History Characters / GravityFallsGrunkleStan

* MirrorCharacter: [[invoked]] To Bill Cipher. Both are theatrical conmen with tons of charisma and guided by a ''ruthless'' personal objectivity, to the point where in the Weirdmageddon version of the show's intro, Stan is replaced by Bill predominantly. [[spoiler: It's this very shared trait that spells the end for Bill.]] Notably, WordOfGod has even noted that [[FreudianExcuse part of the reason]] why Bill is such a sociopath is because he had an even ''worse'' relationship with his parents than Stan did.

* IdiotBall: Handles this quite a bit in "The Stanchurian Candidate"; you'd think that a con artist would be able to use his silvery forked tongue to con his way into public office, but oh, no! Instead, he [[OpenMouthInsertFoot can't even open his mouth without revealing his amoral nature and telling it like it is]].

** Played with in that it's revealed that a lot of the money he makes goes toward [[spoiler:repairing the portal in order to save Stanford. And he spent about ten years in continuous poverty.]] Then again, Stan [[spoiler:is still a complete money-grubber even after Ford comes back, so he may have [[BecomingTheMask become the mask]] at some point.]]

!"Grunkle" Stan[[spoiler:ley]] "Stan" Pines

!"Grunkle" Stan Pines

-->'''Stan:''' There she is, the cheapest fair money can rent! I spared every expense. (cable car falls from the sky next to the twins)

* AmbiguouslyEvil: It does not help that one of the cryptograms in the show's ''opening'' reads "[[spoiler:STAN IS NOT WHAT HE SEEMS.]]" It only gets even more ambiguous in "Gideon Rises", where [[spoiler:his underground lab, equipped with a large portal generator,]] is finally shown. "Scary-oke" implies he's using it to search for something, and feels confident that he won't "get caught", implying questionable safety/legality at best (which is standard for Stan) or outright villainy at worst. "Society of the Blind Eye" leans towards the former in a WellIntentionedExtremist kind of way, as both a symbol substitution cipher in the Journals and [=McGucket's=] video logs reveal [[spoiler:the Author of the Journals believed that the portal could benefit all of mankind]], while Stan acknowledges that [[spoiler:[[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the risks of activating the portal]]]] mean little to him in light of the possible rewards for doing so--specifically, [[spoiler:seeing his brother again.]] Taken UpToEleven in (the admittedly non-canon) "Little Gift Shop of Horrors" -- he apparently [[spoiler:drugs a customer and put him on display in the shack because he didn't buy anything]].

** Season 2 takes it UpToEleven in a darker way. [[spoiler: It turns out he's been ObfuscatingStupidity for decades, as well as lying to Dipper and Mabel so his experiments will go undetected.]]

* AffablyEvil: He's a greedy con artist with some dark secrets, but is nevertheless a caring guardian towards Dipper and Mabel and friendly towards many of the townsfolk.

* {{Gaslighting}}: [[spoiler: Season 2 reveals that he's been aware of the supernatural events in Gravity Falls, and has been lying to Dipper about it to keep him and Mabel safe. It's further revealed that he'd been doing it to cover up his experiments in the basement.]]

* SignatureHeadgear: He's never seen without his fez, except in "Little Dipper" and when he goes on vacation in "Boss Mabel".
** In the end, [[spoiler: he gives the hat to Soos]] and replaces it with a different hat.

* NiceHat: He's never seen without his fez, except in "Little Dipper" and when he goes on vacation in "Boss Mabel".
** In the end, [[spoiler: he gives the hat to Soos]] and replaces it with a different hat.

* BigBrotherInstinct: Although the younger twin, he's shown to care a great deal about his twin just like Dipper for Mabel. [[spoiler:The last half of season 2 reveals that he invested a ''lot'' of time into bringing Ford back from another dimension.]]

-->'''Stan:''' You're a real wise guy, but you made one fatal mistake. [[PapaWolf You messed with]] [[ItsPersonal my family.]]

* SolidColorFacialStubble: Grunkle Stan has practically half his face covered in a solid colored grey color to indicate stubble.

-->'''Stan:''' You're a real wise guy, but you made one fatal mistake. [[PapaWolf You messed with my family.]]

* ToughLove: A [[DeconstructedTrope Deconstruction]]. Stan's father, Filbrick Pines, was an [[ParentalAbuse emotionally abusive]] {{Jerkass}}. Stan, however, seems to have read his actions as tough love even if it most definitely wasn't, and decided that following dad's example was the best way to toughen up Dipper. [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome It made their relationship crash so badly Dipper became convinced Stan hated him and wanted him gone]]. Even with knowing Stan does care, there are still signs Dipper's keeping a lot of bad feelings about this bottled up.

** In Stan's flashback in "A Tale of Two Stans", [[spoiler:after he accidentally broke his brother Ford's science project, Stan was kick out of the house by his father and Ford would not even speak to him. This led to Stan spending years with no one to talk to. When Stan managed to meet his brother again, it led to a huge fight that led to the latter getting sucked to another dimension. This caused Stan to feel that he might be left all alone again]].

