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* CharacterDevelopment: The subtlest in the third film. He begins as a ruthless, insensitive, indifferent outlaw, who would betray his ally mercilessly and without any remorse whatsoever. Yet, as the story progresses (and he nearly gets to see the GrimReaper twice because of Tuco's deadly thirst for revenge), he actually starts to adopt an observable respect for other people's lives. This unloads firstly by unofficially forgiving Tuco by offering him a cigar after the latter's fight with his brother. He later observes with pity the inhuman and terrible conditions under which soldiers on either side of the war are forced to fight, and is concluded with arguably the purest scene in the film, as Blondie, without hesitation, offers his coat and cigar to a dying confederate soldier. Blondie's character truly grew from the experiences he has acquired during his greedy quest for the gold.
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* CharacterDevelopment: The subtlest in the third film. He begins as a ruthless, insensitive, indifferent outlaw, who would betray his ally mercilessly and without any remorse whatsoever. Yet, as the story progresses (and he nearly gets to see the GrimReaper twice because of Tuco's deadly thirst for revenge), he actually starts to adopt an observable respect for other people's lives. This unloads firstly by unofficially forgiving Tuco by offering him a cigar after the latter's fight with his brother. He later observes with pity the inhuman and terrible conditions under which soldiers on either side of the war are forced to fight, and is concluded with arguably the purest scene in the film, as Blondie, without hesitation, offers his coat and cigar to a dying confederate soldier. And when all's said and done, he leaves Tuco alive, with his fair share of the gold, and rides off into the sunset, after a bluff/trick to make sure Tuco doesn't try to backstab him in return. Blondie's character truly grew from the experiences he has acquired during his greedy quest for the gold.
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* BlingBlingBang: A fairly subdued example compared to most examples of this trope. His revolver is fairly standard in appearance, save for the silver snake etched into the grip.
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** The films never delve into his backstory, leaving it unclear how or why he became bounty hunter and con man he is now. Even the prequel, set several years before the first film, doesn't explain his background and only seems to establish that he's been a bounty hunter for a long time. The closest he comes to referencing his past is stating how he knew someone like Marisol and that there was nobody to help them, which is what motivates him to save her and her family from Ramon.
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** The films never delve into his backstory, leaving it unclear how or why he became bounty hunter and con man he is now. Even the prequel, set several years before the first film, doesn't explain his background and only seems to establish that he's been a bounty hunter for a long time. The closest he comes to referencing his past is suggesting his home was an unhappy place, and stating how he knew someone like Marisol and that there was nobody to help them, which is what motivates him to save her and her family from Ramon.
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* BadassCape: His iconic poncho gives him this look.
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* BadassCape: His iconic poncho gives him this look. He's one of the best gunslingers in the first film alongside Ramon.
* BrokenAce: Anytime Tuco takes charge.
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* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: Him and Tuco have this dynamic, though near the end their relationship becomes more friendly despite this.
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* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: Him He and Tuco have this dynamic, though near the end their relationship becomes more friendly despite this.
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* UnscrupulousHero: He's a cold blooded killer motivated by wealth to be a bounty hunter, but when he takes a moral stance he sticks to the side of good.
* VillainProtagonist: He's essentially this in the prequel, not being a hero at all and only being concerned with his own survival and financial gain. It's only through subtle CharacterDevelopment that he becomes the UnscrupulousHero he's famous for being.
* VillainProtagonist: He's essentially this in the prequel, not being a hero at all and only being concerned with his own survival and financial gain. It's only through subtle CharacterDevelopment that he becomes the UnscrupulousHero he's famous for being.
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!!!'''Appearances:''' ''Film/AFistfulOfDollars'' | ''Film/ForAFewDollarsMore'' | ''Film/TheGoodTheBadAndTheUgly'' | ''A Dollar to Die For'' | ''A Coffin Full of Dollars'' | ''The Devil's Dollar Sign'' | ''Blood For a Dirty Dollar'' | ''The Million-Dollar Bloodhunt'' | ''The Man with No Name''
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* NoNameGiven: He never reveals his real name. He's called "Joe" but the cooper, Piripero, then "Manco" by the sheriff, and finally "Blondie" by Tuco.
