Characters / One Tree Hill: Main Characters

The Core Five

Lucas Eugene Scott

Lucas Eugene Scott

You know, I shoot the ball, and it goes in. I don't ask questions. I don't think about it. That's just the way it is.

Portrayed by: Chad Michael Murray

Lucas Eugene Scott is the oldest child and first son of Dan Scott and the only son of Karen Roe. He was born on March 2, 1988 in Tree Hill, North Carolina. He has a younger paternal half brother, Nathan Scott and a younger maternal half sister, Lily Roe Scott. He is the husband of Peyton Sawyer-Scott and the father of Sawyer Scott. He was abandoned by his father for his other son, Nathan and raised by his paternal uncle Keith Scott. Lucas had a passion for basketball and played at the River Court with friends such as Marvin "Mouth" McFadden and Antwon "Skills" Taylor. It was this passion for basketball that saw Lucas be recruited to the Tree Hill Ravens, and be forced to interact with Nathan on a daily basis.

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• Act of True Love: Of course when he puts his life at risk during the school shooting in order to save Peyton’s life and carry her out of the building. Lampshaded by both Peyton herself who emphasizes how Lucas is always saving her and Lucas himself who responds that someone needs to. To the point that, thinking she will die, she finally tells him she loves him, prompting the two to share a brief but meaningful goodbye kiss, and both will remember this moment in several following occasions as one of their love story’s peaks.
• Aesop Amnesia: In the first season, he starts dating Brooke after Peyton's initial rejection of him; he ultimately admits to Peyton that he's been hiding his feelings for her since the rejection because he doesn't want to be hurt again. Five years later, he winds up doing the exact same thing with Lindsay after Peyton asked him to hold off on his marriage proposal for a year; this time with the added bonus of repeatedly denying that he's doing it.
• All Guys Want Cheerleaders: Lucas had relationships with Peyton and Brooke, who were cheerleaders on the Tree Hill Ravens cheerleading squad.
• Always Save the Girl: Played Straight with Peyton. Lucas always saves Peyton whenever she finds herself in trouble. Peyton openly tells Lucas that he is always trying to save her, and Lucas responds by saying that someone has to look out for her because she always ends up in trouble or facing danger.
• Amicable Exes: With Brooke, eventually. They grow into this during the second season, before getting back together in the third season. After they split up for the final time at the start of the fourth season, they gradually become this over the course of the second half of the season after realizing they're Better as Friends as they didn’t work as a couple and were not meant to be.
• Antagonistic Offspring: Towards his father, Dan. Lucas antagonism towards Dan is understandable since Dan abandoned him before he was born and wanted nothing to do with him.
• Audience Surrogate: Lucas is the protagonist and narrator of the series. The show is told from his point of view and the audience is meant to relate to his experiences.
• Babies Ever After: With Peyton. He has a daughter with her named Sawyer Scott at the end of season six. Before their daughter was born, Lucas was hesitant for Peyton to continue her pregnancy because they discovered that she suffers from a condition where she could hemorrhage and die during childbirth. Peyton was insistent on keeping the baby, despite Lucas arguing the opposite. Luckily, Peyton ended up surviving childbirth, and she had a healthy baby.
• Badass Bookworm: Lucas is very smart, a good student and he loves literature and writing. After the Time Skip, he becomes an author and starts writing novels.
• Because Destiny Says So: His love story with Peyton. The two consider each other soulmates and meant to be and are described this way also by basically every other character at a certain point, including their significant exes (i.e. Brooke, Lindsey and Julian) themselves. Even when Brooke was dating Lucas in the earlier part of the series, she knew in the back of her mind that Lucas and Peyton were meant to be, even if she didn't want to admit it to herself.
  Lucas: The realization we had always been meant for each other and every instinct to the contrary had simply been a denial of the following truth: I was now and I would always be in love with Peyton Sawyer.
  Brooke: It has always been Lucas and Peyton. You guys are meant to be together, it's the way it's supposed to be.
• Belligerent Sexual Tension: With Peyton, but it evolves into Unresolved Sexual Tension fairly quickly.
• Better as Friends: Eventually realizes that this applies to Brooke and himself once both definitely accept they are wrong as a couple and not meant to be. In fact, after they’ve broken up for good and have managed to remain friends, it’s shown their relationship dynamic is very much healthier than when they were dating.
• Betty and Veronica: The Archie to Peyton’s Betty and Brooke’s Veronica.
• Beware the Nice Ones: Lucas is a nice guy, but don't mess with him or anyone he cares about.
• Big Brother Instinct: Towards Nathan. Lucas is three months older than Nathan and acts very much as a big brother figure to him. They weren't close at the start of the series, but they became inseparable as the series progresses.
• Big Damn Reunion: with Peyton at the beginning of season 6.
• Birds of a Feather: With Peyton. Both are brooding, deep, talented, artistic, introverted observers with a Dark and Troubled Past and Parental Issues.
• Bromantic Foil: To Nathan, especially in Season 1. Nathan was a Jerk Jock who came from a wealthy and privileged background while Lucas was a Lovable Jock who came from a financially struggling background.
• The Bus Came Back: In Episode 9x07, "Last Known Surroundings". He came back to Tree Hill to help out Haley while she goes on a mission to find Nathan. Lucas offers to take Jamie and Lydia out of town so that Haley can go on a mission to find her husband.
• Cain and Abel: Lucas is the Abel to Nathan's Cain, originally. However, the two eventually grow out of their rivalry by the end of the first season, and Nathan defends Lucas from their father Dan. The season ends with them acknowledging each other as brothers and best friends.
• The Champion: For Peyton. No matter what, Lucas will always do whatever it takes to protect or save Peyton. Even when they weren't in a romantic relationship, Lucas was always looking out for Peyton and keeping her safe from trouble.
• Character Narrator: From Season 1 to 6, Lucas is the narrator of the series and provides almost all the voice overs and literary quotes at the beginning and end of each episode. The story is told from his point of view.
• Chick Magnet: Lucas gets much female attention and has attracted almost every single female character on the show, including Peyton, Brooke, Nicki, Anna, Taylor, Rachel, and Lindsey.
• Childhood Friends: With Haley. He has been best friends with her since they were eight or nine years old.
• Chronic Hero Syndrome:
  • Chances are if someone in Tree Hill is going to do something stupid to save someone else, it's going to be Lucas.
  • Especially notable with Peyton, as he's outright run straight into life-threatening situations because she was in danger. When Luke tries to pass it off as him just being there, Skills points out that Lucas repeatedly chooses to be that guy for Peyton - it's part of what finally gets Lucas to realize that he's in love with her.
  • Deconstructed after Keith's death, as Karen finds out that he was the one to pull Dan out of the dealership fire months earlier - She outright asks if he ever thinks about what losing him to do to her when he's off running into burning buildings and schools with gunmen inside.
• Cool Big Bro: To Nathan and Lily. He's protective and caring towards both of them.
• Cool Teacher: As of Season 5, with Lucas becoming the coach of the Tree Hill Ravens.
• Cool Uncle: To Jamie as of Season 5. The two have a very similar relationship to Lucas and Keith and the parallels are uncanny.
• Crazy Jealous Guy: In Season 6, Lucas initially reacted to Julian and Peyton being together in the past by punching Julian in the face due to thinking he was there to get her back (they eventually became close after Julian proved he just wanted to make the movie and also ended up falling in love with Brooke instead). On the other hand though, he was very calm and comprehensive with Peyton since he knew there was actually nothing to worry about on her part and did trust her.
• Daddy Had a Good Reason for Abandoning You: Lucas grew up thinking that Dan didn't want anything to do with him. It turns out that Dan did show up for Lucas's birth but didn't go in the hospital room with Karen and newborn Lucas because Keith was there. After Dan came back to Tree Hill with Deb, Dan approached Karen for joint custody of Lucas but Karen decided against it.
• The Ditherer: When it comes to his romantic life, Lucas had a very hard time making a decision or choice, and even without any reason since he admitted himself to a man who asked him that there never was any real choice to make as he always knew who was his One True Love, namely Peyton. He would claim to have feelings for Brooke and Lindsey, but then he would always have lingering feelings for Peyton (to the point that both Brooke and Lindsey themselves eventually admitted there was never a real choice to make as he clearly was always meant to be with Peyton). His inability to be completely honest about his true feelings for Peyton caused him unnecessary heartache.
  Man: How did you know which one to pick?
  Lucas: I guess I always knew.
• Earn Your Happy Ending: After all the hardships Lucas has faced throughout his time in the series, it's safe to say that Lucas definitely earned driving off into the sunset with his wife Peyton and their daughter Sawyer.
• Embarrassing Middle Name: His middle name is Eugene. It's rather old-fashioned. Although there is nothing really wacky or unusual about his middle name, it doesn't really fit in with the rest of his name. Or even with a cool name like Lucas.
• Everyone Can See It: In Season 5, numerous characters (Including Lindsey, who leaves Lucas at the altar when she realizes it) comment that everyone can see that Lucas is still in love with Peyton, even if he can't. After Lucas realizes it and proposes to her, Skills and Brooke both comment that everyone's been waiting on them getting married since high school, even after their break-up.
• Expository Hairstyle Change:
  • Shaves his head at the start of the second season, to go along with his fresh start in Charleston.
  • Spends the first four seasons clean-shaven; after the 4-year time skip, he's got Perma-Stubble similar to Keith's.
  • After finding out that Lindsey has started seeing someone else in season 5, Lucas winds up getting a mohawk after several nights of heavy drinking. Haley promptly shaves it off after Jamie starts asking for one.
• First Girl Wins: Peyton. Lucas chooses her over Brooke and Lindsey in season 6.
• First Love: For Peyton. Though Peyton was in relationships with Nathan and Jake before Lucas, it was clear that Lucas was the first person she truly loved. Then, he became her One True Love.
• Freudian Excuse: Being abandoned by Dan at birth subsequently leads to Lucas struggling with rejection and putting his heart on the line for the majority of his time on the show - and it only gets worse following the four year Time Skip, when Peyton asks him to hold off his proposal for a year. He only gets over it in the fifth season after Peyton repeatedly asserts that she’s still in love with him, and Haley tells him to stop playing into the idea that being heartbroken is poetic.
• Generation Xerox: Lucas is pretty much like Keith in terms of personality, temperament, outlook, etc. Like Keith, Lucas is the older but unfavorite son of his father (Royal for Keith, Dan for Lucas). Both Keith and Lucas had a Cain and Abel dynamic with Dan and Nathan respectively. Fortunately, Lucas and Nathan worked things out unlike Dan and Keith. Post-Time Skip, he becomes a Cool Uncle towards Jamie much like Keith was to him.
• Go Mad from the Revelation: He's already on bad terms with his father. So upon learning the truth that his father killed his beloved uncle...
• Green-Eyed Monster: Lucas had some jealousy moments, particularly regarding Peyton and Brooke. When Peyton was dating or interested in someone other than him, he would show bouts of jealousy. When Brooke got him involved in the non-exclusive dating thing and she was flirting with other guys, he would also get jealous.
• Guilt Complex: Lucas feels easily guilty for things and will end up blaming himself or feeling responsible for things that are his fault and things that aren't his fault.
• Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: He's blond-haired and is genuinely kind, heroic, and protective of the ones he cares about. He has his flaws and he's far from perfect but he's all about standing up and doing the right thing as much as possible.
• Half-Sibling Angst: Lucas and Nathan were raised apart and found out they were siblings as young children playing in the same junior basketball league. It is a point of contention as Lucas is a few months older, but their father, Dan, chose to marry Nathan's mother, Deb, and lives with Nathan and Deb as a family. They all live in Tree Hill, a relatively small town in North Carolina where the fact that Dan got two women pregnant at the same time is quite a scandal. Lucas struggles with the fact that he and his mother, Karen, struggle to get by while Dan supports a family in lavish style on the other side of town. Nathan struggles with the fact that everybody knows he has a bastard older brother who may actually be the more talented Scott brother but simply lacks the financial resources to compete at the level Nathan does.
• Handicapped Badass: Lucas continued playing basketball and being one of the Raven's key players despite having a fatal heart condition. However, due to his heart condition, he was only permitted to play fifteen minutes during each basketball game before he would be benched.
• Happily Ever After: With Peyton. They have many ups and downs throughout the series and face many obstacles to be together. By the end of season six, they get married and have a daughter Sawyer.
• Happily Married: To Peyton at the end of season six. They get married at the end of the season and Peyton gives birth to her and Lucas' daughter afterwards.
• Heartbroken Badass: Lucas' love life has been a gigantic mess and confusion.
• The Hero: Originally, the story is centered on Lucas and his relationship with Nathan. While Lucas is the hero, Nathan is the Anti-Hero. After Lucas leaves the series at the end of Season 6, Nathan becomes the hero and the protagonist of the series.
• Heroic Bastard: He's the hero of the series but his parents, Dan and Karen, never married. According to their prom video of when she and Dan won Prom King and Queen, Karen commented that she saw her and Dan marrying and setting up a house with a family. After Karen discovered that she was pregnant with Lucas, Dan chose to pursue his scholarship at Carolina, abandoning Karen and their child. Dan went onto marrying Deb and forming a family with her and Nathan. Lucas, on the other hand, was raised by his uncle Keith and his single mother Karen.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Nathan, even though they are half-siblings. They don't start out being close at the start of the series but they gradually start building a bond and they become friends by the end of Season 1.
• High-School Sweethearts: Subverted with Peyton. Whilst officially becoming a couple in the last few months of their senior year and ultimately getting married, they broke up a year after graduating from high school and then got back together roughly four years later.
• Hollywood Genetics: Somehow, the dark-haired Dan and Karen conceived their blond son Lucas. Meanwhile, the dark-haired Nathan is the son of Dan's blond wife Deb. But it seems as though Deb dyed her hair blonde and she is naturally a brunette as her brother Cooper is. However, blonde hair is a recessive gene. Dan's mother May is blonde haired and blue eyed and it's possible one of Karen's parents, Oliver or Cynthia, have blond haired genetics, both of which were passed onto Lucas.
• Honor Before Reason: Lucas is all about doing the right thing as much as possible.
• In Love with Love: Lucas claimed to be in love with every girl he dated, despite becoming increasingly clear as the series progressed that it wasn't actually true when it came to someone other than Peyton, his One True Love, and both his other girlfriends (Brooke and Lindsey) eventually admitted themselves he was always meant to be with her. Deep down he always knew Peyton was the one (he was in love with her even since childhood), but it took him some time to ultimately realize and accept it, and, after several ups and downs, he finally settled down with her. All this because he seems to be too idealistic when it comes to affairs of the heart and he also Desperately Craves Affection.
• In-Series Nickname:
  • Broody, used exclusively by Brooke.
  • Boyfriend, used by Brooke when they were dating.
  • Luke, used by everyone else, particularly Peyton, Haley, Nathan and Karen.
• Just Friends:
  • Subverted with Brooke. They end their on-again, off-again relationship for good once they realize they really are just friends and they are not meant to be together.
  • Played straight with Peyton as the two spend the entire season 3 and part of season 4 repeatedly claiming they’re just friends. Come halfway through season 4 they've officially become a couple as they’ve definitely both realized they are in love with each other (after actually being in a constant Will They or Won't They? situation since season 1) and then they get married and have a daughter after the 4-year time jump. Lampshaded by Skills, who is one of their major Shipper on Deck, when Lucas, after becoming acknowledged of Peyton's feelings for him, repeats they're just friends and Skills' answer is a sarcastic "And you believe that? That you and P. Sawyer are just friends?", thanks to which Lucas finally accepts his love for Peyton, and by literally everyone else, whose reaction to the news of them getting together is nothing more than basically an "It's about time" response.
• Like Brother and Sister: Solidified with Haley when they became in-laws. They were already Platonic Life-Partners before, but when Haley marries Nathan, they become brother and sister in law.
• Living Emotional Crutch: For Peyton. Without Lucas, Peyton seems to emotionally fall apart. She is very dependent on him for support and comfort because of her very troubled life. Lucas admitted that he is always saving Peyton as she often finds herself in emotionally compromising situations. Lucas is a very calming and stabilizing influence in Peyton's life and he has helped her grow as a person in a positive way.
• Lovable Jock: He's a cool jock, but he's very likeable and isn't a jerk.
• Love at First Sight: With Peyton, as they've both admitted.
  Lucas: Peyton, I've loved you since the first time I saw you.
  Peyton: I love you, Lucas and I think I have since the first moment we ever locked eyes.
• Love Epiphany: the moment in season 4 when he finally realizes Peyton is the one for him.
  Lucas: When all my dreams come true, the one I want next to me, it's you. It's you, Peyton.
• Meaningful Rename: Averted, but discussed - After his first game for the Ravens, Lucas toys with the idea of legally changing his name to Roe as he doesn’t want to give Dan the satisfaction of seeing his name on two Ravens jerseys. Lucas decides to keep the Scott name out of respect for Keith, but refuses to wear it on his jersey to spite Dan.
• Momma's Boy: Especially in early seasons, Lucas is very close to Karen.
• Most Writers Are Writers: Lucas, the main character, is an aspiring writer.
• Mr. Fanservice: Surpisingly, downplayed. Whilst he has one notable moment where he's stark naked aside from the pair of basketballs that he's using to cover himself, he only has a handful of shirtless scenes throughout the show.
• Mr Fix It: A skilled mechanic, thanks to Keith.
• Nice Guy: Not flawless (he has several questionable moments, especially when it comes to his girlfriends and love life), but he's a genuinely good, kind-hearted, benevolent person.
• No Name Given: A subversion, as whilst everyone in Tree Hill knows his surname is Scott, Lucas refuses to play for the Ravens with Dan Scott’s name on his jersey. As such, his jersey has a blank space where his name should be, and dialogue would seem to imply that team sheets simply list him by his first name. He starts wearing the name on his jersey in the third season, after Keith’s death.
• Official Couple: With Peyton. After three seasons being stuck in a Will They or Won't They? situation, they finally get together in season 4, but they break up between the Time Skip in Season 4 and 5. They ultimately get back together at the beginning of Season 6 and then get married and have a daughter by the end of the season, getting their Happily Ever After.
• Official Couple Ordeal Syndrome: Even though one of the major arcs of the first season is Peyton and Lucas' developing relationship, it takes until halfway through the fourth season — after two love triangles, two dead parental figures, a car crash, drug use, a school shooting, and a pyscho stalker — for the two of them to finally become a couple. And then they break up during the 4 year Time Skip before they finally get back together and eventually get married and have a baby over the course of the sixth season.
• One True Love: He and Peyton consider one another this way. Despite both having other relationships over the course of the series (Lucas with Brooke and Lindsey and Peyton with Jake and Julian), they’ve always found their way back to each other since they are soulmates, as stated also by basically every other character of the show at a certain point. And by everyone, that includes their significant exes.
  Lucas: The realization we had always been meant for each other and every instinct to the contrary had simply been a denial of the following truth: I was now and I would always be in love with Peyton Sawyer.
  Brooke: It has always been Lucas and Peyton. You guys are meant to be together, it's the way it's supposed to be.
• Platonic Life-Partners: With Haley. They have been best friends since childhood and view themselves as being siblings to each other. They find the mere idea of any romance between them (such as the director of Lucas' movie wanting Lucas and Haley's characters to end up together) as disgusting.
• The Protagonist: Lucas is the main or central character of the first six seasons. After season six, Nathan takes over this role when he and Peyton leave Tree Hill together.
• Put on a Bus: Episode 6x24, "Remember Me as a Time of Day".
• Savvy Guy, Energetic Girl: Lucas is the Savvy Guy and Brooke is the Energetic Girl. While Brooke is energetic, carefree, free spirited and upbeat, Lucas is introverted, brooding, sensitive and introspective. There's a reason why Lucas is called "Broody" and Brooke is "Cheery".
• Selective Obliviousness: When it comes to his own feelings towards Peyton, repeatedly
  • First, in season 3 and 4 before finally getting together with her for real. It becomes increasingly clear during season 3 and 4 he never stopped loving her after season 1, but had to move on since she had said there wasn't any possibility for a romance between them anymore, choosing her friendship with Brooke over him, prompting him to settle for being Just Friends with her and decide to give his relationship with Brooke another try, remaining in denial about his true feelings for Peyton all along. To the point that when she finally tells him she still loves him in season 4, he even thinks she is just confused, openly admitting to Skills he hoped for a long time to be more than friends with her, but it never seemed to work out, so at a certain point he just had to give up on that idea. Skills makes him notice he must be the one who is confused, since it's obvious their relationship kept being way more than friendship all along: thanks to this talk, he finally realizes he never stopped loving Peyton, he just was in denial about it, getting together with her for real. He even tells a schoolmate some episodes later that, when Peyton told him she loved him during the school shooting in season 3, deep down he knew it was all true and not just the situation, but decided to pretend it wasn't since he was back together with Brooke and didn’t want to hurt her again.
  • Then, when Peyton comes back to Tree Hill in season 5 three years after they broke up during the 4-year time skip because she turned down his marriage proposal, he is clearly still in love with her, but he’s once again in deep denial due to his fear of being rejected again, to the point he writes an entire book which he literally has to be told is a blatant metaphor about his everlasting love for her. When he finally overcomes his fear once and for all, he admits the truth about his feelings for Peyton and the two definitely get back together.
• Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: Lucas is the Sensitive Guy to Nathan's Manly Man.
• Serial Romeo: Subverted. As a very romantic guy and not willing to pursue a girl unless he thought she could have been the one for him (unfortunately bordering on being In Love with Love due to his evident inability to be alone and constant fear of being rejected because of his abandonment issues), Lucas claimed to be in love with the other two girlfriends he had over the course of the show besides Peyton (Brooke and Lindsey), but as the series progressed, it became increasingly clear they both were basically just replacements for her, who was the only one he ever really loved, as he stated himself in both novels he wrote entirely about her and also in his wedding vows to her. He pursued the other girls only when Peyton wasn't available to him or when she rejected him due to bad timing or circumstances, but in the end he always found his way back to her and chose her over both of them, to the point that eventually both Brooke and Lindsey themselves openly admitted he clearly was always meant to be with Peyton.
  Lucas: Peyton, I’ve loved you since the first time I saw you. And this ring, and these words, are simply a way to show the rest of the world what's been in my heart for as long as I’ve known you. I love you, Peyton Elizabeth Sawyer. I always have and I always will.
• Shipper on Deck:
  • For Karen and his Uncle Keith. He's always hoped they would eventually get together, to the point he actively persuades his mum to give a try with Keith during season 3.
  • He has also always been supportive of her relationship with Andy.
  • He strongly supports Nathan and Haley being together, even though he was initially opposed to it.
  • He also supports Brooke and Julian getting together in season 6, to the point he invites Julian to his wedding explicitly in order to be Brooke’s date.
• Shipping Torpedo: He is really, really against the idea of his mother ever getting back together with his father because of all the bad stuff he always did to both of them (the worst of course being the murder of Keith, his own brother and Lucas’ uncle and paternal figure).
• Stalker with a Crush: By his own admission, he used to be this to Peyton before their Junior year since he was in love with her since the 8th grade, but was not brave enough to make a move towards her.
  Lucas: Y'know, I used to watch you.
  Peyton: When?
  Lucas: Oh, Freshman year... Sophomore year... Both summers, actually.
  Peyton: Stop it... [Beat] What did you watch?
  Lucas: Your legs, mostly.
  Peyton: What?!
  Lucas: Ahhh, I'm serious. Y'know, from up close, they're a little chickeny—
  Peyton: Shut up!
  Lucas: But from where I was hiding they were pretty awesome, hehehe.
  [Beat]
  Peyton: I'm not sure that's a compliment.
  Lucas: Oh it is, trust me.
• Star-Crossed Lovers: With Peyton. They are described as being soul mates who are meant to be together by the series creator Mark Schwahn. They had to overcome many obstacles and issues over the course of the series before being able to have their Happy Ever After.
• Stern Teacher: Particularly to Q.
• Tangled Family Tree: His younger maternal half sister Lily is also his paternal cousin.
• Took a Level in Jerkass: During Season 1. He gets better after several What the Hell, Hero? speeches from Keith, Nathan, Peyton, Haley and Karen.
• Two First Names: "Lucas" and "Scott".
• The Un-Favourite: Even though Dan was a bad father to both of them, Nathan was definitely Dan's favorite son.
• Unresolved Sexual Tension: With Peyton for most of the story.
• Unwitting Instigator of Doom: Whilst it's never brought up on the show, Lucas' attempt to ruin Dan in Season 2 leads to him uncovering the ledger of Dan's fradulent activities at Dan Scott Motors, which leads to Deb attempting kill Dan after she finds out that she'd be implicated as it's her name listed as the owner on all of the dealership's records, which ultimately ends up with Dan murdering Keith.
• Vitriolic Best Buds: Eventually becomes this with Julian.
• Wacky Marriage Proposal: In an airport no-less. Lampshaded by Peyton.
  Lucas: It's me. I'm at the airport and I got two (plane) tickets to Las Vegas. Do you wanna get married tonight?
  Peyton: You're such a mess! You can't just call a girl at the airport! You're a mess, Lucas Scott! But you're my mess, and I love you.
• Walking the Earth: The explanation for him being Put on a Bus is this. After he leaves Tree Hill with Peyton and Sawyer, they travel the world together along with Karen, Andy and Lily.
• "Well Done, Son" Guy: Deep down, Lucas always wanted to be loved and accepted by his father, Dan. But he was The Unfavorite and Dan strongly favored Nathan over him. Many of Lucas' personal issues stem from feeing abandoned and unloved by Dan.
• Will They or Won't They?: With Peyton. They do.
• You Killed My Father: Lucas almost commits Patricide in Season 4 after discovering that Dan was the one to shoot and kill Keith. He points a gun at Dan intending to shoot him but he purposely misses and shoots at the wall near Dan instead.

