See here for the movie's character sheet.
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Main Characters
Johannes Betzler
Johannes Ewald Detlef Betzler
Johannes Ewald Detlef Betzler, born March 25 1927, is a devoted follower of Adolf Hitler. In a twist of Dramatic Irony, he falls in love with a Jewish woman, in spite of holding on to his Nazi beliefs. When the war ends and Austria falls, Johannes is forced to navigate life without the glory he dreamed of attaining.- Abhorrent Admirer: Throughout the novel, Elsa views him as a brat, then an idiot, and then a monster. In the end of the novel she leaves him for good and starts a life elsewhere, breaking his heart.
- The Alcoholic: Becomes one in the end to deal with the fact that Elsa has abandoned him and Austria is in ruins. An onlooker even calls him a drunken bum.
- Animals Hate Him: Karl, Elsa's cat, would always scratch him when he's nearby.
- Asshole Victim: At the end of the novel. Sure, the man has become a shell of his former self, having fought through Nazi Germany, lived through Communist Germany, had his wealth run into the ground, lost his family in the war and had his Only Friend abandon him, but he's also the same Manipulative Bastard who deceived a helpless Jewish woman into being his intimate partner, wanted to kill his disabled father for being a "hindrance", and hates Karl the cat.
- Bad People Abuse Animals: As part of their Hitlerjugend integration, him and Kippi step on baby chicks. His movie counterpart, on the other hand, was horrified when he saw a Hitlerjugend member snap the neck of a rabbit.
- Child Soldiers: He was in the Hitlerjugend. He takes pride in being one, giving eager "Heil Hitlers" to everyone he meets.
- Beauty Is Never Tarnished: Averted, he's stuck with an ugly scar after the blast.
- Did Not Die That Way: He tries to kill his father by putting sedation in his medicine and tells Elsa that he's actually his butler, and she temporarily buys his lie. He's later forced to admit that he was lying.
- Dude, Where's My Respect?: After he goes home and spouts the Nazi propaganda he learned from school, his mother mocks him for it. This is because her and her husband are a part of La Résistance.Only at home I didn't get the credit I deserved. Whenever I showed my mother my fine head, all she did was mess up my hair. When I declared to her how I was the future — Zukunft in German — in whom the Führer put his trust to one day rule the world, she laughed and called me 'my little Zukunft' or 'Zukunftie', to make me cute, rather than serious and important as I was.
- Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: And Grandmamas. He loves Pimmichen.
- Fan Boy: Of Hitler. He would do anything for him, and that includes stepping on baby chicks to prove his loyalty.
- From the Mouths of Babes: How many 12 year olds do you know speak like this?I tried to talk sense into my father. If we didn't protect our race, the logical outcome would be catastrophic, but my father claimed he didn't believe in logic. I found that unbelievable for someone who ran a factory — how could he not believe in logic? It was so dumb what he said, surely he was pulling my leg. He insisted he wasn't, that emotions were our only trustworthy guide, even in business. He said people think they analyse situations with their brains, think their emotions are nothing but a result of cognition, but they're wrong. Intelligence isn't in the head, it's in the body.
- Green-Eyed Monster: Johannes is jealous of anyone Elsa gets close to and that includes her cat. It doesn't help that she absolutely spoils him and treats him in a way she's never treated anyone else.
- Girlfriend in Canada: When he hears that Elsa has a fiance, Nathan, he tries to make her jealous by claiming he's seeing a woman named Bettina. It doesn't work.I began formulating the details of a dream girl, to make Elsa realise what a prize catch I was. So far I only had bits and pieces of her — blonde hair, blue eyes, perfect nose, pretty smile, which I combined to form an Aryan face, but, when I closed my eyes to imagine it, I found it was generic, not real. Maybe it would help if I gave her a name. Gertrud, Ines, Greta, Claudia, Bettina — that one wasn't so bad. Bettina. 'Sorry, Elsa, I mustn't keep Bettina waiting in Volksgarten.' 'I'd love to stay longer, but I really must run. The sun could harm Bettina. You know, she has fair skin, as only blondes have.' 'Please, tell me again what Nathan said about blue. I wanted to tell Bettina because her eyes are that colour, but whenever I look into them, I forget all I was going to say...' The fantasies grew grotesque. Bettina developed into a world champion, though which sport would unsettle Elsa more remained undecided — diving, skiing or gymnastics?