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* NoNameGiven: He never reveals his real name. He's called "Joe" but the cooper, Piripero, then "Manco" by the sheriff, and finally "Blondie" by Tuco. In the ''Dollars'' book series, he is also known as "The Hunter", "The Bounty Killer", "Mister Sudden Death", "Nameless", "No Name", and "Señor Ninguno" or its literal translation "Mr. None".
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* MysteriousPast:
** The films never delve into his backstory, leaving it unclear how or why he became bounty hunter and con man he is now. Even the prequel, set several years before the first film, doesn't explain his background and only seems to establish that he's been a bounty hunter for a long time. The closest he comes to referencing his past is stating how he knew someone like Marisol and that there was nobody to help them, which is what motivates him to save her and her family from Ramon.
** The book series reveals more information, though it doesn't explain everything. The Man with No Name was apparently once a ranch hand who was continually persecuted by an older hand named Carvell. The trouble eventually led to a shootout between the two with Carvell being outdrawn and killed; however, an examination of Carvell's body revealed a scar which identified him as Monk Carver, a wanted man with a $1,000 bounty. After comparing the received bounty with his $10-a-month ranch pay, the young cowhand chose to change his life and become a bounty hunter.
** The films never delve into his backstory, leaving it unclear how or why he became bounty hunter and con man he is now. Even the prequel, set several years before the first film, doesn't explain his background and only seems to establish that he's been a bounty hunter for a long time. The closest he comes to referencing his past is stating how he knew someone like Marisol and that there was nobody to help them, which is what motivates him to save her and her family from Ramon.
** The book series reveals more information, though it doesn't explain everything. The Man with No Name was apparently once a ranch hand who was continually persecuted by an older hand named Carvell. The trouble eventually led to a shootout between the two with Carvell being outdrawn and killed; however, an examination of Carvell's body revealed a scar which identified him as Monk Carver, a wanted man with a $1,000 bounty. After comparing the received bounty with his $10-a-month ranch pay, the young cowhand chose to change his life and become a bounty hunter.
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!Main Character
[[folder:Man with No Name]]
!!Joe / Manco / Blondie
[[quoteright:235:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_good.jpg]]
!!!'''Portrayed by:''' Creator/ClintEastwood
!!!'''Voiced by:''' Enrico Maria Salerno (Italian), Clint Eastwood (English), Andre Sogliuzzo (English, extended edition, some lines), Jacques Deschamps (first French dub), Thibault de Montalembert (second French dub)
A wandering bounty hunter motivated by financial gain, with a mysterious past that no one knows of.
----
* TheAce: He's a hardened and deadly killer with impressive sharp shooting skills who's also fiercely intelligent, being able to manipulate people to get his way.
* AdaptationNameChange: He's called "Whitey" in Joe Millard's novelization of the third film.
* AffablyEvil: "Evil" is a stretch, as he isn't a malevolent person, but while he acts soft-spoken and rather polite in the third film, he is actually as much of a scoundrel as Tuco or Angel Eyes when the situation requires it. However, he still retains a few more moral values than the other two and most of the time does what's right, as long as it doesn't interfere with going after the gold.
* AntiHero: He's a ruthless bounty hunter who unabashedly seeks money, but he does have a code of honor shown throughout the trilogy. He has a soft spot for innocent victims, only hunts remorseless criminals and when it comes down to it there are some morals such as mercy and compassion he still holds onto.
* BadassCape: His iconic poncho gives him this look.
* BadassLongcoat: Wears three different longcoats in the prequel (one of which is in the form of a Confederate Army greatcoat) for most of the film until he gives his coat to a dying soldier. Rather than disturb the corpse, he picks up a nice-looking patterned serape lying nearby, which had become part of his now iconic look.
* BeautyEqualsGoodness: The most (conventionally) handsome man just happens to be "The Good" in the third film. Granted, the other two were morally worse than him, but Blondie's not exactly a NiceGuy.
* BewareTheQuietOnes: He is capable of being as violent as Tuco, and he's even more ruthless if the situation requires it, but he's much less flamboyant. He barely ever talks above a whisper, and he frequently confronts life-threatening situations without uttering a single word. Even when he's crawling through the desert, half-dead from sunburns and dehydration, he never once begs Tuco for his life.
* BigDamnHeroes: In the climax of the second film, arriving just in time to save Colonel Mortimer from El Indio's rigged duel, forcing him to partake in a fair one where he is hopelessly outskilled and gunned down by the Colonel.
