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Main Characters
Fury
Col. Nick Fury
The legendary super-spy himself, albeit in a more grounded interpretation than most of his other portrayals. Tropes on this page relate specifically to My War Gone By, see the rest of the Fury MAX tropes here.
- Anti-Hero: Possibly the darkest interpretation of Fury yet, which is saying something. It comes to the point where it's questionable if he can even be called a "hero" at all.
- Blood Knight: A deeply tragic example. He thrives off bloodshed and warfare, but it ultimately leaves him empty and alone.
- Cigar Chomper: Even pushing seventy Nick refuses to give up his favorite stogies.
- Colonel Badass: Made full-bird colonel by his time in Korea, and his tendency to piss off people in charge means he'll never climb higher, which suits him just fine.
- Deadpan Snarker: Always has a witty remark for whatever's at hand. When he drops the snark it's a sign that things are dire indeed.
- Eyepatch of Power: True to form, Nick's left eye is long gone from his days in WW2.
- Fiery Cover-Up: Destroys all evidence of CIA narcotrafficking in Vietnam, solely to prolong the war.
- Government Agency of Fiction: Averted, from start to finish Fury is solely an officer of the CIA, with absolutely no reference made to SHIELD or any other fictional agency.
- Living Legend: Is equally famous, and infamous, for his outstanding deeds, as well as the lines he's willing to cross to see his mission through.
- Made of Iron: Along with his extremely slow aging, this in particular sets Fury apart. He takes damage that should cripple, if not kill, him ten times over and always comes back for more.
- Old Soldier: Being truer to life than other Furies, Nick here ages (albeit slowly) and is pushing seventy at least by his time in Nicaragua in 1984. But, being Nick Fury he remains terrifyingly lethal and effective as a CIA officer.LaChance: "The fuck old that sum'bitch gotta be by now?"Fifty: "Kinda old you don't want a piece of, son."
- Star-Crossed Lovers: With Shirley, he does genuinely love her, but his lust for battle leads him away time and again.
- Would Not Hurt A Child: As dark as his actions get, Fury draws the line at murdering a child just to maintain his cover.
Hatherly
George Hatherly
Introduced as a junior CIA officer assigned to Nick Fury in French Indochina, Hatherly remains a lifelong companion of Fury and serves as his ideological and moral counterweight.
- Action Dad: By the time he steps away from field action during the Vietnam war, he's had five children.
- Break the Believer: A die-hard American patriot who sincerely believes the ideals of his country, only to see them smashed apart before his eyes.
- Break the Cutie: His entire CIA career is an extended version of this, seeing how corrupt the country he loves is, and how low people are willing to go simply to get what they want.
- Eagle Land: A tragic Type 1. Hatherly represents everything good about the United States, but lives in a world where the Type 2 have sway.
- Friendly Sniper: He's known as an expert marksman, and is also a genuinely good-hearted and gentle man.
- Happily Married: Unlike the serial-womanizer Fury, George is very happily married to his wife and is a dedicated father to his many children.
- Heroic BSoD: Slips into several over the series, but it's Barracuda who finally breaks him for good.
- Honor Before Reason: Best demonstrated by his chasing down Steinhoff, despite the latter being over twice his size and a better fighter, and Hatherly having to drive solo through enemy territory just to confront him, just because he couldn't abide a capital-n Nazi not facing punishment for his crimes.
- Morality Pet: Served as this to Fury, with his idealism and good nature counteracting Fury's worst traits.
- No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: Steinhoff kicks the tar out of him at Son Chau, and then in 1984 he's savagely beaten after being captured by Barracuda's men.
- Wide-Eyed Idealist: He genuinely believes in the good of America, and embodies that potential good himself, but time and again cynicism and evil have their day, and he eventually breaks under the strain.
Shirley
Shirley McCuskey (nee DeFabio)
A young woman who Fury meets in 1950s French Indochina, she soon becomes one of the fixtures of his life, swinging between him and Senator McCuskey across the decades.
- Action Girl: Downplayed as she's only seen throwing down once, but she easily takes down a man twice her size at a bar in Saigon.
