History Characters / TheVentureBrosVentureAllies

* RubberMan: He's a spoof of Mr. Fantastic and the only one of the Impossibles to have a useful power.
* ThatManIsDead: Attempts this by calling himself Professor Incorrigible, but Limb wasn't crazy about the idea.
* TraumaCongaLine: In "Twenty Years to Midnight" he is turned into a flag by Team Venture, his wife leaves him and the next time we see him he's crossed the DespairEventHorizon, but his humiliation wasn't over because then his repeated attempts at suicide failed publicly.
* SelfServingMemory: Didn't correct Phantom Limb when he claimed it was Rusty's fault his wife left him.
* TheSociopath: A high-functioning and affable one (in a 1950s TV-dad kind of way), but his interactions with people underlines that this guy has ''serious'' difficulty differentiating between people and disposable lab rats.

* StringTheory: Played with. When Phantom Limb tracks him down, he's stretched ''himself'' all across his office, as a sign of his worsening mental state and his desire to retain control of everything.
* TeacherStudentRomance: Was fired from State University when (possibly due to the future Phantom Limb ousting him so he could snipe his position) the college learned he was having an affair with Sally, who was his student at the time. Though humiliated, he expressed some optimism over how his sacking would allow the two of them to "date openly", eventually leading to their extremely rocky marriage.
* VillainDecay: Starts as a [[KnightOfCerebus pretty intimidating presence]] but after his TraumaCongaLine and Creator/StephenColbert [[TheOtherDarrin being replaced by]] Creator/BillHader he became about as ineffective as the shows other villains. Thankfully [[EvilMentor Henry Killinger then showed up.]]
* VillainousBreakdown: Undergoes a major one after Sally leaves him.
* VillainousFriendship: He was in the Boys' Brigade with fellow amoral scientists Jonas Venture Sr. and Phantom Limb. He later develops one with the rest of the Revenge Society.
* VillainWithGoodPublicity: He manages to keep his good publicity up until his split with Sally. Though he isn't actually exposed for the JerkAss that he is, his mental breakdown and decline have become apparent to others.

* DistinguishedGentlemansPipe: Usually seen with one Eventually changes it for one that looks like a skull as part of his EvilCostumeSwitch

* DrivenToSuicide: Tried to kill himself at least two times after Sally dumped him.
* DomesticAbuse: Not physically, but he emotionally neglects Sally.
* EvilCostumeSwitch: After joining the Revenge Society, he adopts a darker purple costume with a skull logo. He also swaps out his DistinguishedGentlemansPipe for one shaped like a skull at that time as well.
* FaceHeelTurn: Well, he was always a dick, but he drops all pretense of being one of the "good guys" upon joining Phantom Limb's Revenge Society.
* ForScience: He conducted an experiment that blew up in his face. It granted him incredible stretching powers but left his family with painful and hideous mutations. Not only is he completely unsympathetic to their plight, but he treats them like prisoners most of the time lest they embarrass him. He is a thinly-veiled parody of ''The ComicBook/FantasticFour''[='=]s Reed Richards, who has slipped into this trope from ReedRichardsIsUseless more than once (most prominently during ''ComicBook/CivilWar2006''). His crowning moment of For Science comes when confronted by his wife that their son was missing, he ignores her and handwaves it:

* HeelFaceRevolvingDoor: In the first two seasons he identifies as a "good guy" despite being very despicable. In season three, after Sally leaves him, he crosses the DespairEventHorizon and at least has enough good in him to attempt a HeroicSacrifice. Then in season four, he joins Phantom Limb's Revenge Society and embraces his inner evil. Then in the special ''All This and Gargantua-2'', he leaves the Revenge Society after his ex-wife convinces him to leave with her instead of dying on the space station.

* ICannotSelfTerminate: Has been unable to kill himself because his rubber body is so durable.
* InsufferableGenius: As a Reed Richards parody, he takes all of Reed's faults and turns them up to eleven.

* LaughablyEvil: Became waaay more humorous once he went off the deep end and joined the Revenge Society. This may have something to do with Bill Hader, though.

* NotSoHarmlessVillain: While his lack of experience has kept him from being an effective supervillain thus far, it must be remembered that this is the same person who has devised a biological agent capable of turning living creatures into bombs and has harnessed his brother-in-law's self-combustion powers to provide Impossible Industries with enough free electricity to go completely "green", all of which occurred before he decided to become a real supervillain.

* CorruptedCharacterCopy: Is introduced as a CaptainErsatz of Reed Richards, but soon shows a much darker side as a sexist, bigoted {{Jerkass}} who's uncaring and abusive to his family with a destructive ForScience attitude. Hilariously, he actually predates a lot of Marvel's own deconstructions of Reed, like hiss [[ComicBook/UltimateFantasticFour Ultimate Universe]] incarnation, who [[FaceHeelTurn ends up becoming a villain in his own right]], and the Council of Reeds.