* BondOneLiner: At the end, after he [[spoiler:finishes off Groggy]], he reassures Colonel Mortimer, who had stopped briefly to make sure everything was all right, "[[ItMakesSenseInContext I thought I was having trouble with my adding.]]"
* BorrowedCatchphrase: To Tuco's "two kinds of people" line.
* BountyHunter: He's established in the second film to be this and apparently focus on the worst kinds of criminals, though the third film reveals that he has a tendency to claim bounties and free said criminals, raising the bounty and turning them in at another town to make more money.
* CantHoldHisLiquor: Averted, he pretends to be this at the Rojo party so he can [[spoiler: get out unwatched by the Rojos and help Marisol and her family escape]].
* CelibateHero: The Man with No Name never has a love interest or expresses any interest in women. This is expanded in the novelisation of the first film, where he pauses on his way out after passing information to Mr. and Mrs. Baxter when he hears the couple knocking boots through the wall. He becomes "angry at the stirring he felt in his own loins" before reminding himself that, "A man with a woman on his mind was never fully in command of any situation."
* CharacterDevelopment: The subtlest in the third film. He begins as a ruthless, insensitive, indifferent outlaw, who would betray his ally mercilessly and without any remorse whatsoever. Yet, as the story progresses (and he nearly gets to see the GrimReaper twice because of Tuco's deadly thirst for revenge), he actually starts to adopt an observable respect for other people's lives. This unloads firstly by unofficially forgiving Tuco by offering him a cigar after the latter's fight with his brother. He later observes with pity the inhuman and terrible conditions under which soldiers on either side of the war are forced to fight, and is concluded with arguably the purest scene in the film, as Blondie, without hesitation, offers his coat and cigar to a dying confederate soldier. Blondie's character truly grew from the experiences he has acquired during his greedy quest for the gold.
* TheChessmaster: He's incredibly crafty and able to manipulate others to get an outcome that benefits him, such as manipulating both gangs against each other in the first film.
* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: Him and Tuco have this dynamic, though near the end their relationship becomes more friendly despite this.
* CloseRangeCombatant: In contrast to Ramon's and Colonel Mortimer's preferred style of methodical shots at a distance, the Man with No Name prefers shooting close up, especially when fanning the hammer of his revolver to fire quickly.
* ClothesMakeTheLegend: We see him pick up his trademark poncho amongst other identifying traits throughout the third film.
* CoffinContraband: He uses this tactic to escape from San Miguel without the Rojos noticing--specifically, ''he'' is the contraband. He stops only to watch the Rojos utterly annihilate the Baxters in their search for him.
* CombatPragmatist: He never gets into a fair fight if he can help it, preferring ambush tactics, misdirection, sabotage or an ImprovisedWeapon.
* CompositeCharacter: While mostly based on Sanjuro, his skill with a revolver and his "fanning" technique are taken from Unosuke, who himself is combined with Tokuemon to create the character Ramon Rojo.
* ContractOnTheHitman: He leaves the Rojos because he overhears them plotting to kill him when the job is finished, to avoid paying him.
* DeadpanSnarker: Always has a witty one-liner for the occasion, especially when with Tuco.
--> '''Tuco:''' God's on our side because he hates the yanks too!
--> '''Blondie:''' God's not on our side because he hates idiots also.
* {{Determinator}} Manages to haul himself out of the Rojos' house alive after having suffered a beating from them.
* DecoyProtagonist: Clint Eastwood may have top billing in the second and third films, but make no mistake: it's Mortimer's quest for revenge in the second while Tuco is the one to get the most focus and characterisation, with the Man with No Name simply following their lead as they drive the plot forward.
* DeusExMachina: Saved from death by a hangman's noose at the hands of Tuco as the result of a sudden cannon ball that crashes through the wall.
** Later on he once again escapes death at the hands of Tuco when Bill Carson's runaway wagon shows up right when Tuco's about to shoot him in the desert.
* {{Deuteragonist}}: In the second film Mortimer is the protagonist while in the third it's Tuco, leaving the Man with No Name as the deuteragonist and Angel Eyes as the tritagonist.
* DressingAsTheEnemy: He and Tuco in the Union soldier camp.
* TheDrifter: ''The'' classic Western example. He wonders into the town for no apparent reason (in the original cut) and immediately sets himself to work on the issue of the gangs.
