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Dennis Mitchell
"Heeeey Mr. Wilsoooooon!"
- Played By: Brennan Thicke (cartoon), Jay North (live-action series), Adam Wylie (The Incredible Dennis the Menace), Mason Gamble (1993 live-action film), Justin Cooper (Dennis the Menace Strikes Again), Maxwell Perry Cotton (A Dennis the Menace Christmas)
- Ace Pilot: In the 1986 cartoon episode, "Come Fly With Me", he builds a fully functional airplane from the junk in his dad's garage, and manages to beat PeeBee in a race with it.
- Adorably Precocious Child: Particularly when he offers his assistance with Mr. Wilson's adult tasks, Dennis' maturity certainly shines.
- Affection-Hating Kid: Dennis didn't like his mother hugging or kissing him when anyone else can see, especially neighborhood children. At least one daily panel actually has Dennis ducking down so nobody can see his mother holding him.
- The All-American Boy: Let's see, a blond-haired Cheerful Child star of a 60s sitcom who loves his bike and has a propensity to utter minced oaths like "Jeepers!" and "Gee wiz!"? Yup, Dennis fits the trope.
- Babysitter's Nightmare: Dennis has proven to be such a terror to every babysitter watching him that no babysitter has volunteered to look after him a second time. It has gotten to the point that Alice and Henry are up to "Z" in the phone book. One particular strip has Dennis, dressed in a cowboy outfit, having Bound and Gagged his sitter to a chair, saying "You knew the job was dangerous when you took it."
- Bizarre Taste in Food: In one of the comic books, he added ketchup to his milk while at school. In the newspaper panels, he'd mix up other strange concoctions to eat like peanut butter with horseradish in a sandwich.
- Blonde, Brunette, Redhead: An example involving both genders; he's the Blonde to Joey's Brunette and Margaret's Redhead.
- Boys Like Creepy Critters: One of his pets is a frog named Willy. Dennis smuggles Willy with him wherever he goes, and sometimes tricks Margaret into kissing him.
- Brats with Slingshots: The Trope Codifier behind Bart Simpson. In the earliest strips, American Dennis would regularly be seen using his slingshot for mischief, aiming it to hit people he didn't like, or held it with the implication that he had used it earlier. Later iterations of Dennis just carried the slingshot rather than using it, while British Dennis in a stark contrast would frequently put it into much more action. In one daily panel, Dennis explains to a confused Joey holding his slingshot that he rarely uses it as he wouldn't hurt cats, birds or dogs and his father won't let him shoot at people. In the 1993 live-action film, he uses his slingshot to fire an aspirin in Mr. Wilson's mouth, and when his parents find out about this, they confiscate it. In the video game based on the film, his slingshot is one of the weapons he can use to defeat his enemies.
- Can't Get Away with Nuthin': Played with in "Dennis' Lovesick Friend", where Dennis seemingly manages to avoid playing house with Margaret, whose doll got damaged when Dennis tied it to a toy rocket and sent it into space with Margaret threatening to tell Dennis's parents about the incident unless he plays house with her. Mr. Wilson's Uncle Ned, who is in town, hires Dennis and a teenage boy whose girlfriend has broken up with him to work in Mr. Wilson's garden. Just when it looks like Dennis has given Margaret the slip by working with Uncle Ned, Alice and Henry, who saw Dennis strolling the sidewalk with Margaret, decide to invite Margaret over, and poor Dennis ends up playing house with Margaret, even though his parents never found out about the damaged doll.
- Catchphrase: "Heyyyyyy, Misssssster Willllllllllllson!", "Good ol' Mr Wilson", "Hellooooo, Mr. Wilson!", "Jeepers!", "I was only trying to help!", "Get a grip, Margaret!"
- Characterization Marches On: You could argue that the Dennis of the early strips really was a menace, with him getting into fights with the neighborhood children, breaking things he shouldn't be touching, mouthing off to the adults and causing havoc for barber and babysitter alike. The Dennis we know now is a much tamer beast, even if he's still a little troublemaker.