[[folder:General]]
A CaptainErsatz family of the ''ComicBook/FantasticFour''.

* DarkParody: The family was exposed to a SuperEmpowering event that left 3/4 of them with severe physical ''detriments''. It negatively impacts them to the point where Sally leaves Richard who, in his despair goes into a suicidal depression and eventually turns to outright villainy. A far cry fro their inspiration.
* ExpyCoexistence: They exist in a world where the ''Fantastic Four'' is a comic book, and even went as them for Halloween one year (winning the prize for best group costume).
* TheFantasticFaux: Richard is almost a note-for-note parody of Reed Richards, down to being a scientist with rubber abilities, with his ForScience sociopathy played up. The rest of his group includes his wife Sally, who can only turn her ''skin'' invisible, Sally's mentally-impaired cousin Ned, whose skin became one giant callous, and Sally's brother Cody, who bursts into flame if his skin touches oxygen (and with no immunity to burning). The parody plays up the darker aspects of the ''FF'' and turns them up to eleven, with the team eventually falling apart and Impossible becoming an antagonist in later seasons.

->'''Voiced by''': Creator/StephenColbert (Seasons 1, 2 and 6), Creator/BillHader (Season 4), Peter [=McCulloch=] (The Terrible Secret of Turtle Bay)
->''(When asked by Sally about what's more important than family) "Sciiiennnceee?"''

A fellow super-scientist and CaptainErsatz of ''ComicBook/FantasticFour'' leader Reed Richards AKA Mr. Fantastic, but much, much darker. At first, he seemed just like his counterpart... and then it was revealed his fellow members got useless, or in one case harmful, powers and that he kept them under wraps to save face. Doctor Venture won over his wife, Sally, while working with Impossible but left her behind when they left. She finally escaped with Doctor Venture's brother J.J. along with her and her son Rocket. He didn't take it well. He soon fell into a deep depression until his old buddy Phantom Limb convinced him to go over to the evil side while remaining a super scientist to the public. He became a supervillain and part of Phantom Limb's Revenge Society until it was dissolved after the destruction of Gargantua-2.

* AccidentalHero: Saves the whole Spider Skull Island from exploding, by trying to [[DrivenToSuicide kill himself with it]].
* BeardOfSorrow: Starts to grow one after Sally dumps him. Shaves it (with the help of Phantom Limb) immediately after joining the Revenge Society.
* BreakTheHaughty: By the time his TraumaCongaLine below is finished, Richard has become a wreck of a man. It is only after Phantom Limb tells him to literally pull himself together and decides to form the Revenge Society with him that things begin to look up again.
* BrokenAce: He's undeniably brilliant, but he's also seriously lacking in empathy and completely selfish. He only breaks further after his wife divorces him.
* CaptainErsatz: Of [[ComicBook/FantasticFour Mr. Fantastic]].
* CardCarryingVillain: He really enjoys his new status of villain, [[ThatManIsDead changing his name]], throwing [[IncrediblyLamePun puns]] and all the stuff.
* CorruptedCharacterCopy: Is very clearly one of Reed Richards, otherwise known as [[ComicBook/FantasticFour Mr. Fantastic]]. He's basically Reed devoid of all empathy and completely selfish, and a complete burden to society rather than a benefit to it. Hilariously, he actually predates a lot of Marvel's own deconstructions of Reed, like his extremely selfish turned supervillain Ultimate universe counterpart, and the Council of Reeds.
* {{Deconstruction}}: His turn to the dark side is itself a deconstruction of the idea that HeroWithAnFInGood is better suited to being a villain as the same traits that made him a bad hero, such as his lack of empathy and absent mindedness, continue to hamper him in his new career path.

->'''The Master''': ''[to Triana]'' OK listen, I’m the Master. I’m like your dad’s omniscient boss.

A enigmatic, shapeshifting sorcerer who taught Orpheus everything he knows, The Master inhabits a dimension known as "Necropolis" and is often sought by Orpheus for his counsel. Snarky and not shy about calling Orpheus out, he often takes a form that relates to whatever wisdom he is trying to impart.

[[quoteright:200:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/200px-Triana_3864.png]]

Triana is the daughter of Dr. Orpheus and lives with her father in a rented out laboratory-cum-apartment within the Venture compound. She is 17, a bit of a goth, but otherwise a completely normal teenage girl. She is possibly the most down-to-earth character on the show, despite her father's tendency to dramatize. She takes an interest in kitsch. Dean had nurtured a crush on her for most of the show's run. The very moment that Dean decided to tell her, Triana revealed her non-interest in him.

* AffectionateNickname: Her dad calls her "Pumpkin", possibly because the Halloween-y vibes make sense between a necromancer and a goth.
* TheBusCameBack: She returned for the season four finale.
* DaddysGirl: While sometimes her dad embarrasses her, Triana is very close with her dad and loves him dearly. The love between them is also clearly mutual.
* DeadpanSnarker: One of the more well-adjusted individuals in the series, and will break out the snark in regards to the ridiculousness of the other characters.
* FollowInMyFootsteps: Inverted. Orpheus would rather she go to art school, and for her own safety not get mixed up with the magical or supernatural. (It's not touched upon whether this was the case ''before'' they met the Ventures or not.)