* EnemyMine: With Tuco.
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: Shooting down the guys that were about to catch Tuco, but then turning the latter in for the bounty, only for it to turn out to be an elaborate prank.
* EveryoneHasStandards: As cynical and morally flexible as he is, even he's appalled at the pointless carnage of the Civil War. He also takes issue with how Ramon treats Marisol and her family.
* FastestGunInTheWest: Is an expert of the QuickDraw and has a rather large kill count. In [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=D60si9Z0A68 this video]], he kills 16 people.
* TheFellowshipHasEnded: Enforced at the end of the third movie. [[spoiler:He leaves Tuco with his life and his share of the gold, just as they agreed... but not before going through an elaborate set of mind games to prevent Tuco from trying to kill him to get at Blondie's share too.]]
* FluffyTheTerrible: "Blondie" isn't exactly threatening. The Italian "Biondo" is a neutral word, like "blond one".
* FreudianTrio: The Ego in the prequel - Objective, calm, focused on the money but occasionally stops to PetTheDog.
* GenreSavvy: Blondie is spared the same ColdBloodedTorture that Tuco got because Angel Eyes knows he'd never talk. Blondie's smart enough to know that talking wouldn't save him.
* GoodCostumeSwitch: He's a violent UnscrupulousHero for most of the prequel, but after he cements his goodness by selflessly comforting a dying soldier rather than choosing to pursue the gold, he changes to the poncho from the first two movies in which he's more caring and heroic.
* GoodIsNotNice: He's a BountyHunter, OnlyInItForTheMoney and doesn't hesitate to kill. However, his enemies are criminals and murderers themselves. Also, [[IGaveMyWord when he gives his word, he keeps it]].
* GuileHero: He depends as much on his cunning as his phenomenal skill as a pistolero, spending most of the first half of the movie playing both gangs against each other expertly.
* TheGunslinger: A truly iconic example, being very good at the quickdraw and able to kill many opponents in just a few seconds.
* HairColorDissonance: His hair is sandy brown due to imperfect translation from an original Italian.
* HeroicAmbidexterity: An unusual example. In his EstablishingCharacterMoment, he deals cards and performs hand-to-hand combat with his left hand, but all his shooting is done with his right.
* IconicOutfit: His outfit is one of the most iconic Western looks, and in fact the third film is a subtle slow build up to him finally donning that outfit.
* IGaveMyWord: Though a mercenary through and through, he was genuinely going to honor his word of letting Mortimer have his fair share of the reward for slaying Indio's gang, and was almost saddened when the old man let him have all of it instead.
* ImprobableAimingSkills: His marksmanship is superhuman. He's a gunman portrayed by Creator/ClintEastwood, so this is a given.
* ImprovisedArmor: He uses a metal piece in his showdown with Ramon.
* InformedAttribute: For a big part of the prequel, it's not really clear what's so "good" about Blondie. He's more an UnscrupulousHero with a few PetTheDog moments. And he's not even that blonde, for that matter.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He's a mercenary with only one goal in mind, but he is a good person deep down with a code of honor.
* KnightErrant: He's uncharacteristically more earnest in his treatment of Marisol and her family.
* MacheteMayhem: Wields a machete at one point to wreck the house Marisol's kept in and kill one of the Rojos' men.
* MadeOfIron: He's brutally beaten up by the Rojo's in the first film and survives almost dying from heat stroke and thirst in the third.
* ManlyFacialHair: Sports the classic rough, rugged beard of an Old West anti-hero. Notably, it starts off as PermaStubble and [[TimePassageBeard then grows into a full beard as the film progresses]].
* TheManWithNoName: The TropeNamer, though he is technically given a name in all three films. However he never claims that any of these are his actual names, meaning these are all nicknames given to him by the people he meets.
* MessianicArchetype: It's not explicitly stated, but in the first film he is a mysterious man who arrives into town on a mule, is subjected to his own "flagellation" and appears to "resurrect" several times thanks to the breastplate he crafted for himself. And in the prequel he is referred to by Angel Eyes as "a golden haired guardian angel", quietly resigns to his own "crucifixion" by Tuco's blackmail, and appears as a comforting angel to both the Union captain and the dying Confederate soldier.
* NoNameGiven: He never reveals his real name. He's called "Joe" but the cooper, Piripero, then "Manco" by the sheriff, and finally "Blondie" by Tuco.