- Cheerful Child: Dennis is an energetic and innocent little boy with enthusiasm everywhere he goes.
- Children Are Innocent: Despite his penchant for mischief, Dennis really is a naive little boy with well-meaning intentions.
- Cool Board: He often rides a skateboard, and whenever he does, Ruff usually follows him. Whenever he leaves it in Mr. Wilson's yard, Mr. Wilson has the misfortune of slipping on it.
- Dick Dastardly Stops to Cheat: In "Bicycle Mania", Dennis competes against a bully in a bike race. The bully stops to raise a drawbridge despite this only affecting Dennis who is in dead last. Averted when the bully wins anyway.
- Dub Name Change: In the Latin American Spanish translations of the franchise, his name was changed to "Daniel" for some reason. Worth noting that he and Ruff are the only characters in the whole franchise whose names were changed in that region, as everyone else retains their original English names.
- Dumb Blonde: Downplayed. He isn't dumb, he just doesn't know what "Leave me alone!" means in regards to Mr. Wilson's rejection of his assistance. On the other hand, he was tricked into adopting his dog when he's led to believe it had an amazing pedigree (the poor thing looked like a mutt off the streets).
- Fanboy: Dennis loves Westerns, but he has an especial fondness for Cowboy Bob. He is in fact such a dedicated fan that not only does he collect all the merchandise spawned from the franchise but he also sneaks off to the local theater to see Cowboy Bob every once a week.
- Full-Name Ultimatum: Margaret often does this to "Dennis Mitchell!" Oh, and his parents have too on occasion.
- Girls Have Cooties: Dennis is at an appropriate age where girls and romance gross him out, and he will vehemently reject whatever idea Margaret has to ask him out. He's fine with his mother and the local tomboy though.
- Gleeful and Grumpy Pairing: The Gleeful to Mr. Wilson's Grumpy. He's a happy-go-lucky and energetic five-year-old boy who looks up to Mr. Wilson, no matter how many times the latter tries to push him away.
- Hates Baths: Dennis is shown to dislike baths, and will often try to make some kind of excuse to get out of taking one, such as "I don't need a whole bath, my clothes kept the rest of me clean." and "Another bath? Does dad know you're hikin' up the water bill?".
- Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: If you're willing to overlook his well-intentioned mischief, Dennis is so innocent he wouldn't hurt a fly.
- Heterosexual Life-Partners: He most frequently associated himself with Joey in the cartoons and also in the earliest episodes of the live-action series, before being shown with Stewart and Seymour as the character of Joey had been written off. A prototype of Joey (usually called Billy or Freddie) started making appearances halfway into the strip's year 1, and he hung out with Dennis more out of any friend he had.
- Idiot Hair: Dennis is famous for his prominent cowlick.
- Innocently Insensitive: Dennis sure knows how to cause chaos, but in his defense, he's just a kid with a childhood to enjoy while it lasts.
- Intergenerational Friendship: Dennis has one with Mr. Wilson, or so he thinks. Mr. Wilson, well, sometimes returns the favor.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: As much as Dennis acts like a jerk to Margaret at times, there have been the odd occasion where he'll come through for her. A Sunday strip from a time back showed Margaret sitting on her porch crying because, as she tells Dennis, a bully stole her doll. Dennis clocks the bully, retrieves the doll and returns it to a grateful Margaret. As much as he was happy to do it, Dennis just as well tells Margaret to not mention it to anyone.
- Kid-Appeal Character: Dennis lives up to every attributable kid stereotype in the book that makes him extremely relatable to young boys. With a penchant for fun and disgust to girls, he provides nonstop entertainment for the youngsters.
- Kiddy Coveralls: Dennis's basic attire consists of a blue striped shirt and red overalls. He is very mischievous and free-spirited, especially to his parents and his next-door neighbor, Mr. Wilson.
- Kid Hero: Whenever Dennis isn't causing chaos for Mr. Wilson, he's foiling the plans of everyone from human criminals to even space aliens.
