History Characters / HowlsMovingCastle

--> '''Sophie''': "I'm the eldest! I'm a failure!
--> '''Howl''': "Garbage! You just never stop to think!"

* BrutalHonesty: He rarely uses it, as he usually prefers pleasant dishonesty, gentlemanly snarking, or not answering questions at all, but when he sees himself forced to tell the truth, he doesn't care too much about pleasantries.
--> '''Sophie''': "I'm not being nosy! That room --!"
--> '''Howl''': "Yes, you ''are'' nosy. You're a dreadfully nosy, horribly bossy, appallingly clean old woman."

* BerserkButton: Messing with his hair-care potions, which results in the entire house being covered in green slime.

* BerserkButton: Messing with his hair-care potions, which results in the entire house being covered in green slime. On a more serious note, threatening to harm his loved ones (especially his sister's kids or later on his own son) is enough for Howl to forego his usual antics and charge at whoever was foolish enough to try with a murderous rage.

->Voiced by: Ryonosuke Kamiki (JP), Creator/JoshHutcherson (US)

* ButtMonkey: By his second appearance, Sophie's able to bully him into doing whatever she wants him to do. Played with because some of it is genuinely funny, and some of it becomes HarsherInHindsight [[spoiler:when it's revealed Howl gave him his heart and how close some of those incidents came to killing Howl, even inadvertently.]]

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: [[FridgeHorror Did she survive the bombing?]] She is [[OneSceneWonder never seen again after Sophie meets up with her]].

* VainSorcerer: He {{Wangst}}s about having the wrong hair color... yeah.

* SpellMyNameWithAnS: Markl, really? It's extra confusing in Japanese where it's pronounced "Mar-ku-rull".

* IChooseToStay: After Sophie frees him and gives him a thousand years of life, Calcifer returns to her and Howl - in the film, it's explicitly because he missed them. In the book, he just wants the opportunity to come and go as he pleases.

* WickedStepmother: Averted. She (apparently) tries to provide as best as she can for all three girls, but does not consider their interests when doing so - however, Sophie notes that each of her choices is following the culturally ingrained tropes of Ingary and trying to make the best of them. She's supposedly jealous of the looks of her younger stepdaughter, though this comes from the youngest daughter (who's wrong about several other things). She does not pay Sophie at all when Sophie does the most work, but she is horrified when she finds Sophie as apparently a cursed servant and a) states that she wanted to take her with her when she remarried to a wealthy man, b) is quite prepared to attack Howl, a genuinely powerful wizard who is seen as TheDreaded (and intentionally so) with her parasol.

* SuddenlyVoiced: [[spoiler: Turnips aren't known for their speaking ability. Once he's human again, he has dialogue.]]

* CryIntoChest: Does it several times to Howl.

* ExpositoryHairstyleChange: Sophie begins the movie with waist-length dark hair done up in a simple braid. She still has the braid after being transformed into an old woman by the Witch of the Wastes, albeit grey and much shorter. However, at the climax of the film, she sacrifices her braid to revive Calcifer (who she'd just realized is [[spoiler:Howl's heart]]), and even after breaking the curse Sophie's hair remains silvery-grey in color.

* FreeingTheGenie: [[spoiler:She does it to Calcifer by returning Howl's heart to Howl's body.]]

* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: [[spoiler:After pouring water over Calcifer.]]

* RapidAging: Due to the Witch of The Waste's curse.

* HiddenDepths: An interesting example. As shown under MoodSwinger below, his initial appearance as a confident and immensely powerful wizard surrounded by an aura of mystery belies that fact that he is, at heart, actually just a temperamental and cowardly teenager.

* OlderThanSheLooks: [[spoiler:As Suliman reveals.]]

* JabbaTableManners: Sophie was aghast at how he ate and corrected him.

* SnarkyNonHumanSidekick: Billy Crystal in the English dub takes this up a notch.

%%* HiddenDepths: One of the main themes of the book, and what Howl brings out in her.

* GentlemanWizard: Played with. Howl gives off the impression of being a gentleman of leisure, but he does seem to do magic professionally, and much is made of his overcharging his wealthier clients and undercharging the poor ones. That said, he has the look and the attitude down pat for the role, and he's ''always'' appropriately dressed to appear in society.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He may be vain, selfish, and childish at first but through it all, he is a charming and kind gentlemen.

** It is implied that Howl would be quite well off in Ingary if he wouldn't spend his money so foolishly and if he would apply himself more. He is never shown seeking out rich customers, and seems to work on a "seek me if you need me" basis. And of course, he doesn't charge his poverty-stricken customers anything.