- The Alcoholic: Her failed marriage to Pug and dysfunctional affair with Fury drives her to drink heavily as a way to dull the pain.
- Broken Bird: She's had a rough life, both before meeting Fury and after.
- Deadpan Snarker: She has a sharp wit, and can easily cut through whoever she's talking to with a well-placed quip.
- Femme Fatale: Subverted, while she seems to be this at first in reality she's one of the most morally-upright people in the series.
- Good Bad Girl: She enjoys her men, and is easily one of the best people whom Fury meets, and serves as his moral anchor for a good part of his life.
- Murder-Suicide: Finally having reached a breaking point with Pug she kills his mistress, him, and then herself.
- Hates Being Alone: She ultimately accepts Pug's proposal, despite finding him disgusting, being more afraid of being alone in the world than being with a man she hates.
- Ms. Fanservice: In-universe and out, she's a beautiful and buxom woman who enjoys showing her body off, and arguably ages gracefully. Deconstructed as she's aware how her beauty can endanger her, and is treated like shit by Pug who abandons her as soon as she gets too old for him.
- Sexy Secretary: Starts off as this for Pug, and uses her position to help Fury where she can.
- Single Woman Seeks Good Man: What she really wanted out of her relationships was someone who would love her for herself, rather than use her for their own gain. Part of her final breakdown was learning that George could have been that for her.
Pug
Sen. "Pug" McCuskey
An ambitious congressman whom Fury first meets in Saigon in 1954. From the start it's clear that the senator has his fingers in a lot of pies, and that he has very few scruples as to what he's willing to involve himself with.
- Corrupt Politician: It's heavily implied that he's directly involved in several criminal enterprises put forward by the American government, from war profiteering to narcotics smuggling, of course he's extremely careful in never getting himself directly implicated.
- Dirty Communists: Bases most of his platform on countering the international threat of communism, to the point he and McCarthy were quite close in the '50s, which in itself is a good idea of his character.
- Don't Call Me "Sir": Asks that people call him Pug, though they seldom do.
- Eagle Land: Embodies the worst parts of Type 2 as a sharp contrast to Hatherly's Type 1.
- Fat Bastard: Gains quite a gut over the years, and only becomes fouler along with it.
- Kick the Dog: His treatment of Shirley is one long string of this, first leaving her to the wrath of the Cuban Exiles, and only sinking lower over the years.
- Hannibal Lecture: Gives a brutal one to Fury in the fallout of Nicaragua, skewering his self-righteousness as being nothing but a cover for his lust for war, and that he has no room to condemn anyone for profiting off human suffering.
- No Party Given: It's never said out loud, but given that McCarthy and Nixon are namedropped it's basically confirmed he's a Republican.
- "Not So Different" Remark: The crux of his argument against Fury is that they both profit from war and death, but at least others gain from his actions (or so he claims) whereas Fury enjoys destruction for its own sake.
- Sleazy Politician: Even if he is truly innocent, it cannot be denied that he's a smarmy, unpleasant individual with only the thinnest layer of charm.
Giap
Gen. Le Trong Giap
The closest thing Fury has to a direct rival. Starting off as an idealistic, and brutal, Viet Minh officer he climbs through the ranks to become a linchpin of the North Vietnamese military in the CIA's crosshairs.
- Affably Evil: He's a soft-spoken, easy-smiling intellectual who would prefer to convince his foes to stand down without further bloodshed. But make no mistake, he has done horrible, indefensible things in the name of his ideals.
- Anti-Villain: While his means are beyond the pale, his ends are noble and he himself only wants a swift end to the violence consuming his country.
- Blood Knight: He's notable for averting this. In spite of all the brutality he commits, he never enjoys killing and sees it as an ugly necessity to ensure his people's freedom.
- Dead Guy on Display: Makes a reputation for himself by lining the roads with the severed, staked heads of Colonial troops as an intimidation tactic.
- Deadpan Snarker: Calmly, but bitterly snarks at Fury in 1970, poking holes in the latter's self-righteousness about his role in the war.
- Death Glare: One can tell calling his country "French Indo-China" is a bit of an understated Berserk Button for him, when the first time he drops his affable smile is to glare at Fury and remind him of its true name.