* ObfuscatingStupidity: Pretends to be drunk off his ass at the Rojos' party, only so he can be put to bed and out of the Rojos' mind, enabling him to sneak out and help Marisol and her family get away.
* OlderThanTheyLook: If he was 36 like Eastwood actually was in ''The Good, the Bad and the Ugly'', then in ''A Fistful of Dollars'' he's at least 45 to 47 years old, even though he looks 34.
* OneLastSmoke: Gives one to a dying soldier in the prequel.
* OnlyInItForTheMoney: Like [[Film/{{Yojimbo}} Sanjuro]], Joe sees the gang war as an opportunity for profit. Until he learns about Marisol's captivity...
* PayEvilUntoEvil: Anytime he and Tuco put the other one through hell, they always get each other back. [[spoiler:Blondie winds up getting the last laugh, however]].
* TheQuietOne: He only speaks when he needs to.
* PlayingBothSides: His plan for dealing with the Baxters and the Rojos.
* RedOniBlueOni: The Blue to Tuco's Red.
* RevolversAreJustBetter: Despite being just as handy with a rifle, he tells Ramon that he prefers these.
* SignatureHeadgear: A staple of an Eastwood gunslinger.
* SmokingIsCool: Clint Eastwood practically made this trope.
* StraightManAndWiseGuy: The straight man to Tuco's wise guy. Throughout their misadventures, he takes things every bit as seriously as he should, with the brutally honest snark to match.
* SociopathicHero: Has shades of this as while he has a code of honor, he never expresses any regret or reluctance about killing others. This is more obvious in the prequel before his CharacterDevelopment.
* StevenUlyssesPerhero: He is called "Manco" in the second film, which means "missing one hand" or "one handed".
* TheStoic: He's always level-headed, and doesn't talk much.
* StraightManAndWiseGuy: The straight man to Tuco's wise guy. Throughout their misadventures, he takes things every bit as seriously as he should, with the brutally honest snark to match.
* SupportingProtagonist: Clint Eastwood may have got top billing, but the second film is really Colonel Mortimer's story while the third is more about Tuco.
* ThereAreTwoKindsOfPeopleInTheWorld: Picks this up from Tuco who enjoys saying it, with his being an IronicEcho.
--> "You see, in this world, there are two kinds of people, my friend: those with loaded guns, and those who dig. You dig."
* TranquilFury: When he's angry it's expressed as a slow burn, reflecting his role as TheStoic.
* WhatASenselessWasteOfHumanLife: This is his response to seeing the Civil War and the amount of death it causes.
--> "I've never seen so many men wasted so badly."
* WhatYouAreInTheDark: At the end, he's very tempted to kill Tuco / leave him to die. Fortunately he decides to spare Tuco and let him keep his half of the gold.
* WithFriendsLikeThese: With Tuco.
[[/folder]]
!Characters by films
[[index]]
* ''Characters/AFistfulOfDollars''
* ''Characters/ForAFewDollarsMore''
* ''Characters/TheGoodTheBadAndTheUgly''
[[/index]]
----
[[folder:Man with No Name]]
!!Joe / Manco / Blondie
[[quoteright:235:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_good.jpg]]
!!!'''Portrayed by:''' Creator/ClintEastwood
!!!'''Voiced by:''' Enrico Maria Salerno (Italian), Clint Eastwood (English), Andre Sogliuzzo (English, extended edition, some lines), Jacques Deschamps (first French dub), Thibault de Montalembert (second French dub)
A wandering bounty hunter motivated by financial gain, with a mysterious past that no one knows of.
----
* TheAce: He's a hardened and deadly killer with impressive sharp shooting skills who's also fiercely intelligent, being able to manipulate people to get his way.
* AdaptationNameChange: He's called "Whitey" in Joe Millard's novelization of the third film.
* AffablyEvil: "Evil" is a stretch, as he isn't a malevolent person, but while he acts soft-spoken and rather polite in the third film, he is actually as much of a scoundrel as Tuco or Angel Eyes when the situation requires it. However, he still retains a few more moral values than the other two and most of the time does what's right, as long as it doesn't interfere with going after the gold.