* LaserGuidedAmnesia: Whenever she finds the portal to the Burning Nowhere in her closet her father erases her memories of it. The Master eventually points this out to her and she doesn't tell her father about her latest visit.
* LimitedWardrobe: She always wears the same outfit, which is later [[JustifiedTrope justified]] because her father put a portal to a mystical realm in her closet and she has nightmares as a result, seeing as she can venture into the closet to see the Master like her father, but Dr. Orpheus keeps wiping her memory every time she reveals the truth to him.
* MissingMom: Eventually leaves the Venture Compound to study magic with her mother.
* NotSoStoic: She seems to be an apathetic goth girl in the first season, taking her father's LargeHam tendencies and necromantic powers in stride along with the catastrophic super science escapades of the Ventures next door, but the thought of Dean and Hank brought back from the dead by sorcery reduces her to trembling and tears.
* OnlySaneMan: During the first season and a half or so she was this around Dean and Hank, before slowly vanishing from importance.
* PerkyGoth: A phenomenally well-adjusted example, especially for the daughter of a high-level, NiceGuy, LargeHam sorcerer. As of season four, she [[PutOnABus leaves to study magic herself]], but her personality remains the same.
* PutOnABus: After recurring through the first three seasons, she moves in with her mother to study magic in season four. She returns for the season four finale, then is never seen again.
* SupernaturalSensitivity: Orpheus' Master points out in their conversation together, that just by ''coming through the portal in her closet'' Triana has proved that she has significant magical talent - {{Muggles}} can't even see the portal.
* WellExcuseMePrincess: Seen mostly toward Hank and Dermott.

* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: A gentler example, but he tells Orpheus that he takes himself and his duties far too seriously and that's what drove Tatyana away.

A snarky, mysterious magician who taught Orpheus everything he knows...and takes every opportunity to shove Orpheus's failures in his face. Likes to take a form that relates to whatever problem Orpheus needs help with, which is often just an excuse for him to try out the PowerPerversionPotential of VoluntaryShapeshifting. He wishes Orpheus would .

* VoluntaryShapeshifting: Note that ''only'' Orpheus gets the TricksterMentor and PowerPerversionPotential treatment. When appearing before anyone else (Triana, Orpheus' guests), the Master opts for forms that have more direct and obvious connections to what he's about to impart.

A snarky, mysterious magician who taught Orpheus everything he knows...and takes every opportunity to shove Orpheus's failures in his face. Likes to take a form that relates to whatever problem Orpheus needs help with, which is often just an excuse for him to try out the PowerPerversionPotential of VoluntaryShapeshifting. He wishes Orpheus would loosen up and act like a normal guy instead of a LargeHam.

* ActorAllusion: Creator/HJonBenjamin plays Master essentially like [[WesternAnimation/HomeMovies Coach McGuirk]] and [[WesternAnimation/{{Archer}} Sterling Archer]] with near omnipotent supernatural powers.[[invoked]]
* AllMenArePerverts: He may be an omniscient master of magic and mysteries, but he sure appreciates Dr. Orpheus' ex-wife's body. He could just be [[TricksterMentor messing with Orpheus]], but he gives Tatyana's form a ''lot'' of attention while he's in it.
* AllPowerfulBystander: Whatever he is, his power far outstrips that of Orpheus, who can, at times, be a DeusExMachina. However, he prefers not to participate in matters on Earth unless he feels it warrants his attention.
* AmbiguouslyHuman: He takes a new form every time he appears, and his original form, if he has one, is never seen, so it is up in the air if he is simply a powerful human magician or something else entirely.
* TheArchmage: He's an all-power magic user who is content to use his powers to goof around.
* ComicallyMissingThePoint: Loves to needle Orpheus for this - apparently their chats often result in AesopAmnesia.
* CynicalMentor: ''Super'' heavy emphasis on the cynical.
* TheFaceless: We've never seen his ''true'' form if he even has one.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He never misses the opportunity to mock Orpheus for his failures in life, or Triana for how she ''could'' fail, but he seems to do this for his pupil's benefit (to show him where he's gone wrong and encourage him to change).
* ManIFeelLikeAWoman: He takes the form of Dr. Orpheus' ex-wife Tatyana at one point, and spends most of the visit openly admiring her ample bosom and shapely behind.
--> '''The Master:''' "Why don't you leave me alone so I can jump rope naked in front of a mirror in your ex-wife's body."
* NobleBigot: Subverted. He's initially built up like this, with Orpheus not bringing The Alchemist to see him because of his sexuality. When the two do actually meet he shows no issue with Al, joking with him before chastising Al and the assembled magicians for raising zombies on a whim.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He belittles Orpheus a lot but still tells him that he's his best pupil.
* PowerPerversionPotential: He turns into Catherine the Great's horse so that he can [[strike:re-enact Catherine's supposed sexual encounter with it]] teach Orpheus a lesson about biting off more than he can chew, turns into Cerberus to [[strike:lick his own genitals and talk at the same time]] teach Orpheus a lesson about being a stuffy know-it-all, and takes the form of Orpheus's ex-wife to [[strike:enjoy the curvy, sexy body]] hit Orpheus where it hurts the most. His shapeshifting always has a purpose and a point, but he milks the Perversion Potential as much as he can.