- Hated by All: By the end of the novel, he becomes this. His childhood friends? Killed in the war. His crush, Elsa? Abandoned him. His neighbors? Despise him for being an awful nuisance to the ears and his wife's habits. He's all alone and has nobody in the end.
- Hates Their Parent: His father, whom he has debates with over his loyalty towards Hitler. In his old age, he's viewed as a burden by his son.
- Intimate Artistry: He loved watching Elsa paint and would buy her art material to fuel her habit.Despite all this, I loved to watch her. She positioned herself at the window and her face would change according to what she saw, even if this was impossible because the shade was lowered. Her dark eyes could brighten up with feeling, or the light inside them could switch off, leaving them dull and still. I didn't ask her what it was she saw, though I drove myself crazy wondering. A noisy, bustling city? Fields of corn, buzzing flies and bumblebees? Children giggling in knee-deep snow? The bleak horizon of a flooded world, blue meeting blue, the curtains of mankind closing? I knew it was one of those questions that would not get an answer.
- Jerk with a Heart of Jerk: Johannes has no redeeming traits whatsoever, as do most of the Hitlerjugend and ordinary German people, the latter who are very self-absorbed and have a high case of Lack of Empathy.
- Lifesaving Misfortune: Johannes' injury allows him to stay home while the rest of his comrades die.
- Manipulative Bastard: He has no problems deceiving and lying to Elsa about the war to get her to act in his favor. He is madly in love with her even though she despises him and is smitten with someone else. This trope is deconstructed as she finds out that he is lying and eventually leaves him behind.
- Master Race: Believes that as an Aryan, he is this.
- Mistaken for Gay: By Astrid Farrenkopf, his co-worker.I'd say he's telling the truth. I smell her. I do.' Petra's voice sounded more hurt than aggressiveThe same could not be said for Astrid's. 'Maybe he's homosexual and just wears women's perfume.
- Nazi Protagonist: Since he is an Austrian boy growing up in the 1930s, this is obvious.The race we were to fear most was called Jüdisch. Jews were a mixture of many things — Oriental, Amerindian, African and our race. They were especially dangerous because they'd taken their white skin from us, so we could be easily fooled by them. 'Don't', we were constantly reminded, 'trust a Jew more than a fox in a green field.' 'The Jew's father is Satan.' 'Jews sacrifice Christian children, use their blood in their mitzvahs.' 'If we don't rule the world, they will. That's why they want to mix their blood with ours, to strengthen themselves, to weaken us.' I began to fear the Jews in a medical way. They were like the viruses I'd never seen but had learned were behind my flu and suffering.
- Nightmare Fetishist: Even though he views them as subhuman, he's fascinated about the tales he hears of the Jews.We learned, too, how Jews were unable to love beauty. They preferred ugliness. We were shown paintings they had created and admired — ugly works where a person's eye was not in the right place but in front of his face, paintings where hands looked like the bloated udder of a cow, where hips joined directly with breasts, where subjects had no neck, no waist. One seemed to be shouting with all his might but had no mouth, like a scarecrow yelling silence at the crow-infested cornfields. I admit that this knowledge kindled in me a morbid fascination with the Jews, but before that could have led to any misplaced ruminations, the time for the pursuit of learning ran out.
- Opposites Attract: The loud, boisterous, rude, and ill-tempered Johannes is attracted to the demure, soft and kindhearted Elsa Korr. Needless to say, he's an Abhorrent Admirer in her eyes.
- Patricide: After the war his father becomes a useless eater and a burden to him due to his disability. He intends to put him out of his misery but Elsa criticises him for it.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: He's a Nazi, so this is obvious.
- The Rival: Calls Nathan, Elsa's fiance, his one.
- Soul-Crushing Desk Job: At Knopphart's.
- Straw Misogynist: Tells Elsa not to worry about the finances because it isn't a woman's job. Unsurprising that a Nazi would have backwards views on the female gender.