* AntiHero: He's a ruthless bounty hunter who unabashedly seeks money, but he does have a code of honor shown throughout the trilogy. He has a soft spot for innocent victims, only hunts remorseless criminals and when it comes down to it there are some morals such as mercy and compassion he still holds onto.
* BadassCape: His iconic poncho gives him this look.
* BadassLongcoat: Wears three different longcoats in the prequel (one of which is in the form of a Confederate Army greatcoat) for most of the film until he gives his coat to a dying soldier. Rather than disturb the corpse, he picks up a nice-looking patterned serape lying nearby, which had become part of his now iconic look.
* BeautyEqualsGoodness: The most (conventionally) handsome man just happens to be "The Good" in the third film. Granted, the other two were morally worse than him, but Blondie's not exactly a NiceGuy.
* BewareTheQuietOnes: He is capable of being as violent as Tuco, and he's even more ruthless if the situation requires it, but he's much less flamboyant. He barely ever talks above a whisper, and he frequently confronts life-threatening situations without uttering a single word. Even when he's crawling through the desert, half-dead from sunburns and dehydration, he never once begs Tuco for his life.
* BigDamnHeroes: In the climax of the second film, arriving just in time to save Colonel Mortimer from El Indio's rigged duel, forcing him to partake in a fair one where he is hopelessly outskilled and gunned down by the Colonel.
* BondOneLiner: At the end, after he [[spoiler:finishes off Groggy]], he reassures Colonel Mortimer, who had stopped briefly to make sure everything was all right, "[[ItMakesSenseInContext I thought I was having trouble with my adding.]]"
* BorrowedCatchphrase: To Tuco's "two kinds of people" line.
* BountyHunter: He's established in the second film to be this and apparently focus on the worst kinds of criminals, though the third film reveals that he has a tendency to claim bounties and free said criminals, raising the bounty and turning them in at another town to make more money.
* CantHoldHisLiquor: Averted, he pretends to be this at the Rojo party so he can [[spoiler: get out unwatched by the Rojos and help Marisol and her family escape]].
* CelibateHero: The Man with No Name never has a love interest or expresses any interest in women. This is expanded in the novelisation of the first film, where he pauses on his way out after passing information to Mr. and Mrs. Baxter when he hears the couple knocking boots through the wall. He becomes "angry at the stirring he felt in his own loins" before reminding himself that, "A man with a woman on his mind was never fully in command of any situation."
* CharacterDevelopment: The subtlest in the third film. He begins as a ruthless, insensitive, indifferent outlaw, who would betray his ally mercilessly and without any remorse whatsoever. Yet, as the story progresses (and he nearly gets to see the GrimReaper twice because of Tuco's deadly thirst for revenge), he actually starts to adopt an observable respect for other people's lives. This unloads firstly by unofficially forgiving Tuco by offering him a cigar after the latter's fight with his brother. He later observes with pity the inhuman and terrible conditions under which soldiers on either side of the war are forced to fight, and is concluded with arguably the purest scene in the film, as Blondie, without hesitation, offers his coat and cigar to a dying confederate soldier. Blondie's character truly grew from the experiences he has acquired during his greedy quest for the gold.
* TheChessmaster: He's incredibly crafty and able to manipulate others to get an outcome that benefits him, such as manipulating both gangs against each other in the first film.
* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: Him and Tuco have this dynamic, though near the end their relationship becomes more friendly despite this.
* CloseRangeCombatant: In contrast to Ramon's and Colonel Mortimer's preferred style of methodical shots at a distance, the Man with No Name prefers shooting close up, especially when fanning the hammer of his revolver to fire quickly.
* ClothesMakeTheLegend: We see him pick up his trademark poncho amongst other identifying traits throughout the third film.
* CoffinContraband: He uses this tactic to escape from San Miguel without the Rojos noticing--specifically, ''he'' is the contraband. He stops only to watch the Rojos utterly annihilate the Baxters in their search for him.
* CombatPragmatist: He never gets into a fair fight if he can help it, preferring ambush tactics, misdirection, sabotage or an ImprovisedWeapon.
* CompositeCharacter: While mostly based on Sanjuro, his skill with a revolver and his "fanning" technique are taken from Unosuke, who himself is combined with Tokuemon to create the character Ramon Rojo.
* ContractOnTheHitman: He leaves the Rojos because he overhears them plotting to kill him when the job is finished, to avoid paying him.