Nathaniel Royal "Nathan" Scott

Nathaniel Royal "Nathan" Scott

Sometimes what you call "everything," I call "nothing."

Portrayed by: James Lafferty

Nathaniel Royal "Nathan" Scott is the youngest child and second son of Daniel "Dan" Scott and the only son of Deborah Lee. He was born on June 23, 1988 in Tree Hill, North Carolina. He has an older paternal half brother, Lucas Scott. He is the husband of Haley James-Scott and the father of Jamie Scott and Lydia Scott.Under the watchful eye of his father, Nathan was raised with a basketball in his hands from the moment he could walk and eventually became the star player of the Tree Hill Ravens. However, Nathan is threatened when his older brother Lucas joins the team and with an eye for Nathan's girlfriend Peyton Sawyer.

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• The Ace: Nathan is a very skilled and good basketball player. He is known for his great athleticism and skills on the basketball court.
• Action Dad: Nathan is a star basketball player involved in the sports action on the show and he's Jamie and Lydia's father.
• Act of True Love: Of course when he rushes into the school during the shooting even though the building is put on lockdown in order to find and save Haley because he knows she is still in there.
• Affectionate Nickname: All of his close friends (not including his wife Haley), including his older brother Lucas, often call him "Nate". Otherwise, everyone else calls him Nathan. His brother Lucas sometimes calls him "little brother".
• All Guys Want Cheerleaders: With Peyton. Subverted with Haley, as they were already married by the time she became a cheerleader.
• Always Save the Girl: When it pertains to Haley, Nathan will always protect her and do everything to save her if she is in trouble.
• Amazon Chaser: He really loves Haley's toughness finding her more attractive in her badass moments. As he said: "My girl's is a badass. It's hot."
• Amicable Exes: With Peyton and arguably Brooke.
• Ancestral Name: His middle name is Royal. He was given the name because it is the first given name of his paternal grandfather, Royal Scott.
• Annoying Younger Sibling: To Lucas, to Jerkass levels. At first anyway.
• Antagonistic Offspring: Towards Dan, even in the earlier seasons. Though Nathan loves his father, he often acts resentful towards him because he feels that Dan puts too much pressure on him to live up to his expectations. This would have an effect on Nathan's emotional well-being. Things got better for Nathan when he started to emerge from his father's shadow, became independent from him and Deb, and began living his own life. After Nathan discovers that Dan shot and killed Keith, he firmly declares that he wants no involvement with his father and does not even want him near his son, Jamie. He even starts to call his father by his first name instead of "Dad." At the very end of season nine when Dan goes on a rescue mission, Nathan starts to warm up to his father again and calls him Dad again.
• Anti-Hero: Nathan started out as this to Lucas' The Hero. However, this later on changes when Nathan starts to change into a much kinder and nicer person as the series goes on.
• Audience Surrogate: After Lucas departs Tree Hill and leaves the series at the end of Season 6, Nathan becomes The Protagonist and the point of view character from Season 7 onwards. The audience is meant to sympathize with Nathan's experiences.
• Babies Ever After: With Haley. They have two children together, Jamie Scott and Lydia Scott.
• Badass in Distress: Nathan spends the majority of the last season as this, as he's been kidnapped. He has to be rescued by Dan, Julian, Chris and Chase.
• Bash Brothers: With Lucas. The two weren't close at the start but as the series goes on, they become closer and have each other's backs.
• Beard of Sorrow: Nathan grows one during season 5, after his Career-Ending Injury leaves him paralyzed. He shaves it off after he starts recovering.
• Because You Were Nice to Me: The reason why Nathan falls in love with Haley is because she helped him with his grades by tutoring him and she helped him to open up emotionally and be vulnerable with her.
• Becoming the Mask: Originally he got closer to Haley just to annoy Lucas, but he ends up falling for her for real.
• Beneath the Mask: On the surface, Nathan was cocky, arrogant, selfish and impulsive before he had Character Development. However, beneath the surface, Nathan is very vulnerable, emotional, sensitive, and insecure. Much of his arrogant persona was just a facade he was using as a defence mechanism. Haley manages to break down Nathan's hardcore exterior and help him to open up emotionally.
• Better as Friends: With Peyton. They were dating each other in Season 1 but their relationship was dysfunctional and they were incompatible. After they break up, they gradually become friends and have a much healthier relationship dynamic.
• Beware the Nice Ones: Nathan gradually becomes a nicer person due to Character Development, but that doesn't mean that he will tolerate nonsense. He will fight back if he is provoked.
• Bigger Is Better in Bed: It's implied that Nathan is well-endowed. Both Brooke and Kylie imply this upon seeing him naked.
• Big Brother Instinct: Inverted. Nathan is the younger brother to Lucas. Despite being the younger sibling, Nathan is still very protective towards Lucas. He showed extreme concern regarding Lucas and his heart condition. Out of love and concern for Lucas, Nathan told Karen that Lucas refused to take the HCM test.
• Big Little Brother: He's slightly taller than his older brother Lucas. Nathan is 6'2" and Lucas is 6'0".
• Big Man on Campus: Nathan is popular, athletic and well-liked by the girls at school.
• Book Dumb: In early seasons. This is how he meets his future wife Haley, when she starts tutoring him in math.
• Bound and Gagged: He spends a large chunk of the final season in this position during his kidnapping, but Catastrophe and the Cure is the only episode where he is gagged.
• Broken Ace:
  • He has a complicated and antagonistic relationship with his father, who moreso parades him (and to a lesser extent his mother) around as a trophy than having an actual healthy father-son relationship, his mother ignores him due to working all the time and she eventually backslides into drug addiction (though she gets better) and he was a big, arrogant manwhore with unstable relationships with women due to his troubled upbringing.
  • After the 4 time skip, in Season 5 - it turns out that whilst he *did* make it to the NBA Draft, his anger issues ultimately led to him being paralyzed after being thrown through a plate-glass window, and subsequently missing out on his lifelong dream had led Nathan into an alcohol fueled depression.
• Broken Pedestal: In the first four seasons, Nathan frequently butts heads with Dan, but they ultimately do care about each other. Then Nathan finds out that Dan killed Keith.
• Bromantic Foil: To Lucas, especially in Season 1. Nathan was a Jerk Jock who came from a wealthy and privileged background while Lucas was a Lovable Jock who came from a financially struggling background.
• Brooding Boy, Gentle Girl: Nathan is the Brooding Boy to Haley's Gentle Girl. Haley helped to bring Nathan out of his shell and to emotionally open up.
• Bully Turned Buddy: Nathan bullied Lucas and all of his friends in season one. By season eight, the entire group is very close knit and Nathan has to be reminded that Mouth got his nickname when they were kids because Nathan told him he had a big mouth and punched him in it. Nathan doesn't remember doing this and is genuinely apologetic.
• Cain and Abel: He and Lucas start out this way. They grow out of it by the end of the first season, and Nathan defends Lucas from Dan. The season ends with them acknowledging each other as brothers and friends.
• The Casanova: Pre-Haley.
  Nathan: You want me to write a list of every single girl I've ever...
  Haley: No, no, I guess not every single girl. You can cross Peyton, Brooke, and my sister off of that list.
  Nathan: You really think that's a good idea?
  Haley: Yes! And here. I'll make it easy for you. Take the phone book and just cross off the name of every girl you haven't been with.
• Casual Sports Jersey: During his high school years, Nathan was often seen wearing his Tree Hill letterman jacket. If he's not wearing that, he's always seen wearing his Tree Hill Ravens basketball jersey with #23 on it.
• Character Development: Over the entire course of the series, Nathan goes from a selfish, cocky, arrogant individual to a much nicer, kinder, selfless and understanding person.
• Chekhov's Boomerang: Nathan's Game-Breaking Injury in the Season 5 premiere will be the reason for his early retirement from the NBA in Season 8. After he retires from the NBA, he goes onto pursuing a career as a sports agent.
• Chick Magnet: Nathan is the most popular boy at Tree Hill High, and he attracts plenty members of the opposite sex. He has attracted the attention of all the main female characters, Haley, Brooke and Peyton. Other female characters that Nathan has attracted include Rachel Gatina, Taylor James, Renee Richardson, and Nanny Carrie.
• Chronic Hero Syndrome: Nathan constantly feels the need to save the day and get involved if people that he cares about are in trouble. He often gets in trouble and in finds himself in very complicated situations which make his life more difficult as a result. Haley even calls him out on this in season five when he steps in to protect Haley when she is being harassed by a guy.
• Clothes Make the Legend: Between season's four and five. #23 - All-Time Leading Scorer, co-captain of the first Ravens team to win the State Championship.
• Crazy Jealous Guy: Nathan showed shades of this in season two when he physically threatened Chris Keller to stay away from Haley.
• Defrosting Ice King: In season one, he starts off being very icy, arrogant and selfish indeed. Thankfully, Haley and Lucas activate the metaphorical radiators and Nathan gradually realizes that he wants to be a better person than he's been.
• Desperately Craves Affection: Since he unfortunately grew up in a very dysfunctional family, Nathan never felt truly loved, becoming a Broken Ace, and desperately needed to find someone capable of understanding and loving him unconditionally. That’s why he fell in love with Haley in the first place: she gave him that unconditional love and acceptance and helped him to reveal his true character. That’s also why his relationship with Lucas evolved in such a positive way: once Nathan started revealing he was a Defrosting Ice King and was a Jerk Jock and a bully due to the toxicity he experienced his all life, his brother showed him he wanted to know the deeper side of him and started to truly love him.
• Deuteragonist: In the first six seasons, Lucas is the main protagonist and Nathan is the secondary protagonist. The show revolves around the two brothers and their relationship with each other. Following Lucas' departure at the end of season six, he became The Hero and the main protagonist of the series.
• Disability as an Excuse for Jerkassery: In season five, Nathan ended up in a wheelchair because of a Career-Ending Injury. This resulted in a dramatic negative shift in his personality and he was acting bitter, surly, withdrawn and angry towards everyone around him, including Haley, Lucas and Jamie.
• Distressed Dude: In season nine, Nathan was kidnapped and held captive by a group of goons. He was rescued by Dan, Chase, Chris, and Julian.
• Dramatic Spine Injury: In Season 5, it was discovered that the reason for Nathan's Career-Ending Injury was because he got into a physical fight with someone and was thrown out a window where pieces of glass got stuck in his spine. This caused him to become temporarily paralyzed and he couldn't feel his legs. This resulted in him having to use a wheelchair for four months after the accident happened.
• Driven to Suicide: In Season 2, he appeared to attempt suicide when he crashed his race car. He did this because he was depressed and heartbroken over Haley leaving him to go on tour with Chris Keller. Lucas even asked him if he attempted suicide and that he may need to get some help. In season 5, he becomes suicidal once again due to his Career-Ending Injury and losing his ability to play basketball. He gets better.
• Drowning My Sorrows: During Season 2, Nathan turns to alcohol as a way to deal with his marital issues with Haley. Haley left him to go on tour with Chris Keller and Nathan ended up extremely heartbroken and depressed. Nathan would bring malt liquor to class and drink it in front of everyone. He crashed Keith's wedding and was completely wasted. In Season 5, his Career-Ending Injury leads him into an alcohol-fuelled depression. He gets better. Nathan has a habit of picking up alcohol in order to help him cope with his problems. He shares this trait with his father Dan, his uncle Keith and his brother Lucas.
• Even the Guys Want Him: Specifically Tim, his best friend in season one. There were signs, also lampshaded by Brooke, that he had more than just admiration for Nathan.
• Expository Hairstyle Change: At the start of season 5, Nathan has grown his hair out and has stopped shaving. He starts shaving again and cuts his hair as he starts trying to recover from his Game-Breaking Injury.
• First Love: Despite his... friendly history prior to dating Haley, she is the only girl he's ever been in love with.
• Freudian Excuse: His Jerk Jock behavior in season one is quite understandable with a father like Dan. As seen in the episode "Lifetime Piling Up" when Nathan dreams of what life would have been like if Dan had stayed with Karen and Lucas instead of marrying Deb: Lucas, not him, would have been the popular Jerk Jock.
• Game-Breaking Injury: Nathan is thrown through a plate glass window during the 4 year Time Skip after season four, and was paralyzed from the waist down. He eventually recovers after months of rehab, and eventually makes it to the NBA. However, the injury comes back to haunt him in season eight, and he's forced to retire.
• Generation Xerox:
  • Much like Lucas takes after Keith, Nathan takes after Dan... Sort of. Whilst he starts out similar to Dan, he becomes a better person than Dan ever was during his Junior year, and whilst his life follows a similar path to Dan's, Nathan frequently does the opposite of what Dan would have done (Or actually did) in that spot.
  • Nathan's relationship with Haley is basically a happier version of Dan and Karen (High-School Sweethearts with a Teen Pregnancy) since Nathan, unlike Dan, is able to drop his Jerk Jock tendencies.
• Green-Eyed Monster: Nathan has shown a jealous streak where Haley is concerned especially when it came to Haley and her connection with Chris Keller. He got so jealous and overprotective that he physically threatened to beat up Chris if he tried to make moves on Haley.
• Half-Sibling Angst: Lucas and Nathan were raised apart and found out they were siblings as young children playing in the same junior basketball league. It is a point of contention as Lucas is a few months older, but their father, Dan, chose to marry Nathan's mother, Deb, and lives with Nathan and Deb as a family. They all live in, Tree Hill, a relatively small town where the fact that Dan got two women pregnant at the same time is quite a scandal. Lucas struggles with the fact that he and his mother, Karen, struggle to get by while Dan supports a family in lavish style on the other side of town. Nathan struggles with the fact that everybody knows he has a bastard older brother who may actually be the more talented Scott brother but simply lacks the financial resources to compete at the level Nathan does.
• Handicapped Badass: In Season 5, he was still recovering from his spinal injury, but was very capable at playing basketball.
• Happily Ever After: With Haley. They get married at the end of Season 1 and they are Happily Married for all nine seasons of the series. They also have two children together, Jamie and Lydia.
• Happily Married: To Haley. Nathan and Haley have been married since Season 1, as juniors in high school, and have been identified as a "supercouple." Though there have been complications in their marriage, they've managed to last through the ensuing nine seasons. Their teen pregnancy also gave them a son, Jamie, born on their graduation day.
• Heel–Face Turn: Downplayed. Nathan was never a villain but he was a major Jerk Jock and a bully. He starts to become a much kinder and nicer person due to Haley and Lucas' influence.
• High-School Sweethearts: With Haley. They're generally regarded as one of the bedrock relationships of the series.
• He Is All Grown Up: Heavily downplayed, but present. Since James Lafferty was the only main cast member who was actually high school aged at 18 years old, it's easy to notice him change physically over the course of the first few seasons. Compare him in the first season to the fourth.◊
• Heterosexual Life-Partners:
  • He's this with Lucas, even though they are brothers.
  • He becomes this with Clay in season seven onwards. Clay is not only his sports agent but he's also his best friend.
• Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: With Haley. Nathan is 6'2" and Haley is 5'3", meaning Nathan is almost a whole foot taller than Haley.
• I Can't Feel My Legs!: Nathan says this word for word to Lucas after getting into a physical fight, being thrown through a window and shards of glass puncture his spinal cord. This results in him having to be in a wheelchair for four months.
• In-Series Nickname: Nate, used by basically all his friends and his brother Lucas. The only person who doesn't call him Nate are his father Dan and his wife Haley. His mother Deb has called him Nate on occasion.
• Jerkass Realization: In Season 1, Nathan realizes how much of a jerk he has been and actively chooses to become a better person. He undergoes significant Character Development and goes from a Jerk Jock to a Lovable Jock, due to finding independence from his father Dan, falling in love with Haley and forging a bond with his brother Lucas.
• Jerk Jock: Nathan's initial personality is less than pleasant in the first few episodes of the series. Gradually, he sheds the "Jerk" part with help from Haley and Lucas and morphs into a Lovable Jock after undergoing Character Development.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: It's hard to believe he starts off as a total jerk in the first season, since he is a Nice Guy for most of the series.
• Lady Killer In Love: He was a major player, before falling in love with Haley.
• Lovable Jock: He becomes this from starting as a Jerk Jock after undergoing Character Development.
• Love Redeems: The whole point of his Character Development. Nathan falls in love with Haley and he starts to reveal his true personality that was hidden beneath his hardcore exterior. Due to Haley's influence, Nathan reveals himself to be kind, caring, sensitive, romantic, empathetic and loving. He needed someone like Haley to help him become emotionally vulnerable and work through his personal issues.
• Married Too Young; Subverted. Nathan and Haley get married when they are only 16 years old. They have their share of issues and obstacles thrown their way, but they ultimately stay Happily Married for the entire series.
• Mr. Fanservice: The series' go-to guy for shirtless scenes. Being that Nathan becomes a professional basketball player, he also has plenty of scenes where he's working out.
• The Nicknamer: It's revealed in Season 8 that Nathan is the one who coined Mouth's nickname, after getting fed-up of Mouth's wannabe sports announcer tendencies at the River Court, declaring "You have a big mouth" and promptly punching him in it. When it's brought up, Nathan admits he doesn't remember doing that, but apologizes for it.
• Official Couple: With Haley. They get together in Season 1 and even end up married by the end of the season, then they remain Happily Married for all nine seasons and have two children, Jamie and Lydia.
• One Head Taller: Nathan is 6'2" and Haley is 5'4", making Nathan almost a foot taller than her. In many of their scenes together, it's evident how much taller Nathan is than Haley.
• One True Love: He and Haley consider each other this way. The two are each other’s First Love and ended up getting married and even having a child while still in high school, but they managed to stay together through life ups and downs and form a pretty solid and loving family. Neither of them has ever imagined to be with someone else. To the point their ‘catchphrase’ is “Always and forever”.
• Opposites Attract: With Haley, of course. Nathan is the popular athlete while Haley is a nerdy bookworm.
• Papa Wolf: Especially over Haley and his children, Jamie and Lydia. He is extremely protective of his family and will do anything to keep them safe.
• Preppy Name: His full name is Nathan Royal Scott. His name is very fitting because he grew up in a very wealthy and privileged household.
• The Protagonist: He becomes this starting season 7 after former lead Lucas has left the show at the end of season 6.
• Really Gets Around: Prior to meeting Haley. He was quite The Casanova and bedded quite a few girls.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Nathan is the Red Oni to Lucas' Blue Oni. Nathan is more hot-headed, overconfident, passionate and impulsive, while Lucas is more calm, composed, logical and practical.
• Reformed Bully: In the earlier parts of Season 1, Nathan was a big time Jerk Jock and a bully. After undergoing Character Development, he becomes a Nice Guy and a Lovable Jock.
• Rousseau Was Right: His entire Season 1 plot. Nathan was raised by Dan, who was an Abusive Dad towards him. Nathan acted like a Spoiled Brat and a Jerk Jock due to his father's influence. Once Nathan started to break free from Dan, Nathan became a significantly better person. Nathan was always a good person but he was masking it behind a Jerkass Façade.
• Sex God: Peyton comments on him being very good in bed, joking it was the only thing memorable about their relationship.
• Sibling Rivalry: With Lucas at the start of the series. As the series starts, they don't know each other, due to being half-brothers raised in different households — Lucas is the son of the high school sweetheart abandoned after graduation, Nathan is the son of the college girlfriend who married the former hero of the high school basketball team. They don't have much interaction until Lucas is recruited to play alongside Nathan for the Tree Hill Ravens, with tensions rising due to Nathan viewing Lucas as trying to steal his life. As the season goes on, they eventually become friends, before finally acknowledging one another as brothers.
• Sibling Team: With Lucas. When Lucas joins the Tree Hill Ravens basketball team, they end up playing side by side. Both Lucas and Nathan are very talented basketball players and when they work together on the team, they are a force to be reckoned with.
• Sibling Triangle: Lucas and Nathan both want to date Peyton throughout part of the first season. However, it is not treated as a sibling-triangle in-universe, because the two are half-brothers who were not raised together and spend much of the same arc as rivals. When the two finally decide to become friends and acknowledge each other at brothers, they also stop competing for the same girl with Lucas dating Peyton and Nathan dating Haley.
• Sins of the Father: Nathan is famous for his accomplishments but he is also known for being the son of Dan, the person who is known to have shot and killed his brother.
• Sugar-and-Ice Personality: In Season 1, he would act stoic, arrogant and stand-offish at times, but kind, caring, emotional and expressive at other times. It would depend on who he was interacting with.
• Take a Third Option: Towards the end of Season 1, Dan and Deb demand that he live with one of them, as they separate. Nathan eventually decides to live with neither, and emancipates himself.
• Tall, Dark, and Handsome: He stands 6'2".
• Tall, Dark, and Snarky: Before his Character Development. And even after that, he still has his snarky, sarcastic moments.
• Teen Pregnancy: Nathan became a father to his son Jamie when he was seventeen or eighteen, just like his father Dan before him.
• Took a Level in Kindness: Introduced as a quintessential Jerk Jock, Nathan eventually decides to become a better person thanks to his interactions with Haley and Lucas.
• Tragic Dream: In season 5. He got better.^note Although the injury that prevented him from being drafted in the NBA the first time will lead to his early retirement.
• Two First Names: "Nathan" and "Scott".
• What the Hell, Hero?: In Season 5, Peyton calls Nathan out on his self-pity by pointing out that his paralysis isn't permanent & there are plenty of people in worse spots than him who would kill to have the second chance that he's giving up on.