- Limited Wardrobe: Jay North always wore a striped shirt and overalls like comic strip Dennis for the first three seasons. For the fourth he was allowed to wear regular pants, but they were the same color as the overalls and he still wore the striped shirts.
- Menace Decay: The Trope Namer. The first few installments of the comic strip and TV series have Dennis being more of an actual "menace" than the naive innocent boy who was "just trying to help" that later years turned him into.
- Nice Guy: Although not without his faults, Dennis is undoubtedly the sweetest kid the neighborhood could ever ask for.
- Not Allowed to Grow Up: Despite his actor pushing 12 around the time the live-action show was about to end, Dennis chronologically remains 5 years old in the series, though in the animated series, he's 6 years old.
- Primary-Color Champion: Dennis has blonde hair and is often depicted wearing a blue striped shirt and red overalls.
- Protagonist Title: He is named after the franchise itself.
- Security Blanket: Dennis clings to his teddy bear "Teddy".
- Sitcom Archnemesis: Inverted. He plays this role for the long-suffering Mr. Wilson.
- Soap Punishment: In one strip, Dennis comes outside, with bubbles coming out of his mouth, and he tells his friend that he was "right about that word."
- Spanner in the Works: One reason he's a menace is because of the chaos he causes for other people. He'll mess up just about anything Mr. Wilson tries to do. More heroically, several adaptations show Dennis wrecking the plans of any villain unlucky enough to meet him.
- Time Out: A frequent punishment for Dennis, usually shown sitting facing towards the wall and grumbling about the punishment or what he did.
- Trademark Favorite Food:
- Pizza, to the point where (he thinks) he practically can live on it. On the exact opposite of the spectrum: vegetables, especially when they were served as part of a meal that had no pizza in sight. Especially carrots at any time.
- In the comic books, it was ice cream.
- Two Guys and a Girl: In certain media, he and Joey are depicted as the Two Guys to Margaret's Girl.
- Walking Disaster Area: Even if he doesn't mean to do it, practically anything he does has a fair chance of causing some sort of catastrophe.
- Youthful Freckles: Dennis is a naive cheerful boy with freckles on his cheeks to complement his childlike innocence.
Henry Mitchell
- Played By: Herbert Anderson (TV series), Phil Hartman (season 1 of cartoon), Maurice LaMarche (season 2), Dan Gilvezan (The Incredible Dennis the Menace), Robert Stanton (1993 live-action film), Dwier Brown (Dennis the Menace Strikes Again), George Newbern (A Dennis the Menace Christmas)
Dennis' father.
- Blind Without 'Em: Many early strips portrayed him with horrible eyesight without his glasses. He can barely find Dennis in the same room if he doesn't have them on.
- Dad the Veteran: Henry served in the US navy, starting as a quartermaster second class on a ship before moving up to Chief Petty Officer.
- Fat and Skinny: He's the Skinny to Mr. Wilson's Fat whenever the two are teamed up.
- Good Parents: He and his wife regularly try to incorporate morality into Dennis and deter him away from his farfetched mischief. Despite this straightforward bluntness, they truly do love Dennis and want what's best for him.
- Happily Married: Despite their squabbles, Henry and Alice are devoted to each other.
- Kavorka Man: A pointy nosed twig of a man who wound up hitched to a curvaceous, blonde knockout.
- Last-Name Basis: George Wilson frequently addresses Henry as Mitchell, even though Henry works as an engineer, and George worked as a retired salesman in the live-action show, in contrast to the comics version, where he was a postman.
- Running Gag: In the comics, his swearing when he plays golf. It never appears on-page, of course, but Dennis always alludes to it in funny ways.
- He also has a bad habit of saying things behind people's backs, which Dennis will inevitably overhear and then repeat right in front of the person because he misinterpreted what his dad meant. For instance in one strip he brought Dennis to work, Dennis then asked him to 'show him the morons he had to work with' while at least 4 other coworkers were in the room and overheard him.
- Standard '50s Father: He certainly fits the trope (and it probably helps that the strip itself began in the fifties); he's tall, thin, has black hair, wears glasses and a tie, is Happily Married to Alice, his bond with Dennis is stronger than that of Alice, and in his earlier appearances, he smoked a pipe.