* DeadpanSnarker: Always has a witty one-liner for the occasion, especially when with Tuco.
--> '''Tuco:''' God's on our side because he hates the yanks too!
--> '''Blondie:''' God's not on our side because he hates idiots also.
* {{Determinator}} Manages to haul himself out of the Rojos' house alive after having suffered a beating from them.
* DecoyProtagonist: Clint Eastwood may have top billing in the second and third films, but make no mistake: it's Mortimer's quest for revenge in the second while Tuco is the one to get the most focus and characterisation, with the Man with No Name simply following their lead as they drive the plot forward.
* DeusExMachina: Saved from death by a hangman's noose at the hands of Tuco as the result of a sudden cannon ball that crashes through the wall.
** Later on he once again escapes death at the hands of Tuco when Bill Carson's runaway wagon shows up right when Tuco's about to shoot him in the desert.
* {{Deuteragonist}}: In the second film Mortimer is the protagonist while in the third it's Tuco, leaving the Man with No Name as the deuteragonist and Angel Eyes as the tritagonist.
* DressingAsTheEnemy: He and Tuco in the Union soldier camp.
* TheDrifter: ''The'' classic Western example. He wonders into the town for no apparent reason (in the original cut) and immediately sets himself to work on the issue of the gangs.
* EnemyMine: With Tuco.
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: Shooting down the guys that were about to catch Tuco, but then turning the latter in for the bounty, only for it to turn out to be an elaborate prank.
* EveryoneHasStandards: As cynical and morally flexible as he is, even he's appalled at the pointless carnage of the Civil War. He also takes issue with how Ramon treats Marisol and her family.
* FastestGunInTheWest: Is an expert of the QuickDraw and has a rather large kill count. In [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=D60si9Z0A68 this video]], he kills 16 people.
* TheFellowshipHasEnded: Enforced at the end of the third movie. [[spoiler:He leaves Tuco with his life and his share of the gold, just as they agreed... but not before going through an elaborate set of mind games to prevent Tuco from trying to kill him to get at Blondie's share too.]]
* FluffyTheTerrible: "Blondie" isn't exactly threatening. The Italian "Biondo" is a neutral word, like "blond one".
* FreudianTrio: The Ego in the prequel - Objective, calm, focused on the money but occasionally stops to PetTheDog.
* GenreSavvy: Blondie is spared the same ColdBloodedTorture that Tuco got because Angel Eyes knows he'd never talk. Blondie's smart enough to know that talking wouldn't save him.
* GoodCostumeSwitch: He's a violent UnscrupulousHero for most of the prequel, but after he cements his goodness by selflessly comforting a dying soldier rather than choosing to pursue the gold, he changes to the poncho from the first two movies in which he's more caring and heroic.
* GoodIsNotNice: He's a BountyHunter, OnlyInItForTheMoney and doesn't hesitate to kill. However, his enemies are criminals and murderers themselves. Also, [[IGaveMyWord when he gives his word, he keeps it]].
* GuileHero: He depends as much on his cunning as his phenomenal skill as a pistolero, spending most of the first half of the movie playing both gangs against each other expertly.
* TheGunslinger: A truly iconic example, being very good at the quickdraw and able to kill many opponents in just a few seconds.
* HairColorDissonance: His hair is sandy brown due to imperfect translation from an original Italian.
* HeroicAmbidexterity: An unusual example. In his EstablishingCharacterMoment, he deals cards and performs hand-to-hand combat with his left hand, but all his shooting is done with his right.
* IconicOutfit: His outfit is one of the most iconic Western looks, and in fact the third film is a subtle slow build up to him finally donning that outfit.
* IGaveMyWord: Though a mercenary through and through, he was genuinely going to honor his word of letting Mortimer have his fair share of the reward for slaying Indio's gang, and was almost saddened when the old man let him have all of it instead.
* ImprobableAimingSkills: His marksmanship is superhuman. He's a gunman portrayed by Creator/ClintEastwood, so this is a given.
* ImprovisedArmor: He uses a metal piece in his showdown with Ramon.
* InformedAttribute: For a big part of the prequel, it's not really clear what's so "good" about Blondie. He's more an UnscrupulousHero with a few PetTheDog moments. And he's not even that blonde, for that matter.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He's a mercenary with only one goal in mind, but he is a good person deep down with a code of honor.
