This is the character sheet for Life with Derek.
The Venturi-McDonald family:
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: With the Venturis representing the red, as they are more brash, impulsive and extroverted, and the McDonalds the blue, as they are intellectual, traditional and more reserved. When comparing in the families, Casey would be the red oni to Lizzie's blue and Derek the red oni to Edwin's blue.
- Sibling Team: Usually the Venturis vs. the McDonalds, even though there are occasions when it's Derek-Casey and Edwin-Lizzie. Marti has been on both sides.
Casey McDonald
Casey is the protagonist and is the polar opposite of Derek in just about every way. This often leads to conflict between the two. Prior to her mom remarrying, Casey only had one younger sister and, much like Derek, was used to being in charge. She is studious and high maintenance, but throughout the course of the show becomes a little more easy going. Casey often confides in her guidance counselor, Paul, about her problems - or just to vent about Derek.
- Bad Liar: Especially in the episode “Lies Brother Told Me”.
- Beneath Suspicion: In “Prank Wars”, she pulls a prank that Derek is blamed for. When she confesses to Derek, Emily and her family, the only one who believes her is Derek (who knows he didn't do it) and even he is in disbelief until she reveals how she did it.
- Berserk Button: Telling her to calm down usually lead her to be more tense than she already is.
- Book Smart: Casey is very passionate about her schoolwork.
- Butt-Monkey: Usually for Derek, although she knows how to get revenge.
- Catchphrase: "DER-EK!" Lampshaded in one episode, when Derek responds by saying Casey's name the same way, as well as Sally's.
- Chronic Hero Syndrome: She has an acute sense of morality, especially when it involves Derek and him hurting other people, particularly girls.
- Control Freak: She always wants everything to be perfect.
- Cute Bookworm: She’s a cute girl and loves to read.
- Cute Clumsy Girl: She even sports the nickname "Klutzilla" in one episode.
- Deadpan Snarker: Mostly towards Derek.
- Deliberate Under-Performance: In “Grade-Point: Average” she tries to fail a class to get rid of her grade grubber reputation.
- Determinator: Both she and Derek are this, but she takes the cake sometimes.
- Drama Queen: Reacts to inconveniences like they're the end of the world. Especially when she and Max were dating.
- Dude Magnet: Big Time. Besides her steady boyfriends Sam, Max and Truman, many other guys seem to take an interest in her. Being played by Ashley Leggat certainly makes it believable.
- Flirty Stepsiblings: With Derek. Unintentional on the writers' part, intentional on the actors', particularly Ashley Leggat, who multiple times stated that she wanted her character to end up with Derek.
- Girlish Pigtails: She wears pigtails in some episodes. Out-of-universe, this serves to make her actress appear younger.
- Go-Getter Girl: She’s driven, ambitious and a diligent student who graduated as valedictorian. She’s also a talented dancer, plays the main character in the school musical, writes poetry for the school newspaper and in some episodes, she’s a cheerleader.
- Greek Chorus: At the beginning of each episode, she usually makes a comment to the viewers about what the general theme or message of what the episode will be about.
- Hate at First Sight: With Derek. Their first lines exchanged leaves her concluding he's the most "arrogant, insensitive, rude person" she has ever met.
- His Own Worst Enemy: Casey causes just as many problems as Derek, either through overthinking or her need to have things her way.
- Incredibly Lame Fun: In “Misadventures in Babysitting” her idea of a game included doing house chores and studying. She didn’t get why her siblings didn’t share her excitement. In "Summer School Blues", none of the kids in the summer camp she supervises like her ideas of fun either. In "Not So Sweet 16", neither Emily nor Max like her ideas for her own birthday party.
- Insufferable Genius: Casey means well, but sometimes, she can act too overconfident when it comes to her intelligence.
- It's All About Me: This, along with Derek is one of her biggest faults.
- Like Mother Like Daughter: She is a more uptight, less funny version of her mother.
- Morality Pet: For Derek sometimes.
- Ms. Fanservice: Her 'Babe Raider' outfit and the scene where she's working out.
- Neat Freak: She admits outright to Paul that she needs order and cleanliness.
- The Not-Love Interest: Derek's. Despite him having his own official girlfriends, Casey always seems to be much more important than them.
- The Perfectionist
- Single Woman Seeks Good Man: Played straight with the boyfriends she's had, as both Sam and Max are jocks, but they're really nice guys. She even states how she wants her perfect guy to be gallant and nice and is flat out disgusted by guys like Derek and Truman, hating the fact that she falls for Truman, against her will.