- Used to Be a Sweet Kid: Before Hitler came to power, he was just a young boy who liked playing with snails.
- When You Coming Home, Dad?: Johannes' father was in sent to a Mauthausen to supervise a camp fabricating war weapons, but he never comes home and is later found in a brothel as an amnesiac.
- Would Not Hit a Girl: Page 243.Sick to my stomach that my father had struck a woman — be she whatever type of woman — I handed Madeleine a towel for her face. He was beyond hope.
Elsa Korr
Elsa Korr
The Jewish woman Johannes falls in love with. Formerly the Best Friend of Johannes' deceased sister, she was taken in by his mother because her family was sent to the camps.- Broken Bird: Her family and First Love are genocided in the Holocaust and she has to rely on an abusive Hitlerjugend to survive. She has to, for years, live as she doesn't exist. She's definitely going to need a therapist or several by the end of the book.
- Cultured Badass: Reads, paints and knows a lot of general trivia as she's held prisoner by Johannes. She can tell the history of an instrument by looking at it.
- Dude Magnet: Attracts a lot of men, including the protagonist.
- Eerie Pale-Skinned Brunette: Justified as she's been hidden under floorboards for so long that it cuts off most possible Vitamin D.
- Heartbroken Badass: Nathan may be dead, but she doesn't stop at searching for happiness, and earns it when she slips free of Johannes in the final chapter.
- Heroic BSoD: When she leaves the lights on and it causes the house nearby to get bombed, she slips into one. Even Frau Beltzer gives her harsh words for it.
- Innocently Insensitive: During one of their first meetings she reminds Johannes of an embarrassing memory that makes him furious.Do you still remember, Johannes, that time you came into your sister's room to throw your slippers at us?' Her laughter rose, grew melodic. 'I never saw such a bad temper in all my life! You said it was your turn to play with her. You almost broke her violin — you wouldn't let go!
- Kindhearted Cat Lover: When she gets a cat, she dotes on it to the point it makes Johannes jealous (though to be fair, it doesn't take much to do that) and is heartbroken over its death.
- Plucky Girl: Regardless of what Johannes throws in her direction she overcomes it, and her spirit never breaks. Just listen to her response to Johannes telling her to Stay in the Kitchen.I'm not a kept woman!' I saw the old fire light up in her eyes. 'If a boat were sinking and a man and woman were both on it, what good would it do for the man to bail the water out by himself? The boat sank, they both drowned — how many lives would he have saved? Zilch. If they bailed the water out together and the boat remained afloat, how many lives will each one have saved? Two.I shook my head at my old Elsa with her rhetorical arguments, which she pulled out of her hat at will. Sensing a breach in my defences she took her chance to change my mind. 'I have a talent, a craft, you know. You invested in it; you should get something out of it.' She waited for me to catch on but I didn't. 'My painting! If you let me, I can do one per day, at least, maybe even two. You just sell them at whatever price you choose, and use the money to keep the house going.
- My God, What Have I Done?: When she leaves the house lights on and causes the air raids to target her neighbor, she blames herself and feels ashamed.
- The Pollyanna: Johannes notes that she's able to find beauty in destruction no matter what.
- No Periods, Period: Averted, she does menstruate and it's a pain for Johannes to deal with.
- Raven Hair, Ivory Skin: Elsa has dark hair and pale skin.
- Only Sane Woman: Of the whole 359 page book. She calls out Johannes for his maltreatment of his father, asks rational questions about the circumstances they're in, and also self reflects on her own flaws. She is never cold or cruel, full of compassion for everyone around her and earns her happy ending.
Betzler family
Wilhelm Betzler
Wilhelm Betzler
Johannes' father, and Pimmichen's son. Part of the resistance against the Nazis. During his time at Mauthausen, he sustained a head injury and this caused Madeleine to take advantage of him by exploiting him at the brothel.- Good Parents: He always tried to show his son the error of his ways and raise him to be a good person. He also called out his bigoted behaviour towards the Jewish race. Unfortunately, Johannes is to narcissistic to abandon his belief that he is a part of the Master Race.