* TricksterMentor: For all the grief he gives Orpheus, he honestly does give him useful advice... albeit indirectly and in the form of riddles. His fondness of VoluntaryShapeshifting also suggests a [[TricksterArchetype Trickster]] background.
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: With a theme of the show being about failure and a simpler life; it is strongly hinted that The Master is the reason why Orpheus' life became so convoluted and may have ruined his marriage. He may have done this again with Orpheus' daughter Triana after she decided to live with her mother and Step-father to learn to become a sorceress.

* InkSuitActor: Zig-zagged on a couple of levels. First, Pete and Billy look a lot like creators Doc Hammer and Chris McCulloch (AKA Jackson Publick) respectively, with added deformities (Pete being an albino while Billy is a hydrocephalic). The "Zig" comes in because each character is voiced by the ''other'' creator. The "Zag" come from the series' official artbook, in which the creators say that it's purely coincidental.

->'''Pete''': We freaks have to stick together!

->''"So, I taste my own genitals... In my mouth. It's.. a conundrum"''
[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/s_master_8701.jpg]]

[[quoteright:322:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_alchemist_6.png]]
Another old friend of Dr. Orpheus, who is searching for the philosopher's stone ("as a metaphor for enlightenment") as well as a cure for AIDS. Unlike Twilight and Orpheus, it would seem that he is much less serious about his business and would rather mix business with pleasure; however, his true opinion on the Triad was revealed in the episode "Showdown at Cremation Creek", where he stated that he was more into helping the balance of the Universe than running around fighting one Super-Villain. It has been openly acknowledged that he is gay and a fan of Jimmy Buffett. He is sometimes referred to as "Al", but whether this is his real name or merely short for Alchemist is uncertain. He has an open hatred of the internet due to finding out his boyfriend was cheating on him via Website/MySpace. At least that's what he thinks happened after an O.S.I. mindwipe. Actually, ''he's'' the one who broke up with his boyfriend after he met Shore Leave.

* CampGay: Downplayed, as he overall acts more StraightGay, but he does have his "campy" moments, especially around Shoreleave. It's also ironic as he is the one member of the Order of the Triad who also sees how utterly ''silly'' the trappings of super-heroism are and constantly busts Dr. Orpheus's balls whenever he starts taking things too seriously.
-->'''The Alchemist''': ''"But being a magic superhero that keeps chasing the same guy? It's completely gay. And that is coming from a guy that voluntarily has sex with men!"''
* DeadpanSnarker: Typically in response to Dr. O's LargeHam antics.

* {{Foil}}: To Orpheus. Even more apparent when they move in together.
* FriendToAllChildren: More like teenagers, since he seems to get along nicely with Triana and Hank, and the two of them enjoying his company as well. Probably due to his slightly immature behavior, at least with Hank.
* KavorkaMan: Is, by his own admission, a "paunchy, middle-aged gay guy who likes Jimmy Buffet," yet is still able to attract the much younger, sexier Shore Leave.

* JewishSmartass: Revealed to be Jewish in the movie, and he's at least as snarky as the rest of the cast.
* {{Leitmotif}}: Okay, so it may have only been in one episode ("What Goes Down Must Come Up"), but when the triad is performing magic, it's implied that The Alchemist has one too. When Orpheus does some magic, his leitmotif plays and when The Alchemist does some magic immediately afterward, a little trumpet piece plays. And immediately after that, when it's Jefferson's turn and it's revealed that he has no magic to do, it's completely silent.
* LivingLieDetector: Mentioned in passing during "Everybody Comes To Hank's". It is apparently part of his mystical powers. (As it isn't terribly useful when fighting supernatural threats, he uses it for [[MundaneUtility mundane]] things like double-checking everyone he and Hank interviewed are telling the truth.)
* MoneyDearBoy: [[invoked]] While every member of the Triad signs up for having an arch-enemy for the excitement, the Alchemist also hopes it will procure interest and finding for his research.
* NiceGuy: DeadPanSnarker tendencies and the diabetic coma incident notwithstanding, Al is a supportive friend and great with kids.
* NotWhatISignedOnFor: Admits in a rather heated discussion amongst the three during ''Showdown at Cremation Creek'' that he thought that the reunited Order of the Triad would be going on more high-minded pursuits rather than chase after Torrid most of the time.
* OnlySaneMan: Frequently the voice of reason for the Order of the Triad.
* PrivateDetective: Becomes Hank's partner in the NoirEpisode.
* ReedRichardsIsUseless: Once turned someone's tire into gold. Why does he need to shack up with Orpheus, again?
* StraightGay: Downplayed. Maybe not the ''most'' straight-acting guy around, but he only sometimes acts particularly campy. You probably wouldn't guess he was gay if he never mentioned it.