- Ugly Guy, Hot Wife: Ugly Guy (although not that much) to Alice's Hot Wife. Once Dennis referred to this situation:Dennis (to Henry): How come everybody says you were lucky to marry Mom and nobody says she was lucky to marry you?
Alice Mitchell
- Played By: Gloria Henry (TV series), Louise Vallance (season 1 of cartoon), Marilyn Lightstone (season 2), Anna Mathias (The Incredible Dennis the Menace), Lea Thompson (1993 live-action film), Heidi Swedberg (Dennis the Menace Strikes Again), Kim Schraner (A Dennis the Menace Christmas)
Dennis' mother.
- Actually Pretty Funny: Sometimes Alice laughs at her son's antics, even after having to punish him.
- Dude Magnet: A pretty blonde lady like her isn't short of admirers.
- Good Parents: She and her husband regularly try to incorporate morality into Dennis and deter him away from his farfetched mischief. Despite this straightforward bluntness, they truly do love Dennis and want what's best for him.
- Happily Married: Despite their squabbles, Alice and Henry are devoted to each other.
- Hartman Hips: Like most cartoon mothers, she's drawn with curves.
- Housewife: Alice is a stay-at-home mother.
- Missing Mom: In the Mother's Day special, Dennis the Menace in: Mayday for Mother, Alice mentions her mother had died a long time ago. Though, at the beginning of an episode of the 1986 series, Househusband Henry, she said she was off to her mother's, implying that the Mother's Day special and the Dic series are different continuities.
- Ms. Fanservice: Not invoked constantly, but every so often the strip reminds us that Alice is a drop-dead gorgeous woman in her prime, such as wearing a bikini here and there.
- Ugly Guy, Hot Wife: Hot Wife to Henry's Ugly Guy (although he's not that ugly). Once Dennis referred to this situation:Dennis (to Henry): How come everybody says you were lucky to marry Mom and nobody says she was lucky to marry you?
- Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: Alice has a fear of snakes, lizards, and white rats.
Ruff
- Played By: Phil Hartman (season 1 of cartoon), Maurice LaMarche (season 2), Dan Gilvezan (The Incredible Dennis the Menace)
Dennis' pet dog.
- Adapted Out: Ruff was never used for the live-action series.
Word of God states this was because the show's producers were unable to find a good enough dog actor. - Big Friendly Dog: In some media, such as the 1986 cartoon and the comic books, he was depicted as being much bigger than Dennis.
- Hates Baths: Like Dennis, he doesn't like taking baths, but otherwise loves getting wet.
- Keet: He plays this trope pretty straight for a non-anthropomorphic animal, eagerly chasing Dennis around and accompanying his bike rides.
- Mans Best Friend: He's the fellow canine companion of Dennis, remaining devotedly loyal to him in his crises.
- Phony Degree: In the strips, Ruff was first introduced when Dennis bought him off of someone with "papers" that proved the mutt had a ludicrously luxurious pedigree.
- Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: Although he is shown chasing them, Ruff actually has the natural fear of cats.
Grampa Johnson
- Played By: James Bell (live-action series), Brian George (cartoon) George Kennedy (Dennis the Menace Strikes Again)
Alice's father, and Dennis' maternal grandfather.
- Cool Old Guy: Grampa Johnson thinks life is worth living and encourages Dennis to live his life to the fullest like he does.
- Doting Grandparent: He tends to spoil Dennis often.
- Sitcom Arch-Nemesis: He evokes the unintentional jealousy of Mr. Wilson, for he only gets to see Dennis on occasion, whereas Mr. Wilson sees Dennis all the time.
Margaret Wade
- Played By: Jeannie Russel (TV series), Jeannie Elias (cartoon), Amy Sakasitz (1993 live-action film), Jacqueline Steiger (Dennis the Menace Strikes Again), China Anne McClain (A Dennis the Menace Christmas)
Dennis' frenemy, who has a crush on him, much to his disgust.