- Happily Married: To Roswita. They joined La Résistance against the Nazis together.
- Hard Head: Averted, after suffering a cranial injury he becomes a completely different person.
- Riches to Rags: Used to own a factory that was the family business, but post war its been dismembered and parts have been smuggled to Hungary.
- Would Hit a Girl: After sustaining a cranial injury, when he sees Madeleine wearing his ex wife's clothing he hits her.
Roswita Betzler
Roswita Betzler
Johannes' mother.- Broken Bird: After her husband is found out as part of the resistance and sent to a work camp, her mood sours and tells Elsa that she's not worth the effort of keeping. Even Johannes is furious at her for saying that. At least her movie counterpart is a virtuous soul.
- Good Parents: On the cautious side to Johannes.
- Happily Married: To Wilhelm .
- The Lost Lenore: A man named Oskar who her parents disapproved of. In the letters between them, Johannes finds out that they did "outrageous things", and laments how he didn't know her that well.
Pimmichen
Pimmichen, Leonore Maria Luise Betzler, née von Rostendorff-Ecken
Leonore Maria Luise Betzler, née von Rostendorff-Ecken, known as Pimmichen, is Johannes' grandmother, Wilhelm's mother. She lived from 1840 to 1948.- The Cloud Cuckoolander Was Right: When they're ordered to take in the Polish men under communist Germany's rule, she suspects that they're not who they say they are and they could be spies. It is later revealed that they are Russian refugees fleeing the Soviet Union.
- Cool Old Lady: Leonore is a sarcastic and witty old lady who isn't afraid of anything.
- Deadpan Snarker: At everything, no matter how petty it is.Pimmichen said my father didn't look good in red-she knew because she'd dressed him as a boy. Besides, she explained, 'that's the colour of red Vienna, so we don't want to dress him like a communist, do we?
- Dirty Commies: If you're a tankie, you're on her bad side. Though, she does change her view on them when she befriends two Russian refugees.
- Foreign Culture Fetish: She collects trinkets from all over the world, like an elephant tusk from Congo. She also grew up in Budapest and has a thing for Hungarian dances.
- Hidden Heart of Gold: At the start of the novel: A Racist Grandma that praises her Nazi Protagonist grandson. By the end of the novel: Humbled by the atrocities she witnessed in the war, opposes a police officer taking away two Russian refugees from the Soviet Union.
- Odd Friendship: With the Polish (actually Russian) mennote . When they're found out as Fauxreigners, Pimmichen refuses to let them go and shouts at the officer that they're her friends.
- Racist Grandma: She tells Johannes that he's being a good German by being part of the Hitlerjugend and has a low opinion on Russian people, thinking that they'll invade her house and steal her items. However this is later subverted because she's determined to protect her Russian guests Sergey and Fodor no matter what, showing that bigotry can be overcome with The Power of Friendship.
- Riches to Rags: After marriage. But then her husband hits the jackpot and it turns into Rags to Riches.
- Omniglot: She speaks German, French, Russian, Polish and several others.
- Volleying Insults: With Madeleine, Wilhelm's new girlfriend. Given how Madeleine is taking advantage of a mentally disabled man (who happens to be her son, no less), Pimmichen despises her and wants her out of the house. However, Johannes views Madeleine as a helping hand since she brings in financesnote and acts as a caretaker for Wilhelm.
School
Kippi
Kippi
Johannes' best friend. They attend the Hitlerjugend together, and swear to die in battle for Austria's sake. However, Johannes is too much of a coward to fight and Kippi dies in an air raid.- A Real Man Is a Killer:Kippi asked me afterwards, if I had to kill him for the Führer, could I? I looked at him. His face was so familiar, I knew I wouldn't have been able to. Neither would he have been able to kill me. But we both agreed this wasn't good — we were weak, and would have to work on it. Ideally, a leader told us, we should be able to hit a baby's head against the wall and not feel anything. Feelings were mankind's most dangerous enemy. They above all were what must be killed if we were to make ourselves a better people.
- Asshole Victim: He is killed in an air raid, but he's also the same sociopath who was willing to step on baby chicks to prove himself as a Hitlerjugend so there's no tears shed for his demise.
