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Playable characters
Dave Miller
The main protagonist. Breaks into the Edison family mansion along with two friends in order to save his girlfriend, Sandy Pantz.
- Can't Drop the Hero: You can choose the other two members of the rescue party, but Dave is locked in from the start.
- The Generic Guy: Has no special skills to help progress the game, and no personality besides rescuing his girlfriend.
- The Hero Dies: He can die without rendering the game unwinnable. Dr. Fred would remark in the final cutscene that he could bring him back to life.
- Signature Line: "Bernard! Don't be a tuna head!"
- Useless Protagonist: He is a mandatory character, and has no special skills unlike everyone else.
Bernard Bernoulli
A nerdy coward.
- All There in the Manual: his last name is only given in the sequel.
- Badass Bookworm: As nerdy as can be, but besides needing help clearing Green Tentacle out of the way at first, he has no problem breaking into the mansion, stopping The Meteor and saving Sandy virtually on his own.
- Cowardly Lion: He's reluctant to go into the mansion at first, but when push comes to shove he has no problem going face to face with Purple Tentacle, Edna, or The Meteor itself.
- Cutting Off the Branches: Day of the Tentacle makes it canon that he was part of Dave's rescue team.
- Epic Fail: Despite his science smarts, Bernard can't crack the lock on the mansion's steel security door by himself. If he tries, he blows up the entire house.
- Gadgeteer Genius: He's a wizard with electronics. He's the only kid besides Jeff who's able to fix the broken telephone in the library, which gives you a way to sneak past Nurse Edna without being thrown in the dungeon. He's also the only kid who knows show to take the radio tube out of the old radio downstairs, and is the only one able to use it to operate the radio in Dr. Fred's room to call the Meteor Police.note
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: In versions of the game with the steel security door upstairs, reading the warning sign will make him try to crack the lock, claiming he read about the alarm system in 'Geek Weekly', immediately blowing up the entire mansion as a result. The only exception to this is the NES version, which has no warning sign despite the presence of the steel security door.
- Jaw Drop: If selected on the title screen.
Jeff Woodie
A surfer.
- All There in the Manual: Like Michael, his last name is only revealed in the hint poster.
- The Ditz: His reason for coming to the Edison family mansion is that he thought they were all going surfing.
- Hidden Depths: He's the only one besides Bernard who can fix the phone, even though nothing about his characterization suggests he'd be able to do this.
- Surfer Dude: Doubles as an in-series nickname.
- Useless Protagonist: Has no way of beating the game on his own, and his only ability is fixing the telephone to distract Edna so that her room can be explored, which is both shared by Bernard and not required for any ending. The only reason anyone would want to choose him is to make the game more challenging — or because he can function as Plucky Comic Relief.
Michael F. Stoppe
A photographer.
- All There in the Manual: His last name is never revealed in-game, but only in a hint poster that came in some versions.
- Black Dude Dies First: Some of Michael's comments imply that he's aware of this trope and understandably concerned about it.
- Punny Name: An F-stop is part of a camera.
- Token Minority: The only black guy in a group of white kids.
Razor/Syd
Two musicians.
- Cool Shades: Syd.
- Cutting Off the Branches: Day of the Tentacle makes it canon that one of them were part of Dave's rescue team, as only they can microwave Ed's hamster, an event which is confirmed canon and has caused Ed to be traumatized and need extensive therapy. Prerelease development material
indicates that it was likely Razor specifically. - Everyone Has Standards: In the PAL/European releases of the NES version of the game, Razor and Syd refuse to microwave the hamster...but only because "those things are just loaded with cholesterol!" note
- Fiery Redhead: Razor.
- Moveset Clone: They both share the exact same abilities and weaknesses as each other.
- The Piano Player: Both of them
Wendy
An aspiring author.
- Ghostwriter: She can rewrite the sloppily written manuscript of the Meteor. In the original versions, during Wink Smiley's talk show about the Meteor's manuscript, the Meteor doesn't even credit Wendy for helping him, instead thanking Dave and Sandy for making it possible. This is technically still true, though, since Wendy would not have even been at the mansion if Dave hadn't gotten his friends to rescue Sandy.note This is changed in the NES version, where Wendy will be shown being thanked with no one else accompanying her, even if someone else handed the Meteor the publishing contract.note
- The Quiet One: Wendy is the only protagonist who has no speaking lines during the start of the game. In fact, her only unique piece of dialogue in official versions is what she says when she fixes the manuscript, which is a whopping four words: "Ah! That's much better." This is averted in popular fan remakes like Maniac Mansion Deluxe and Meteor Mess, where she instead states "This would make a great story." during the start. note
Non-playable characters
Dr. Fred Edison
A mad doctor who kidnapped Sandy and plans on taking over the world.
- Adaptation Name Change: A subtle example, but in the Commodore 64 version of the game, the initials for the scores on the arcade cabinet are DFS, NES, and WES, unlike in every other version, where they instead read DES, NEE, and WEE. This is because originally, according to the design document and proposal, the villains were supposed to have the surname "Schwartz" rather than Edison. The latter name of Edison has actually been stated to be an invention of the sitcom adaption's creator.