- Abhorrent Admirer: Margaret is occasionally depicted as having a crush on Dennis. Unfortunately for her, Dennis is still very much at an age where he feels that Girls Have Cooties (and her bossiness probably doesn’t help.)
- Blonde, Brunette, Redhead: An example involving both genders; she's the Redhead to Dennis' Blonde and Joey's Brunette.
- Catchphrase: "...Dennis Mitchell!", "Very funny, (whoever makes a snarky remark)!"
- Damsel in Distress: In the video game based on the 1993 live-action film, she and Joey are captured by Switchblade Sam and Dennis has to rescue them.
- Girly Bruiser: Depending on the Writer, she was sometimes depicted as this. One of the comic books has her getting into a fistfight with Dennis, and a few daily panels show Margaret taking up karate, judo, etc. and giving Dennis a firsthand demonstration.
- One Head Taller: In some installments of the comic strip and in the DiC series, Margaret has been drawn as noticeably taller than Dennis or Joey, even in flats.
- Regal Ringlets: She has this hairstyle.
- Tender Tomboyishness, Foul Femininity: Is very girly, and gets into a lot of arguments with Dennis, in contrast to Gina's friendliness and love of sports.
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: The Girly Girl to Gina's Tomboy. She wears a flouncy skirt and pushes a doll in a baby carriage.
- Two Girls to a Team: She and Gina are the two girls in Dennis' circle of friends.
- Two Guys and a Girl: In certain media, she's depicted as the Girl to Dennis and Joey's Two Guys.
- Youthful Freckles: A young girl dealing with an innocent childhood crush and has freckles.
Joey McDonald
- Played By: Gil Smith (TV series), Jeannie Elias (cartoon), Katie Leigh (The Incredible Dennis the Menace), Kellen Hathaway (1993 live-action film), Danny Turner (Dennis the Menace Strikes Again), Jake Beale (A Dennis the Menace Christmas)
Dennis' best friend in the comic who becomes silent in the TV series.
- Blonde, Brunette, Redhead: An example involving both genders; he's the Brunette to Dennis' blonde and Margaret's Redhead.
- Charlie Brown Baldness: He eventually developed this via Art Evolution. In the early years, he had a full head of dark, curly hair before going down to one big strand on the edge of his head.
- Demoted to Extra: In the live-action series, he becomes less important and mainly exists as a Satellite Character with minimum dialogue. He only appeared in 8 episodes before being phased out.
- Fear of Thunder: The 1986 cartoon episode, "Going Ape" reveals that Joey is afraid of thunder when he, Dennis, and Margaret get stuck in a hot air balloon. Margaret assures him that thunder is nothing to be afraid of, but then she sees a lightning strike, and notes that lightning, on the other hand, is something to be afraid of.
- Hidden Depths: In the 1986 cartoon episode, "It's a Ruff Life", Joey winds up in Ruff's body when the two get into the booths of PeeBee's brain wave machine. After a brief chase from Mr. Wilson and a pack of dogs, PeeBee tells Dennis that he'll explain the situation to Mr. Wilson. Dennis tells PeeBee that he doesn't know Mr. Wilson like he does, and Joey-in-Ruff's-body then says, "Yes, he can be quite obstinate at times." Upon hearing this, Dennis says that he didn't know Joey knew words like those.
- Kiddy Coveralls: Joey frequently wears a pair of black loose strapped overalls — they're more like suspenders and are bibless. In contrast to Dennis' mischievous, free-spirited personality, Joey is more shy and timid.
- The Quiet One: Seldom heard speaking in the TV series.
- Satellite Character: His only role in the live-action series is to be one of Dennis' friends, rarely having any solo importance.
- Two Guys and a Girl: In certain media, he and Dennis are depicted as the Two Guys to Margaret's Girl.
Gina Gilloti
- Played By: Donna Christie, Sharon Noble (cartoon), Katie Leigh (The Incredible Dennis the Menace), Alexa Vega (Dennis the Menace Strikes Again), Heidi Hayes (A Dennis the Menace Christmas)
A tomboyish Italian-American girl who is one of Dennis' friends.