- Bad People Abuse Animals: Like Johannes, he gleefully steps on baby chicks while he's in the Hitlerjugend.
- Childhood Friends: To Johannes.
- Child Soldiers: He's part of the Hitlerjugend and is a vile Nazi as an adult.
- Kill the Cutie: From Johanne's point of view, his death in an air raid is this. Though for the readers who saw his worst actions, it's very much a well-deserved death.
- Death Seeker: Kippi thinks dying for the Nazis is a honourable way to go out. He gets his wish.
- Satellite Character: All we know about him is that he's Johannes' best friend and shares his bigoted views.
- The Sociopath: While Kippi Used to Be a Sweet Kid, he's corrupted into being a fascist at a young age after being fascinated with Hitler's speeches (as are the rest of his friends) and sees no problem with killing or violence against those weaker than him. In contrast, Kippi's movie counterpart, Yorki, is a Kind Hearted Simpleton who doesn't raise an eyebrow at Jojo saying he has a Jewish girlfriend, though he has this hilarious line.Yorki' "Our only friends are the Japanese. And just between you and me, they don't look very Aryan."
Stefan
Stefan
- Always Identical Twins: To Andreas.
- Calling the Old Man Out: During Johannes' birthday party, he admonishes Wilhelm for not sending his son to the Hitlerjugend, not knowing he's part of Germany's anti-Nazi movement. This is met with Wilhelm's anger, though Johannes is intrigued at joining them.
- Child Soldier: Another member of the Hitlerjugend.
Andreas
Andreas
- Always Identical Twins: To Stefan.
- Child Soldier: A Hitlerjugend member.
- Satellite Character: All we know is that he's Stefan's twin brother.
Josef Rittenhouse
Josef Rittenhouse
- Dramatic Irony: He is an anti-semetic Nazi, but his name is Josef, which is derived from the Hebrew name Yosef.
- The Leader: Of Johannes' Hitlerjugend team. He doesn't take it well when Johannes has been suspiciously absent from them.
- Calling the Old Man Out: A definitely not positive example. When Wilhelm Betzler tries to make excuses for Johannes not joining the Hitlerjugend, Josef contests him.
- Child Soldier: The leader of Johannes' Hitlerjugend troupe.
Fraulein Rahm
Fraulein Rahm
Johanne's teacher. A fervent supporter of Hitler and an Austrian nationalist, she espouses Nazi propaganda in every breath.- Politically Motivated Teacher: Taken to Large Ham moments in the movieShe taught us a Negroid woman was closer to the ape than to mankind. Removing the hairs of the ape had proven to scientists to what extent. She told us it was our duty to rid ourselves of the dangerous races halfway between man and monkey. Besides being sexually overactive and brutal, they didn't share the higher sentiments of love or courtship. They were inferior parasites who would weaken us, bring our race down
Friends and associates
Nathan Chaim Kaplan
Nathan Chaim Kaplan.
Elsa's fiance.- The Ace: He's everything Johannes is not - smart, funny, talented and handsome.
- Dead All Along: While browsing through the death records, Johannes finds out that Nathan has been dead for a long, long time, making his feud with him worthless.
- The Lost Lenore: Is this to Elsa. She speaks of him fondly, even after they're forcibly separated.
- Nice Jewish Boy: The poster boy for this trope. Nathan is kind, talented and sweet, and a loving partner to Elsa.
- Omniglot: According to Elsa, he is one.Nathan was brilliant at mathematics, he could speak four languages: German, English, French and Hebrew. Who, I argued, would consider Hebrew a language? Even if you don't, she answered, that's still three languages, fluently written, read and spoken, which is more than most people, you'd have to agree. I didn't. I wanted to argue that a Jew shouldn't be allowed to speak the German language at all, but couldn't insult him without insulting her, which proved to be the case on many occasions.
- The Rival: Johannes considered him one despite the fact that the two never met, and even calls him "My greatest rival".
- We Hardly Knew Ye: Johannes is later shocked to find out that he's been Dead All Along.