Peyton Elizabeth Sawyer

Peyton Elizabeth Sawyer-Scott

I guess I'm just a riddle wrapped inside a mystery inside a bitch.

Portrayed by: Hilarie Burton

Peyton Sawyer is a rebellious cheerleader who shows her emotions through her art and love for music. With a deceased mother & father away for work most of the time, Peyton spends most of her time alone, or with her best friend Brooke Davis.

---

• Action Girl: Has her big "Action Girl" moment in Episode 4x16, "You Call It Madness, But I Call It Love". She and Brooke end up physically taking on Psycho!Derek. She ends up kicking him, stabbing him and punching him in order to defend herself and Brooke from danger. After knocking him down the stairs, she kicks him repeatedly in the stomach.
• Amicable Exes: With Nathan. Peyton dated Nathan in Season 1, but because he was still in his Jerk Jock phase, she broke up with him and in the meantime fell in love with Lucas. They eventually remain on friendly terms in the rest of the series.
• Artists Are Attractive: Peyton is a very attractive young woman and she is a very talented artist.
• Babies Ever After: With Lucas. At the end of season six, she and Lucas have a daughter named Sawyer.
• Because Destiny Says So: Her love story with Lucas. The two consider each other soulmates and meant to be and are described this way also by basically every character at a certain point, including their significant exes (i.e. Brooke, Lindsay and Julian) themselves. Even when Brooke was dating Lucas in the earlier part of the series, she knew in the back of her mind that Lucas and Peyton were meant to be, even if she didn't want to admit it to herself.
  Lucas: The realization we had always been meant for each other and every instinct to the contrary had simply been a denial of the following truth: I was now and I would always be in love with Peyton Sawyer.
  Brooke: It has always been Lucas and Peyton. You guys are meant to be together, it's the way it's supposed to be.
• Belligerent Sexual Tension: With Lucas at the start of season 1, but it evolves into Unresolved Sexual Tension fairly quickly. Most of the tension between the two was on Peyton's end.
• Better as Friends: With Nathan. They were dating each other in Season 1 but their relationship was dysfunctional and they were incompatible. After they break up, they gradually become friends and have a much healthier relationship dynamic.
• Betty and Veronica:
  • The Betty to Brooke's Veronica for Lucas' Archie.
  • Interestingly, in season 5 she was also the Veronica to Lindsey's Betty, always for Lucas' Archie.
• Big Damn Reunion: With Lucas at the beginning of season 6.
• Big Eater: To the point that Lucas had to ask if she was pregnant.
  Peyton: Trust me; when I'm pregnant, this will only be the tip of the iceberg.
• Birds of a Feather: With Lucas. Both are brooding, deep, talented, artistic, introverted observers with a Dark and Troubled Past and Parental Issues.
• Bound and Gagged: Along with Brooke in You Call It Madness, But I Call It Love.
• Broken Bird: Is she ever. The trope description seems Peyton's character biography. She was one in the beginning, and becomes an even bigger one over the years.
• Character Development: Starts off as a pessimistic, tortured Defrosting Ice Queen. By the time she leaves the show, she’s way more open and warmer, and has become one of the more optimistic characters on the show.
• Cute Bruiser: She gaves several punches to Psycho Derek with her Red Boxing Gloves. She learned how to box when her older brother Derek taught her how to defend herself.
• Cool Car: Peyton drives a car called The Comet. Lucas wrote a book based on Peyton's car.
• Damsel in Distress:
  Peyton: You're always saving me.
  Lucas: Somebody's got to.
• Damsel out of Distress: When she and Brooke fight off Psycho Derek in season 4.
• Deadpan Snarker: She's sassy, cynical and has a snarky sense of humor: this makes her the bigger Deadpan Snarker of the main five.
• Defrosting Ice Queen: She was kind of bitchy at the beginning of season 1.
• Disappeared Dad: Peyton's father is often away for his work.
• Doom Magnet: to the point her "catchphrase" has become "people always leave". In fact, one of the reasons she falls in love with Lucas is because he is the one who never left her and basically broke the "curse".
  Peyton: I lose everyone I care about. Any time I open up to someone, they walk out of my life or they die or they move away or they get shipped off to Iraq or they turn into freaking Norman Bates or...
  Lucas: Not everyone.
• Downtime Downgrade: With Lucas in season five. After being in a Will They or Won't They? situation until the beginning of season four, they finally become a couple for real and promise each other their love is forever, only to discover they’ve abruptly broken up during the four-year Time Skip between the two seasons, begin again their Will They or Won't They? and definitely get back together at the beginning of season six.
• Drives Like Crazy: Almost runs over her eventual husband Lucas Scott in the opening scenes of the show because she was searching the floor of her car for a dropped CD while driving.
• Dude Magnet: She attracted the attention and affections of Lucas, Nathan, Jake, Julian, and unfortunately Psycho Derek.
• Earn Your Happy Ending: Considering all she goes through during the series (And before it), it's safe to say that Peyton definitely earnt driving into the sunset married to Lucas & with a healthy baby girl.
• Emo Teen: Borderline example. She's prone to Wangst at times, but then again she has her reasons...
• Even the Girls Want Her: Anna Taggarro, who was bisexual, had a crush on Peyton and even kissed her.
• Everyone Can See It: In Season 5, numerous characters (including Lindsey, who leaves Lucas at the altar when she realizes it) comment that everyone can see that Lucas is still in love with Peyton, even if he can't. After Lucas realizes it & proposes to her, Skills and Brooke both comment that everyone's been waiting on them getting married since high school, even after their break-up.
• Expository Hair Style Change: In the third season, Peyton goes from curly hair to short and straight hair. She claims that it's because "long, blonde hair" was Ellie's thing, and she doesn't want to look anything like her. Ironically, the change in hairstyles actually makes her look more like her biological mother.
• Fanservice Pack: While Peyton has always been attractive, she becomes increasingly Hotter and Sexier during the duration of her six-season stint.
• First Girl Wins: Peyton gets chosen over both Brooke and Lindsey by Lucas in season six.
• First Love: For Lucas. Lucas has been in love with Peyton since childhood. He was in love with her before he started dating Brooke and when Peyton was dating Nathan. Then, she became his One True Love.
• Freudian Excuse: Her abandonment issues stemming from her mother dying in a car accident when she was 8 years old. She gradually gets over them over the course of the first four seasons thanks to Lucas, as whilst she still has to go through Jake leaving Tree Hill and Ellie’s death, Lucas is still there throughout everything, including staying by her side after she gets shot during the school shooting. When Lucas has a heart attack hours after he and Peyton finally become a couple, it’s shown that Peyton will never recover from losing him if he doesn’t come back to her.
• Gender-Blender Name: Her name, Peyton, is unisex and could be a name used for both boys and girls.
• Girliness Upgrade: Peyton in Seasons 1 to 4 - usually wearing jeans, band t-shirts and a leather jacket. Peyton in Seasons 5 and 6 - frequently wearing dresses and just dressing in a more feminine manner.
• Good Girls Avoid Abortion: Despite being told she has a disease which could mean the end of her life if she carries her pregnancy to term in season 6, she decides to go through it and take the risk. Initially, Lucas tries to make her change her mind as he is too scared to lose her, but when he sees she’s determined to do it, he decides to be supportive.
• Happily Ever After: With Lucas. They get married at the end of season six and have a daughter Sawyer. All of this happens after they face many obstacles and hurdles in being together as a couple over the course of the series.
• Happily Married: To Lucas at the end of season six. She gets married to him and then gives birth to her and Lucas' daughter after they get married.
• Hard-Drinking Party Girl: She engaged in partying, drinking and doing drugs, particularly cocaine, during her high school years.
• Hero's Classic Car: Peyton drove, as her car, a 1963 Mercury Comet, which became a well known part of her life and she valued it dearly because it was a much-loved vehicle, not only to Peyton but to her family. As well as this, Peyton first spoke to Lucas after her car broke down by a lake and asked him to repair it, making it become a constant during their love story.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Brooke, her best friend since childhood. It gets strained in season 4, as they spend most of the season at each other's throats, but they get better near the end and in season 5 they are back to be closer than ever.
• Hidden Depths: The show never draws attention to it in the same manner that it does for Haley and Lucas, but Peyton is actually part of the Honor Roll of her graduating class alongside them - a detail only revealed when the viewer gets to briefly see her entry in the school’s year book.
• Highschool Sweethearts: Subverted with Lucas. Whilst becoming a couple in the last few months of their senior year and ultimately getting married, they broke up a year after graduating from high school and then got back together roughly four years later.
• Honorary Aunt: To Jamie, then she became her actual aunt via her marriage to Lucas.
• Hot-Blooded: Downplayed. She is generally calm and thoughtful, but don't mess with her or her beloved ones unless you don't want to get in trouble, to the point that, if she gets really angry, you could even literally get punched.
• I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: With Lucas, repeatedly.
  • Subverted in Season 1. Neither Peyton nor Lucas would actually end things between them and both would stay together because they love each other, with Lucas breaking up with Brooke precisely to get together with Peyton. However, she feels too bad for her best friend and decides to tearfully let him go, but to spare Brooke's pain, not because she wants him to be happy without her, and then focuses on repairing her friendship with her.
  • Played straight in Season 4. Despite realizing she's in love with him, Peyton keeps her feelings for herself for a while and tries to convince Lucas to take Brooke back on several occasions if it is her he really wants (considering Lucas hasn’t realized Peyton is still the one he really loves yet) and once again she also feels guilty towards Brooke, thinking (incorrectly) she is the reason of their break-up.
  • Played straight again in Season 5, after her attempt to convince Lucas not to marry Lindsey falls on deaf ears.
• In-Series Nickname:
  • P. Sawyer, used by Brooke and Skills.
  • Skinny Girl, used by Skills.
• Irony: Considers "Celebration" by Cool & the Gang to be her saddest song, as it was playing in the hospital when her mother died.
• Just Friends: With Lucas. The two spend the entire season 3 and part of season 4 repeatedly claiming they’re just friends. Come halfway through season 4 they've officially become a couple as they’ve definitely both realized they are in love each other (after actually being in a constant Will They or Won't They? situation since season 1) and then they get married and have a daughter after the 4-year time jump. Lampshaded by Skills, who is one of their major Shipper on Deck, when Lucas, after becoming acknowledged of Peyton's feelings for him, repeats they're just friends and Skills' answer is a sarcastic "And you believe that? That you and P. Sawyer are just friends?", thanks to which Lucas finally accepts his love for Peyton, and by literally everyone else, whose reaction to the news of them getting together is nothing more than a "It's about time" response.
• Kicking Ass in All Her Finery: Puts her self-defense training to excellent use against Psycho!Derek after he returns and tries to abduct her on prom night (as she wears her prom dress).
• The Lancer: To the Tree Hill cheerleaders and to the core five. She shares this role with Nathan.
• Leg Focus: Her legs are noted by Lucas in the second episode. ^note When Lucas failed to catch the ball passed to him during a ballgame, Peyton mocked him, specifically his hands. Lucas then retorted with this trope.
  Peyton: Nice hands!
  Lucas: Nice legs!
• Love at First Sight: with Lucas, as they've both admitted.
  Lucas: Peyton, I've loved you since the first time I saw you.
  Peyton: I love you, Lucas and I think I have since the first moment we ever locked eyes.
• Missing Mom: Both her adoptive and biological mothers.
• Ms. Fanservice: She had her moments during the high school years. Her Girliness Upgrade in her last two seasons didn't do her any harm either.
• Never Be Hurt Again: In Season 4, after Lucas' heart attack, Peyton is nervous about their romance because she fears that she will lose him, just like she lost everyone she loved before.
• Oblivious Adoption: Up until Season 3, Peyton beloved that her dad Larry Sawyer and her late mom Anna Sawyer were her biological parents. However, it was revealed that she was adopted by them after she was born. Her biological parents are Mick Wolf and Ellie Harp. Ellie gave Peyton up for adoption after she was born because she was only a teenager and she had a drug addiction problem.
• Official Couple: With Lucas. After three seasons being stuck in a Will They or Won't They? situation, they finally get together in season 4, but they break up during the Time Skip between Season 4 and 5, but they get back together at the beginning of Season 6, then they get married and have a daughter by the end of the season, getting their Happily Ever After.
• Official Couple Ordeal Syndrome: Even though one of the major arcs of the first season is Peyton and Lucas' developing relationship, it takes until halfway through the fourth season — after two love triangles, two dead parental figures, a car crash, drug use, a school shooting, and a pyscho stalker — for the two of them to finally become a couple. And then they break up during the 4 year Time Skip before they finally get back together and eventually get married and have a baby over the course of the sixth season.
• One True Love: She and Lucas consider one another this way. Despite both having other relationships over the course of the series (Lucas with Brooke and Lindsey and Peyton with Jake and Julian), they’ve always found their way back to each other as they are soulmates, as stated also by basically every other character of the show at a certain point. And by everyone, that includes their significant exes.
  Lucas: The realization we had always been meant for each other and every instinct to the contrary had simply been a denial of the following truth: I was now and I would always be in love with Peyton Sawyer.
  Brooke: It has always been Lucas and Peyton. You guys are meant to be together, it's the way it's supposed to be.
• Pom-Pom Girl: Though she's only a cheerleader because her mother was one. Every other aspect of Peyton's personality runs opposite to this trope, Lucas and Ellie both commented that it seemed odd that Peyton was a cheerleader.
• Quirky Curls: Peyton's curly hair is one of her defining physical features. Wearing her hair curly has been her signature style, but she will wear her hair straight as well.
• Record Producer: Her job after the Time Skip. She becomes the co-producer of Red Bedroom Records.
• Secret Identity: Her subconscious as "Angel of Death" in episode 3x09.
  • In season 1 she tried to bury how she felt towards him first because she was afraid to let him, then due to Brooke getting involved with him, until she admitted how she felt and the two ended up cheating on Brooke, causing her to let him go out despite loving him of guilt for betraying her best friend.
  • After she let him go in season 1, she tried to move on and rebound him with Jake, settling for being Just Friends with him. As time went on in season 3 though, it became more and more clear she still was in love with him, but kept burying her true feelings for him due to Brooke still being in the middle, until Jake himself called her out about her love for him, forcing her to stop running away from that and admit the truth.
• Star-Crossed Lovers: With Lucas. They are described as being soul mates who are meant to be together by the series creator Mark Schwahn. They had to overcome many obstacles and issues over the course of the series before being able to have their Happy Ever After.
• Stepford Snarker: She snarks to hide her angst and emotional pain.
• Sugar-and-Ice Personality: She is a brooding Broken Bird, but shows her warmer side towards her closest friends.
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: In season 4, Brooke puts her through much emotional suffering for confessing to still being in love with Lucas. Brooke slaps her, calls her a "backstabbing, two-faced bitch" and she even makes fun of her mother's death; all to simply get back at her for her confession and even though she herself had realized that she no longer wanted to be with him. When finding out Brooke made a sex tape with Nathan during one of their single-night break-ups, Peyton finally snaps at the realization Brooke was being a huge hypocrite. Later, when Brooke asks why she even cares anymore, Peyton has this to say:
  Peyton: Why do I care? Brooke, this has been one of the worst years of my life. And I needed my best friend more than ever and you cut me out because I was honest with you! And you were never, ever honest with me!
  Brooke: Peyton-
  Peyton: You made fun of my mom's death, Brooke! You knew her! You cried with me when she died and now... you use her as a punchline for a joke to hurt me. It hurt. It did. But, not anymore. 'Cause you and me, we're done. You're right; she's dead. As far as I'm concerned, so are you.
• Tomboyish Name: Her name Peyton is unisex.
• Trauma Conga Line: It's no understatement to say that Peyton has possibly the worst life out of all the main characters.
• Tritagonist: She shares this role with Haley for Protagonist Lucas and Deuteragonist Nathan during all her six seasons of presence on the show.
• Tsundere: To Lucas, mainly in her interactions in the first season. Initially, she was a tsuntsun Type A.
• Two First Names: Her given name Peyton and her surname Sawyer are both first names.
• Unresolved Sexual Tension: After a brief stint of Belligerent Sexual Tension at the start of season 1, from the second half of the season through to the mid-point of the fourth season has them move into full-on UST. After the four year time skip between seasons 4 and 5, they've fallen back into this.
• Violently Protective Girlfriend: She can be violently protective of Lucas. When Psycho!Derek was trying to attack Lucas and taser him, she hit a lamp over his head in order to defend him.
• Walking the Earth: The explanation for her being Put on a Bus is this.
• When She Smiles: As Lucas notes, happiness looks good on her.
• Will They or Won't They?: with Lucas. They do.

Haley Bob James

Haley Bob James-Scott

The point is, at the end of the day all your bluster and BS don't mean anything to math, because math don't care, and neither do I.

Portrayed by: Bethany Joy Lenz

Haley James has been Lucas Scott's best friend since second grade. She begins the series as a smart girl next door who does tutoring in school, which leads her into Nathan Scott's crosshairs. Though initially asking Haley to tutor him to annoy Lucas, Nathan falls for Haley and vice versa, leading to a relationship that lasts all nine seasons.