* KnightErrant: He's uncharacteristically more earnest in his treatment of Marisol and her family.
* MacheteMayhem: Wields a machete at one point to wreck the house Marisol's kept in and kill one of the Rojos' men.
* MadeOfIron: He's brutally beaten up by the Rojo's in the first film and survives almost dying from heat stroke and thirst in the third.
* ManlyFacialHair: Sports the classic rough, rugged beard of an Old West anti-hero. Notably, it starts off as PermaStubble and [[TimePassageBeard then grows into a full beard as the film progresses]].
* TheManWithNoName: The TropeNamer, though he is technically given a name in all three films. However he never claims that any of these are his actual names, meaning these are all nicknames given to him by the people he meets.
* MessianicArchetype: It's not explicitly stated, but in the first film he is a mysterious man who arrives into town on a mule, is subjected to his own "flagellation" and appears to "resurrect" several times thanks to the breastplate he crafted for himself. And in the prequel he is referred to by Angel Eyes as "a golden haired guardian angel", quietly resigns to his own "crucifixion" by Tuco's blackmail, and appears as a comforting angel to both the Union captain and the dying Confederate soldier.
* NoNameGiven: He never reveals his real name. He's called "Joe" but the cooper, Piripero, then "Manco" by the sheriff, and finally "Blondie" by Tuco.
* ObfuscatingStupidity: Pretends to be drunk off his ass at the Rojos' party, only so he can be put to bed and out of the Rojos' mind, enabling him to sneak out and help Marisol and her family get away.
* OlderThanTheyLook: If he was 36 like Eastwood actually was in ''The Good, the Bad and the Ugly'', then in ''A Fistful of Dollars'' he's at least 45 to 47 years old, even though he looks 34.
* OneLastSmoke: Gives one to a dying soldier in the prequel.
* OnlyInItForTheMoney: Like [[Film/{{Yojimbo}} Sanjuro]], Joe sees the gang war as an opportunity for profit. Until he learns about Marisol's captivity...
* PayEvilUntoEvil: Anytime he and Tuco put the other one through hell, they always get each other back. [[spoiler:Blondie winds up getting the last laugh, however]].
* TheQuietOne: He only speaks when he needs to.
* PlayingBothSides: His plan for dealing with the Baxters and the Rojos.
* RedOniBlueOni: The Blue to Tuco's Red.
* RevolversAreJustBetter: Despite being just as handy with a rifle, he tells Ramon that he prefers these.
* SignatureHeadgear: A staple of an Eastwood gunslinger.
* SmokingIsCool: Clint Eastwood practically made this trope.
* StraightManAndWiseGuy: The straight man to Tuco's wise guy. Throughout their misadventures, he takes things every bit as seriously as he should, with the brutally honest snark to match.
* SociopathicHero: Has shades of this as while he has a code of honor, he never expresses any regret or reluctance about killing others. This is more obvious in the prequel before his CharacterDevelopment.
* StevenUlyssesPerhero: He is called "Manco" in the second film, which means "missing one hand" or "one handed".
* TheStoic: He's always level-headed, and doesn't talk much.
* StraightManAndWiseGuy: The straight man to Tuco's wise guy. Throughout their misadventures, he takes things every bit as seriously as he should, with the brutally honest snark to match.
* SupportingProtagonist: Clint Eastwood may have got top billing, but the second film is really Colonel Mortimer's story while the third is more about Tuco.
* ThereAreTwoKindsOfPeopleInTheWorld: Picks this up from Tuco who enjoys saying it, with his being an IronicEcho.
--> "You see, in this world, there are two kinds of people, my friend: those with loaded guns, and those who dig. You dig."
* TranquilFury: When he's angry it's expressed as a slow burn, reflecting his role as TheStoic.
* WhatASenselessWasteOfHumanLife: This is his response to seeing the Civil War and the amount of death it causes.
--> "I've never seen so many men wasted so badly."
* WhatYouAreInTheDark: At the end, he's very tempted to kill Tuco / leave him to die. Fortunately he decides to spare Tuco and let him keep his half of the gold.
* WithFriendsLikeThese: With Tuco.
[[/folder]]
!Characters by films
[[index]]
* ''Characters/AFistfulOfDollars''
* ''Characters/ForAFewDollarsMore''
* ''Characters/TheGoodTheBadAndTheUgly''
[[/index]]
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