** In Stan's flashback in "A Tale of Two Stans", [[spoiler:after he accidentally broke his brother Ford's science project, Stan was kick out of the house by his father and Ford would not even speak to him. This led to Stan spending years with no one to talk to. When Stan managed to meet his brother again, it led to a huge fight that led to the latter to get sucked to another dimension. This caused Stan to feel that he might be left all alone again]].

->'''Voiced by''': Creator/AlexHirsch, Stuart Allan/Declan J. Krogman (young)\\\

* AbusiveParents: About the worst thing you can say is that he occasionally overworks and frequently mocks Dipper (partly because he feels the need to toughen him up and make him capable of fighting his own battles, but mostly because child labor has low overhead). But he still shows them a lot of affection, even if he is cheap. However, come "A Tale of Two Stans", and in hindsight there's something deeply unsettling about Stanley basing his treatment of Dipper off how his father treated him (most likely down to him misinterpreting Filbrick's abuse as simply trying to toughen him up).

-->'''Grunkle Stan''': But enough about me. Behold, me!

--> [[spoiler:"Good thing you got your smarts, Poindexter. I got the other thing. What's it called? Oh, right. Punching!"]]

-->'''Stan''': Just bonk him over the head. It's nature's snooze button!

-->'''Stan''': You think you've got problems? I've got a mullet, [[spoiler: Stanford!]]

-->'''Mabel''': The county jail was ''so cold.''

-->'''Stan''': There she is, the cheapest fair money can rent! I spared every expense. (cable car falls from the sky next to the twins)

-->'''Stan''': (calling after her) Bodies change, honey! Bodies change...

-->'''Stan''': After all these years... [[spoiler: Finally, we have them all.]]

--->'''Stan''': "Yes, yes... ''Burn the child''..."

** [[spoiler:Stan himself was also disinherited by his [[AbusiveParents own father]] because he accidentally ruined Ford's chance to get into his dream college]].

--->'''Stan''': "You're dead to me. DEAD TO ME!"

* IndyPloy: Stan is almost preternaturally good at this. He survived for years with nothing but his wits and a baseball bat, has apparently escaped by the skin of his teeth ([[LiteralMetaphor perhaps literally,]] [[NoodleIncident given that he somehow chewed his way out of a car trunk]]) multiple times, and managed to turn his brother's house into a passable tourist trap and thriving business by making it up as he went along.

-->'''Stan''': That picture's taken out of context.

-->'''Man''': These wax statues come at a ''terrible price!''\\
'''Stan''': $20? I'll steal them while you're distracted.\\
'''Man''': What?\\
'''Stan''': I said I'm going to rob you.

-->'''Stan''' ''(drops a barrel [[spoiler:of radioactive waste]] on his foot) Gah!'' HOT BELGIAN WAFFLES! ''(beat)'' Wait... I'm alone! I can swear ''for real! (takes deep breath)'' SON OF A-- ([[MoodWhiplash Dipper pauses the tape]] [[CurseCutShort while Mabel]] [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments covers her ears]]) [[invoked]]

* ParentalSubstitute: [[spoiler:After Soos realized that [[DisappearedDad his father]] [[ParentalAbandonment ran away from his family]], Soos began working for Stan so that he can have a new father figure in his life.]]

--> '''Stan''': You're a real wise guy, but you made one fatal mistake. [[PapaWolf You messed with my family.]]

-->'''Grunkle Stan''': '''''GIDEON!''''' '''GET OUT OF MY''' '''''CHAIR, KID!!'''''

-->'''Bud''': It's imported! All the way from Colombia!\\
'''Stan''': Wow... I went to jail there once. ''[whistles]'' Some digs you got here. ''[sees the clown painting]'' Oh, this... this is beautiful.

--> '''Stan''': I wanted to say that you're gonna hear some bad things about me, and some of them are true, but trust me. Everything I've worked for, everything I care about, it's all for this family!

-->'''Stan''': '''PIONEER DAY!!!!'''

* SurroundedByIdiots: Especially when it comes to [[{{Cloudcuckoolander}} Soos]] and [[TheSlacker Wendy]].
--> I'd fire all of you if I could.

-->'''Gideon''': I have them in my possession! You don't believe me? I will text you a photo!\\
'''Stan''': "Text me a photo?" Now you're not even speakin' English!\\
'''Gideon''': But-\\
'''Stan''': (hangs up)

--> '''Stan Pines''': (tearfully) [[BlatantLies You kids were nothing but a nuisance and I'm glad to be ridda ya.]]

-->'''Dipper''': And I should trust you ''why?!'' After you [[spoiler:stole radioactive waste?]] After you [[spoiler:lied to us all summer?! I don't even know who you are!]]

-->'''Stan''': Soos, broom.\\
'''Gideon''': Oh no, not the broom!
** He's also stated a desire to physically harm [[TheRival Pacifica]] [[AlphaBitch Northwest]] in "The Golf War".