Elsa's parents
Elsa's parents
As it says, Elsa's parents.- Dead All Along: Her father was overworked in a labour camp and her mother was gassed, as proven by the document chronicling the deaths in the concentration camps.
- Jews Love to Argue:She told me about her parents, Herr and Frau Kor, who argued over how to serve oneself butter. Frau Kor cut a thin slice off the side; Herr Kor scraped it off the top. They had two schools of thought about everything, from how socks should be properly folded — flatly in two, or one balled up inside the other — to how prayers should be said — punctually out loud while rocking to and fro as was pleasing to God, or spontaneously to ourselves any time of the day, since God didn't need ears or a fixed appointment to hear. She told me about her two older brothers, Samuel and Benjamin, who dreamed of emigrating to America to buy and sell second-hand cars, and mostly she told me about her fiancé, Nathan.
The Poles
The Poles
Two Polish men named Krzysztof Powszechny and Janusz Kwasniewski, who are ordered to be taken in by Johannes and Pimmichen by the French-occupied Austrian government. They are actually Russian refugees fleeing the Soviet Union. They faked documents stating they are Polish so that they could escape the Soviet Union's cruel government.- Ambiguous Situation: We don't know the details of their past about fleeing from the Soviet Union and being soldiers.
- Defrosting Ice Queen: They start off cold and blatantly ignore and keep away from Johannes and Pimmichen. They later warm up to them and play cards with Johannes.I don't know how it started but in no time the three of us were sitting around Pimmichen's footrest, shuffling the deck like croupiers until cards either fell or flew, especially those up our sleeves, sneaking in 3s with suites of 8s, adding a stowaway card to every one swept off the deck, erasing points from whoever took the lead. Pimmichen didn't pick up any of this, neither did she Janusz's laughter every time he looked up at her, remembering what he'd witnessed me carrying earlier in the day. I felt sorry for Pimmichen, so demure, unaware and lost in her big armchair, but I couldn't help getting a laugh out of it too. Elsa's kiss contributed to my drunkenness as much as the sips of their vodka.
- Fauxreigner: They're actually Russian, not Polish. Their names are actually Sergey Karganov and Fedor Kalinin, not Krzysztof Powszechny and Janusz Kwasniewski.
- Funny Foreigner: They're quite the odd ducks.The Poles were arguing over something that I assumed, from the complex sounds, to be philosophy or astrophysics. Unexpectedly, the older one exposed his molar. I burst out laughing, imitated their grandiose sounds, then pointed to my back tooth. We all roared, except Pimmichen, who hadn't caught on.
- Language Barrier: They can't speak German.
- Real Men Wear Pink: They are two Hussky Russkie soldiers fleeing the Soviet Union. What are their hobbies? Baking.
- Vitriolic Best Buds: They tend to bicker with one another like siblings do.
- Vodka Drunkenski: Johannes mentions they love hitting the booze.
- Ugly Slavic Women: Male example - they're described as having hairy feet.
Dr. Gregor
Dr. Gregor
A doctor and a neighbor to the Beltzer household.- Determined Doctor: Johannes rewards him with a family heirloom for his effort.
- Happily Married: To a redheaded Hospital Hottie.
Madeleine
Madeleine
A brothel worker who takes advantage of Wilhelm Beltzer. She later resides with Johannes and Elsa and contributes to the household expenses but when Johannes sells the house she leaves.- Affectionate Nickname: Calls Wilhelm her little teddy bear and he calls her Maddie. As much as Johannes hates to admit it her presence lightens up his now deranged father's mood.
- Asshole Victim: She's a Manipulative Bitch who's a victim of Parental Abandonment.
- Dark and Troubled Past: She'd been abandoned in the streets when she was only six by her mother, who'd just met some Czech man. She didn't even know her father's name, and it's implied that her mother was a whore. Hearing her back story makes Johannes give her a Cooldown Hug. It's also implied that she has been in a large number of abusive relationships in the past and Wilhelm even hits her.
- Does Not Like Men: She goes off in a spiel several times about how All Abusers Are Male and that they are all the same.
- Evil Redhead: She has red hair and is a gold digger. Subverted as she later begins to support Johannes by supplying him with more money. She's also the one who reveals the truth to Elsa and reveals that Johannes was lying to manipulate her.