- The Smart Girl
- Snowball Lie: Accidentally starts one in the episode Rumor Mill.
- Straw Feminist: Casey seems to think the word "Secretary" is sexist, and insists that her stepfather use the more politically-correct "Administrative Assistant."
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Strawman Has a Point: Casey has a lot of good points in "Babe Raider".
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- Team Mom: She’s more responsible than her own parents.
- Technician Versus Performer: The technician to Derek's performer. While Casey is crazy studious and has a high level of books smarts, she doesn't seem to do as well when it comes to pragmatism, compared to Derek, who has a high level of street smarts.
- Thinks Like a Romance Novel: In “Ivanwho” she wants Max to be as chivalrous as a character from the novel she’s reading.
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: Girly Girl to Lizzie's Tomboy; Lizzie plays hockey and generally shows no interest in girlish things, which Casey clearly enjoys.
- Vitriolic Best Buds: With Derek.
- Women Are Wiser: The smartest character in the show and, along with her mother and sister, wiser than the male counterparts in the house. Although Derek seems to be more pragmatic than her, when it comes to life issues.
Derek Venturi
Derek is Casey's step-brother and her primary antagonist on the show. He's popular and good looking and not very book smart, although it is hinted at a couple of times that he's just lazy and that if he put more effort into school work, he'd probably do a lot better. He is used to being the one in charge at home, but the arrival of Casey and her family disrupts that, and he's not particularly fond of changing his life style around. He's sneaky and manipulative and not above lying to Casey to get what he wants. That said, even though he and Casey are often at each other's throats for one reason or another, he does have a soft side, but it's usually reserved for his younger sister Marti.
- Affectionate Nickname: He's called "Smerek" by Marti.
- All Girls Want Bad Boys: One of the reasons he's the most popular guy in high school, even though Derek is not just the typical bad boy with a badass facade.
- All Men Are Perverts: Casey calls him out on this, when she accuses him that he only wants to date a new girl in school, because she has a big chest. She's right.
- Anti-Hero: Sometimes, when he is nice to Casey. Usually, he's just plain Villain Protagonist, especially since the show is presented from Casey's perspective, who falls under his torment most of the time.
- Beauty, Brains, and Brawn: Derek, Sam and Ralph, with Derek getting the looks and being the most popular guy in school, Sam being the most intelligent and sensitive out of the three and Ralph the most bulky and ditzy.
- Beauty Is Bad: More attractive than the other boys in school and probably the biggest jerkass of them all.
- Being Good Sucks: In season 2, he hates the fact that he wants to do something right for Casey, when he wants to tell her that her date cheats on her, until he figures out how to do 'right and wrong' at the same time, by busting on Casey's date.
- Belligerent Sexual Tension: With Casey.
- Big Bad: Casey's main rival and even enemy in most episodes.
- Big Brother Bully: Primarily towards Edwin.
- Big Brother Instinct: Primarily towards Marti, and sometimes with Lizzie.
- Big Eater: He can be seen eating a sandwich in a lot of scenes.
- Blond, Brunette, Redhead: Sam, Ralph and him, all three being jocks and best friends, with Derek also getting the Jerk Jock part.
- Book Dumb: Although, he could just be...
- Bruiser with a Soft Center: The only time he really lets his guard down is when he's around Marti.
- Cain and Abel: The Cain to both Casey and Edwin's Abel.
- Canadian Equals Hockey Fan: He plays for the high school team and is pretty much obsessed with it.
- Comedic Sociopath: He presents many signs of this, as he usually has no regards for the rights and feelings of other people. The only thing that saves him from completely being this is the fact that he cares for his family and, eventually, his stepfamily too.
- Derek (to Casey): That's because you have a conscience...(smirks) I don't.
- Consummate Liar: In most episodes, he's such a good liar, that he gets his way eventually.
- Determinator: Not as bad as Casey, but he's got it strong too.
- Even Evil Has Standards: He's in no way evil, but he's the closest thing to an antagonist the series has. Even though he tries to make Casey's life hell, his limit is when he sees her crying because of something serious.
- He states that using Marti the same way that he uses Edwin is cruel.
- Evil Redhead: Has reddish-brown hair and is the biggest asshole in the entire series. Yes, probably even more asshole than Truman, whom we only see cheating on Casey, compared to Derek who was mentioned to do that to plenty of other girls.
