the third season, who was also played by Stephen Fry. Wellington was likewise presented as a Hot Blooded and crazy military man, but he was actually competent.
Jerkass: Melchett isn't just incompetent, he's totally insensitive to the well-being of others and might even be a sociopath.
Karma Houdini: Despite senselessly, obliviously ordering countless men to their deaths on the Western Front, including his own very-much-reluctant right hand man, Melchett is the only major character to survive the entire fourth series.
The Neidermeyer: He is distraught by the death of his pigeon "Speckled Jim", yet blissfully uncaring about the fifty thousand men a week dying in the trenches. His bizarre tactics that help expedite the latter include "doing precisely what we've done eighteen times before" and "climbing out of [the] trenches and walking very slowly towards the enemy". Sadly, both are to some extent Truth in Television.
Pet the Dog: His love for his pet pigeon. However, any sympathy he'd get for that is subverted by his callousness toward running over George's rabbit when George was a child, and of course his apathy toward his troops' lives.
Verbal Tic: His "baahing", often interpreted as a call-back to his ancestor's "affection for sheep", but according to Stephen Fry who played him, he had in mind that Melchett had hemorrhoids.
Captain Kevin Darling (Tim McInnerny)
"Just doing my job, Blackadder. Obeying orders...and, of course, having enormous *fun* into the bargain."
Sitcom Arch Nemesis: He and Blackadder have a lot in common, but they never miss an opportunity to insult each other and get each other killed. Until it's too late to bother.
Unfortunate Names: Word Of God is that the character only began to take shape after they changed his surname from Cartwright.
"What is the matter with you today, Darling?!"
"Darling you're hysterical."
Squadron Commander the Lord Flashheart (Rik Mayall)
"Cancel the state funeral, tell the King to stop blubbing, Flash is NOT DEAD! I simply ran out of JUICE - and before all the girls start going "Oh, what's the point of living anymore?" I'm talkin' about PETROL! WOOF WOOF!"
Fake Ultimate Hero: Both incarnations of Flashheart are this. Brave and dashing, handsome, bold, admired by all, adored by the ladies, and laughed in the face of danger. Also an arrogant prat who boasted constantly, lied, sucked up to his superiors, patronised his admirers, and treated women as sex objects. And the only reason he always won was because he was an underhanded bastard who cheated and played dirty.
Although he does risk his life to save a man he doesn't like just for the hell of it, suggesting some of his reputation may be genuine.
Then again, he did only rescue him from a Cardboard Prison where even the high-ranked German officers can't remember simple things like closing the cell doors.
Casting Gag: He often worked with Rik Mayall, and generally was a tormentor to Mayall's characters. In this show, Mayall (playing Flasheart) kills him mid sentence and calls him a poof.
Cool and Unusual Punishment: His planned Fate Worse than Death for Blackadder is to have him teaching at a German girl's school for the rest of his life, completely unaware that that would actually be paradise for Blackadder.
Expy: He's obviously supposed to be the equivalent of Ludwig from the second season, but Identical Grandson isn't in play because Laurie is playing a different, also German descended role in this series.