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• Action Girl: Haley, interestingly, started out as the gentlest character of the three main female characters but she most probably embodies this trope the best over the course of nine years. Haley’s toughness and her tendency to fight has been referenced in the show by various characters. Also, Haley has been mentioned as being the character who’s been in jail the most as evidenced by her nickname “Jailey.”
  Jamie: You don't wanna mess with Mom.
• Affectionate Nickname: Many of her closest friends and her husband Nathan calls her "Hales".
• All Girls Want Bad Boys: Nathan was definitely a bad boy when she started liking him in season one.
• Babies Ever After: With Nathan. She and Nathan have two children together, Jamie and Lydia.
• Badass Bookworm: Definitely the bookworm part (she's very bookish and The Smart Girl of the Five-Man Band), and, as seen in Action Girl, she can be tough when she wants to be. Among her highlights, she beat down a woman who alleged that she was pregnant with Nathan’s child (and she went to jail for it), got into a fight with the mom of the boy who was bullying Jamie, she attacked her sister Taylor in two separate seasons, and she bitch-slapped Rachel.
• Badass Teacher: Becomes one after the four-year jump. She gets an undeniably Badass Teacher moment when the new Moral Guardian Principal demands that she make a live apology for the "crime" of printing Sam's essay in the school newspaper, just because it mentions sex, drugs, and violence. While Hayley admits the paper was a bit "PG-13", she didn't see anything wrong with it. Haley instead tells her class that she told them to write about the truth and that she's proud of them for doing so, says that she'd be a hypocrite if she made a fake apology, and leaves the room, urging her students to always stand up for the truth.
• Beware the Nice Ones: The nicest of the main five, but do not underestimate her.
• Book Smart: Her defining trait in the high school seasons, she's a tutor and eventually valedictorian.
• Brainy Brunette: Haley is dark haired and she's smart, intelligent, and practical.
• Brooding Boy, Gentle Girl: Haley is the Gentle Girl to Nathan's Brooding Boy. Haley helped to bring Nathan out of his shell and to get him to emotionally open up.
• Childhood Friends: With Lucas. She has been best friends with him since they were eight or nine years old.
• Clingy Jealous Girl: Towards Nathan. Haley doesn't like it when other girls take notice of her husband.
• Cool Teacher: "Tutor Girl becomes Teacher Girl".
• Deadpan Snarker: Most prominent in the first season, but dies off a bit in the later episodes.
• Dead Guy Junior: She named her daughter after her recently deceased mother.
• Deuteragonist: Upon her husband's Nathan promotion to The Protagonist in season 7, she clearly becomes the secondary focus.
• Driven to Suicide: As a result of her depression in Season 7.
• Embarrassing Middle Name: Haley Bob James.
• Expository Hair Style Change: She donned all three hair colors in the entire duration of the show.
• First Love: Nathan is her first and only love. He is the only person that she has ever been in love with. She falls in love with him in Season 1 and gets married to him at the end of the season.
• Gender-Blender Name: Her Embarrassing Middle Name, Bob. Her middle name was given to her because her mother Lydia had a pet dog named Bob. Bob is derivative of the first given masculine name Robert.
• Give Geeks a Chance: Married the star of the basketball team, and was recruited as a cheerleader.
• Girl Next Door: In season 1, Haley was the approachable "good girl", and Lucas' childhood friend, in contrast to popular cheerleaders Peyton and Brooke. Later, she becomes a popular cheerleader too, but still remains the most down to earth of the three girls.
• Go-Getter Girl: An incredibly smart and driven straight-A student, working as a waitress at Karen's Café and as a tutor at Tree Hill High. She is still this trope even as an adult.
• Good Girls Avoid Abortion: When she discovers she is pregnant with her and Nathan’s first child, she doesn’t even consider to have an abortion despite both of them still being in high school, having to go to college after graduation and to adjust their lives together and even struggling to have enough money to support themselves.
• Happily Ever After: With Nathan. She and Nathan get married at the end of season one. They remain relatively Happily Married for the entire series. They have two children together, Jamie and Lydia.
• Happily Married: To Nathan. Nathan and Haley have been married since Season 1, as juniors in high school, and have been identified as a "supercouple." Though there have been complications in their marriage, they've managed to last through the ensuing nine seasons. Their teen pregnancy also gave them a son, Jamie, born on their graduation day.
• High-School Sweethearts: With Nathan. They're generally regarded as one of the bedrock relationships of the series.
• Hot-Blooded: Downplayed. She is generally calm and thoughtful, but don't mess with her or her beloved ones unless you don't want to get in trouble, to the point that, if she gets really angry, you could even literally get punched.
• Hot Teacher: After the four-year jump in season 5.
• Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: Haley is the Tiny Girl to Nathan's Huge Guy. Haley is 5'4" and Nathan is 6'2". Nathan clearly towers over Haley in all of their scenes together.
• In-Series Nickname: A couple.
  • Hales - Originally used by Lucas, but everyone else eventually starts using it as she expands her social circle.
  • Tutor Girl - Used by Brooke.
  • Jailey - Used whenever someone teases her about her numerous arrests.
• Lady And A Scholar: She both the smartest and the nicest of the main characters, and the most well-adjusted as well.
• Like Brother and Sister: She and Lucas have a platonic, sibling-like friendship. During Lucas' book-to-film project, one director wanted to make his and Hayley's characters lovers. When Lucas brings this up to Haley, they are both grossed out at the idea. She becomes official "siblings" with Lucas when they became in-laws.
• Light Feminine and Dark Feminine: The Light to Brooke's Dark.
• Living Emotional Crutch: For Nathan. His love for Haley is the whole point of his Character Development and it was shown in several occasions that, without her or when he was going through a crisis with her, he was very inclined to fall back into some of his old, problematic and self-destructive behaviors. Basically, being stable in his relationship with Haley mirrored his being stable as a person and viceversa.
• The Maiden Name Debate: While she has no problems being addressed as "Mrs. Scott", Haley mostly introduces herself in Full-Name Basis with her maiden and married surnames.
• Mama Bear: Haley has firmly established herself as one. See: Nanny Carrie, Chuck's mom, Dan Scott, Rachel Gatina, Renee, Deb Scott, Taylor James, just season 9 where she helps in the kidnapping of a drug dealer in order to get her kidnapped-by-the-mafia husband back.
• Married Too Young; Subverted. Nathan and Haley get married when they are only 16 years old. They have their share of issues and obstacles thrown their way, but they ultimately stay Happily Married for the entire series.
• Massive Numbered Siblings: She comes from a very large family and has six older siblings, including three sisters and three brothers.
• The Missus and the Ex: Peyton and Haley develop their friendship after Peyton breaks up with Nathan, who soon after begins dating (And eventually marries) Haley.
• Nice Girl: She made her mistakes too, but out of the main 5, she's the one with the least Jerkass moments. She's always gentle and down to earth, and almost never bitchy like Peyton and Brooke can be, unless you push her Berserk Buttons.
• Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot: Compared to the already Ridiculously Successful Future Selves of the other main characters, Haley stands out. She is a teacher, an Idol Singer, a songwriter, a Record Producer, a business partner for two of her friends (Peyton and Brooke), a government volunteer of sorts, in addition to being a mother of two children.
• Official Couple: With Nathan. They get together in season 1 and even end up married by the end of the season, them they remain Happily Married for all nine seasons and have two children, Jamie and Lydia.
• One True Love: She and Nathan consider each other this way. The two are each other’s First Love and ended up getting married and even having a child while still in high school, but they managed to stay together through life ups and downs and form a pretty solid and loving family. Neither of them has ever imagined to be with someone else. To the point their ‘catchphrase’ is “Always and forever”.
• Parental Abandonment: Her father died between seasons (Dialogue suggests it was during the 4 year Time Skip between seasons 4 and 5) whilst her mother died in season 7.
• Platonic Life-Partners: With Lucas. They have been best friends since the second grade and they have been through everything together. After Haley marries Nathan, they become brother and sister in law.
• Plucky Girl: She's usually the most optimistic in the group. Usually...
• Pom-Pom Girl: Despite joining the cheerleading squad in season 3 and 4, she doesn't have any of the negative traits. She's very smart, very nice, and probably the least slutty character on any Teen Drama ever, with only one Love Interest in nine seasons.
• Pregnant Badass: Downplayed when she slapped Rachel while pregnant with Jamie.
  Rachel: You're lucky you're pregnant...
  Haley: No, honey, you're lucky I'm pregnant.
  • Played more straight before in the same season, she saved Nathan from a car attack and took the shock at his place. Pregnant and high school student don't prevent her to have a (tragic though) Heroic Sacrifice.
• Sexy Mentor: When she's tutoring Nathan in Season 1. Though she's a nerd, she a very attractive and kind one and this is what makes Nathan attracted to her.
• Shorter Means Smarter: The shortest but the smartest of the core five.
• Single-Target Sexuality: She has never been in love with anyone but Nathan, and never dated anyone else (the kiss with Chris Keller is the only exception) for all the nine seasons.
• The Smart Girl: In terms of book-smarts, she's definitely the most intelligent of the core five.
• Supporting Protagonist: In the final season, as Nathan spent majority of the show kidnapped, putting the focus on Haley finding ways to locate him.
• Team Mom: Kind, gentle and nurturing, Haley is typically the most sensible and most responsible of the main group. She's usually the one people go to for advice or comfort.
• Teen Pregnancy: With Jamie.
• Tomboyish Name: Haley is definitely a feminine name. The rest of her name consists entirely of masculine names - Bob, James and Scott.
• Tritagonist: She shares this role with Peyton for Protagonist Lucas and Deuteragonist Nathan during the first six seasons of the show.
• Two First Names: Three, "Haley", "Bob", and "James". Becomes four after marrying Nathan ("Scott").
• We Named The Dog Indiana: Haley's middle name, Bob, comes from the James family's old house cat who despised being held, with her mother noting the similarity between the two as the newborn Haley kept squirming whenever someone held her.
• Violently Protective Girlfriend: She can get pretty physically violent when it comes to defending Nathan.

Brooke Penelope Davis

Brooke Penelope Davis-Baker

Relationships are just too hard. Hooking up with boys is so much easier.

Portrayed by: Sophia Bush

Brooke Davis was introduced in the second episode of the show as Peyton Sawyer's best friend and grew to become one of the flagship characters. Initially outgoing and promiscuous, she grows from a popular and bitchy girl into a kind, compassionate, and strong young woman who runs a successful fashion empire.

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• Abusive Parents: Her mom is definitely emotionally abusive, given the amount of insecurities Brooke has from interacting with her after they start working together.
• Action Girl: Has her moments, namely taking out Psycho Derek with Peyton in Episode 4x16 by using a cheerleading move they learned at summer camp; and attacking Xavier "X" Daniels in Episode 6x13.
• Alliterative Name: Brooke Baker, after her marriage.
• All Guys Want Cheerleaders: A beautiful cheerleader and the most desired girl in the school.
• Aloof Dark-Haired Girl: Very much in the first half of season 1. She drops the aloof part and became more likable and approachable soon after.
• Always Second Best: to Lucas. Deep down she knew all along that Peyton was and would always be Lucas’ One True Love, no matter how much he tried to be in denial about that, as somehow he always chose Peyton over her, even when he was with her. To the point that, after finally putting her romance with Lucas fully behind her in season 5, she openly admitted she never stood a real chance with him compared to Peyton (and that of course the same went for his new girlfriend Lindsey).
  Brooke: It has always been Lucas and Peyton. You guys are meant to be together, it's the way it's supposed to be.
  Brooke: I have been the Lindsey between Lucas and Peyton and it’s not a great place to be.
• Amicable Exes: With Lucas and Chase. And some others.
• Attention Whore: Much of Brooke's antics, especially in the earlier seasons, was because she loved the attention that came along with it. With time, she becomes less attention-seeking.
• Auto Erotica: Brooke actually has a "signature move" where she sneaks into the backseat of a guy's car naked to try to seduce him, which becomes a series Running Gag.
  • In Episode 1x03, "Are You True?" — Brooke ambushes Lucas in the backseat of his car, naked. Peyton implies it's happened before with all the Ravens guys.
  • In Episode 3x05, "A Multitude of Casualties" — Rachel ambushes Lucas in the backseat, naked. Brooke catches them and even lampshades her doing the same thing in Season 1.
  • Subverted in Episode 5x08, " Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want" - Brooke ambushes Owen in the backseat, but it's done to show her Character Development by having her say that Owen hasn't earned "what's under the clothes" yet.
  • Attempted in Episode 6x09, "Sympathy For The Devil" — Owen is the one who ambushes Brooke in the backseat of her car naked... Brooke does not react so kindly and throws him out, leaving him naked in the street.
  • Lampshaded in Episode 6x16, "Screenwriter's Blues" — Missy/Movie!Brooke does it to Brooke, in an attempt to make sure she had the move right.
• Babies Ever After: With Julian. She and Julian have twin sons named Davis and Jude Baker.
• Badass Adorable: Brooke can be very tough, while still being her lovable self.
• Better as Friends: Eventually realizes that this applies to Lucas and herself once both accept they are not right for each other and not meant to be. In fact, after they’ve broken up for good and have managed to remain friends, it’s shown their relationship dynamic is very much healthier than when they were dating.
• Betty and Veronica: The Veronica to Peyton's Betty for Lucas' Archie.
• Bound and Gagged: Along with Peyton in You Call It Madness, But I Call It Love when they're abducted and held captive by Psycho!Derek.
• Break the Haughty: Her Season 2 arc - After being a massive bitch in Season 1, she learns in episode 2x03 that her parents are struggling financially and proceeds to undergo a large amount of Character Development over the course of the season as she struggles to adapt to life now that she's no-longer the rich girl.
• Breakout Character: Brooke was brought on as comic relief character to stir the pot and later grew to being billed third^note Due to Chad Michael Murray and Hilarie Burton no longer series regulars at that point in the credits by Season Seven.
• Cleaning Up Romantic Loose Ends: In season 4, before Lucas and Peyton finally become a couple, he and Brooke end their on-again, off-again relationship for good realizing they are not meant to be and really were never in love with one another.
• Clingy Jealous Girl: She was always jealous of Lucas's relationship with Peyton due to being aware all along of their feelings for each other, to the point that her extreme and insane jealousy of their relationship caused many fights between her, Peyton and Lucas and led Peyton to try to bury her feelings for Lucas for a long time. She was also noticeably jealous of Julian and his relationship with Alex. Brooke felt like Julian had feelings for Alex, but Julian insisted that he and Alex were just friends, which eventually turned out to be true since he chose to stay with Brooke even though Alex really had feelings for him.
• Cruel Cheerleader: Downplayed. She fits the bitchy/slutty stereotype quite well early on (mainly in season 1), however she has more Hidden Depths than you can think, and she's a genuinely good person.
• Damsel out of Distress: When she and Peyton fight off Psycho Derek in season 4 and also when she fights Xavier alone in season 6.
• Deadpan Snarker: Brooke can be very snide when she gets angry, and a lot of times she's playfully snarky towards her friends.
• Dude Magnet: All the guys find Brooke highly attractive.
• Easily Forgiven: By basically everyone whenever she has done something wrong. The longest someone holds a grudge against her is Peyton over the sex tape Brooke made with Nathan, and that only lasts two episodes - and even that only accounts for a day in-universe.
• The Fashionista: Starts her own fashion company. Unlike most TV characters that fit this trope, Brooke runs her company in a very conscientious way, refusing to use real fur and demanding that one of her models gain ten pounds before she is allowed on her magazine's cover, stating "Anorexia is a disease, not a fashion statement.”
• Full-Name Basis: More often than the other main characters. Many of her friends call her by her full name, Brooke Davis.
• Genki Girl: Especially in her high school days, Brooke was a wild and energetic party girl. She's much more mature in later years.
• Girly Bruiser: Brooke is very feminine, girly and fashionable, but she is quite the Action Girl and knows how to defend herself when it's necessary. She was able to beat the crap out of Psycho!Derek in season four and Xavier Daniels in season six and nine.
• Good Bad Girl: She makes a big deal out of being able to "sleep around like a guy."
• Hands-Off Parenting: Her parents relocate to Los Angeles towards the end of her Junior year, and Brooke moves in with Karen until the summer, before moving around Tree Hill every so often in her Senior year. It's rather telling that Brooke's reaction to Karen laying down ground rules for her is to happily hug her.
• Happily Ever After: With Julian. She and Julian get married mid-season eight. They have twin sons named Davis and Jude Baker.
• Happily Married: To Julian from halfway through season 8 until the end of the series. During that time, they also have twin sons.
• Hard-Drinking Party Girl: Brooke loves to party and she loves a good drink.
• The Heart: Brooke becomes this season 5 onwards. She becomes the glue that brings everyone together and one of the most forgiving and compassionate characters on the show.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Peyton. Later, she also becomes this with Haley.
• Honorary Aunt: To her godson, Jamie.
• Hot-Blooded: Very determined, impulsive and passionate.
• Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: Brooke is the Tiny Girl to Julian's Huge Guy. Brooke is 5'4" and Julian is 6'3", meaning that Julian is almost a foot taller than her.
• Hypocrite: Her treatment of Peyton in season 4, following Peyton confessing that she still had feelings for Lucas as she didn't want to hide it from her. Considering that Brooke made a sex tape with Nathan on one of his many single night break-ups with Peyton (Brooke argues that since they were broken up, it didn't count as betrayal), she didn't have that much basis for her extreme reaction. She goes as far as to slap Peyton, call her a terrible person, and even make fun of her mother's death just to hurt her. Even Rachel comments that Brooke is being unreasonable while Peyton was simply being a good friend. Eventually, upon the discovery of Nathan and Brooke's sex tape, a fed-up Peyton delivers a solid punch to Brooke, followed by a heart-wrenching "The Reason You Suck" Speech about how unfair she was being. After this, Brooke finally comes to her senses.
• Insecure Love Interest: During all her on-again, off-again relationship with Lucas, Brooke was always nervous, insecure and jealous of Peyton since she started as just a blatant replacement for her to him, something she was well aware of. Then, when she and Lucas got back together and tried to be a real couple, it didn’t work anyway since they were not meant to be and also he actually never stopped loving Peyton despite being in denial about that, to the point Brooke herself openly admitted to Peyton after the school shooting that Lucas was clearly still in love with her by saying "The boy I love saved the girl I love… and that’s the girl he loves too".
• In-Series Nickname:
  • "B. Davis" by Peyton.
  • "Cheery" by Lucas.
  • "Pretty Girl" by Lucas, whilst they were dating.
• Just Friends: Subverted with Lucas. They end their on-again, off-again relationship for good once they realize they really are just friends and not meant to be.
• Law of Inverse Fertility: Following the 4 year Time Skip, Brooke desperately wants to start a family. In Season 7, Brooke's told that she can't have children ever and is devastated over her infertility. But then, in Season 8, Brooke finds out she's miraculously pregnant. She has twin boys in the season finale after a Time Skip.
• Light Feminine and Dark Feminine: The Dark to Haley's Light.
• Lovable Alpha Bitch: Early on she's closer to the Alpha Bitch side of things, but she's also very protective of people she considers friends, even if they aren't the typical popular people (note her friendship with Mouth).
• Mama Bear: Towards her adopted daughter Sam. She is very protective of her.
• Manic Pixie Dream Girl: To Lucas, when they first start dating in season 1.
• Motor Mouth: Brooke is extremely talkative and when she gets excited about something, she can't seem to stop.
• Ms. Fanservice: Series wide, she's probably involved in the most fanservicey scenes.
• Never My Fault: In Episode 3x06, "Locked Hearts and Hand Grenades" — Brooke (who has the No. 2 pick) picks Chris Keller in the 'Fantasy Boy Draft', then gets upset when Rachel picks Lucas and promptly blames Bevin, who traded her No. 3 pick for Rachel's No. 5 pick, despite having the opportunity to draft Lucas herself. Lampshaded the following episode by Lucas, when Brooke tries to claim it wasn't her fault. Also, in 3x05 she gets mad at Lucas for deciding, after some failed attempts to commit to her, to ask Rachel out in the context of the non-exclusive dating, telling him it was all just a way to make him fight for her: again Lampshaded by Lucas himself who asks her how he was supposed to know anything about that since she was never clear about what she really wanted and the non-exclusive dating was her idea. Then, when she goes so far during her date with Keller that she ends up sleeping with him in 3x07, making Lucas furious, in 3x08 she puts all the blame on Chris and justifies herself just by saying she was drunk.
• The Nicknamer: Brooke came up with nicknames for Lucas, Peyton and Haley. She has called Lucas "Broody" because he has a tendency to be very moody, serious, introverted and sullen and it takes a lot to get him to smile and laugh. He calls Peyton "P. Sawyer", abbreviating her first name. Finally, she calls Haley "Tutor Girl", because she works as a tutor in high school.
• Odd Friendship: Her friendship with geeky Mouth in high school.
• Official Couple: With Julian starting in Season 6. By Season 8, Brooke and Julian are Happily Married.
• Parental Neglect: Her parents weren't particularly interested in Brooke's life until she'd proven her worth as a clothing designer.
• Plucky Girl: As Lucas said "Brilliant, and beautiful, and brave. In 2 years she had grown more than anyone I had ever known. Brooke Davis is going to change the world someday".
• Really Gets Around: In high school. Peyton once remarked that she did it for a purpose; to show she could "sleep around like a guy," and Brooke herself stated, "screw the double standard." She grows out of it after the Time Skip and becomes much more mature.
• Romantic False Lead: For Lucas. She blatantly starts just as this in season 1 as Lucas is in love with Peyton and gets together with her just as to rebound Peyton after she rejects him. Then, in season 2 he suddenly decides he is truly interested in Brooke. The two get back together in season 3, but in the meantime Lucas restarts his Will They or Won't They? with Peyton and, as the season progresses, it becomes increasingly clear he has lingering feelings for her. In the end, Brooke and Lucas break up for good at the start of season 4, both accepting they were never not meant to be and are Better as Friends, while he realizes Peyton was the one for him all along, getting together with her for real.
• Running Gag: Her Auto Erotica attempt to Lucas has been mocked, toyed and lampshaded by other characters throughout the series, including Brooke herself.
• Savvy Guy, Energetic Girl: Brooke is the Energetic Girl to Lucas' Savvy Guy. While Brooke is energetic, carefree, free spirited and upbeat, Lucas is introverted, brooding, sensitive and introspective. There's a reason why Lucas is called "Broody" and Brooke is "Cheery".
• Second Episode Introduction: And appears in every episode following.
• Self-Serving Memory: In regards to both of her break-ups with Lucas and falling outs with Peyton in Seasons 1 and 4.
  • In Season 1, whilst Peyton and Lucas were in the wrong to start a relationship behind Brooke's back, Brooke completely ignores her own earlier attempted sabotage of Lucas and Peyton's developing relationship (and by proxy, Nathan and Haley's relationship as well) simply because she wanted to sleep with him and also forgets she is the one who came between them two in the first place, getting involved with Lucas while he and Peyton were still in a Will They or Won't They? situation, something she herself was well aware of (along with their obvious mutual feelings).
  • In Season 4, Brooke repeatedly ignores the circumstances behind their kiss in Season 3^note Peyton was shot and bleeding out during the school shooting, seriously wounded to where medics later confirmed she was minutes from actual death due to severe blood loss. She only kissed Lucas as she seriously thought she was going to die - something Lucas also admits was the only reason he let her kiss him as he wanted her to have one last positive moment if she was going to die. Besides, even though they both later realized everything that happened that day was actually real and simply brought to the surface their long-buried true feelings for each other, both agreed not to follow up on the matter of the kiss and just tried to move on precisely not to hurt Brooke again after their season 1 betrayal. She instead accuses Peyton of "going after him again" like she had in the past. She also dismisses that Peyton was openly willing to keep burying her feelings and choose her friendship with Brooke over her love for Lucas — all Brooke had to do was simply admit she loved Lucas. Brooke outright refused to do that. When she laments about Peyton's "betrayal" to Rachel, she is only given an odd look and a call-out for her jagged viewpoint.
• Sex Goddess: Brooke is portrayed as being very good in bed and is not above boasting about her bedroom skills.
  Julian: [Lying breathless in bed post-coital] That was amazing. No wonder you were so popular in high school.
  Brooke: Excuse me? Sex did not make me popular. I made it popular.
• Shameless Fanservice Girl: Brooke doesn't seem to have much modesty. She is infamous for literally sneaking into guys' cars completely naked and casually climbing out of the pool in front of Felix after Skinny Dipping. Not to mention how she's completely unafraid of wearing sexy oufits that show off her body and beauty. Her video for the Time Capsule even involved her flashing her breasts so there would be a record of her body "at her peak". When the video is leaked and goes viral online, she's initially upset at the idea of the whole world seeing her naked... until Peyton comments how the video has ranked first in online popularity and she's flattered how the world thinks she's that attractive.
• Shipper on Deck: Surprisingly, she became one for Lucas and Peyton, after season 4. After finally putting her romance with Lucas fully behind her and deciding to focus on other aspects of her life.
  Brooke: The rest of the world's been waiting on you two idiots since high school.
  Brooke: It has always been Lucas and Peyton. You guys are meant to be together, it's the way it's supposed to be.
• Stepford Smiler: As the show progresses, it becomes more and more clear that her party girl behavior, upbeat (if sometimes angry) attitude and her tendency to snark at people when they bring up sensitive topics is all to hide just how damaged her personal and at-home life experiences have made her. The more the others get to know her, the more she opens up and the more easily they can tell when she's just pretending to be okay.
• Teacher/Student Romance: With Nick Chavez in season 4. Until he cheats on her and she ends it.
• The Tease: As stated above, she was the embodiment of this trope early on. Brooke certainly loves to flirt with boys. Of note is her sneaking naked into boys car's, which would later be known as her signature "move" and a series Running Gag.
• Third-Option Love Interest: Played with in the seasons 5 and 6's finale and premiere. Brooke was Lucas' first girlfriend and one third of the show’s long-running love triangle. However, after the four-year Time Skip between season 4 and 5, Brooke had fallen into this role due to the main Love Triangle being between Lucas, Peyton and Lindsey at that point.
• Took a Level in Kindness: Brooke was an Alpha Bitch during the first half of Season 1. She gets much better after that.
• Tritagonist: It wasn't until season 7 when Sophia Bush starts being billed third^note In two occasions, however, Sophia Bush was actually billed second right before Joy Lenz after James Lafferty (Nathan) and Joy Lenz (Haley).
• "Well Done, Son" Guy: Implied Trope. She admits to Chase she doesn't think she's good enough because of her parents' neglect.