[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Jefferson_Twilight_5421.jpg]]

An old friend of Dr. Orpheus. He is a black man who fights Blaculas (black vampires) for a living and wields two swords. He is a pastiche of the superhero Blade and the blaxploitation movie protagonist, Shaft. As a play on Blade's half-vampire thirst for blood or an artificial replacement, Jefferson Twilight suffers from diabetes and low blood sugar, leading him to heavily thirst for sugared liquids, such as Nik-L-Nips. His left eye is discolored as it is a magical Blacula tracker he calls the "Blood Eye." The episode "What Goes Down, Must Come Up" revealed a lot of his BackStory. For example: his mother was taken by marauding Blaculas when he was ten, and he was a tank commander in the Marines.

* BuffySpeak: Starkly contrasts the grandiose speaking style of Dr. Orpheus.
* CaptainErsatz: Of ComicBook/{{Blade}} the Vampire Hunter. Also with a dash of John Film/{{Shaft}}.
* CripplingOverspecialization: He often complains about the fact that there are no Blaculas for him to fight, and implies that he'd be lost if he came up against a non-black vampire. However, it's later revealed that he is a former army vet and has a ton of practical skills such as the ability to drive a tank. He is also revealed to be "between worlds" which... is also pretty specialized, though does come in handy a couple of times.
--> '''Dr. Orpheus:''' Let us ''try'' to get a psychic lock on them. I SHALL SHINE THE LIGHT OF THELOS!

--> '''Jefferson:''' I'll, uh... check for Blaculas. ''*beat*'' Nope! No Blaculas!
* DeadpanSnarker: One of the most deadpan on the show.

* EmpoweredBadassNormal: Originally the only non-mystical member of the Triad. Later on he's revealed to be "between worlds" (possibly as a result of dying and being brought back to life by the Outrider in the same episode), which, while impressive, is also an incredibly specific ability.
* FightsLikeANormal: He has two powers, and neither of them actually help him in a fight. Good thing he's an expert swordsman.

* TheLoad: He considers himself this in the Order of the Triad, being little more than a guy with swords in most situations while his companions have much more versatile magic powers. He does cheer up after the "between worlds" revelation, though.
* MagicalEye: Has a "Blood Eye" that allows him to track and hunt Blaculas.

* VampireHunter: Of Blackulas, after watching his mother get taken by them when he was 10.
* WeaksauceWeakness: In a world with real magic, super-powered heroes and villains, and actual mythical creatures, Jefferson's weakness is ''diabetes.'' He's also the only non-magical person a team of magic users that often fights ''other'' magic users.

* ArchEnemy: The get a Guild-sanctioned one in Torrid. Orpheus actually ''wanted'' their own Guild-sanctioned arch-enemy, to the point of hosting tryouts for the position in "Fallen Arches". Torrid emerged as the winner by kidnapping Orpheus's daughter Triana, and the Triad are shown battling him a few times in future episodes.

* MysticalHighCollar: Since he's an {{Expy}} of Comicbook/DoctorStrange and wears the same outfit.
* {{Necromancer}}: Yes, and a benevolent one at that.
** Interestingly, while he is a capable necromancer in both the original and popular sense of the word[[note]]communing with the dead and raising the dead, respectively[[/note]], he clarifies that the actual magic of necromancy isn't his preferred practice. He explains that most terms for a magic-user have become cliché or fallen out of favor in modern times, so he simply goes by "necromancer" not to seem silly.

* NiceGuy: Seriously, he's the nicest guy in the show. And a good dad, too, at least compared to all the other ones on the show. (but repeatedly wiping his daughter's memories of the portal to another dimension in her closet is quite the exception to this.)
* NoIndoorVoice: Constantly shouts over a blaring, overly dramatic soundtrack.
-->'''Orpheus:''' Do not be too hasty in entering that [bath]room, I had '''TACO BELL for lunch!'''

* NotThatKindOfDoctor: Not any kind of doctor, actually. He's only got a Bachelor's Degree in communications, though he claims to have been granted a doctorate by his master.