- Flanderization: In the beginning, Derek verbally makes fun of Casey and mocks her whenever he gets a chance. In season 3, it's revealed that he has pranked her and set her traps so many times, that she has even made a list of top ten worst things that he has done to her. It goes to the point where he fails at school and has to be sent to a private school by his parents, because he's too busy pranking her.
- Flirty Stepsiblings: With Casey. Unintentional on the writers' part, very intentional on the actors'.
- Friend to All Children: He's surprisingly good with kids. Especially Marti. This may be a reflection of how immature he is, though.
- Hate at First Sight: With Casey. Their first lines exchanged leaves her concluding he's the most 'arrogant, insensitive, rude person' she has ever met.
- Hates Being Touched: Derek isn't exactly the "hugging" type.
- High-School Hustler: G rated version. He ran a used clothing, office supplies and CD ring, complete with bagmen.
- Hypocritical Heartwarming: No one is allowed to make fun of Casey except Derek.
- Jerkass: Lazy, selfish, and rude to his siblings, especially to Casey.
- Informed Ability: We never actually see him playing hockey.
- It's All About Me: He is incredibly selfish, and does whatever it takes to get his way.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He is pretty much a jerk, except when he's around Marti, and occasionally with Lizzie when he teaches her about hockey.
- Kissing Cousins: Kisses Vicky, who is technically his step-cousin.
- Lack of Empathy: Although he is persuaded to do the right thing in the end (usually by his parents or Casey), usually he doesn't seem to care when other people express grief or just avoids them entirely. One notable case was when Nora and George were depressed because they couldn't be together - Nora openly crying - and all he cared about was his cake.
- He has shown to care when Marti is upset.
- He'll usually do something nice when he sees Casey crying, as he realizes it is not her simply overreacting.
- Like Father, Like Son: He's a more exaggerated version of George, as he is a Brilliant, but Lazy prankster, but he's also more of a Jerkass. Of course, we never get to see a much more mature version of Derek, but he might be the same as his father, if he ages some years.
- Likes Older Women: Sally is 8 months older than him. Kendra is also stated to be in the grade above him, Casey and Emily. Though she's still in high school in his senior year, and it's mentioned he was once held back.
- My Sister Is Off-Limits: What he tells Sam when Sam shows an interest in Casey, but it was more about Sam being his friend than actual concern for Casey.
- The Nicknamer: Just ask Casey. He calls her “Klutzilla”, “Keener”, “Spacey”, “Space Case” and “Princess”.
- The Not-Love Interest: Casey's. Derek is the guy she's most of the time preoccupied with and he seems more important to her than her canon boyfriends.
- Pet the Dog: Many of his scenes with Marti consist of this.
- One episode has him comforting Casey, after she catches Truman kissing Vicki.
- Secondary Character Title: Casey and him are both protagonists, but the story is presented from Casey's perspective in most episodes, making her the primary main character.
- Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: Manly Man to Edwin's Sensitive Guy.
- Smug Smiler: Derek is famously known for his smug smirk/grin that he gives Casey most of the time. He also uses his trademark smirk to get girls.
- Supporting Protagonist: In spite of being the title character, Casey is more of a main character on the show than he is.
- Technician Versus Performer: The performer to Casey's technician. Casey is book-smart and studies a lot, while Derek is more on the pragmatic side, being street-smart.
- Took a Level in Jerkass: He is known to be a jerk, but some episodes exaggerate this trait so much, to the point where he doesn't care at all if people get hurt, both mentally and physically.
- Villain Protagonist: Casey's main rival/enemy, especially since the show is presented from her point of view. Still, at times he can be an Anti-Hero, when he does nice things for her.
- Vitriolic Best Buds: With Casey.
Edwin Venturi
Edwin is Derek's younger brother, and the middle child along with Lizzie. He tends to feel like he's the Un Favorite and although he looks up to Derek, he has been shown to have a bit of an inferiority complex.
- Amateur Sleuth: Attempted, but then his imagination got the better of him.
- Annoying Younger Sibling: He is this to Derek, and sometimes Casey.
- Big Brother Instinct: He is shown to be protective of Lizzie, especially when she goes on a date with a boy he’d never met. While Casey is older than him, he’s also protective over her, going as far as interrogating Truman and following them on their date.
- Big Brother Worship: He has this for Derek.
- Double Agent: Often happens when it's a McDonald vs. Venturi showdown.
- KidAnova: Has a different crush almost every week, and likes to think of himself as a "ladies man".