- Big Bad: He's the guy who kidnapped Sandy and plans to use his Zom-B-Matic machine to Take Over the World.
- Brainwashed and Crazy: He's completely under the Meteor's mental control. Once he's freed from the control, he's a harmless eccentric.
- Cloudcuckoolander: When he's freed from the Meteor's mental control, he's shown to be very eccentric, but otherwise harmless.
- Fighting from the Inside: He's actually brainwashed into helping the Meteor, but there are hints he's trying to help anyone who might stop the Meteor as much as he's able. Like leaving the secret code to the lab door in the high score list of the Meteor Mess game.
- Mad Doctor: He's a doctor of dubious medical credentials who turned some severed animal limbs into sentient creatures and created a mind control device to take over the world.
- Money Dumb: Dr. Fred is a brilliant scientist at everything from biochemistry to nuclear physics, but he's an idiot when it comes to money. He's on a very tight budget when he builds the Zom-B-Matic and the nuclear reactor to power it, making it very easy for the latter to blow up. In Day Of The Tentacle, Nurse Edna tells Bernard that Fred messed up the contract for the video game made about the Meteor incident. As a result, the Edisons don't get a dime of royalties and they're forced to convert the mansion into a hotel to pay the bills. His refusing to give the kids any money for saving him from the Meteor's control at the end of the game may come from his not even having any cash he could give them in the first place.
- No Delays for the Wicked: Dr. Fred tries to conquer the world on a shoestring budget, and had to cut a lot of corners when building the Zom-B-Matic and the nuclear reactor. He has to store the reactor in the basement of his house, and use his swimming pool to cool the fuel rods. No wonder it's so easy for the reactor to blow up.
- Not Evil, Just Misunderstood: He's possessed by the meteor, and is quite affable otherwise.
- Ungrateful Bastard: While he thanks the kids for freeing him of the meteor's control, Fred doesn't reward them with anything. Then again, given how he tried to conquer the world on a tight budget, Dr. Fred may not actually have any money to reward the heroes with even if he wanted to.
Nurse Edna Edison
Dr. Fred's wife.
- Bowdlerization: In the NES version, her lines are much less explicit and cruel.
- Chase Scene: Her main role in the game is to chase whichever character she sees on sight and toss them in the dungeon — usually two or three loading screens. Once she spots you, you'd better run.
- Dirty Old Woman: "How silly of me! I should've tied you to my bed."
- Gonk
- The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: She's a nurse, but apart from wearing the hat, she never says or does anything to show it.
-
That One Boss: Just about every first time player's experience with her is walking aimlessly into the kitchen, only to be nabbed by her and thrown into the dungeon, having no clue that there's even a way out.
Weird Ed Edison
The temperamental and paranoid son of Dr. Fred.
- Berserk Button: His hamster being harmed.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Unlike Edna or Purple Tentacle, he's willing to give the protagonists a chance to prove why he can trust them before sending them to the dungeon. Instead of mocking the protagonists like the other two, he expresses regret when throwing them into the dungeon. When the protagonists prove he can trust them, he stops putting them in the dungeon and treats them quite respectfully — as long as his hamster is unharmed.
- Only Sane Man: Despite his nickname "Weird Ed" being perfectly justified, he's definitely more with it than either of his parents.
- Properly Paranoid: His talk about spies and evil meteors turn out to be perfectly legit.
Green Tentacle
A severed tentacle who aspires to be a rock star.
- Big Eater: He's waiting on one of the mansion's upper floors and won't let the protagonists by unless they feed him the exact food and drinks he wants.
- Broken Bridge: Prevents the protagonists from reaching the top floor of the mansion during the start of the game.
- Extreme Omnivore: He'll eat everything from week-old roasts and old rotting turkeys to "tentacle chow" to wax fruit without complaint.
- Hair-Trigger Temper: It takes little provocation for him to flat-out murder one of the protagonists.
- Manchild: Or Tentacle Child, that is. He acts very bratty and childish.
- Pet Monstrosity: For whatever reason, Dr. Fred decided he wanted a pair of walking, talking tentacles as pets. The "bulletin board" hint book provided with the game implies that he cut them off the local college's pet octopus before somehow making them into fully sentient, living creatures that serve as the Edisons' pets. Dr. Fred even refers to them as such in Day of the Tentacle.
- Unusual Pets for Unusual People: Given how bizarre and off-kilter the human Edisons are, it almost makes sense that their pets would be as weird as them.
- Unusually Uninteresting Sight: Almost none of the kids react the way you'd expect them to on meeting a walking, talking severed tentacle for the first time. The only exception is Bernard, who'll run away screaming if he's the first one to meet the Green Tentacle.
Purple Tentacle
Dr. Fred's trusted henchman.
- Broken Bridge: Provides a roadblock between the dungeon exit and the Meteor.
- The Dragon: To Dr. Fred
- Obviously Evil
- Undying Loyalty: Again, to Dr. Fred.