Other Main Characters

Daniel Lewis "Dan" Scott

Daniel Lewis "Dan" Scott

Happiness doesn't come cheap. Hell, if it did, we would all be smiling.

Portrayed by: Paul Johansson

Daniel Lewis "Dan" Scott was the youngest child and second son of Royal Scott and May Scott. He was born March 13, 1969 in Tree Hill, North Carolina. He has an older brother, Keith Scott. He is the father of Lucas Scott and Nathan Scott.

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• Absurdly Youthful Father: Dan was only seventeen when he founds out that he was going to be a father. He was eighteen when he had Lucas and nineteen when he had Nathan. He became a grandfather for the first time in his late thirties. It's understandable since Dan had a Teen Pregnancy with both Karen and Deb.
• Abusive Parents: Throughout the entire first season, it's made very clear that Dan is more concerned about his legacy as a basketball player than Nathan's well-being, with him practically bullying Nathan to play basketball "his" way. In episode 1x21, "The Leaving Song," Dan takes over as coach of the Ravens due to Whitey needing surgery, and the viewer sees how bad Nathan had it growing up. Dan's father, Royal, is stated to have been just as bad as Dan was, treating Dan the same way he was treating Nathan. There are also several instances throughout the series where Dan is shown to be physical with both his sons, such as pushing Nathan up against the lockers after a basketball loss and choking Lucas nearly to death when he thinks that Lucas was behind the dealership fire.
• Action Dad: He's heavily involved in all the athletic events of the show and he's Lucas and Nathan's father. He becomes a flat-out Action Hero in season nine when he goes on a rescue mission to save Nathan.
• Affably Evil: Dan can be very friendly, charming and affable. However, he has no issue with plotting, manipulating, and scheming to get what he wants, especially during the first four seasons.
• Act of True Love: In Season 9, Dan sacrifices himself to save Nathan by taking the bullet that was meant for him.
• All Guys Want Cheerleaders: During his high school years, Dan was in love and had a romantic relationship with Karen, who was a Class Princess, a Pom-Pom Girl and the Captain of the Raven cheerleaders back in the day.
• Ambition Is Evil: His desire for money, control and power has caused him to do many bad things throughout the series. He slowly starts to realize his mistakes and makes attempts to atone for them in the later seasons.
• And Starring: In Seasons 7 and 9. In both of these seasons, Paul Johansson is no longer a series regular like he was in Season 1 to Season 6.
• Annoying Younger Sibling: To Keith. Dan acted like an antagonistic jerk towards his older brother. Dan's antics caused significant strife in his relationship with Keith.
• Anti-Hero: He becomes this in the last two seasons. He becomes The Atoner and tries to make amends for his past. He will cross the moral line in order to do what is right. For example, he will kill or use violence in order to protect his family.
• Archnemesis Dad: Dan is this trope personified, both to Lucas (Dan initially alternates between pretending Lucas doesn't exist one minute, and then treating him like a smelly pile of dog poop the next minute) and Nathan (whom he uses as a mere vessel for his own self-loathing). In one early episode, Nathan is about to score the winning shot at the annual Father-Son Basketball Game at the high school, when Dan aggressively moves in to stop him, despite the game being for laughs, growling "I couldn't let you beat me, son!".
• The Atoner: Complete with his own talk show and book deal. Yeah, he's one of those "atoners." That being said, he genuinely does regret killing Keith, and he does try to be a good grandfather to Jamie. In season nine, he atones for Keith's murder when he sacrifices himself to save Nathan by taking the bullet that was meant for him. After he dies, he is reunited with Keith in spirit and Keith guides him into the afterlife.
• Awful Wedded Life: Dan and Deb had been married for almost 20 years but their relationship was a Destructive Romance that was toxic and unhealthy. Deb and Dan admitted that the earlier years of their marriage was somewhat happy, but that they grew apart over the years. Dan admitted to Deb in season four that he always loved Karen more than Deb and that on the night of his wedding rehearsal, he felt like he was making a big mistake by marrying Deb.
• Aw, Look! They Really Do Love Each Other: With both Karen and Deb at various points in the earlier part of the series. Dan and Karen had a very contentious relationship due to their complicated and heartbreaking past. However, there have been plenty of moments when it's apparent that Dan and Karen once loved each other, especially in season four when they sort of reconcile and become closer. Dan and Deb may have had a Destructive Romance and tumultuous marriage with numerous issues, but there have been instances when they have proven their love for each other, despite their constant bickering and fights.
• Back for the Dead: When he returns in Season 9, he goes on a dangerous rescue mission to save his son Nathan who had been kidnapped by a group of goons. He successfully rescues Nathan but is fatally shot when he takes the bullet meant for Nathan. He makes amends with his family and dies. He reunites with Keith in spirit and they go into the afterlife together.
• Badass Boast: Although it usually bordered (or resulted) on Tempting Fate.
• Badass in Distress: In season 6 courtesy of Carrie. He made her pay for this soon after.
• Badass in a Nice Suit: Dan is a Sharp-Dressed Man and is often always seen wearing a clean suit, especially during his time as Mayor of Tree Hill.
• Beard of Sorrow: He grows facial hair while he's serving time in prison in Season 5. He also has facial hair in the later half of Season 6 when his health is deteriorating because of his heart condition.
• Being Evil Sucks: After many years of being bitter, scheming and resentful and trying to destroy everything around him, Dan realizes that everything he did caused him more unhappiness, suffering and misery. It is then when he tries to do better and make amends for his past misdeeds.
• Big Bad: Dan is the villain of the entire series from Season 1 to arguably Season 4. During and after Season 4, he becomes The Atoner, starts to undergo a Heel Realization and eventually does a Heel–Face Turn by the end of the series.
• Big Bad Ensemble: In Season 3 with Rachel. Dan was still the Big Bad of the series but Rachel was the one who was responsible for releasing the time capsule, which resulted in the school shooting with Jimmy Edwards.
• Big Brother Bully: Inverted. He's the younger brother of Keith, but is very much an antagonistic jerk to his elder brother.
• Big Damn Heroes: Several times in later seasons, which is also lampshaded.
• Big Little Brother: He's taller than his older brother Keith. Dan is 6'2" and Keith is 5'11".
• Blond, Brunette, Redhead: Interestingly, the three notable women of his life all fit this with Deb being blond, Karen being brunette and Rachel being redhead.
• Bound and Gagged: Spends the first few episodes of season 6 like this during his kidnapping, but You've Dug Your Own Grave, Now Lie In It is the only episode where he is gagged.
• Broken Ace: Dan was once a star athlete and the most popular boy at school. He had a bright future ahead of him coming out of high school and he could have made it to the NBA. But his many bad decisions managed to turn him into a bitter, self-destructive, and resentful person out to destroy himself and everyone around him. His extreme desire for money, power and control over everything masks a great deal of self-hatred, bitterness, resentment and a troubled childhood brought on by being raised by an abusive, stern, authoritative father who put so much pressure on him that he broke emotionally.
• Broken Pedestal: Lucas already looks at him like this. After the truth about Keith's murder comes out, Nathan loses whatever respect he still had for Dan, and he ultimately loses his power and influence in Tree Hill.
• Byronic Hero: He slowly starts to morph into this archetype after season four. He's a very troubled and flawed man but gradually tries to atone for his past misdeeds. He has plenty of sympathetic moments in the later seasons.
• Cain and Abel: With Keith. It doesn't end well. Dan and Keith always had a rivalry since they were children but regardless, they did have each other's backs despite their issues. Flashbacks show that Keith had Big Brother Instinct towards Dan and was protective of him and that Dan did love and admire Keith when he was a child. The rivalry between the two brothers turned downright antagonistic when Karen, who was Dan's high school sweetheart and the proclaimed love of his life, got involved in the picture, increasing the Sibling Rivalry between the brothers. Dan was deeply in love with Karen since childhood and Keith developed feelings for Karen when she and Dan were in high school. Dan grew jealous of the fact that Keith was trying to replace him in Karen and Lucas' life and he harbored deep resentment towards him. In Season 3, Dan kills Keith by shooting him because he believed Keith tried to kill him in the previous season. It was revealed that it was his then-wife, Deb who attempted to kill him by drugging him and setting his dealership on fire. Once Dan discovers that Keith was innocent and he killed his brother for no reason, he is overcome with guilt and remorse. Abby Brown, who witnessed the murder, left taunting messages to Dan which quoted the Cain and Abel story, particularly the passage Genesis 4:10 from the Bible. After Dan dies in season nine, he reunites with Keith in ghost/spirit form and reconciles with him. Keith forgives him and Dan tells Keith that he is proud of him and that he loves him. Keith then helps to guide Dan into the afterlife.
• Cannot Spit It Out: In Season 4, Dan admitted to Deb that he was too proud to tell Karen that he loved her and that she was the love of his life back in the day. Because of his pride, it cost him a possibility of a life of happiness that he could've had if he made the right choices.
• Character Development: Dan's journey is him going from the Big Bad in season one to three to The Atoner in season four to eight and finally, to an Anti-Hero and The Hero by the final season (season nine). Dan makes a Heroic Sacrifice and has a Redemption Equals Death arc in season nine and dies in a few episodes before the series finale.
• Control Freak: His incessant need to control everything and everyone around him is a major Fatal Flaw of his. He displays a very controlling attitude towards Nathan and it's why Nathan felt immense pressure to live up to Dan's expectations of him. Interestingly enough, Dan's father Royal displayed the exact same type of parenting towards him when he was growing up.
• Corrupt Corporate Executive: To an extent, whilst running Dan Scott Motors. He (for the most part) made an honest run at being Mayor, aside from a few instances of blackmail.
• Corrupt Politician: Downplayed. Other than a few instances of blackmail, Dan made a pretty honest run as Mayor of Tree Hill. He did use his power to have Keith framed for attempted murder and had him arrested in season three.
• Creepy Good: During the last two seasons, at least, where he's firmly one of the good guys, if an Anti-Hero, and still retains all the same mannerisms he had when he was a villain. Of note is the time when Quinn asked him for advice on how to kill someone, and he told her all the horrifying details of killing and then hiding a body, which involves dismemberment, in an attempt to get her to give up on it.
• Deadpan Snarker: Dan always has a sarcastic or witty comment to say or throw at someone. In fact, Dan is the source for much of the humour on the show.
• Destructive Romance: With Deb. Their relationship is extremely toxic and unhealthy. Their marriage started out relatively happy and stable, but it went down the crapper eventually and Dan and Deb were at each other's throats constantly. They were creating a toxic home life not only for themselves but for their son Nathan. Dan's toxic behavior towards Deb and Nathan was her prime motivation for wanting to divorce him.
• Distressed Dude: He becomes this in the early part of season six when he is kidnapped and held captive by Nanny Carrie. She tortures him while strapping him to a hospital bed and taunts him that she is going to frame him for kidnapping Jamie. He survives the ordeal and kills Carrie.
• Dream-Crushing Handicap: While playing basketball in college, Dan suffered a Game-Breaking Injury by hurting his knee. This injury was severe enough that it ended his basketball career. However, it was revealed that his knee could have healed if he rehabbed it.
• Drill Sergeant Nasty: In his tenure as the Ravens' coach.
• Driven by Envy: The reason why he wanted to sabotage Keith is because he was envious that Keith was trying to take over his role in Karen and Lucas' life.
• Driven to Suicide: In the season four finale, Dan attempts suicide by hanging himself in his prison cell. He survives the attempt.
• Drowning My Sorrows: Anytime that Dan is having a rough time, he picks up an alcoholic beverage. Dan likes to drink socially, but when he's down in the dumps, such as after Keith's death or during his heart condition issues, he will drink to escape his troubles.
• Dude, Where's My Respect?: In the earlier seasons, Dan would lambast Nathan for not showing any gratitude or appreciation towards him as a father. Dan would tell Nathan that everything he did was for the purpose of ensuring Nathan's bright and successful future. However, Nathan would often behave like an ungrateful son, failing to appreciate Dan's efforts to ensure his happiness and success.
• Dying Moment of Awesome: Before getting shot, he killed all but three of Nathan's kidnappers (Nathan himself took out The Dragon, Chris Keller took out The Brute and Julian non-fatally took out the Dirty Cop Sixth Ranger of the goons).
• Et Tu, Brute?: Dan didn't take it well when he found out that Keith had slept with his wife Deb at the end of season one. He suffered a major heart attack and after he recovered, he sought revenge against Keith. He hired Jules to fall in love with Keith and break his heart in order to get payback for Keith sleeping with his wife.
• Ex-Big Bad: He's the Big Bad from Season 1 to Season 3 and he's the cause of all the major conflict amongst the main characters. Starting in Season 4, he becomes The Atoner and does a very gradual Heel–Face Turn. By Season 9, he's a full-fledged Anti-Hero and firmly on the side of good.
• Evil Is Petty: Dan is very petty whenever someone crosses him or betrays him. Dan chose to get back at Keith because he slept with his wife Deb. He hired and paid Jules fall in love with Keith and then break his heart afterwards. Dan believed that Keith tried to kill him in the dealership fire, so he framed Keith for attempted murder and abused his power as Mayor to have him arrested. After learning that Deb was the one that tried to kill him and not Keith, he sought out to enact revenge on her by telling her that he never loved her and that it was always Karen he loved.
• First Love: To Karen. He and Karen were High-School Sweethearts and were in love with each other during high school. Their relationship ended in heartbrea, especially for Karen. Dan chose basketball over Karen and his son Lucas. On top of it, he married his college sweetheart Deb and had a son Nathan. Dan abandoned Karen and Lucas and it was something that Dan ended up deeply regretting.
• Foil: He is this to so many characters, really, but he's primarily this to Lucas, Nathan, and Keith.
• Freudian Excuse: He had a very troubled childhood and grew up with an Abusive Dad who put immense pressure on him to be perfect at everything. This caused Dan to develop low self-esteem and insecurities whenever he didn't live up to his father's expectations.
• From Nobody to Nightmare: Dan was just a regular boy next door who grew up in a working class family in Tree Hill. He gained popularity and stardom during his high school years and had a bright future ahead of him as a star athlete and basketball player. A few bad decisions and choices later, and he became a bitter, manipulative, scheming, resentful individual who sought to destroy the lives of everyone around him, even those he loved.
• Green-Eyed Monster: Dan had a strong jealous streak, which he admitted to. He was jealous of his brother Keith because he was more likeable. Dan also had jealousy issues over Keith's relationship with Karen, because Dan felt that Keith was trying to take his place in Karen and Lucas' lives. In addition, Dan had unresolved feelings for Karen, which he revealed in season four.
• Handicapped Badass: He was able to hold his own against his sons when they simultaneously jumped him in season 5. Keep in mind that he has a worsening heart condition (HCM) at the time.
• Haunting the Guilty: After Dan killed Keith, he ended up being haunted by hallucinations of Child Keith's ghost.
• The Heavy: He's this from Season 1 to 3 as he's the cause of all the conflict amongst many of the main characters. He overlaps this during his time as the Big Bad.
• Heel Realization: He made a very gradual Heel–Face Turn. He starts out as the Big Bad and The Heavy in Season 1 to 3 and he starts to become The Atoner by Season 4 and 5. By Season 9, he is firmly in Anti-Hero territory and fighting on the side of good.
• Heroic Sacrifice: By Taking the Bullet that was meant for Nathan.
• Hero Killer: Dan shot and killed Keith in Season 3. The main motivation for Dan committing this act was because he believed that Keith tried to kill him in the dealership fire.
• High-School Sweethearts: Dan was this with Karen during their high school years. Although Dan and Karen loved each other, their relationship didn't end well and caused a lot of heartache for Karen.
• His Own Worst Enemy: Many of Dan's issues stem from the fact that he can't let go of the past and just be content with what he has. He's left with wanting more than he needs and is never satisfied. He is The Perfectionist who expects everything and everyone to be perfect and live up to his expectations. He lets his anger, bitterness and jealousy get the best of him and these emotions are the prime motivators for everything that he has done.
• Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: Dan is the Huge Guy to Karen's Tiny Girl. Dan is 6'2" and Karen is 5'3", meaning that Dan is nearly one foot taller than Karen.
• I Have No Son!: In the first season, Dan doesn't proclaim Lucas as his son even though he fathered him. Eventually, Dan does come to accept Lucas as his son.
• Important Haircut: In Season 2, he cuts his hair when he starts to recover from his heart attack. His haircut signals the return of his old scheming villainous ways. He grows his hair out again in late season three after Keith's death, signifying his immense guilt over killing him. He cuts his hair again season four.
• It's All About Me: During the first four seasons Dan seems convinced that he's the most important person in the world. Even after his Heel–Face Turn he doesn't seem to understand that the world doesn't revolve around him.
• Jerkass: Dan is a major jerk, especially in the first three seasons. He eventually morphs into a Jerk with a Heart of Gold in the later seasons after he undergoes Character Development and becomes The Atoner.
• Jerk Jock: During his high school years, he was the best player of the Tree Hill Ravens basketball team. He was a star athlete, handsome and the most popular boy at school. However, his personality changed for the negative in his Senior year. Dan led his team to the State Championship but he purposely made the team lose when he deliberately sat down and refused to play. He did this in protest against Whitey because he hated how Whitey coached. Shortly after graduating high school, Dan discovered that his First Love Karen was pregnant with his child. Dan told Karen to not keep the baby but Karen protested. Dan was conflicted about staying behind with Karen and their unborn child or going to college on his basketball scholarship to pursue his ambitions. Dan chose the latter, abandoning Karen and his unborn son and leaving Karen heartbroken. Ever since then, Dan has never grown out of this mentality and it continued well into his adulthood. He eventually became a Sports Dad while his son Nathan became a Jerk Jock similar to him. Thankfully, Nathan grows out of it very early in the series.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Dan morphs into this after becoming The Atoner in Season 4 onwards. He can be a major jerk, but he has shown shades of kindness and has had plenty of heroic moments, especially in the later seasons. By the end of the series, he does a Heel–Face Turn and has a Redemption Equals Death arc.
• Karma Houdini: At least, until Season 4. He turns himself in after confessing to killing his brother, Keith. In the Time Skip, he's shown serving time in prison. After he was released from prison, his heart condition starts degenerating and he's in need of a heart transplant or he would die. On top of this, he loses all his power and influence in Tree Hill and his entire family shuns him.
• Large Ham: He was particularly grandiose and hammy in his mannerisms during season two, He came across as a cartoon villain at times.
• Like a Daughter to Me: Haley is his daughter in law since she is married to his son Nathan. He initially disapproves of Haley being with Nathan, but he starts to grow very fond of her and views her as a daughter figure. When she is being harassed by a basketball player during a Ravens game in season three, Dan threatens the player that if he puts his hands on Haley again, he will end his basketball career.
• Made of Iron: To the point that the show once featured a montage of all the times people had tried to kill Dan.
• Manipulative Bastard: Dan is always trying to manipulate people, especially his family, and their lives.
• May–December Romance: With Rachel in season seven. Very odd, since back in high school she tried to seduce both his sons.
• Mayor Pain: Dan is elected Mayor of Tree Hill in mid season three. He becomes a Type A during Season 3 and 4.
• Messy Hair: His hair was rather unkempt in early season two after he had his heart attack. He cuts it after he starts to recover. His hair becomes messy and unkempt again in late season three and early season four after Keith's death and him dealing with the guilt of the fallout. He cuts his hair again in mid-season four. His hair becomes messy again during his time in prison in season five and he grows facial hair. It seems that every time Dan is faced with some sort of emotional turmoil or vulnerability, he has a habit wearing his hair unkempt.
• My God, What Have I Done?: Dan's reaction after Deb tells him it was her, not Keith, who had tried to kill him in a fire; the revelation coming seven episodes after Dan had killed Keith in retaliation.
• Never My Fault: Will always find a way to refuse to accept blame for his shortcomings and misdeeds. With time, he starts to realize that many of the bad things that have happened are his fault and he takes accountability.
• One Head Taller: Dan is 6'2" and Karen is 5'3", meaning that Dan is practically a foot taller than her.
• Papa Wolf:
  • Whilst he may not be the best parental figure, Dan is very protective of both his sons and grandchildren.
  • When he begins warming up to her at the end of season three, this starts to extend to Haley as well.
• Parental Abandonment: He abandoned Karen and their son, Lucas. He was involved in his other son Nathan's life since he was born.
• Parental Favoritism: Dan strongly favored Nathan over Lucas. In turn, his father Royal also favored him over Keith.
• The Patriarch: He can be considered this of the Scott family. All of the major characters in the series are connected to him on a familial level. He's the younger son of Royal and May Scott, the younger brother of Keith Scott. the father of Lucas and Nathan Scott, the grandfather of Jamie Scott, Lydia Scott, and Swayer Scott, the father in law of Haley James-Scott and Peyton Sawyer-Scott, the ex-husband of Deb Scott, the ex-boyfriend of Karen Roe, and the uncle of Lily Roe Scott. In addition, he was also the Mayor of Tree Hill in season three and four.
• Pet the Dog: Again, with Jamie. Dan's most unambiguously likable moments are usually when he's with his grandson.
• Really Dead Montage: His dying episode in fact showed all his Near Death Experiences throughout the show.
• Redemption Equals Death: His worst deed was killing his brother Keith in retaliation, believing Keith to be the one who attempted to murder him. He made reparations throughout the seasons by serving his time in prison, his efforts to be a good grandfather to his grandchildren, and his rescuing of Jamie and, ultimately, Nathan. He is shot in the back with a bullet meant for Nathan and is led into Heaven by Keith, who forgives him.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Dan is the Red to Keith's Blue.
• Reformed, but Rejected: Arguably in the last four seasons. In the final season, most of his family find peace with him and come to forgive him for his actions.
• Relationship Sabotage: In Season 2, Dan, along with Deb, tried to sabotage Nathan's marriage to Haley. He felt that Nathan being married to Haley would distract him from his goals and future. He changes his tune about Nathan and Haley's marriage and ends up supporting them being together.
• Revenge Before Reason: When he believes that his brother Keith tried to murder him. Deb actually did, but when Dan learned the truth, it was too late...
• Roaring Rampage of Revenge: He goes on one during his rescue mission to save Nathan in Season 9. He shoots and kills nearly all of Nathan's kidnappers so that he can safely retrieve his son.
• Rousseau Was Right: Dan started out as a normal kid with a big dream to attend school, play basketball and eventually be drafted into the NBA since he had immense talent in the sport. A few bad decisions, such as choosing basketball over Karen and his unborn son, falling prey to needing his abusive father's love, respect and approval and the need to be perfect at everything, letting his insecurities and low-self esteem issues get the best of him, and betraying Whitey by sitting out at the State Championship and denying him the win, and you have a person who became bitter, resentful, and begrudging towards everything and everyone.
• Screw the Rules, I Have Money!: Oh, yeah. He also has connections and as mayor, he made the rules. Many times throughout the show, the whole town appeared to be at his mercy. Plus, even with a heart condition, he still easily defended himself against his two adult sons.
• Sensitive Guy Manly Man: Dan is the Manly Man to Keith's Sensitive Guy. Dan is more aggressive, masculine and rugged while Keith is more sensitive, emotional, introspective and expressive.
• Sharp-Dressed Man: As a mayor. He was even Dressed To Kill Keith.
• Sibling Murder: Dan killed his older brother Keith in season three. He did this because he mistakenly believed that Keith tried to kill him in the dealership fire. After earning the truth that it was Deb who tried to kill him instead, Dan is consumed with guilt and remorse over what he did.
• Sibling Rivalry: With Keith since they were kids. Dan said that even though they never got along since they were kids, they did have each other's backs when it mattered. However, his relationship with Keith changed for the worst when he saw Keith with Karen holding his son Lucas at the hospital. Much of their rivalry stems from Dan and Keith being in love with Karen.
• Smug Super: Dan's abrasive, braggioso attitude and all his Badass Boast.
• The Snark Knight: Dan is the king of sarcasm and snark. He rivals Brooke for most snarky and sarcastic individual in Tree Hill.
• Sports Dad: Dan is the embodiment of this trope. He is constantly hard on his son Nathan, who is the star of the high school basketball team. He is also hard on his other son Lucas, who is also a talented basketball player, because he sees Lucas as competition to the rightful "heir" despite Lucas being older than Nathan. Dan is so intense that Nathan often expresses that he loves basketball in spite of his father rather than because of him. Later, we learn that Royal, Dan's father, was the same type of father and Dan eventually faked a career-ending injury to escape the constant pressure he felt at trying to live up to his father's expectations.
• Tall, Dark, and Handsome: Tall? He's 6'2". Dark? Has dark brown hair. Handsome? He's an attractive man. He checks all three boxes.
• Tall, Dark, and Snarky: He's tall being 6'2". He's dark haired and handsome. And he's one of the most sarcastic and snarky characters on the show. All three are checked.
• Tears Of Rrmorse: He sheds these in the season three finale upon realizing that he killed Keith who he believed tried to kill him when it was Deb who confessed to have attempted to kill him instead.
• Teen Pregnancy: Dan became a father to both of his sons, Lucas and Nathan, when he was a teenager.
• Tempting Fate: This line from Season 3 comes to mind.