* YoungerThanTheyLook: Mild example. He's possibly 58 or, at most, in his early sixties. Darlene mistakes him for over seventy. It's only that noticeable as he has an [[spoiler: identical twin brother]] who is in significantly better shape[[note]] though it is possible that time moves differently beyond the portal and that Stanford is actually younger[[/note]], while Stan wound up with a lot more grey hair and health issues due to a life of stress, [[spoiler: on-and-off poverty,]] and the resulting bad habits. On top of that, he has FatSlob tendencies and has a tendency to be extremely lazy around the Shack.

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[[folder:G-M]]

[[folder:N-R]]

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[[folder:S-Y]]

* DidYouJustScamCthulhu: [[spoiler: Nobody out-cons Stanley Pines. Not even Bill Cipher.]]

* VanityLicensePlate: If you look closely, the plate on Grunkle Stan's car says "STNLY MBL." Which is odd, since according to Gideon, his full name is 'Stanford'. [[spoiler: His real name is actually Stanley, but he faked his death and took up his brother's name Stanford while he went missing in the portal]].

[[Characters/GravityFallsMysteryShack The Mystery Shack]] ([[Characters/GravityFallsDipperPines Dipper Pines]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsMabelPines Mabel Pines]] | Grunkle Stan) | [[Characters/GravityFallsTheAuthor The Author]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsMainAntagonists Main Antagonists]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsBillCipher Bill Cipher]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsAdults Adults of Gravity Falls]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsYouth Youth of Gravity Falls]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsCreaturesAndOtherOddities Creatures and other Oddities]]-]]]

* MirrorCharacter: Bill. Both are theatrical conmen with tons of charisma and guided by a ''ruthless'' personal objectivity, to the point where in the Weirdmageddon version of the show's intro, Stan is replaced by Bill predominantly. [[spoiler: It's this very shared trait that spells the end for Bill.]]

* MysteriousPast: He claims to be from the east coast originally, and that Gravity Falls is the only town where the police don't know where he is. "Not What He Seems" shows that he's accrued a number of false [=IDs=] over the years. It's revealed later on that he's from New Jersey, in "the lead paint district." [[spoiler: That said, there's still things we don't know, like how he was jailed in three countries and escaped, what he did when he "went around the world", and why he escaped a car trunk by chewing his way out.]]

* NeverMyFault: Shows shades of this in ''Land Before Swine'' when he claims "It's not my fault your pig's potentially delicious!". [[spoiler: That said, it's still an improvement over how he used to be, with him unable to accept that he accidentally ruined his brother's chances of going to a good college, and that he was a LazyBum.]] He's [[CharacterDevelopment grown out of this as the show's progressed]], being fully willing to acknowledge that he's screwed up. As proof of this, [[spoiler: he currently blames no one but himself for his own misfortunes in ''A Tale of Two Stans''. In the present, anyway. However, in the finale, he did accuse Ford of causing TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt. Yes, Ford ''did'' build the portal, but it was a huge mistake and was a potential for disaster, while Stan constantly disregarded ''every single written instruction'' by Ford ''not'' to use the portal for any reason whatsoever, even if it was to save him, and Stan's one use of the portal led to a rift that Bill was able to open. That said, during Bill's NearVillainVictory, Stan accuses himself of being a screw-up and makes things right with a HeroicSacrifice on his part]].
* NerdGlasses: Although Stan didn't start wearing glasses until he was elderly, Alex Hirsch [[https://twitter.com/_AlexHirsch/status/651585206982348800 confirmed that he has always needed them]], [[JustifiedTrope but refused to wear them]] [[JustifiedTrope because he thought they made him look lame]].

* NotInFrontOfTheKid: As revealed in a security tape from "Not What He Seems", his frequent use of "GoshDarnItToHeck" actually stems from him making an effort to watch his language when Dipper and Mabel are around. He's quite gleeful when he gets a chance to ''actually'' cuss when he's alone.

The Mystery Shack ([[Characters/GravityFallsDipperPines Dipper Pines]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsMabelPines Mabel Pines]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsGrunkleStan Grunkle Stan]]) | [[Characters/GravityFallsTheAuthor The Author]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsMainAntagonists Main Antagonists]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsBillCipher Bill Cipher]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsAdults Adults of Gravity Falls]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsYouth Youth of Gravity Falls]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsCreaturesAndOtherOddities Creatures and other Oddities]]-]]]

!![[center:[[Characters/GravityFalls Index]]: [[Characters/GravityFallsMysteryShack The Mystery Shack]] ([[Characters/GravityFallsDipperPines Dipper Pines]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsMabelPines Mabel Pines]] | Grunkle Stan) | [[Characters/GravityFallsTheAuthor The Author]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsMainAntagonists Main Antagonists]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsBillCipher Bill Cipher]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsAdults Adults of Gravity Falls]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsYouth Youth of Gravity Falls]] | [[Characters/GravityFallsCreaturesAndOtherOddities Creatures and other Oddities]]]]

* IWasQuiteALooker: So much so that tumblr fans are calling his his younger self [[FanNickname "Hunkle Stan"]]. For reference, here's a flashback to him in the 70's. Hello, [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rsz_s1e17_stan_and_carla_dancin2_6100.png Handsome]]. [[invoked]]