- And perhaps to Green Tentacle as well. When Green Tentacle asks him to stop protecting the Meteor, he leaves without argument.
- Pet Monstrosity: For whatever reason, Dr. Fred decided he wanted a pair of walking, talking tentacles as pets. The "bulletin board" hint book provided with the game implies that he cut them off the local college's pet octopus before somehow making them into fully sentient, living creatures that serve as the Edisons' pets. Dr. Fred even refers to them as such in Day of the Tentacle.
- Unusual Pets for Unusual People: Given how bizarre and off-kilter the human Edisons are, it almost makes sense that their pets would be as weird as them.
Sandy Pantz
Dave's girlfriend.
- Damsel in Distress: Saving her's the goal of the game.
- Noodle Incident: It isn't clear just how she got herself kidnapped by Dr. Fred, considering he hadn't even left his mansion in years to that point.
- Oh, No... Not Again!: The demo mode of the PC version shows her and Dave returning to the mansion a second time to give a tour to the players. Dr. Fred hears them and sends up Purple Tentacle, who manages to capture Sandy, again, while Dave is busy talking to the fourth wall.
The Meteor
An intelligent, strange being controlling Dr. Fred.
- Fed to the Beast: A possible ending unique to the NES version is to feed it to the man-eating plant.
- Heel–Face Turn: If the player gives him a publishing contract for his memoirs, he orders Dr. Fred to abandon their evil plan and release the prisoners. He'd prefer to be rich and famous.
- Karma Houdini: In one of the endings, he becomes a famous writer rather than facing justice for his crimes.
- Mysterious Past: We don't learn much about its backstory, but the wanted poster in Dr. Fred's room mentions how it's wanted for "murderous acts of violence." The game implies that the Meteor crashed on Earth to hide out from the Meteor Police.
- Reformed, but Rejected: In one combined ending, the Meteor Police arrest him during the talk show and say "I don't care if you've reformed, you're still coming with me!"
- Sore Loser: Implied by the fact that he's willing to let himself be blown up along with everyone else in the mansion rather than have his plans thwarted.
- Stealing the Credit: Its successful book was rewritten by Wendy from its mediocre manuscript. On a TV show, it does mention he had help, but strangely only Dave and Sandy are in the backstage, not Wendy, the real authornote .
- Terrible Artist: A literary example. The Meteor is an awful writer. If the characters read its manuscript, they'll mention how terrible it is. If the manuscript is revised by a skilled writer, it becomes a huge success.
Mark Eteer
A publisher of practically anything.
- Exactly What It Says on the Tin: His publishing company is called "3 Guys Who Publish Anything, Inc."
- Punny Name: Of "marketeer".
- The Unseen: If Michael or Bernard is used to beat the game.
The Meteor Police
A squad of alien cops who are after the Meteor.
- Big Guy, Little Guy: The two Meteor Police officers we see are this combination. One is a short creature with four eyes, the other is tall and rail-thin.
- Developer's Foresight: If you call them to arrest the meteor, but give him the publishing contract before they show up to arrest him, the Meteor Police haul him off the set of the talk show where that ending usually takes place.
- Drives Like Crazy: The short officer has to tell his tall colleague to "keep it under lightspeed" when they travel to Earth to capture the Meteor.
- Exactly What It Says on the Tin: They're a squad of alien police officers hunting down the Meteor, who's a wanted fugitive.
- Inspector Javert: They don't care if the Meteor reforms. Even if he does, they'll barge right onto the TV show he's appearing on and arrest him live on the air.
- Little Green Men: Zigzagged. Both of the Meteor Police officers we see are green, but one is short and the other is tall.
- Master of Unlocking: Zigzagged. They can't get past the padlocks and combination locks that block access to Dr. Fred's lab on their own, and they need you to do it for them. They can get past the card key lock that connects Dr. Fred's lab to the Meteor's chamber just fine, though.
- Pint-Sized Powerhouse: Once you open the lab's doors for him, the short officer can take it from there. He shoves Purple Tentacle aside when the latter tries to stop him, completely ignores Dr. Fred, easily passes through the door to the Meteor's chamber and No Sells the Meteor's radiation blasts before arresting the Meteor and teleporting away.
- Space Police: Alien peacekeeping officers, looking to arrest the villainous meteor hiding out on Earth.
- Teleportation: The short officer can warp into the mansion dungeon, but he needs you to unlock the doors to Dr. Fred's lab for him. Once he arrests the Meteor, they teleport out again.
- The Unseen: If Bernard isn't used to beat the game.
Wink Smiley
A talk-show host.
- Funny Afro
- Expy: Of David Letterman.
- The Unseen: Only appears if Wendy is used to beat the game.
Dead Cousin Ted Edison
A dead cousin of Dr. Fred's family.
- Mummy: Quite literally.
- Posthumous Character: Although to what extent is unclear. He has a girlie poster of a female mummy in his bedroom in most versions, along with a pillow and TV mounted in his sarcophagus "bed". Also, when the player turns on the shower, it's unclear if he's been merely pushed by the water or actually moved out of the way himself.