  Dan: You can't kill Dan Scott!

• Testosterone Poisoning: Invoked in the first seasons. Interestingly, Dan starts showing his badassery when he stopped trying to be one.
• Token Evil Teammate: The Scotts are a Big, Screwed-Up Family...mostly because of him. Later he tries to redeem himself, but still.
• Took a Level in Kindness: In the last few seasons, he becomes much nicer and tries to atone for his misdeeds due to Character Development.
• Torture Technician: He tortured one of Nathan's kidnappers in the last season.
• Two First Names: His first name and surname are both masculine given names: "Dan" and "Scott".
• Unresolved Sexual Tension: In Season 4, Dan admitted that he still had romantic feelings for Karen. In turn, it was evident that despite her complicated feelings towards Dan, Karen also had unresolved feelings for Dan since he was her First Love. Dan confessed to Deb that Karen was the love of his life but he was too proud to tell her back then. He went on to say that he settled for Deb and that he made a mistake choosing her over Karen.
• Unwanted Spouse: Twice:
  • He first marries Deb because she became pregnant with Nathan and she was rich, but their mutual affairs, her attempted murder of him and his bad behavior towards her left their marriage as this.
  • He later marries the much younger Rachel, but since he was The Atoner and was in the process of undergoing a Heel–Face Turn, her manipulation and gold-digging drives a wedge between them to the point that he gives his money away to charities just to screw her over.
• Uptown Boy: Dan comes from a working class family while Deb is wealthy and comes from money. He chooses to marry Deb over Karen because her family has money and resources which could help further his future.
• Used to Be a Sweet Kid: Dan used to be a regular boy next door who was popular and well-liked. Karen admitted that Dan was a good person when he was younger. However, after making poor choice after poor choice, Dan grew into a bitter, self-destructive, and resentful person consumed with anger who sought to destroy everyone around him, including himself.
• Villainous Breakdown: Dan starts to have major emotional and psychological breakdown after Keith's death. He fees extreme guilt and remorse one he learns that he killed Keith for no reason and that it was his then wife Deb who actually tried to murder him in the dealership fire. He starts seeing things that aren't there and it starts to drive him crazy.
• Would Hit a Girl: Then again, Carrie had it coming.

Coach Brian Dale "Whitey" Durham

Coach Brian Dale "Whitey" Durham

Portrayed by: Barry Corbin

Brian Dale "Whitey" Durham was a primary character during the first four seasons of the series and a recurring character during seasons five and six. He's the basketball coach for the Tree Hill Ravens.

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• A Father to His Men: To the Ravens, but especially Lucas and Nathan. Whitey specifically delays his retirement so that he can take a job at a local college, and offer Nathan a basketball scholarship so he can continue to pursue his dream of playing basketball, and he finds a way for Lucas to remain part of the Ravens after his HCM forces him to leave the team.
• And Starring: "Barry Corbin as Whitey".
• Bald Head of Toughness: Whitey is bald-headed and is not to be messed with. He has a habit of putting his boys in check when they mess up on the court and he doesn't hold back either.
• Bald of Authority: He's bald-headed and he's the coach of the Ravens basketball team.
• The Bus Came Back: In the Season 6 finale. After he retired from coaching, he went on to become a rancher.
• Cool Teacher: Most definitely.
• Cool Old Guy: Just look at the way he interacts with the younger cast.
• Cruel to Be Kind: Sometimes Whitey can be very biting and grouchy towards his team, but he only does it so that they perform better on the basketball court.
• Deadpan Snarker: Mainly around Dan.
• Embarrassing Nickname: His nickname of "Whitey" was initially this, but he has no problem with his friends using it (or rather any of the adults save for Dan).
• Gone Horribly Right: He told Dan in the season six finale that maybe the reason the latter's still alive is because he can still achieve redemption. Three seasons later...
• Grumpy Old Man: He has his moments when he can be very grouchy and stern. But he's very friendly and affable most of the time.
• Happily Married: He was to his late wife, Camilla. In fact, even though she was dead, he was the only main adult to have a steady, happy marriage (at least at first).
• Like a Son to Me: Never had children with his wife Camilla, but sees the boys he coached as his boys, especially Lucas and Nathan.
• Only Known by Their Nickname: Brian Durham is his full name. In season 3 he tells the Ravens how he received the nickname "Whitey".
• Put on a Bus: After Season 4. He was seen in a flashback episode in Season 5 which took place during the Time Skip. He was the head coach for the Cobras and Lucas was he assistant coach. Whitey went on to finally retire from coaching in the episode. He's seen again in the Season 6 finale when Dan confronts him to rehash the past and apologize to him.
• Reasonable Authority Figure: Lets Jake show up to basketball practice late, leave early, and outright skip sessions without so much as a stern word, purely because of Jake and his parents struggling to find someone to watch Jenny.
• Team Dad: A father figure especially to Lucas and Nathan, but also to the other Ravens and sometimes to the main girls too.

Keith Alan Scott

Keith Alan Scott

It's funny, but I feel like I'm about to start the life that I always wanted.

Portrayed by: Craig Sheffer

Keith Alan Scott is the oldest child and the first son of Royal Scott and May Scott. He was born on July 26, 1966 in Tree Hill, North Carolina. He has a younger brother, Dan Scott. He is the paternal uncle of Lucas Scott and Nathan Scott.

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• And Starring: "With Craig Sheffer".
• Back for the Dead: When he comes back to Tree Hill in season 3.
• Being Good Sucks: The shining example in the show, more so than Lucas considering what happened to him...
• Big Brother Instinct: Towards Dan when they were young, as seen in the flashbacks.
• Big Brother Mentor: According to Keith himself, he taught Dan everything he knew about cars and mechanics.
• Cain and Abel: With Dan. Dan and Keith always had a rivalry since they were children but regardless, they did have each other's backs despite their issues. Flashbacks show that Keith had Big Brother Instinct towards Dan and was protective of him and that Dan did love and admire Keith when he was a child. The rivalry between the two brothers turned downright antagonistic when Karen, who was Dan's high school sweetheart and the proclaimed love of his life, got involved in the picture, increasing the Sibling Rivalry between the brothers.
• Chronic Hero Syndrome: Whenever someone is in trouble, Keith always feels the need to step in and help them. He did this when Jimmy Edwards was struggling, He tried to get him to stop him from hurting himself and others.
• Cool Teacher: Becomes one at the end of Season 1. Of course, he takes over the running of Dan Scott Motors after Dan's heart attack before he can actually teach his first class.
• Cool Uncle: To Lucas, obviously. He becomes one to Nathan as well.
• Deadpan Snarker: He can be quite snarky, especially in his interactions with Dan.
• Did Not Get the Girl: Subverted, he did get the girl. But he's killed a few episodes later.
• Embarrassing Nickname: Dan gave him the nickname "Boozy" because he had a drinking problem.
• Extreme Doormat: Downplayed, but given how many times he allows his younger brother Dan to embarrass, cheat or otherwise harass him, you have to wonder why he doesn't just stop all contact with him.
• Grease Monkey: He's a mechanic for a living and he owns a car garage.
• Loved by All: Keith was very loved by many and it's understandable because he was a genuinely nice and good person who was kind to everyone.
• Magnetic Hero: Keith has a trait which can get people drawn to him, something Dan actually admitted being jealous of.
• Mistaken for Murderer: By Dan, who believed Keith had attempted to murder him in the dealership fire.
• Mr Fix It: Keith works as a mechanic, and taught Lucas everything he knows about cars.
• Nice Guy: In contrast to his Jerkass brother.
• Our Ghosts Are Different: When Keith appeared as a Spirit Advisor to Lucas, his ghost appeared as an adult (the age when he died). Ditto to Karen. However, when Dan had visions of his ghost, Keith always appeared as a child (around 11-12 years old). The only times Keith appeared as an adult ghost to Dan is when he was in prison for the murder of Daunte and during Dan's death.
• Parental Substitute: For Lucas. He's his paternal uncle, but he raised Lucas from birth since Keith's brother Dan abandoned Lucas.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Keith is the Blue to Dan's Red.
• Second Love: For Karen. Cue Retirony.
• Sibling Rivalry: With Dan. According to him, they had a rivalry with each other since they were kids. However, that didn't stop Keith from being protective over Dan as well.
• Spirit Advisor: To Lucas, in season 4.
• Too Good for This Sinful Earth: Keith was one of the kindest, caring, and most noble characters on the show. He was shot and killed by his brother Dan in season three. His death left a deep and lasting impact on the rest of the series.
• Two First Names: "Keith" and "Scott".
• The Un-Favourite: "Thanks, Dad. You finally pay me a compliment, and it's a dig at Dan."
• Unresolved Sexual Tension: With Karen. It was eventually resolved. Unfortunately, Keith was killed before they got married.

Karen Anne Roe

Karen Anne Roe

There's only one Tree Hill, Lucas Scott. And it is your home.

Portrayed by: Moira Kelly

Karen Anne Roe is the youngest child and second daughter of Oliver Roe and Cynthia Roe. She was born on October 30, 1969 in Tree Hill, North Carolina. She has an older sister, Diana Roe. She is the mother of Lucas Scott and Lily Scott.

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• All Girls Want Bad Boys: Karen was deeply in love with Dan in high school and he was her First Love. Karen admitted that Dan started out as a good person but that his personality negatively changed after he discovered that Karen was pregnant with his child. Dan morphed into a major Jerk Jock who put his ambitions before his love for Karen and being there for their unborn son.
• And Starring: "And Moira Kelly".
• Because You Were Nice to Me: Karen loved Keith because he was there to support and help her raise Lucas from the time he was born. He filled in as a Parental Substitute role for Lucas.
• Beware the Nice Ones: Karen is a genuinely nice person, as long as you don't make her mad. She certainly knows how to treat people like Dan.
• Brainy Brunette: She's very intelligent and practical, and has more common sense than most of the other adults.
• The Bus Came Back: Karen comes back temporarily in 5x12 and 6x24. She comes back with Andy to attend Lucas' wedding to Lindsay and for the birth of Lucas and Peyton's child.
• Childhood Friend Romance: With Dan. They grew up together in Tree Hill and they began a romantic relationship during high school. Karen became an Unlucky Childhood Friend when Dan left Karen and their unborn child Lucas to attend school. During college, Dan met Deb and they eventually got married and had Nathan.
• Dead Person Conversation: After momentarily dying after giving birth to Lily, she reunites with Keith in Heaven, who encourages her to go back and even picks out their daughter's name.
• The Determinator: Started up her own business shortly after graduating from high school whilst simultaneously raising a new born Lucas, with no support from anyone other than Keith.
• Dude Magnet: She's attracted the attention of Dan Scott, Keith Scott, Larry Sawyer and Andy Hargrove. Out of all of them, she ends up with Andy. It can be assumed that since she was a very popular cheerleader in high school, she attracted many boys, but at the time, she only had eyes for Dan.
• Earn Your Happy Ending: After losing Keith and giving birth to Lily, the Time Skip reveals that she and her former boyfriend Andy, her Aussie boyfriend from season two, reunited and are raising her daughter together.
• First Love: To Dan. She and Dan were high school sweethearts during high school and they were very much in love. Unfortunately, their relationship ended in heartbreak as Dan chose basketball over her and their son Lucas.
• Foil: To Deb. In many ways, they are opposite from each other in personality and backgrounds. Despite this, they managed to become friends.
• Good Girls Avoid Abortion: Dan asked Karen to have an abortion upon finding out she was pregnant with his child. Karen refused to do what Dan wanted and chose to keep the baby because she wanted her child to be a part of her future.
• Good Parents: To Lucas, and later to Lily. She's quite strict but she's a very good and protective mother.
• High-School Sweethearts: Karen was this with Dan during her high school years. Although Dan and Karen loved each other, their relationship didn't end well and caused alot of heartache for Karen.
• Her Heart Will Go On: After Keith's death. Complete with a daughter, Lily.
• Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: Karen is the Tiny Girl to Dan's Huge Guy. Dan is 6'2" and Karen is 5'3", making Dan a whole foot taller than her.
• Mama Bear: She's very protective of Lucas. Sometimes, Karen can be overprotective of him and has a overbearing and smothering attitude towards him. It makes sense since she was a single mother who practically raised him on her own (with some assistance from Keith).
• Nice Girl: Karen is genuinely kind, caring and empathetic but don't get on her bad side. It's not pretty when she gets angry and she has a temper when provoked.
• Oblivious to Love: She was completely unaware that Keith had been in love with her since she was in high school. She finds out that he had feelings for her but she doesn't reciprocate his feelings at first.
• Odd Friendship: With Deb, the wife of the man who abandoned her.
• One Head Taller: Dan is 6'2" and Karen is only 5'3", meaning that Dan is almost a foot taller than her. In their scenes together, Dan towers over her.
• Parental Hypocrisy: In Season 1, Karen slaps Lucas and is angry at him for finding out that Lucas got Brooke pregnant. However, she had a Teen Pregnancy at around the same age as Lucas and Brooke.
• Parental Substitute: To Haley and, eventually, Brooke; and she's willing to look after Jenny whilst Jake works at the cafe.
• Put on a Bus: After Season 4.
• Relationship Upgrade: With Keith. In Season 3, they go from being just friends to getting romantically involved and engaged. Their relationship is cut short after Keith dies.
• Settle for Sibling: Karen was Dan's high school sweetheart, then when she got pregnant with their son Lucas he left, remarried, and had another son, Nathan. Karen raised Lucas as a single mother but was always friendly with Dan's much-nicer brother Keith before it blossomed into romance shortly before his death.
• Shipper on Deck: for Lucas and Peyton. She always knew Peyton was her son’s One True Love and that any other girl never had a real chance with him, to the point that when the two finally became a couple in season 4, she openly told Lucas she approved of their relationship and was really happy the two of them had finally found each other since he was in love with her since forever.
• Team Mom: It's easy to be one when half of your son's friends have absent mothers, via death or other reasons.
• Teen Pregnancy: Dan got Karen pregnant with Lucas right after they graduated high school.
• Tough Love: She sometimes pulls this parenting method on Lucas.
• Unresolved Sexual Tension: With Keith. It was eventually resolved. Unfortunately, Keith was killed before they got married.
• Walking the Earth: As of Season 5, she travels around the world with Andy and Lily and is happy.