- Four-Star Badass: By 1970 he's been made a general in the Vietnamese People's Army and is a key part of their training cadres operating out of Laos.
- Impromptu Tracheotomy: Gets shot through the throat in 1970 by Frank Castle, and is left for dead in a burning command building. He survives.
- It's Personal: Has a one-sided version of this with Fury. While he doesn't bear the colonel any special ill-will, Fury has lingering issues surrounding Giap since they met in 1954.
- Named After Somebody Famous: Almost certainly named after real-life revolutionary Vietnamese generals Võ Nguyên Giáp
and Lê Trọng Tấn - Occupiers Out of Our Country: His ultimate goal is a Vietnam free of foreign imperialism, and he is willing to do anything to see it through.Giap: "This is not French Indochina, Colonel Fury. It is not French anything. This is Viet Nam."
- See You in Hell: A strange, but heartwarming, version of this trope being not out of spite, but out of respect and reassurance.Giap: "We are both bound for hell, Colonel Fury. But, I hope you find a comfortable place to wait."
- What the Hell, Hero?: Lays hard into Fury for his destroying evidence of CIA narcotrafficking because of how it will prolong the bloodshed in Vietnam.
- Worthy Opponent: He and Fury consider each other this, with both of them recognizing the other's ability. Their final meeting in 1999 is one of mutual respect.
- You Have Failed Me: Is not above "criticizing" soldiers under his command if they fail to follow his orders to the letter.
Introduced in 1954, Indochina Arc
Lallement
Maj. Lallement
A major in the French Airborne and veteran of WW2 in command of the small outpost of Son Chau in 1954. Like Fury he understands the French situation in Indochina is untenable, but intends on fighting every step of the way.
- Anti-Hero: He's a gallant man and effective officer who is also supporting a brutal and unpopular colonial regime.
- An Arm and a Leg: Gets his arm blown off by a Viet Minh suicide bomber, and is last seen alive desperately trying to tourniquet the stump with his belt.
- Artistic License – Military: A minor one regarding his rank. In France "Major" is actually a non-commissioned rank, with the actual equivalent to Anglophone "Major" being Commandant. However, this could just be a case of translating for the reader.
- Cheese-Eating Surrender Monkeys: Ennis, being a history buff, averts this with gusto. Lallement and the French soldiers under his command are extremely brave and effective fighters hamstrung by lack of equipment and incompetent leadership back home.
- Determined Defeatist: He makes no bones about the French military failures in Indochina, but is also set to discharge his duty to the very end.
- Elites Are More Glamorous: Belongs to the ''1er Régiment de Parachutistes d'Infanterie de Marine'', an early Airborne Commando division first formed during WW2.
- Officer and a Gentleman: Brave and dignified, even having the respect of Captain Giap.
- Off with His Head!: Like the rest of the colonial troops at Son Chau, he's decapitated and the head staked along the roadside as a Viet Minh terror tactic.
- Rugged Scar: Has a distinctive scar right under his temple, seemingly from a glancing bullet strike.
Steinhoff
Sergent-Chef Steinhoff
A veteran of the Waffen SS, now master sergeant in the French Foreign Legion, Steinhoff is "Son Chau's secret weapon". A brutal but undeniably effective man, he embodies the changing world following the end of the Second World War.
- Affably Evil: He's genuinely chummy when he's not stomping people's heads in.
- The Big Guy / The Brute: He's the former for his fellow legionnaires whom he leads in battle as a one-man fireteam, and the latter for the Viet Minh he kills by the dozen, and the local soldiers under his command for that matter.
- Blood Knight: Signed up with the Legion after the Third Reich's defeat because they were the only fighting unit that would take him, and he simply needed to keep fighting and killing.
- Die Laughing: Dies laughing hysterically at the Viet Minh surrounding him.
- Elites Are More Glamorous: Before he was a legionnaire, itself an example of this trope, Steinhoff was in the infamous ''Das Reich'' Waffen SS Panzer Division.