* OutOfFocus: Orpheus was a major supporting character throughout the first three seasons but was scaled back, almost to the point of absence in the first half of season four. He gets some more focus mid-late season four but is once again out of focus in the first half of season five, getting only one brief appearance, and aside from a mention or two, is ''completely absent'' in season six. His (and the Triad's) return in the season 7 premiere reveals they had been living in a motel ever since the Venture Compound burned down during "All This and Gargantua-2", though now they plan to buy a brownstone in Manhattan. One with a "Doctor Strange window".[[note]]The very real First Warsaw Congregation synagogue in the Lower East Side.[[/note]] He does however play a major supporting role in the FinaleMovie.
* PapaWolf: For both his own daughter and The Venture Brothers.
* ParentalNeglect: As much as he hates it, Orpheus admits he wasn't much better at being a father than he was at being a husband. He loves his daughter dearly but is too focused on mastering his magic and his duties to really be there for her as much as he should be.
* PowerAtAPrice: In a sense. The Outrider admits that between them, Orpheus is the better magician, but the time spent honing his skills cost him his relationship with his wife.
* PoweredByAForsakenChild: Didn't have anything to do with the incident, but [[TropeNamer named the trope.]]
* TokenWizard: He's the go-to guy the Venture Family call whenever something supernatural happens.

->'''Voiced by''': Charles Parnell

[[quoteright:325:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Billy_Quizboy_8824.JPG]]

A magical super-team headed by Doc's Tenant Dr. Byron Orpheus.
----
[[folder:General]]

* EyeOfProvidence: Their sigil.
* OldSuperhero: Each member of the Triad are middle-aged. While they seem to be physically and mentally fit enough to qualify for their own arch-enemy, the Alchemist rightfully points out that they are too old to keep up the whole "cops and robbers" schtick arching entails for long.
* SupernaturalTeam: In contrast to the "Super-Science" angle of the Venture family at large, each member of the Order are in some way involved with the supernatural.

[[quoteright:220:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Dr__Orpheus_22.JPG]]
Necromancer extraordinaire Dr. Byron Orpheus has the tendency to speak in a ringing, melodramatic tone, often at inappropriate times and [[{{Leitmotif}} usually accompanied by dramatic music]]. Dr. Orpheus is divorced and has one child (Triana Orpheus). Currently living in the back of the Venture Compound, in the old Advanced Arachnid Research Lab with his daughter. Although he calls himself 'Doctor', he only has a degree in Communications with a minor in Women's Studies from a community college. He does, however, claim that his title comes from a higher power. He can be an absent-minded parent, but he means well.

* AbusiveParents: Although he dearly loves Triana and wouldn't harm a hair on her head, he's not above wiping her memory when convenient. In their old apartment he did this regularly since the portal to the nether dimension was in her closet.
* ActuallyNotAVampire: Dr. Orpheus is easily mistaken for "a Dracula."

* AlwaysSomeoneBetter: The Outrider, who his wife left him for. Orpheus has trained his entire life just to "perceive that there is a second world," while the Outrider can travel through it. (This too, eventually inverses itself in a way, when it is shown that the Outrider cheated to obtain his powers while Orpheus' master admits that Orpheus is truly his best student.)
* AmazinglyEmbarrassingParents: Triana usually handles his theatrics pretty well, but he can make quite a scene when he suspects someone is hitting on his daughter.
-->'''Dr. Orpheus:''' "I'm sorry, Pumpkin. I trust you to defend your honor, it's just that- '''''MY PUMPKIN'S MAIDENHEAD IS NOT A PRIZE TO BE-'''''"
-->'''Triana:''' "''Dad!'''"
-->'''Dr. Orpheus:''' "*clears throat*"
** To be fair, that single most embarrassing expression was exclaimed in ''A Very Venture Christmas'' as part of Rusty's dream─though it is not completely unrealistic to think he might say so.
* AntiquatedLinguistics: Will throw out some rather archaic terms, particularly during some of his more dramatic speeches. Combine it with his LargeHam tendencies and swelling {{Leitmotif}}, [[MundaneMadeAwesome anything he says sounds more dramatic]]. Such as when simply giving the "the birds and the bees" speech to his daughter:
--> '''Dr. Orpheus:''' Hear me out! [clears throat] When young women reach estrus, the, uhh, lingam, ummm, craves theeee stamen-like skills of the yoni. This is quite natural. [[note]]He is so embarrassed by the subject that he gets his biology exactly wrong: the lingam is the human equivalent of the stamen, the yoni of the pistil. 'Lingam' and 'yoni' are not so much antiquated as exotic, being the Sanskrit terms that might be familiar to Orpheus from tantric writings or other subcontinental works.)[[/note]]

--> '''Dr. Orpheus:''' It's just that boys at their age have unchecked desires coursing- nay, ''RAGING AS A TEMPEST WOULD!!'' Through their ''tingling nethers!''
* ArchEnemy: He spends the first season pining for one, and is eventually given one in the form of Torrid, who bears a physical resemblance to Comicbook/DoctorStrange's nemesis Dormammu, but little more.