- Alliterative Name: Both her first and last names begin with G.
- Berserk Button: She's slugged Dennis on more than one occasion for calling her a tomboy.
- One Head Taller: Like Margaret, Gina is always depicted as being taller than both Dennis and Joey.
- Shout-Out: Gina was named after Gina Lollobrigida (the character's Italian ancestry is also a reference to her).
- Tender Tomboyishness, Foul Femininity: Wears sneakers and jeans and plays sports with the boys, and gets along with a lot of people, in contrast to Margaret's frilly bossiness.
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: The Tomboy to Margaret's Girly Girl. She usually wears jeans and sneakers and plays sports with the boys. Dennis, who makes a big deal about his own butchness, is more comfortable with her than with Margaret.
- Two Girls to a Team: She and Margaret are the two girls in Dennis' circle of friends.
Tommy Anderson
- Played By: Billy Booth (live-action series), Jeannie Elias (cartoon)
Another of Dennis' friends, and his best friend in the 1959 series.
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: He appeared in quite a few episodes of the first season of the 1986 cartoon, but disappeared after the second.
- Demoted to Extra: He started out as a prominent character, but as Joey became more popular, his appearances became fewer and further between, until he eventually disappeared from the strip, only making occasional appearances in the Dennis the Menace Pocket Full of Fun books. Ironically enough in the 1959 series, when Joey left after the first season, he remained on for the rest of the series.
- Sixth Ranger: He sometimes fulfills this role in Dennis' circle of friends, particularly in the 1986 cartoon.
PeeBee Kappa
- Played By: Jeannie Elias
Dennis' friend and resident genius and technology freak.
- Ace Pilot: In the 1986 cartoon episode, "Come Fly With Me", he builds a fighter jet and flies it in a race against Dennis' homemade airplane. Unfortunately, he loses when the radio in his jet overloads its main circuit control.
- Canon Foreigner: He is not a pre-existing character from the comic strip and was created for the cartoon.
- Child Prodigy: He is very smart for his age and has invented many different things.
- Punny Name: His full name is a play on Phi Beta Kappa.
- Smart People Wear Glasses: As part of his Child Prodigy ensemble, he wears glasses.
Jay Weldon
- Played by: Riva Spier
Dennis's "too-tall" black friend who loves to play basketball.
- Canon Foreigner: Like PeeBee, Jay is not a pre-existing character from the comic strip and was created for the cartoon.
- Suspiciously Similar Substitute: Jay is this to Jackson, a short-lived character added to the strip in the late 1960's. Unlike Jackson, though, Jay was not a stereotype.note
- Token Black Friend: Jay serves as this in Dennis' circle of friends.
George Wilson
- Played By: Joseph Kearns (TV series), Phil Hartman (season 1 of cartoon), Maurice LaMarche (season 2), Greg Burson (The Incredible Dennis the Menace), Walter Matthau (1993 live-action film), Don Rickles (Dennis the Menace Strikes Again), Robert Wagner (A Dennis the Menace Christmas)
Dennis' next-door neighbor.
- Acrofatic: Mr. Wilson is capable of amazing feats despite his weight, having to put up with Dennis' antics day in and day out. In the 1986 cartoon episode, "Ice Show Show-off", Jay even says to Dennis that Mr. Wilson sure is graceful for someone his size.
- Butt-Monkey: As a character whose main purpose is to suffer the annoyance of his little menace neighbor, George fills the bill for this trope.
- Catchphrase: "Dennis!", "He's a menace!"
- The Chew Toy: Yes, despite the trouble that befalls him in his striving to be left alone, his abuse perpetrated at the hands of Dennis is clearly done for comedic value.
- Cranky Neighbor: You'd be cranky, too, if Dennis were your neighbor.
- False Teeth Tomfoolery:
- In the 1986 cartoon episode, "Nothing But the Tooth", PeeBee invents a tooth extracting robot to help Joey overcome his fear of dentists and tests it out on a sleeping Mr. Wilson. The robot takes Mr. Wilson's dentures, which Mr. Wilson doesn't realize until he tries to eat an apple. When he sees the robot with his dentures, he chases after it, only for the robot to hoist him by the seat of his pants with his own dentures.