* TwinSwitch: Via an illusion spell, Martha and Lettie trade apprenticeships.

* WickedStepmother: Averted. She (apparently) tries to provide as best as she can for all three girls, but does not consider their interests when doing so - however, Sophie notes that each of her choices is following the culturally ingrained tropes of Ingary and trying to make the best of them. She's supposedly jealous of the looks of her younger stepdaughter, though this comes from the youngest daughter (who's wrong about several other things). She does not pay Sophie at all when Sophie does the most work, but she is horrified when she finds Sophie as apparently a cursed servant and a) states that she wanted to take her with her when she remarried to a wealthy man, b) is quite prepared to attack Howl, a powerful wizard who is seen as TheDreaded (and intentionally so) with her parasol.

* BerserkButton: Messing with his hair-care potions, which results in the entire house being covered in green slime.

* FishOutOfWater: Notably averted. Howl fits perfectly in his adopted world, probably because he loves the freedom and opportunities it allows him.

* NoAccountingForTaste: Combined with LookingForLoveInAllTheWrongPlaces. For some reason, Howl approached the Witch of the Waste, in spite of her terrible reputation (and the fact that she threatened the King's ''infant'' daughter!). Perhaps he thought the Witch and him were the same, since they were both vain, talented, and had a fire demon, but a lot of trouble could have been averted (and poor Mrs. Pentstemmon would still be alive) if he been more reasonable.

* AdaptationalComicRelief: Inverted. The Japanese dub gives him a funny sidekick voice and a child-like behavior, while the English dub gives him a [[{{Pun}} smouldering]] voice and a snarkier demeanor.

* DidntThinkThisThrough: Howl certainly thinks so, and he's not wrong. Trying to save her friends and family ([[MyFriendsAndZoidberg and Miss Angorian]]), she thinks it a very bright idea to go to the wasteland, unwittingly playing into the witches hands.

* TheStoic: Is totally unmoved by the bomb attack and keeps puffing on her cigar. This could be attributed to [[spoiler: her on-and-off senility, due to her true age.]]

* AdaptationalComicRelief: Inverted. The Japanese dub gives him a funny sidekick voice and a child-like behavior, while the English dub gives him a [[PunIntended smouldering]] voice and a snarkier demeanor.

[[folder: Fanny Hatter]]

* WickedStepmother: Averted. She (apparently) tries to provide as best as she can for all three girls, but does not consider their interests when doing so - however, Sophie notes that each of her choices is following the culturally ingrained tropes of Ingary and trying to make the best of them. She’s supposedly jealous of the looks of her younger stepdaughter, though this comes from the youngest daughter (who's wrong about several other things). She does not pay Sophie at all when Sophie does the most work, but she is horrified when she finds Sophie as apparently a cursed servant and a) states that she wanted to take her with her when she remarried to a wealthy man, b) is quite prepared to attack Howl, a powerful wizard who is seen as TheDreaded (and intentionally so) with her parasol.

* SayMyName: Shouts Sophie’s name during the climax.

* SocialClimber: This seems to be Honey’s major goal.

* {{Bishonen}}: The film makes him a ''very'' pretty man. It's definitely invoked on his end, as he's very vain and is implied to spend a lot of free time on improving his looks.

* {{Bishonen}}: [[spoiler:His delicate good looks rival Howl's.]]

* BalefulPolymorph: Turned into two or three of these thanks to the Witch of the Waste.

* BalefulPolymorph: [[spoiler:He is actually a cursed prince. In the book, he's actually a scarecrow, but one filled with all of Suleiman's unused magic. The prince's body was put to other use.]]

* SnarkyNonHumanSidekick: Billy Crystal in the English dub takes this UpToEleven.

* NiceHat: Tries on a big fancy one.

* ExpositoryHairstyleChange: Only in the movie. After Sophie accidentally rearranged his several dozen hair products, his blond hair turned orange, then later bluish-black (the latter being his natural colour). His decision to not re-dye it indicates his increasing willingness to drop his façade, as well as his growing trust of (and love for) Sophie.

* IJustWantToBeFree: He wants freedom from Howl and his castle more than anything. [[spoiler:When he actually gets it, he returns to Howl and asks to stay as a part of the new family.]]

* YouGottaHaveBlueHair: [[spoiler:Even after gaining back her original age, Sophie still retains her grey hair. Presumably as a side effect or a momento of the spell’s power going on again and off again.]]