Deborah Helen "Deb" Lee-Scott

Deborah Helen "Deb" Lee-Scott

Portrayed by: Barbara Alyn Woods

Deborah Helen "Deb" Lee is the oldest child and only daughter of her unnamed parents. She was born April 25, 1969 in Tree Hill, North Carolina. She is the mother of Nathan Scott.

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• Absurdly Youthful Mother: Deb had Nathan when she was only nineteen and she became a grandmother for the first time in her late thirties.
• Action Mom: She can be a badass when necessary, such as when she hit Nanny Carrie in the face with a bottle of wine to stop her from coming after Haley and Jamie.
• The Alcoholic: She became one during her marriage. In addition to drinking, she gets addicted to prescription pills. She gets better.
• Alcoholic Parent: Deb became an alcoholic and a pill popping junkie in Season 2. Her addiction managed to cause a strain her relationship with Nathan. She went to rehab to get better.
• Awful Wedded Life: Dan and Deb had been married for almost 20 years but their relationship was a Destructive Romance that was toxic and unhealthy. Deb and Dan admitted that the earlier years of their marriage was somewhat happy, but that they grew apart over the years. Dan admitted to Deb in season four that he always loved Karen more than Deb and that on the night of his wedding rehearsal, he felt like he was making a big mistake by marrying Deb.
• Broken Bird: Due to her tragedies, emotional pains, and countless Despair Event Horizon. You can thank Dan for this.
• The Bus Came Back: In episodes 9x08 and 9x11. She comes back to Tree Hill in order to help Dan in his quest to search for their son Nathan. She is reunited with her son after Dan rescues him and she is at Dan's bedside while he's dying in the hospital.
• Despair Event Horizon: Deb has one in season four. First, Dan tells her that he never loved her and Karen was the love of his life. Second, her son Nathan practically disowns her and tells her that he wants nothing to do with her because of the trouble she causes. She is Driven to Suicide and overdoses on a bunch of prescription pills, but is ultimately saved by Dan when he calls an ambulance and gets her to the hospital.
• Destructive Romance: With Dan. Their relationship is very toxic and unhealthy. At the beginning of their marriage, there were plenty of happy moments. However, their marriage fell apart due to growing apart. Their relationship became so toxic that Deb became a pill popping junkie and she attempted to kill Dan by setting his dealership on fire.
• Driven to Suicide: During her pill addiction. She overdoses on prescription medication because Dan confessed to her that he loved Karen more than her and her son Nathan disowned her and wanted nothing to do with her. Dan saves Deb by calling an ambulance and taking her to the hospital.
• Drugs Are Bad: She gets addicted to prescription pills starting in Season 2. She started taking them because she was dealing with a bad marriage and a messy divorce with Dan. It didn't help that her son Nathan emancipated himself and got married. Deb admitted that she felt abandoned by Nathan. She ends up going to rehab to get treatment. By the end of Season 4, she gets better and recovers.
• Evil Matriarch: Deb has tried to take control over Nathan's life and even schemed with Dan to try and break up Nathan and Haley's marriage.
• Expository Hairstyle Change: In season one, she had a short, conservative bob to showcase her role as a (seemingly) responsible wife, mother and career woman. By the middle of season three, it was grown out longer and curly, which showed off her decline into a reckless and mean-spirited alcoholic.
• Face–Heel Turn: Deb spends the first half of season two plotting with Dan to break-up Nathan and Haley's marriage.
• Heel Realisation: Upon realizing how depressed Nathan is without Haley, Deb realizes her actions in the first half of the season weren't in her son's best interests.
• Junkie Parent: Deb developed an addiction to prescription pills. She ends up in and out of rehab because of her addiction. She eventually gets better.
• Karma Houdini: She committed attempted murder by trying to kill Dan at the end of season two, yet she never faced any legal consequences for her actions. The consequence of her actions resulted in Keith's death, however.
• Knight Templar Parent: Once she gets back into Nathan's life, she becomes extremely protective of Nathan and his well-being. Part of her motivation for trying to burn Dan in the dealership fire was because she wanted to protect Nathan from Dan.
• Mama Bear: She's very protective of Nathan as season one show that and made all she can for protecting him of Dan's abuse. She's this with Haley and Jamie too when she hit Psycho Carrie with a bottle of wine.
• Manipulative Bitch: She definitely has her manipulative moments. She schemed with Dan to break up Nathan and Haley's marriage in season two.
• Married to the Job: Prior to the first season, she often spends time away from her family due to her work.
• May–December Romance: With Skills in season 5.
• Mrs. Robinson: She begins dating Skills in season five. Skills is the same age as her son Nathan.
• My God, What Have I Done?: See Nice Job Breaking It, Hero below.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: If she didn't try to kill Dan, Keith would be still alive.
• Odd Friendship: With Karen, if you know all their story. What make them friends is their common hatred for Dan who ruined the lives of both of them.
• Only Known by Their Nickname: Her full name is Deborah but everyone calls her Deb.
• Promotion to Opening Titles: In season 2.
• Put on a Bus: After season 6, though she's arguably Commuting on a Bus since season 5.
• Sympathetic Adulterer: Deb confessed that she committed infidelity while still married to Dan. However, her reasons for doing so are sympathetic. Her and Dan had a Destructive Romance and an Awful Wedded Life. Unfortunately, Deb's cheating caused Dan to take out his anger on their son.
• Team Mom: Whilst not as much as Karen, Deb has her moments - most notably when Karen is in the hospital after giving birth in Season 4, and when Brooke is attacked in her store in Season 6.
• Teen Pregnancy: After Dan got Karen pregnant (with Lucas), he left her and went to college, and then got his girlfriend Deb pregnant with Nathan. Way to go, Dan.
• Took a Level in Jerkass: In her early appearances Deb was a stable, levelheaded woman. She later becomes neurotic and desperate.
• Two First Names: Her full name is Deborah Helen Lee. Three after marrying Dan Scott.
• Unwitting Instigator of Doom: As seen in Nice Job Breaking It, Hero, trying to kill Dan wasn't a good idea, considering what happened later.

Marvin Leonardo "Mouth" McFadden

Marvin Leonardo "Mouth" McFadden

Good evening ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to a historic night.

Portrayed by: Lee Norris

Marvin Leonardo McFadden, also known as Mouth is an old friend of Lucas and Skills. He later befriends the other main characters.

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• Allegedly Dateless: His whininess over a lacking love life, and complaining that all the girls see him just as a "good friend", like Brooke or Rachel. However his love interests include Erica, Gigi, Shelley, Millie, Lauren, along with a fling with Rachel, and quite a few other very attractive girls.
• All Guys Want Cheerleaders: Brooke and Rachel.
• Alliterative Name: Marvin Mcfadden nicknamed Mouth.
• The Artifact: In later seasons.
• Ascended Extra: He was initially introduced as one of Lucas's friends from the River Court, and to serve as announcer for the Ravens games. With the Ravens not playing in Season 2 (Having lost their first playoff game at the end of Season 1), Mouth was given some character development beyond "The sports announcer kid" and was Promoted to Opening Titles in Season 3.
• Babies Ever After: With Millie. In the flash forward, it's shown that Millie is expecting her first child with Mouth.
• Beta Couple: With Millie starting season 5.
• Crazy Jealous Guy: To the point of smashing Brooke's windshield when he thought that she was having a "friends with benefits" relationship with Felix in season 2.
• Dogged Nice Guy: Mouth is this trope around the girls he likes, like Brooke and Rachel.
• Endearingly Dorky: While the other main characters are blatant examples of the school's The Beautiful Elite, Mouth is an insecure, mostly uncool nerd but he's so approachable that all the students of the popular crowd genuinely like him, has a close friendship with both the Alpha Bitch and the Lovable Alpha Bitch, and attracts quite a few hot girls during the show.
• Fat Bastard: By the start of Season 9, Mouth has visibly gained a lot of weight and his clothes clearly don't fit him anymore. However, rather than acknowledge his weight gain, Mouth instead starts coming up with conspiracy theories to explain why his clothes don't fit anymore - even going so far as to publicly accuse Millie of shrinking his shirts. Even after Millicent angrily points out that his clothes don't fit anymore because he's gained weight, Mouth refuses to accept her criticism and instead sulks because Millie's comments hurt his feelings. It ultimately takes Skills talking to him about the matter for Mouth to realise that Millie's coming from a place of concern and he needs to deal with his weight before it becomes a greater issue.
• Give Geeks a Chance: He's friends with Brooke, Lucas and the other popular kids and dates several hot girls during the show.
• Happily Ever After: With Mille.
• Happily Married: In the series finale, it's revealed that he is married to Millicent.
• The Heart: Even more than Brooke. Mouth is pretty much everyone's best friend.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Skills.
• Hidden Depths: Is a fantastic dancer, and once perfectly replicated a rival cheerleading squads dance routine by memory, much to the surprise of Brooke & the rest of the cheerleaders. After that, whenever the Ravens cheerleaders need to come up with a new dance routine, they go to Mouth.
• Hopeless Suitor:
  • To Brooke in Season 2, though to be fair, Brooke didn't try to lead him on.
  • To Rachel in Seasons 3 and 4. Unlike Brooke, Rachel did intentionally led Mouth on & every time he figured this out, it only lasted for an episode or two before he was convinced Rachel had changed and fell for it again. He eventually realised Rachel was never interested in him after she convinced him to skip town a few weeks before graduation, stringing him along for a week under the belief they were starting a relationship, until she began flirting with some random guy in a bar and used the same lines that she was feeding Mouth.
• Horrible Judge of Character: Repeatedly trusts Rachel & gives her the benefit of the doubt, in spite of everything she does over the course of seasons 3 & 4. He finally wises up after she steals thousands from Brooke in season 5.
• In with the In Crowd: Initially one of Lucas's friends from the River Court. Soon enough he, along with Lucas and Skills, becomes part of the popular crowd. So much that his old forgotten friend Jimmy felt ignored and mistreated by him, and it becomes a plot point in season 3. You know the story...
• Kavorka Man: Of a sort. While he's certainly not ugly, he's insecure, awkward, plain-looking, and considers himself unlucky in love. However, he gets many hot girlfriends (probably more than anyone else) from season 2 onwards.
• My Greatest Failure: The death of Jimmy Edwards. Whilst he gets better over time, it's clear that he's still affected by this at the end of the series, nearly a decade later.
• Nice Guy: It's not hard to see why Mouth is able to befriend anyone so easily, despite not being the stereotypically cool guy. He's incredibly friendly, good-natured and loyal, almost to a fault.
• Odd Friendship: With all the main characters, particularly cheerleader and Lovable Alpha Bitch Brooke.
• Only Known by Their Nickname: Only his girlfriend Millicent calls him "Marvin".
• Promotion to Opening Titles: In season 3.
• Redheads Are Ravishing: He had a crush on Rachel.
• Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: Sensitive Guy to Skills' Manly Man.
• Small Name, Big Ego: In Seasons 2 through 4, thinks he's a lot cooler than he actually is - Such as his being offended when Shelley labels him a Geek in Season 4's "Pictures Of You" when asked to label him either a Geek, Jock, Prom Queen, Loner or "Friendly".
• Unlucky Everydude: His perception, and he's probably this compared to the main five.
• Weight Woe: In Season 9, Mouth gained alot of weight but he didn't see to want to take any criticism about it. He decided to change his eating habits and exercise so that he could lose the weight and gain back some self confidence.

Antwon Charles "Skills" Taylor

Antwon Charles "Skills" Taylor

Portrayed by: Antwon Tanner

Antwon Charles Taylor, known as "Skills" is one of Lucas's best friends from the River Court.

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• Adam Westing: According to Antwon Tanner, he pretty much is Skills in real life.
• Age-Gap Romance: He has a romantic relationship with Deb starting in season five. Deb is almost two decades his senior.
• The Artifact: Just like Mouth, his character became more pointless in later seasons.
• Ascended Extra: Like Mouth, was initially introduced as one of Lucas's friends from the River Court, but unlike Mouth, rarely appeared without the other River Court guys. In Season 3, he received the character development that Mouth did in Season 2, and was Promoted to Opening Titles the following season.
• Beta Couple: With Bevin in season 3 and 4.
• Commuting on a Bus: After Season 7.
• Demoted to Extra: During the second half of Season 8, to the point that his only appearance in the Season Finale (Which was written as the Grand Finale) is wearing a chicken suit in an audition for Millie's old field reporter job.
• Genre Savvy: Spends the entirety of Brooke's wedding ensuring that everything that could go wrong (And in fact, has gone wrong at previous Tree Hill weddings) doesn't.
• Has a Type: His type seems to be beautiful women with blonde hair and blue eyes. All of his girlfriends, including Bevin, Deb and Lauren, all fit this type.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Mouth, especially after they start sharing an apartment.
• The Lancer: To Lucas, especially in the early seasons when the main characters were less united.
• Last-Minute Hookup: The final Time Skip implies that he and Bevin got back together.
• Likes Older Women: He had a relationship with Deb, who is almost twenty years older than him, in season five to six. He also found Sylvia, Julian's mother, attractive.
• Lovable Jock: When he joins the basketball team.
• May–December Romance: With Deb Scott in season 5. They break up in early season 6.
• Nice Guy: Skills is genuinely one of the nicest guys on the show and he befriends everyone.
• Only Known by Their Nickname: Only his parents & Lauren refer to him as Antwon with any frequency.
• Promotion to Opening Titles: In season 4.
• Satellite Character: He rarely gets A Day in the Limelight, he's pretty much just there to be the Token Black Friend to Lucas and Mouth.
• Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: Manly Man to Mouth's Sensitive Guy.
• Shipper on Deck: For Lucas and Peyton.
• Teeny Weenie: Implied by Millie after she sees him naked
  Millie: Good to know the stereotype's not true.
• Token Minority: The only black recurring character until Season 5.
• Two First Names: "Antwon" and "Taylor"
• Where da White Women At?: All his most important girlfriends (Bevin, Deb, Lauren) are white.

Rachel Virginia Gatina

Rachel Virginia Gatina

Portrayed by: Danneel Ackles

Rachel Virginia Gatina is a new cheerleader introduced in season 3 who starts a rivalry with Brooke.

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• Age-Gap Romance: With Dan in season seven. Dan is almost 20 years Rachel's senior and she attended high school with both of his sons, Lucas and Nathan. What makes it weirder is that Rachel has flirted with both of Dan's sons during their high school years. Rachel revealed that she is a Gold Digger and she married Dan for his money.
• Alpha Bitch: In contrast to Brooke's Lovable Alpha Bitch.
• The Baby Trap: Used this on Cooper. It doesn't end well.
• Big Bad: Season 3 and the first half of Season 7. Rachel is the cause of many of the bad happenings in Season 3 such as turning the cheerleading squad wild and releasing the school's time capsule, which leads to Jimmy bringing a gun to school.
• Big Bad Ensemble: In Season 3 with Dan. Ironically they eventually become a couple in Season 7.
• The Bus Came Back: In Season 5 for a few episodes; later in Season 7.
• Cruel Cheerleader: An extreme version of the bitchy/slutty type of cheerleader. She immediately joins the cheerleading squad, much to Brooke's dismay.
• Deadpan Snarker: Rachel is quite adept. She often gets the last word in her Snark-to-Snark Combat with Brooke.
• Drugs Are Bad: She became a heroin addict and has been in an out of rehab during the Time Skip. After Brooke fired her from Clothes Over Bros, she had a relapse.
• Evil Counterpart: She has a lot in common with Brooke. While Rachel has her Pet the Dog moments, she's pretty much Brooke without her redeeming qualities.
• Evil Former Friend: To Brooke and Mouth - In Episode 5x11, Rachel destroyed her friendship with Brooke by stealing Brooke's money and leaving. When she came back in Season 7 as Dan's wife, Mouth told her he wouldn't speak with her until she mended bridges with Brooke & paid her back, whilst Brooke threw Rachel's money back in her face and asserted that they weren't friends anymore, nor would they ever be again.
• Evil Redhead: Has red hair and is a promiscuous, manipulative "bad girl".
• Femme Fatale: Rachel is insanely hot and she knows it. She uses this to seduce and manipulate guys, in contrast to Brooke who is a more sympathetic Good Bad Girl.
• Fiery Redhead: Just as fiery and outspoken as Brooke.
• Formerly Fat: She was originally obese before undergoing plastic surgery treatments to alter her appearance.
• The Friend Nobody Likes: Initially averted. When she arrives and joins the cheerleading squad, she's hated only by Brooke, but adored by the other cheerleaders. Later towards the end of season 3 she befriends Brooke; however in season 4 she plays this trope straight, she's not that popular anymore at school and no one in the core group seems to like her except Brooke and Mouth.
• Freudian Excuse: She seems to have absentee parents. She used to be very fat and implied to be bullied because of this.
• Gold Digger: Rachel admitted that she married Dan for his money.
• Hard-Drinking Party Girl: She likes drinking and partying. During the Time Skip, she became addicted to taking drugs, particularly heroin.
• Iconic Sequel Character: Despite being one of the show's Breakout Villains, she doesn't make an appearance until Season 3.
• Jerkass Has a Point: During Season 4, Rachel frequently has to point out how unreasonable Brooke is being in her treatment of Peyton. Brooke doesn't really have an argument when this happens.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Character Development make her a better person in season 4, and while still being a Manipulative Bitch, she shares a few genuine friendship moments with Brooke and Mouth. However her appearances in season 5 and 7 show her again as an unsympathetic Jerk with a Heart of Jerk.
• Karma Houdini: Suffers absolutely no punishment for releasing the contents of the time capsule and subsequently driving Jimmy Edwards to bring a gun to Tree Hill High.
• Lady Macbeth: To Dan in season 7.
• Laser-Guided Karma: After revealing to Dan that the only reason she's with him is his money, Dan gives everything away to charities & various people who need it more than he does, and hands Rachel divorce papers. When she says she'll sue him for half of everything he's worth, her lawyer points out that half of nothing is still nothing.
• Likes Older Men: She was interested in having a relationship with Cooper, who was 30 when she was 17 and still in high school. In season seven, she was revealed to have married Dan, who is almost 20 years her senior.
• Manipulative Bitch: All the time, but how much she's actually good at this it varies. In one episode she gets Peyton drunk and puts her in Lucas's room, not because she wants Lucas and Peyton together, but just to mess with Brooke, who was dating Lucas at that time.
• May–December Romance: With Nathan's uncle Cooper in season 3 and Dan Scott in season 7.
• Ms. Fanservice: Even more than Brooke!
• Pet the Dog: She has her good moments with Mouth and Brooke.
• Plastic Bitch: A slutty Alpha Bitch who was very fat before she has had plastic surgery.
• Promotion to Opening Titles: In season 4.
• Really Gets Around: Described in-universe as "friendly" in the episode "Pictures Of You".
• Recovered Addict: After Brooke fired her as a model for Clothes Over Bros, she became addicted to heroin. It was revealed that she had been in and out of rehab during the Time Skip. She eventually gets better.
• The Rival: To Brooke, initially. Later they become friends. Until season 5.
• The Tease: Almost all her dialogue with men is dripping with sexual undertones.
• Token Evil Teammate: To the Tree Hill cheerleaders.
• Unwitting Instigator of Doom: Releases the time capsule because she wanted to cause drama, which ultimately leads to Jimmy Edwards taking a gun into school.
• Vitriolic Best Buds: With Brooke, after they become friends.
• With Friends Like These...: Mostly towards Brooke, if only because no-one else in the group (With the exception of Mouth) likes her enough for this to qualify.

James Lucas "Jamie" Scott

James Lucas "Jamie" Scott

Portrayed by: Jackson Brundage

James Lucas "Jamie" Scott is the eldest child and only son of Nathan Scott and Haley James Scott.