- In the 1993 live-action film, Dennis finds Mr. Wilson's dentures and plays with them, accidentally knocking out the two front teeth and causing them to fall down the sink drain. He tries to fill the gap with white gum, which results in Mr. Wilson being given a huge buck-toothed smile when he poses for a photo being put in a newspaper advertising a garden party he is hosting at his house.
- Fat and Skinny: He's the Fat to Henry's Skinny whenever the two are teamed up.
- Formerly Fit: A flashback sequence in the The Incredible Dennis the Menace episode, "It's a Guy Thing" reveals that he was skinny when he was young.
- Gleeful and Grumpy Pairing: The Grumpy to Dennis' Gleeful. He's a Grumpy Old Man who just wants some peace and quiet and doesn't care much for Dennis' company.
- The Grinch: As A Dennis the Menace Christmas reveals, Mr. Wilson hates Christmas due to him breaking his back delivering letters to Santa during his career as a postman. He also hates shopping with crowds and Christmas carolers, and Dennis and his friends' misguided attempts to bring him Christmas cheer don't exactly help.note When Mr. Wilson gives Dennis a "The Reason You Suck" Speech for all the trouble he's caused him (which includes telling him that Santa Claus isn't real), it takes takes Bob the Angel putting him through Yet Another Christmas Carol to get him to change his ways, because otherwise, Dennis will end up as bitter as him.
- Grumpy Old Man: Dennis' antics tend to get on his nerves, especially breaking his windows whenever he plays baseball. To his dismay, his wife treats Dennis like her own grandson.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: It is implied that Mr. Wilson likes Dennis more than he is willing to let on.
- Jerkass Realization:
- In the 1993 film, he gives Dennis a "The Reason You Suck" Speech when the latter tells him that his house has been robbed, causing him to miss the blooming and death of a rare flower he bred at a garden party he hosted. Dennis runs away as a result, and when Henry and Alice return from their business trips, Mr. Wilson realizes that Dennis running away was his fault and searches everywhere for him. Though he doesn't succeed in finding Dennis, who is instead found by Switchblade Sam, he is very distraught, and relieved when Dennis returns the next morning on his bicycle, carrying a defeated Sam in his wagon.
- In A Dennis the Menace Christmas, after all the frustration and damage that Dennis causes, George chews Dennis out, intends to hold Henry and Alice accountable for the expensive damages, and even spites the kid by telling him there is no Santa Claus. Bob the Angel puts George through Yet Another Christmas Carol to show how this will ruin Dennis's life and leave him a bitter, lonely cynic. When it's over, George gets to work making up for what he's done.
- Throw the Dog a Bone: For all the grief he suffers, things occasionally work out for him. Sometimes Dennis's antics even end up benefiting him. A good example of this is the 1986 cartoon episode, "The Backyard Band". In it, Dennis, Gina, Tommy and Jay form a music band and are scheduled to perform in a talent show. Mr. Wilson is annoyed by the band at first, but wen an upperclassman insults it, saying that his son Timmy is much better, Mr. Wilson tells him off, saying with practice, the band could win first place, and becomes the band's coach. Mr. Wilson helps Dennis and his friends practice and the results are improved, but on the day of the talent show, the judge gives first place to his nephews. Dennis and his friends get second place, though, and give the trophy to Mr. Wilson to thank him for being such a great coach.
Martha Wilson
- Played By: Sylvia Field (TV series), Marilyn Lightstone or Louise Vallance (cartoon), June Foray (The Incredible Dennis the Menace), Joan Plowright (1993 live-action film), Betty White (Dennis the Menace Strikes Again), Louise Fletcher (A Dennis the Menace Christmas)
- Cool Old Lady: In the 1986 cartoon episode, "So Sorry!", she single-handedly defeats a Sumo Wrestler and wins the Sumo wrestling championship belt, having found out that said Sumo wrestler attacked her husband, who had mistakenly been roped into the Sumo wrestling match.