- Lovable Coward: He's a "Runner not a fighter", while facing a bully.
- Middle Child Syndrome: And HOW.
- Only Sane Man: He sometimes comes across this way for the Venturi side, especially when he and Lizzie are commiserating about their elder siblings.
- Playing Sick: In the episode “Take a Stepkid to Work Day”.
- Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: Sensitive Guy to Derek's Manly Man.
Lizzie McDonald
Lizzie is Casey's younger sister and, like Edwin, is the middle child. She is probably the most level headed of her siblings, but even she has her moments. She and Edwin often partner up when scheming for or against their older siblings. Being the middle child doesn't seem to bother her as much as it does Edwin.
- Evil Laugh: Has one briefly in "Fright Night".
- Girlish Pigtails: Along with Casey, she wears pigtails in some episodes.
- Girliness Upgrade: In the earlier seasons Lizzie is very much a tomboy, but in the last season she decides to stop "wearing clothes from the boys section".
- Granola Girl: In the earlier seasons she was an environmentalist, and also a vegetarian. In The Movie, she's the most focused on saving the marsh.
- Only Sane Man: She sometimes comes across this way for the McDonald side, especially when she and Edwin are commiserating about their elder siblings.
- Passionate Sports Girl: Has played a lot of sports, from ice hockey to soccer.
- Precocious Crush: On her soccer coach in season 2.
- The Stoic: Seems to be this a lot. Don't let the cheerful image above fool you.
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: Tomboy to Casey's Girly Girl.
- Vague Age: It's never stated how old Lizzie is, but it's presumed she's around the same age as Edwin, who turns 13 in season 3.
- Women Are Wiser: Along with Casey and Nora, they are wiser than their male counterparts in the house.
Marti Venturi
Marti is the youngest child in the Venturi-McDonald household until The Movie. She seems to get along with all of her siblings, but is closest to Derek and is one of the few people to whom Derek will open up. She can be annoying at times, but gradually grows out of that as the series progresses.
- Affectionate Nickname: She's called "Smarti" by Derek.
- Annoying Younger Sibling: Can be, but grows out of this.
- The Baby of the Bunch: She's the youngest child. Until The Movie.
- Companion Cube: Sir Monksalot.
- Imaginary Friend: Has one named Daphne.
- Morality Pet: To Derek. He has shown to have a soft spot for her.
- Puppy-Dog Eyes: She often uses this to her advantage to get what she wants.
- Shipper on Deck: Appears to be this for Sam and Casey. At some point she even says “I want Sam and Casey to crush on each other”
- Spoiled Brat: So much so that both George and Nora have a hard time parenting her.
Nora McDonald-Venturi
Nora is Casey and Lizzie's mom. She is married to George Venturi, who is her second husband, and throughout the series is often the Only Sane Man. She finds out that she's pregnant in the final season, and it is revealed in The Movie that she and her mother don't exactly get along.
- Amicably Divorced: She and Dennis get along fine.
- Lethal Chef: According to George, nobody likes her food.
- Like Mother Like Daughter: Casey is a more uptight, humorless version of her.
George Venturi
George is the father of Derek, Edwin, and Marti. He is a lawyer, a bad driver, and it is implied that when he was younger, he was very much like Derek.
- Amazingly Embarrassing Dad: Sometimes.
- Amicably Divorced: He and Abby still get along.
- Berserk Button: When his children - notably, Derek - break the rules or don't respect their punishment.
- Bumbling Dad: Occasionally
- Drives Like Crazy: Apparently...
- Like Father, Like Son: There are strong indications that Derek is very much like his father was when he was a teenager.
Cousin Vicky
Vicky is Casey's cousin. She's first introduced in season 1 and is one of the few characters, apart from Derek, who get under Casey's skin. When it is revealed that the reason she is so mean to Casey is because she's jealous of her, she and Casey reconcile. She later returns in season 4, played by a different actress, and gets caught kissing Casey's boyfriend at a party.
- Alpha Bitch: Specifically toward Casey, more so in her first appearance.
- Aesop Amnesia: She and Casey reconcile in "The Wedding", but when she's back in season 4 and she's caught kissing Truman at a party, they seem to be back to being enemies.
- Do Not Call Me "Paul": She doesn't like to be called Vicki, because it reminds her of "icky".
- Kissing Cousins: Kisses Derek.
- Uncanny Family Resemblance: When she was played by Sarah Gadon, Vicky and Casey almost looked like they could be twins.