- Establishing Character Moment: His first appearance shows him disciplining some lazy VNA soldiers for sleeping on watch and then greeting Fury and co. with cool respect, followed by him giving him a grounded and honest opinion of their tactical situation. This establishes him as a Sergeant Rock and professional soldier. His Wham Line at the end of the issue also reveals him to be an unrepentant Nazi war criminal.
- Eye Scream: Somehow loses his eyes during the fall of Son Chau, most likely from artillery shrapnel.
- Fire-Forged Friends: A distinctly one-sided version with Hatherly. The two get into a fight, started by Hatherly, and disparages him in crass terms, but after a night of heavy fighting where Hatherly acquits himself well, he expresses his respect.
- Hard Head: Fury cracks him across the back of the head with his gun during their fight, something that barely stuns him.
- Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: Is brought down by a half-dozen Viet Minh bayoneting him all at once.
- I Take Offense to That Last One: While he's unashamed of his Nazism, Steinhoff is upset and confused at Hatherly's notion that he was involved in the Camps. He adamantly states he simply shot "undesirables" into trenches.
- Legion of Lost Souls: Is a master sergeant in the Foreign Legion, and lives up to the reputation of having an extremely dark past, and also being a tremendously effective soldier.
- The Neidermeyer: Is this to the VNA soldiers under his command, whom he treats with barefaced contempt and brutality. Unfortunately, they don't do much to prove him wrong.
- Off with His Head!: Like Lallement and the rest of the colonial troops at Son Chau, he's decapitated and the (eyeless) head staked along the roadside as a Viet Minh terror tactic.
- Poirot Speak: Ironically while none of the French do this, Steinhoff has a habit of peppering his English with his native German.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: Should go without saying, but along with all the expected baggage of being a Nazi he also throws out several homophobic slurs at Fury during their brawl, and openly calls the local Vietnamese "untermenschen" and "savages".
- Sergeant Rock: On the other hand he's this toward his fellow legionnaires, leading them by example during the siege of Son Chau.
- Those Wacky Nazis: And a former member of the Waffen SS at that.
- Worthy Opponent: He considers US Airborne troops to have been good soldiers and worthy adversaries, in contrast to the rest of the US Army.
Introduced in 1962, Bay of Pigs Arc
Elgen
Elgin
A CIA officer who has history with Fury and Hatherly, Fury brings him along as his communications officer when the trio make their covert insertion into Cuba.
- An Arm and a Leg: Loses at least both of his arms to sharks when the Cuban Colonel throws him off the pier. Seeing this, and realizing what it would mean for him back home, prompts him to implicitly ask Fury to euthanize him.
- Communications Officer: Fury brings him as a direct link to the CIA during their operation, but due to the slapdash nature of the Bay of Pigs invasion he's never able to make contact.
- Crippling Castration: The Cubans stab him downstairs before tossing him into shark-infested waters. It is part of the reason he decides he can't go back home to his wife.
- Determinator: Makes it clear he will not break under torture once captured, and even threatens to contradict Hatherly if he tries to confess in order to make the torture stop.
- I Have a Family: A second-hand version of this, where it's Hatherly who breaks down and tries to confess when he learns Elgen has a wife waiting for him back home.
- Mercy Kill: While he doesn't say it outright, from his tone and body language it's clear he wanted Fury to kill him after he was maimed.
- Politically Incorrect Hero: Screams homophobic slurs at his interrogators to antagonize them.
- We Hardly Knew Ye: Dies in the arc he's introduced, but he apparently has a history with both Fury and Hatherly and they consider him a valued comrade.
Exile Leaders
The Cuban Exile Leaders
The political leadership of the Cuban Exiles in Miami who work with the CIA to form Brigade 2506 to lead a counter-revolution against Castro. Through them it becomes clear just how shortsighted the CIA has become in its operations, and what consequences of that shortsightedness can bring.- Cluster F-Bomb: The Elder lets loose a tremendous one against Castro when first meeting Fury.
- Death Glare: The Elder sports a constant one once it becomes clear how badly the CIA has mismanaged the operation.
- It's Personal: Feel this way against Castro due to his seizing their properties and driving them into exile, and quickly transfer the same malice to the CIA for getting dozens of their friends and family members killed in the botched operation.