- Jerkass: Pimmichen and Elsa can't stand her for this reason. She acts very abrasive to the old lady, bragging about capturing her son's heart.
- Gold Digger: She takes advantage of Wilhelm even though he's clearly not in the right state of mind and gets him to hand over some of his deceased wife's jewelry to her.
- Manipulative Bitch: Upon finding a mentally damaged man, she takes him to the whorehouse and while she doesn't make him screw anyone, she still uses him for entertainment purposes, as there are people who pay to see the mentally disabled for their own entertainment.He's alive? He's been found?' My grandmother's expression lit up, to cloud over as quickly. 'You're saying it was him in the brothel?He wasn't there in the way you are assuming, ma'am. I mean, he wasn't there as a client. He was in a room, but he was, um, how can I say this, only watchingA voyeur?You may call it that, but I repeat, he was not a client. He wasn't participating in the.... doings. From what I've gathered, he was in the room as part of the programme, part of the service, if you prefer. I'm very sorry to have to tell you this.
- Volleying Insults: With Pimmichen. She repeatedly digs at her age.
Knopphart's
A company that specialises in mailings and opinion polls in the household goods sector. Johannes is offered an office job there.
Herr Demner
Her Demner
The head of the office.- Clueless Boss: He never interacts with his employees and only speaks to them via telephone.''Frau Schmitt was the right arm of Herr Demner, our boss, who never
- George Jetson Job Security: He'd fire you for something like finding food traces on the table.
- Mean Boss: He is pretty harsh and rude to his employees.
Frau Schmitt
Frau Schmitt.
Demner's wife- Nepotism: Implied that she only got her job as she's the wife of Herr Demner.
- Right-Hand Hottie: To Herr Demner.
Frau Rösler
Frau Rösler
- Affectionate Nickname: Godmum.
- Brawn Hilda: Described along with Schmulka as two of the ugliest women of the office.
Frau Schmulka
Camilla Huhrdanz
Camilla Huhrdanz
She works in security but she's not very good at that.- The Ditz: She cares more about fashion and makeup than her job security.
- Dumb Blonde:Camilla Hührdanz, a young, wavy-haired blonde known by her colleagues as Tussi, was, as her nickname hinted, a bimbo who, throughout the workday, leaned over her drawer where her mirror was hidden to touch up her makeup. That's what Frau Schmitt meant by laxness. Every other time Tussi was caught. We couldn't help but keep our eyes on her activities, to see whether she'd be caught anew, and it was our slowed typing pace that probably caused Frau Schmitt to come parading back through the room.
- Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": She's nicknamed "Tussi".
- The Lost Lenore: Rumour has it that she used to be picked up by work by a man she planned on marrying, but one day, he suddenly stopped. Now she spends the rest of her days staring out the windows and missing him.
Astrid Farrenkopf
Astrif Farrenkopf
- Alpha Bitch: A catty woman who has something unkind to say about every coworker and holds herself on a high pedestal
- Ambiguously Bi / Ambiguously Gay: She is stated to be a widow and that her husband was killed in the war but her relationship with Petra implies that there's something more than that going on, especially as they "share everything" and help each other undress their shoes.
- Those Two Girls: With Petra Kunkel
Petra Kunkel
Petra Kunkel
- Abhorrent Admirer: To Johannes. He's not interested in her, since he finds her ugly and he's already interested in Elsa.
- All Love Is Unrequited: She likes Johannes, who likes Elsa, who likes Nathan.
- Ambiguously Bi: Is stated to have a husband who was killed in the war, but her relationship with Astrid reeks of
Les Yay to the point it's Refuge in Audacity. She is also attracted to Johannes. - Beta Bitch: To Astrid's Alpha Bitch.
- Clingy Jealous Girl: She and Astrid are always conspiring about ways for her to get into Johannes pants, and when Johannes rejects her she becomes an extremely furious Woman Scorned.
- Green-Eyed Monster: She doesn't take rejection well and accuses Johannes of loving someone else and starts to pry into his past. She's right, of course, but it's none of her business.
- Those Two Girls: With Astrid.