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• Adorably Precocious Child: A very mature kid, and all the adults find him adorable.
• Big Brother Instinct: Adores and is very protective of his little sister Lydia.
• Bunnies for Cuteness: "I have a fluffy eared bunny named Chester."
• Broken Pedestal: Towards Dan after he admits to Jamie that he killed Keith, late in Season 6. Whilst Jamie doesn’t reach the same level of animosity towards Dan as his father or uncle and instead retains a more positive relationship with him, he immediately assumes that Dan had something to do with Nathan's abduction in Season 9.
• Cheerful Child: Mostly because Children Are Innocent.
• Children Are Innocent: The Scotts didn't tell Jamie about Dan's crimes, leaving him confused as to why everyone else doesn't want Dan around. Even after he learns the truth, Jamie still tries to maintain his relationship with his grandfather.
• The Cutie: Noted InUniverse, but he grows out of it as he gets older.
• Deadpan Snarker: Has his moments when he gets older.
• Full-Name Basis: Always introduces himself as James Lucas Scott when he's really little.
• Future Badass: The final Time Skip reveals that Jamie would go on to break Nathan's record as the Ravens' all-time lead scorer and have his number retired. Whilst still playing on the team.
• Generation Xerox: Gradually displays more of Lucas and Nathan's traits as he gets older.
• Iconic Sequel Character: Doesn't appear in the series until his mother gave birth to him in the Season 4 finale, then gets his official introduction in Season 5.
• Innocent Prodigy: Jamie is very smart and intelligent for his age, but there are many times where he displays naiveté about many things which shows that he's still a child.
• Intergenerational Friendship: With Skills, Brooke, Sam, Quentin, Julian and Clay.
• Last Episode, New Character: Haley gave birth to him in the Season 4 finale.
• Locked Out of the Loop: Following the 4 year time skip, Jamie has no knowledge of any of Dan’s crimes as his parents took an "out of sight, out of mind" approach for dealing with the issue due to Dan's incarceration. Once Dan is released from prison, however, this becomes an issue as Jamie doesn’t understand why no-one wants Dan around, and rather than actually tell him what Dan did, they keep trying to shelter Jamie whilst just saying that Dan did some bad things to people they cared about.
• Meaningful Name: His first name could either be from the typical maiden name Theme Naming of the female leads or his maternal grandfather's first name. On the other hand, his second given name clearly came from his paternal uncle and godfather.
• Morality Pet: Most of Quentin (pre-shedding of his Jerk Jock persona) and Dan's likeable moments (before he does a Heel–Face Turn) involve Jamie.
• Only Known by Their Nickname: Never referred to as James unless he's in big trouble, or when he's introducing himself when he's still a young boy.
• Pretty Fly for a White Guy: Displays a love of hip-hop and rap music when he's little, with Nathan actually playing old school hip-hop to quiet him down as a baby.
• Puppy Love: With Madison.
• Tagalong Kid: To the adult main cast. Other kids are added with Season 6 though.
• Time-Shifted Actor: He had different actors portraying him as a baby and as a teenager in the final Time Skip.
• Two First Names: Three if you apply the Full-Name Basis.
• Wise Beyond Their Years: Jamie is very smart for his age.

Millicent "Millie" Huxtable

Millicent "Millie" Huxtable

Portrayed by: Lisa Goldstein

Millicent "Millie" Huxtable is the personal assistant to Clothes Over Bros founder Brooke Davis. She later stars dating Mouth.

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• Affectionate Nickname: Her name is Millicent, but Mouth always calls her "Millie".
• Ascended Extra: Was only supposed to be in one scene during the first episode of Season 5.
• Babies Ever After: With Mouth.
• Beta Couple: with Mouth starting season 5.
• Clingy Jealous Girl: Sometimes, concerning Mouth.
• The Consigliere: To Brooke initially.
• Fanservice Pack: She started as a Hollywood Homely bespectacled girl. She later becomes a model.
• Genki Girl: Millie has a very excitable personality.
• Good Bad Girl: In season seven, she becomes this after getting wrapped up in being a model. She engages in partying, taking drugs and drinking. Alex tries to get her to stop her behavior and encourages her to go to rehab.
• Happily Ever After: With Mouth.
• Happily Married: It's revealed in the series finale she and Mouth got married and are expecting their first child.
• Hard-Drinking Party Girl: She becomes one in season seven after getting involved in the modelling business. She starts taking drugs, drinking, staying out late and attending parties. She gets better after going to rehab.
• Iconic Sequel Character: Doesn't appear in the series until Season 5.
• Last Girl Wins: For Mouth, being his last Love Interest but the one he ultimately ends up with.
• Motor Mouth: Millie is extremely talkative and once she gets going, she just can't stop. She always sounds very excitable whenever she talks.
• Nice Girl: Millie was a very nice and kind person. However in season seven, she becomes more bitchy and entitled after becoming a model. She reverts back to her old personality once Brooke fires her as a her model.
• Promotion to Opening Titles: In season 6.
• Took a Level in Jerkass: After becoming a model during Season 7.
• You Called Me "X"; It Must Be Serious: Millie always calls Mouth by his real name, Marvin. Her using his nickname during Season 7 is one of the big clues to him that Millie isn't acting like herself.

Julian Andrew Baker

Julian Andrew Baker

Portrayed by: Austin Nichols

Julian Andrew Baker (né Norris) is a new love interest to Brooke introduced in season 6. They eventually get married.

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• Amicable Exes: With Peyton. They had a relationship during the Time Skip but broke things off before Peyton came back to Tree Hill.
• Attention Deficit... Ooh, Shiny!: Played baseball as a child, but admits he was more interested in the butterfly-catching side of things. He still is as an adult.
• Babies Ever After: With Brooke. He and Brooke have twin sons named Davis and Jude Baker.
• Belligerent Sexual Tension: With Brooke. They bicker and banter with each other and clearly had Unresolved Sexual Tension. They resolved their tension almost immediately after they first met. They become an Official Couple, are Happily Married in Season 8 and they have twin sons, Davis and Jude Baker.
• Chronic Hero Syndrome: Julian admits that his issue is that he feels the constant need to save other people from themselves or when they are having trouble. He did this with Peyton, Brooke and Alex. Julian admits that he does this because he is projecting due to trying to save his mother when she was having personal issues.
• Happily Ever After: With Brooke. They get married in the middle of Season 8 and they have twin sons, Davis and Jude Baker.
• Happily Married: To Brooke from halfway through Season 8. They get married and have twin sons at the end of the season.
• Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: Julian's the Huge Guy to Brooke's Tiny Girl. Brooke is 5'4" and Julian is 6'3", meaning that Julian is almost a foot taller than her.
• Iconic Sequel Character: Doesn't appear in the series until Season 6, but he has become Brooke’s major Love Interest and her eventual husband and a very loved character (along with his and Brooke’s love story).
• Intergenerational Friendship: With Jamie, who even served as his best man.
• The Lancer: He becomes this to Nathan in the later seasons. He shares this role with Clay.
• Last Girl Wins: He is a Gender Flip for Brooke. He is her last Love Interest introduced and soon becomes her major one and then they end up together Happily Married and even have twin sons.
• Lovable Rogue: Have you seen him grin? It's even described InUniverse as being rogueish.
• Momma's Boy: Very close to his mother, in contrast having a distant relationship with his father.
• The Movie Buff: Justified due to his job.
• Nice Guy: Julian is a very kind, honest, empathetic, caring guy.
• Odd Friendship: Julian's a director/producer from Hollywood who has little interest in sports. Contrast this with pretty much every other male character in the show, several of whom make their living through sports.
• Official Couple: With Brooke, starting in Season 6. They end up Happily Married in Season 8 and they have twin sons.
• Parental Abandonment: Julian had major daddy issues because his father was never there for him emotionally. He luckily was very close to his mother.
• Perma-Stubble: In later seasons.
• Promotion to Opening Titles: In season 7.
• Rule of Three: Pointed out by Peyton as the third guy to be shared by herself and Brooke.
• Shout-Out: Will frequently make reference to films in his dialogue.
  "And just because I referenced Dirty Dancing doesn't mean I'm not serious!"
• Sixth Ranger: Bonus points for being introduced in the sixth season. In addition, he's actually the final addition to the gang when the core five are still complete. He even married the remaining single girl of the five, though two seasons after his introduction.
• Tall, Dark, and Handsome: Julian is an attractive guy with dark hair and dark eyes.
• Tall, Dark, and Snarky: Julian is not only Tall, Dark, and Handsome but he's very sarcastic and witty. He's very much like Brooke in this regard.
• Vitriolic Best Buds: Eventually becomes this with Lucas.
• "Well Done, Son" Guy: Has this relationship with his father.

Clayton "Clay" Evans

Clayton "Clay" Evans

Portrayed by: Robert Buckley

Clayton "Clay" Evans was the sports agent of former NBA player Nathan Scott who has grown close to his family and friends. He is the widower of Sara Kay Evans.

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• Adventures in Comaland: Shares one with Quinn after they get shot by his stalker. They get better.
• Bash Brothers: With Nathan. They are best friends and they have each other's backs through thick and thin.
• Best Friend: Became one with Nathan during the Time Skip between Season 6 and 7.
• Beware the Nice Ones: Clay is a nice guy most of the time, but don't get on his bad side.
• Big Brother Instinct: Towards Nathan. Clay is very protective towards him and acts like a big brother figure for him. In many ways, he's a substitute for Lucas in this regard.
• The Casanova: Clay likes to sleep around with many women, but he started to do this after his wife died. He used sex as a way to cope with his loss.
• The Charmer: Clay is very charming, persuasive and smooth talking, especially when it comes to the opposite sex.
• Chivalrous Pervert: Clay likes to sleep with many women, but Quinn is the one girl he refuses to sleep with right away. Instead, he genuinely likes her and wants to get to know her on a deeper level.
• The Consigliere: To Nathan initially. He serves as Nathan's sports agent.
• Dead Person Conversation: With his dead wife, which he hallucinates about.
• Fanboy: Clay is a huge fan of comic books. His favorite superheroes are Batman and Wolverine. He's such a big fan of Wolverine that he named his son Logan.
• Happily Ever After: With Quinn. By the end of the series, they get married and Quinn adopts Clay's son Logan.
• Happily Married: With his first wife Sarah and later with Quinn.
• Her Heart Will Go On: Complete with a child.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Nathan starting in season seven. Not only is Clay Nathan's sports agent, but he's also his best friend.
• Lady Killer In Love: With Quinn.
• Laser-Guided Amnesia: Was so traumatized by Sara's death, that he blocked out all memories of the son they had together for several years.
• The Lost Lenore: The death of Sara severely affected Clay.
• Luke, You Are My Father: His son Logan. See Laser-Guided Amnesia above.
• Nice Guy: Clay is nice, friendly and approachable.
• Official Couple: with Quinn starting season 7.
• Really Gets Around: He's introduced as a ladies man that is quick to jump into bed with girls but it's revealed to just be how he attempts to get past his wife's death.
• Remember the New Guy?: Justified. Clay became Nathan's agent and close friend during the Time Skip.
• Suspiciously Similar Substitute: To Lucas and Peyton - he takes Peyton's role as the best friend with the tortured backstory whilst taking Lucas' love of sports.
• Tall, Dark, and Handsome: Clay checks all the boxes. He's 6'2", has brown hair and is very physically attractive.
• Undying Loyalty: Towards Nathan. There's nothing that Clay wouldn't do for Nathan and his family. He has his back no matter what.

Quinn A. James

Quinn A. James Evans

Portrayed by: Shantel VanSanten

Quinn is Haley's older sister. She later starts dating Clay.

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• Action Survivor: Manages to fend off Clay's Stalker with a Crush Katie on her own when she tries to kill her.
• Adventures in Comaland: Shares one with Clay after they get shot by his stalker. They get better.
• Big Sister Instinct: Towards Haley. She is very protective of her.
• Camera Fiend: Often seen with a camera taking pictures and worked as a photographer for Brooke in Clothes Over Bro's.
• Chekhov's Gunman: She was first mentioned in season 2, five seasons before becoming a series regular.
• The Confidant: Becomes one for Clay, being the first person he talked to regarding his wife's death.
• Cool Aunt: To Jamie and Lydia. She even plays game of football with Jamie and his friends
• Cool Big Sis: She's very close to her younger sister Haley.
• Expository Hair Style Change: Initially a brunette, but she goes blonde in the last few seasons.
• Friend to All Children: She's pretty good with children, probably due to having grown up in a house with a lot of siblings.
• Gender-Blender Name: Her first name Quinn is a unisex name and can be a given name for men and women.
• The Ghost: As seen in Chekhov's Gunman, she never appears before season 7.
• Happily Ever After: With Clay.
• Happily Married: To Clay at the end of the series.
• Hollywood Tone-Deaf: Downplayed when she sings "Eye of the Tiger". She's more awkward rather than exaggeratedly bad.
• Massive Numbered Siblings: She has three sisters and three brothers.
• Ms. Fanservice: Is she ever. You can make a Drinking Game for every "Quinn in a bikini scene".
• Official Couple. with Clay starting season 7.
• Parental Abandonment: Her father died between the seasons 4 and 5 Time Skip while her mother died in season 7.
• Parental Substitute: To Logan.
• Proud Beauty: She's very aware of how attrative she is.
  Nathan: [talking about Clay] He thinks you're hot.
  Quinn: I am hot.
• Raven Hair, Ivory Skin: When she was first introduced, she was a pale brunette with raven hair, but she later dyed her hair blonde.
• Running Gag: She's hilariously bad at dancing.
• Second Love: To Clay. He's also this to her since her marriage with David fell apart.
• Sucks at Dancing: Which becomes a problem when she poses as a cheerleader in "Some Roads Lead Nowhere".
• Suspiciously Similar Substitute: To Peyton & Lucas - she takes Lucas' role as the older sibling, but for Haley instead of Nathan, and shares Peyton's love of art.
• The Tease: Appeared next to Clay wearing only her Black Bra and Panties.
• Two First Names: "Quinn" and "James".

Alexis "Alex" Dupre

Alexis "Alex" Dupre

Portrayed by: Jana Kramer

Alice Whitehead, known by her stage name Alex Dupre is a troubled actress. She later starts a relationship with Chase Adams despite its difficulties and she was able to start a successful country music career.

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• Aloof Dark-Haired Girl: A beautiful, bitchy girl with long dark hair.
• All Love Is Unrequited: Alex was in love with Julian but Julian only saw her as a friend.
• Attention Whore: She gets better after a while, although she's always a bit self-centered.
• Bath Suicide: Tries this in "You Know I Love You, Don't You". She survives.
• Betty and Veronica: The Veronica to Mia's Betty for Chase's Archie.
• The Ditz: Initially she comes off as vapid due to her flighty nature, but she's smarter than she appears.
• Dogged Nice Girl: Towards Julian in season 7. She had strong feelings for him and would act friendly and flirtatious towards him in hopes of getting him to reciprocate her feelings. However, Julian only saw her as a friend and work partner and wanted to help her through her issues.
• Driven to Suicide: Tries to kill herself in season 7, after she gets a "The Reason You Suck" Speech by Julian and Millie. She survives when Julian finds her.
• Embarrassing Last Name: Her actual surname is Whitehead.
• The Friend Nobody Likes: Lampshaded by Alex herself at Brooke's bachelorette party. Though Quinn then replies that she still considers Alex her friend.
• Hard-Drinking Party Girl: Alex is a hardcore party girl who loves to drink and use drugs. She's a recovering addict and has been in and out of rehab due to her excessive party habits.
• Hopeless Suitor: To Julian in Season 7.
• It's All About Me: She had her moments. Lampshaded by Brooke in "Some Roads Lead Nowhere"
• Ms. Fanservice: Second only to Quinn in the later seasons of the show, as Julian quickly discovers when she opens the door to him wearing only a shirt.
• Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot: A model, actress and an Idol Singer.
• Put on a Bus: At the start of Season 9, Chris Keller offers her a chance to go on tour, which she takes, breaking up with Chase in the process.
• Really Gets Around: Has a reputation for promiscuity. Which she proves to be true by hopping into bed with Clay shortly after arriving in town.
• Recovered Addict: Got addicted to cocaine during her rise to fame as an actress. She managed to beat her addiction, but still resented her rehabilitation.
• Shameless Fanservice Girl: Alex has no hangs up about her body. She even Sleeps in the Nude when sharing a bed with someone.
• The Tease: She acts very flirtatiously and is very forward in her pursuit of Julian.
• Tomboyish Name: Alex is usually a male name.
• Vitriolic Best Buds: She's not an easy person to get along, so even her friendships are on this level.
• With Friends Like These...: Mostly due to her It's All About Me complex.

Chase Adams

Chase Adams

Portrayed by: Stephen Colletti

Chase Adams is the youngest child and second son of Joe Adams and Joanna Adams. He was born September 4, 1988 in Tree Hill, North Carolina. He has an older brother, Jon Adams. Chase was a member of the Clean Teens who came to Tree Hill High during his senior year. He formed a relationship with Brooke Davis throughout the year but they eventually broke up for reasons unknown after Graduation - most likely due to her newfound fame as the Clothes over Bro's creator. He returned to Tree Hill some time later and was currently the owner at Tric, after Karen Roe upon Haley's request sold it to Chase right before the series finale. During Season 6 and Season 7 he dated Mia Catalano, who broke up with him over a text message at the end of Season 7. He then had a troubled relationship with performer, Alex Dupré conflicting with this time with Mia but once he joined the air force and a year after he got out they reconciled. However, they broke up when she left Tree Hill after accepting an offer to go on tour from Chris Keller.

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• Ace Pilot: Tells Brooke that his dream is to become a pilot during Season 4. He ultimately gets his wings & joins the Air Force post-Time Skip.
• Amicable Exes: With Brooke. They parted ways romantically, but they still remained friends afterwards.
• The Bartender: Works as a bartender at the Tric. Or as he likes to put it, Bar Manager.
• Betty and Veronica: The Archie to Mia's Betty and Alex's Veronica.
• Big Brother Mentor: To Chuck in Season 8. He becomes a big brother figure to him and looks out for him.
• Commuting on a Bus: Seasons 5 through 7.
• The Generic Guy: In a series where the main cast includes writers, athletes & musicians (Among others), Chase's most notable aspect is that he's the only major character (Post High School) who doesn't go on to great things.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Chris Keller in the last season.
• Insistent Terminology: Will correct everyone the moment they get his job title wrong.
• Irony:
  • Moved to Tree Hill after his best friend and girlfriend began sleeping together behind his back; Chase eventually does this to Chris Keller in the final season, albeit unintentionally.
  • Joins Clean Teens after the above incident, hoping it would save him from further heartbreak; quickly winds up falling for Brooke Davis.
• Lousy Lovers Are Losers: Chase's being lackluster in bed due to his lack of 'staying power' is a Running Gag, with several characters teasing him about it, even his Love Interest Mia.
• Promotion to Opening Titles: Midway through Season 8; the only character to be promoted during a season.
• Raven Hair, Ivory Skin: Chase has very dark hair and pale skin.
• Recurring Character: From Season 4 until Season 8 when he becomes one of the main character.
• Running Gag:
  • Chase immediately correcting people whenever they get his job title wrong.
  • Cannot mix a drink to save his life, and Lord help you if you try one of his homemade cocktails.
  • Him constantly insisting he's a Bar Manager.
• Speed Sex: His first time with Brooke lasted 45 seconds, which he would be teased about by Mia much later.
• What Does She See in Him?: Noted InUniverse by Julian & Haley, that whilst they genuinely like Chase, they cannot understand why a famous actress & rockstar are literally fighting over a bartender.

Christopher "Chris" Keller

Christopher "Chris" Keller

Portrayed by: Tyler Hilton

Christopher "Chris" Keller is a talented musician, he was the first to take notice of Haley James Scott's musical talent and helped her at the start of her career. Due to his arrogance and his knack for interfering in the personal lives of the main characters, he was not well-liked by many of his peers, particularly Nathan Scott, Lucas Scott, and Brooke Davis. He first caused interference in Nathan and Haley's marriage and later, Brooke and Lucas's relationship when he slept with Brooke. He later left Tree Hill to go on tour, running into the group when he passed through Honey Grove, Texas. Eventually, he returned to Tree Hill to help Haley with Red Bedroom Records and assisted Dan Scott and Julian Baker in their mission to rescue Nathan.

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• Action Survivor: In the last season, when he manages to kill one of Nathan's kidnappers.
• All Love Is Unrequited: For Haley. He developed feelings for her in season two, but Haley was married to Nathan and in love with him.
• The Bus Came Back: For just one episode in season 4 and afterwards he's hardly mentioned again... until season 9, the ''last season'',where he comes back again, this time as a regular character.
• The Casanova: He manages to be both this and a Casanova Wannabe at the same time.
• Commonality Connection: Tries to use their mutual love of music to get closer to Haley.
• Cool Shades: Chris can often be seen sporting fashionable sunglasses.
• The Friend Nobody Likes: Though he doesn't seem to have a problem with it. The rest of the group eventually comes to accept him as part of the gang.
• Full-Name Basis: Very often, both in-universe (by himself and other characters) and in fanon.
• Odd Friendship: Forms one with Chase in Season 9. They remain BestFriends even after Chase slept with his girlfriend.
• Hypocrite: When Chris first appears, he chastises Peyton over listening to bands like The Get-Up Kids and spouts the virtues of true punk rock and accuses the emo scene of selling out those virtues; by Season 4, he's made his name as a country singer singing cheesy ballads; then fast forward to Season 9, where it's revealed that Chris Keller's most recent hit was a jingle for breakfast pastries.
• I Call It "Vera": He calls his guitar "Haley James". Nathan isn't happy when he hears it.
• Iconic Sequel Character: Doesn't appear in the series until Season 2.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: On his better days. Yes, he's an egotistical jerk but it's mostly Played for Laughs and he's never been really malicious about it.
• Plucky Comic Relief: In seasons 3 and 9, much humor and funny moments come from Chris's antics.
• Promotion to Opening Titles: In Season 9.
• Recurring Character: In seasons 2, 3 & 4. He returned as a regular in season 9.
• Small Name, Big Ego: Although he's actually a talented musician.
• Third-Person Person: Hilariously so, he refers to himself as Chris Keller, and it's made fun of by pretty much everyone.
• Vitriolic Best Buds: With Haley, Nathan, Brooke... most of them, really.

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