* BackFromTheDead: It very rarely comes up about the plot besides a failed attempt to resurrect Hank and Dean, but as a necromancer, Orpheus is well-versed in communing with and reviving the dead. He boasts that he regularly performed resurrections on both David Blaine and Evel Knievel (also Ronald Reagan, until he bounced a check).
* BadPowersGoodPeople: Uses necromancy? Check. A good guy? Check. As well as the nicest character on the entire show? Check.
* BerserkButton: HIS DAUGHTER'S VIRGINITY IS NOT A PRIZE TO BE WON!

-->"''That houses the souls of two FOUL-MOUTHED REDNECKS!!''"
* CaptainErsatz: Of Comicbook/DoctorStrange.
* CatchPhrase: "'Kay..." Usually in situations where things have gotten so weird, even by his standards, he can't even be dramatic anymore.
* TheCobblersChildrenHaveNoShoes: He's pretty good at giving others advice, and fairly down to Earth when it comes to everyone's problems but his own, in which he's near-constantly met with failure. He studied Women's Studies in college but his wife left him for one of his students.
* DarkIsNotEvil: In fact, he's one of the most morally ''decent'' people on the show.
* DeadpanSnarker: In sharp contrast to his LargeHam behavior, he can get incredibly sarcastic, usually with people who are ignorant or presumptuous about magic or when someone teases him about his ex-wife.
-->'''Dr. Orpheus:''' "Ahh, ''no''. I don't miss her ''astounding'' beauty '''''daily'''''."
* DramaPreservingHandicap: Once the show starts playing for keeps when it comes to death after Season 3, Orpheus suddenly becomes immensely disinclined to perform necromancy.
* {{Foil}}: To Rusty.
** In many respects, he is the opposite of Rusty--even aside from the obvious "magic versus science" angle. Rusty is notoriously lazy and coasts on his inheritance and childhood fame and fortune, while Orpheus is a workaholic who earned his powers through great study and practice. Rusty is a notoriously unflappable DeadpanSnarker, while Orpheus is a dramatic LargeHam who treats even the smallest actions as a big deal. Rusty is self-centered to the extreme and rarely does anything without a profit motive, while Orpheus is incredibly moral and describes himself as a world protector. Rusty hates being involved in the nonsense of the Guild and the Monarch, while Orpheus actively sought out an archvillain and takes genuine pleasure in his adventures.
** He contrasts Rusty's terrible parenting by being a good father to Triana. His intro episode shows him recording a message just to let her know he's popped over to the other side of the compound for a bit, but she can have one of the puddings in the fridge. He's very involved, but not smothering. Meanwhile, Rusty causes the boys to get into trouble by angrily shooing them away every time he sees them, and has socially crippled them to the point that Dean's attempts to talk to Triana are incredibly pathetic even by teen-boy-with-a-crush standards.

* HardWorkHardlyWorks: Zig-zagged between he and the Outrider. While the Outrider gained an ability Orpheus cannot, he cheated to get it, but in doing so, made time to spend with his wife (Orpheus' ex-wife). Both the Outrider and The Master admit that Orpheus is the superior sorcerer.
* InsistentTerminology: Orpheus habitually refers to Rusty as "Mr. Venture" rather than "Dr. Venture." (Of course, Rusty's actual credentials as a doctor are dubious at best.) Doubles as HypocriticalHumor since Orpheus' own "Dr." title is not from any recognized education institution.
* KindheartedCatLover: Particularly in ''[[Recap/TheVentureBrosS2E10IKnowWhyTheCagedBirdKills I Know Why The Caged Bird Kills]]'', where he's first seen snuggling his cat ("Who's a pretty pretty pussycat? Yes, you are!"), and only gets a little sarcastic at it when it gets startled by the doorbell and claws him. Later, he looks absolutely ''delighted'' to be waking up on a dirty motel floor after a beatdown by Myra, because her cats are swarming him affectionately.
-->''"They smell '''my''' cat!"''
* LargeHam: He cannot ''stop'' being a ham, making bombastic speeches with AntiquatedLinguistics over a swelling {{Leitmotif}} tends to have that effect. The only time he isn't being one of these is when he's delivering [[DeadpanSnarker withering sarcasm]].
* {{Leitmotif}}: This plays whenever he's in extra LargeHam mode, which is quite often. It's loud and swelling, befitting a dramatic LargeHam.

* MistakenForGay: One time by a couple of rednecks (and he wasn't even wearing his cape that time), another time by Rusty. His fashion sense is a little flamboyant. Plus Rusty apparently finds it suspicious that Dr. Orpheus willingly spends time with him.
* MundaneMadeAwesome: Any time he ''RAISES HIS VOICE'' to deliver '''MUNDAAAAANE INFORMATION''' to the tune of SWELLING MUUUUSIC!

* MundaneUtility: He uses his powers as a powerful necromancer to cook frittatas, among other things.