- No Name Given: None are named, and Pug actively shuts down any attempt at personal introduction when they meet Fury.
- Only Sane Man: Collectively serve as this to the CIA, pointing out how transparent their "deniable" operation is, as well as dragging the agency's earlier, less-direct plans to assassinate or defame Castro.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: The Elder uses homophobic language as a insult against Castro's alleged cowardice, and the Big Leader is racist and misogynistic.
- Revenge by Proxy: The Elder tells the others not to intervene when the Big Leader attacks Shirley, opining that they had lost too much in the Bay of Pigs for Pug to not lose something too.
- Would Hit a Girl: The Big leader punches Shirley to the ground, and likely would have done worse if she hadn't pulled a gun on him.
The Cuban Colonel
The Cuban Colonel
An unnamed colonel in FAR who heads up the interrogation of captured Brigade 2506 troops, as well as Fury's CIA hit team, following the failure of the Bay of Pigs invasion.- Bad Boss: Kicks the crap out of one of his troops for hitting Fury in the face during their beating, tipping the latter off that they want them (visibly) unhurt for a show trial.
- Beard of Evil: Sports a short goatee and is a brutal torturer.
- The Brute: Is a pretty big guy and is in charge of brutalizing enemy prisoners of war.
- Cold-Blooded Torture: Subjects several Brigade 2506 soldiers to horrific torture, including one unfortunate soul who has his head crushed by inches and over the course of hours in a bench vise.
- Deadpan Snarker: He's unusually talkative and grouchy for a torturer, sarcastically urging Fury and his team to get their covers straight and "keep being heroes" under torture.
- Facial Horror: Gets a good part of his face bitten off by Fury when the latter tackles him to the ground.
- Groin Attack: Stabs Elgen in the crotch before throwing him to the sharks.
- Kangaroo Court: True to life, Castro wanted as many counter-revolutionaries as possible to go through a show trial in order to humiliate the United States, hence why the Colonel ordered his men to not damage their faces or hands.
- No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: His torture of Fury and his team comes down to ordering his men to beat on them with any blunt object at hand.
- No Name Given: Is only referred to by his rank (in Spanish at that), with no other personal information given.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: He drops a couple homophobic slurs at distant Cuban exile prisoners in his first appearance.
- Threatening Shark: His ultimate tactic is to throw Fury and his team one by one to sharks off the end of a pier, and manages to get Elgen in the water before he's brought down.
- Torture Technician: Of the crude "beat them until they talk" variety.
Introduced in 1970, Vietnam Arc
Brent, Cochran, and Severn
Agents Brent, Cochran, and Severn
A trio of CIA officers who contact Fury to assassinate an old acquaintance of his, General Le Trong Giap. However, outside the personal connection the three have other reasons for sending Fury after his old foe.- Fiery Cover-Up: On a grand scale, with them ordering a bombing run on Fury's last known position in order to ensure no compromising intel is released.
- Four Eyes, Zero Soul: Brent wears a thick pair of spectacles and is involved in narcotrafficking.
- Les Collaborateurs: They make use of corrupt North Vietnamese assets in their ultimate goal.
- Make It Look Like an Accident: Plan to have Fury and Castle killed off in a bombing run in neutral territory only to be recognized as an "accident" too late.
- Their ultimate fate, possibly. They're killed in an apparent mugging, though the implication is someone discreetly punished them, or silenced them.
Castle
Lt. Frank Castle
A young marine lieutenant currently in his second tour in Vietnam. After Hatherly bows out of the field, Castle takes his place as Fury's marksman support and guide. All tropes here are solely for his appearance in My War Gone by, see The Punisher MAX for all other tropes regarding the Punisher-to-be.
- Bash Brothers: He and Fury operate perfectly together, likely due to them being so similar.
- Blood Knight: Is already showing signs of this by 1970, having willingly re-upped for a second tour in Vietnam and actively aiding Fury in prolonging the war.
- Cold Sniper: Frank shows himself to be a devastating marksman even in his youth, effectively depopulating a NVA training camp while Fury destroys the narcotrafficking evidence.