- Demoted to Extra: Downplayed. Of the Wilsons, she was the first one to be mentioned in the early years and was usually making calls to the Mitchell house. Over the years, while she still remains a big presence in the series, ultimately the Wilson who got more focus would be George.
- Granny Classic: She often acts this way, especially to Dennis. Word of God states that she deeply regrets that she and Mr. Wilson never had kids of their own, causing her to treat Dennis like he was her own grandson.
- Morality Pet: She serves as this to her husband, convincing him to help the Mitchells (especially Dennis) whenever they're in trouble after he refuses.
- Supreme Chef: She is one, as both Mr. Wilson and Dennis enjoy her cooking. Dennis even lampshades this by asking Mr. Wilson why he never kisses Mrs. Wilson for being such a good cook.
Switchblade Sam
- Played by: Christopher Lloyd
- All There in the Manual: In the film, he was never referred to by his name, neither when spoken to nor when spoken about. His name is listed in the film's closing credits.
- Alliterative Name: Switchblade Sam.
- Asshole Victim: Although not fatally, much of what Dennis puts him through is deserved.
- Big Bad: He's the main antagonist of the 1993 film.
- Big "SHUT UP!": He yells this to Dennis in an attempt to silence his incessant pestering. It doesn't work.
- Butt-Monkey: Like Mr. Wilson, much of what Dennis puts him through is a series of Amusing Injuries.
- Canon Foreigner: He is not a pre-existing character from the comics or the cartoon and was created specifically for the film.
- Edible Ammunition: In the video game adaptation, he attacks Dennis by tossing apples at him.
- Evil Is Petty: Some of his acts of villainy including trampling on flowers that are in his path and swiping an apple from a kid.
- Final Boss: In the video game adaptation, he has captured Joey and Margaret, and Dennis has to defeat him to save them.
- Human Shield: The stated reason behind his kidnapping of Dennis.Dennis: What does a hostage have to do?
Sam: Nothing.
Dennis: Then how come you need one?
Sam: In case the cops show up!
Dennis: Do I get to use a gun?
Sam: No, you get to stand in front of me in case the cops use a gun. - Hoist by His Own Petard: He probably could have caught the next train out of town scott-free if he hadn't taken Dennis as a Human Shield. Suffice to say, he discovers that Dennis the Menace certainly lives up to his moniker.
- Leitmotif: Whenever you start to hear an electric guitar lick, know that Switchblade Sam is about to turn that corner the camera is slowly tightening on.
- The Pigpen: Sam clearly hasn't had a shower and horrifyingly not visited a dentist in a LOOOOOOOONG time.
- Pity the Kidnapper: He initially seems ok with the idea of taking Dennis along as a hostage, but being Dennis, he doesn't make things easy for him.
- Put on a Prison Bus: His last scene involves him being arrested and put in a police car after being defeated by Dennis the night before, with the cops telling Sam he can tell everyone in the big house that he met Dennis. Before the police car leaves, Dennis notices that Sam left his switchblade behind and gives it back to him. Sam is about to stab Dennis with it, but Dennis is saved when one cop shuts the door on Sam, causing him to drop his switchblade down the sewer.
- Sinister Switchblade: A switchblade is Sam's weapon of choice, hence his full name. He's also not above using it on little children.
- Vile Villain, Saccharine Show: The rough, grimy Switchblade Sam contrasts the otherwise cheerful, suburban setting and characters. And by the end of the movie, he's ready to pull a knife on a five-year-old kid.
- Villain Decay: For a great part of the movie, he is a quite sinister and creepy villain with great Knight of Cerebus qualities. Once he takes Dennis as a hostage, however, he immediately becomes a goofy Butt-Monkey on the same level of Harry and Marv.
- Would Hurt a Child: When Sam takes Dennis hostage, he plans to use him as a Human Shield and then when he gets fed up with him, tries to kill him with his knife.
- Even evil has standards: when Dennis says he can’t close his mouth because his nose is stuffy , switchblade Sam tells him to keep his mouth open and not talk.