Aunt Madge
Aunt Madge is George's aunt. She is a notorious cheek pincher who, it's implied, doesn't see George and his family often. She only appears in one episode.
- Cool Aunt
- No Sense of Personal Space: She's a cheek pincher, much to Derek and Edwin's chagrin.
Felicia
Felicia is Nora's mom. She is introduced in The Movie, at which point she hasn't seen Nora or Lizzie and Casey in four years. She openly disapproves of Nora getting remarried and raising five kids, and is not happy when she finds out that Nora is pregnant. At first, she wants nothing to do with the Venturi kids, and is reluctant to agree to let them stay at her lodge. After a fight with Casey, she has a change of heart.
- Calling The Old Woman Out: Casey basically calls Felicia out on her behavior.
- Grandparental Favoritism: Felicia only wanted Casey and Lizzie to visit.
- Obnoxious In-Laws: Does not care for George at all. She gets better.
- Parental Neglect: ... Sort of.
Emily Davis
Emily is Casey's best friend. She lives next door to the Venturis and has had a crush on Derek for a long time, even going so far as to keep tabs on him. She eventually gets over her crush on him and gets together with Sheldon Schlepper until he moves away. She finally gets her chance with Derek at the end of the fourth and final season.
- The Social Expert: She has a whole notebook dedicated to the relationships of everyone in the hallway.
- Stalker with a Crush: Oh, very much so. Especially with Derek.
- Wacky Marriage Proposal: Sheldon proposes to her at a dance. In front of everyone. Much to Emily's embarrassment.
- Victorious Childhood Friend: She and Derek get together at the end of the last season.
Ralph Papadopolis
Ralph is one of Derek's friends and bandmates.
- Blonde Brunette Red Head: Male versions found in Sam, him and Derek.
- Cloudcuckoolander: and comes off as none-too-bright.
- Odd Couple: He likes Casey in one episode.
- Took a Level in Dumbass: Some episodes like to remind us that he's not that bright.
Sam Richards
Sam is Derek's best friend. He is also Casey's first love interest on the show. He's a generally nice guy and he and Casey manage to stay on friendly terms even after they break up.
- Blonde, Brunette, Redhead: Him, Ralph and Derek.
Truman French
Truman is much like Derek, minus any redeeming qualities. He makes his debut in season 4 and shows an interest in Casey. After much resisting, she agrees to go out with him. He then makes out with her cousin Vicky at a party, and they break up. But she takes him back at prom because he's secretly a wounded soul afraid of commitment.
Max Miller
Max is a popular football jock at school in whom Casey takes an interest. He's a fairly decent guy, although he and Casey don't have a lot in common. They eventually break up when Casey feels like she's changed for the worse.
- Alliterative Name
- Lovable Jock: He's not a bad guy.
Kendra Mason
Kendra is one of the popular girls at school and, like most girls, shows an interest in Derek.
- Gossipy Hens: Kendra loves to gossip.
- Lovable Alpha Bitch: She's popular, but never particularly mean to Casey.
- Popularity Food Chain: At the very top.
- Snowball Lie: She heard Casey mention how sure she was Emily will dump Sheldon, then spread it around school until it reached Sheldon, who decided to dump Emily based on it.
Sally
Sally is Derek's co-worker and is, arguably, the first girl he's really tried to work hard at at winning over. She's a bit older than him and convinces him to take her to prom, since she missed her own. They eventually break up when she leaves for college.
- All Girls Want Bad Boys: Well, she is with Derek...
- Gasshole: Capable of outbelching all three Venturi guys.
- Only Sane Man: She's level-headed, and much more mature than some of the McDonalds and Venturis.
- Put on a Bus: She goes off to school.
Noel Covington
Noel is introduced in season 3 as Casey's leading man in a school play. It's revealed that he likes her, but since she's with Max at the time, he keeps his feelings to himself.
Sheldon Schlepper
Sheldon is first introduced when he's running for class president against Casey. The writers liked him so much that they brought him back as a reoccurring character. He gets together with Emily, much to Casey's surprise. When he's forced to move, he proposes to Emily at prom, but she turns him down since they're still in high school.
- Alliterative Name
- Ascended Extra
- Put on a Bus: He moves away after the prom.
- Wacky Marriage Proposal: He proposes to his girlfriend at the prom, in front of everyone, and embarrasses her mightily.
Paul Greebie
Paul is Casey's guidance counselor to whom she vents in just about every episode.
- Magical Negro: He's a genie in Casey's dream.