- Identical Stranger: He and Fury are basically spitting images of each other, only differences are Frank's age and having both eyes.
- Semper Fi: Frank's on his legendary second tour as a marine come 1970, with his operation with Fury only adding to his myth.
- Terse Talker: Prefers to keep his sentences to one word, if he can. He only opens up to Fury once, and even then his speech is clipped and to the point.
- Weapon Specialization: Shows a marked preference for the M14 over the more modern M16 rifle, and goes out of his way to retrieve his M40 sniper rifle after it's captured by the NVA.
Introduced in 1984, Nicaragua Arc
Barracuda
Sgt Maj. "Barracuda"
Everyone's favorite invincible psychopath, currently at the start of his long, bloody career. Even before he went up against The Punisher, 'Cuda was already a singularly terrifying menace against humanity. All tropes here are solely for his appearance in My War Gone By, see The Punisher MAX for all other tropes.
- Almighty Janitor: Is a Sergeant-Major, but openly orders around his A-Team and the Contras they train even though he nominally has two ranking officers over him. This is part of what leads Fury to suspect the extreme corruption of 'Cuda and his crew.
- Blood Knight: Actually downplayed compared to other appearances, Barracuda knows better than to pick a fight with Fury and instead goes out of his way to subvert the latter rather than oppose him outright. That said, when it comes to killing, he very obviously takes extreme relish in it.
- Elites Are More Glamorous: 'Cuda and his A-Team are the ultimate deconstruction and fuck you to this trope. While he and his crew are Green Berets with all the skill and lethality that entails, at the end of the day all that training only makes them more effective in their depravity, showing just how destructive special forces can be if given carte blanche.
- Faux Affably Evil: The "Barracuda Charm" comes in full force in his first attempt to throw Fury off his trail. The colonel sees through it instantly but has to acknowledge that 'Cuda is dangerously smart and charismatic.
- Genius Bruiser: Like every other appearance 'Cuda is 7 feet tall and 300 pounds of muscle, he also single-handedly manages American narcotrafficking in Central America with such skill and planning that he renders Nick Fury utterly helpless to stop him.
- Knows a Guy Who Knows a Guy: Exploits this to keep American narcotrafficking going, tangentially involving so many politically-connected people that any attempt to stop him will bring ruinous political fallout, thus shielding himself from any prosecution.
- Only Known by Their Nickname: Barracuda is all he's ever known by, even to his A-Team and Fury.
- Would Hurt a Child: 'Cuda is more than willing to rip open a pregnant woman and stomp on her unborn child, if only to underscore what a fucking monster he is.
The A-Team
Fifty, Danby, LaChance
An A-Team of Army Special Forces stationed in Honduras ostensibly to train the Contras against the Sandinista government. However, from the start it's clear that these men are unconventional soldiers in more ways than one. All tropes here relate to their appearance to My War Gone By, see The Punisher MAX for other tropes related to Fifty and Danby.
- Communications Officer: LaChance mans the team's radio, and is the one who relays Fury's initial appearance as well as the fact he followed the team into the jungle.
- Evil Genius: While Barracuda is the true brains of the outfit, Fifty serves as their main tactical unit and is also the one to forge Costanzo's suicide note.
- Fat Bastard: Danby is surprisingly pudgy for a Green Beret.
- Good Smoking, Evil Smoking: LaChanceis a chain smoker and participates in massacring Nicaraguan villages.
- Karma Houdini Warranty: While they never answer for their crimes in the court of law, most of the team meet their ends in a violent manner many years later. LaChance apparently got his head blown off by a sniper during a mercenary gig, Fifty ended up cornered and killed by Chris Angelone and his men and Barracuda? Eventually had his self-image imploded and was beaten and killed by Frank Castle in 2007. Downplayed, since the circumstances of their deaths had nothing to do with their crimes in Nicaragua.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: Danby is a vocal white supremacist, to the point of trying to lecture his black commanding officer about how white people are superior.
- Southern-Fried Private: Both Danby and LaChance are southerners, although only Danby really fits any of the stereotypes.
- Sunglasses at Night: Danby is never seen without his aviator shades, even in the middle of the night in the thick jungle.