* BrilliantButLazy: It is implied that he and White actually have some pretty decent skills between the two of them; they successfully cured Dean when he had a rare and embarrassing medical condition despite having no medical experience, and Billy reattached Rusty's arm after a Guild member ripped it off. However, they mostly just goof off in their spare time.
** If Pete is the 'Lazy' one, Billy is the 'Brilliant' one; by "The Diving Bell Vs. The Butter-Glider" he's guiding a miniaturized submarine through Rusty's vascular system, apparently from memory.
** As shown by "The Silent Partners", he's not lazy; he just never got his medical degrees and seemed to always regret it.
* ButtMonkey: Billy can never catch a break. What's even funnier is that he gets so much flak despite being the useful half of his duo.
* CatchPhrase: "High five!" It takes a few seasons until he stops being [[HighFiveLeftHanging left hanging]] all the time, but this surprisingly seems to have little to do with the metal hand, which he never seems to use to give anyone a painful high five. He's not trying to prank anyone, he just wants a high five.
* CowardlyLion: He's ''very'' easily scared ("Brock is training us to fight, so I'm doing what I do best, which is to secretly cower,") but when it gets down to it, he's very into the idea of being a hero. And he'll gladly try to take down ''Brock'' if pushed too far.

* EyepatchOfPower: Combined with the super-cool [[ArtificialLimbs mechanical hand]], he definitely has this sort of look. On the one hand, he's kind of a meek guy who rarely uses his full potential, but on the other, he really does pull off some seriously badass feats when necessary.
* HandicappedBadass: Capable of some pretty astounding scientific feats despite missing a hand and having no depth perception.
* HeroicWannabe: He ''really'' wants to be a costumed hero. He's also a timid nerd who's small enough to be thrown around like a football.
* HeterosexualLifePartners: With Pete.

* HonorBeforeReason: He was willing to restore Monstroso, first for the money, but then because of his doctor's honor. He was still willing to let Brock kill Monstroso after he recovered, though. To be fair, Monstroso had treated him more than fairly, was offering him his life's dream, and had spent a while bonding with him; he had plenty of reasons to like the guy even knowing he was a monster.
* InsufferableGenius: Although he can be self-absorbed at times, Billy is a very talented and intelligent scientist.
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: He doesn't know how he got his metal hand. He eventually remembers, or maybe Col. Gathers wiped his memory again.
* LockedOutOfTheLoop: Every time he regains the memory of how he lost his eye and hand, Pete knocks him out and takes him to the O.S.I/Sphinx to have his memory wiped again. Later on, it's implied that he now knows the truth permanently.
* TheMedic: He's a gifted surgeon and his medical expertise is sought after by heroes and villains alike.
* MistakenForGay: midway through the show people start mistaking him and Pete for a couple. His own mother believes this is why Billy hasn't spoken to her in years, feeling she wouldn't approve of his "lifestyle". Billy doesn't correct her due to wanting to keep gifts she sent them, and Pete hasn't said a word since she called him handsome. By season 6, even the rest of the elderly cast honestly think Pete is Billy's boyfriend.
* MyBrainIsBig: Billy claims that his excess of brain fluid makes him smarter. This is debatable, but he's at least a highly-skilled surgeon.
* NiceGuy: Billy is one of the few genuinely good people in the show's cast. He's kind, polite, helpful, and determined despite [[ButtMonkey all the misery he endures]]. On the occasions where he loses his cool at Pete or someone else, he's usually well within his rights to do so.

* ProperlyParanoid: Apparently, Billy was right to look for conspiracy clues on his Rusty Venture [=DVDs=].

* StrangeMindsThinkAlike: As a man who was reared on space-age pop culture as a child, he shares many of Rusty's attitudes as to how super science can be applied. And also abused for the sake of RuleOfCool. Such as in the form of "mind control gas."
* SwissArmyAppendage: It has a homing function, a fire extinguisher, and it can do a grappling-hook sort of thing, but it can't retract itself and pull him along or anything useful like that, [[{{Deconstruction}} because the mechanism would be too bulky]]. Actually, after using the grappling-hook function, he apparently has a hard time reattaching it at all, and just leaves it dangling like a mini ball-and-chain for the rest of the day. And his idea to have White climb the cable doesn't work, because it's attached to his nerves and hurts.
* TeenGenius: Subverted on two occasions. First, when it is revealed that he is actually in his 30s; secondly, in a flashback showing him in his actual TeenGenius phase, he is completely overwhelmed by college-level classwork. He was smart and racked up the points on quiz shows, but he didn't really display any real-world talent until he grew up and began successfully sewing limbs onto bodies with full function.
** Also discussed when he acts as Dean and Hank's guidance counsellor - he reminds Rusty, privately, that the boys really don't have the life skills to face the real world, and you realize that he's speaking from experience.
* WardrobeFlawOfCharacterization: He and White look a little overdressed in their suits for all the ''nothing'' they're generally doing, but Billy's tie is always loose, his shirt is always untucked, and his pants are rolled up at the ankles like he couldn't find a suit that was quite teeny-tiny enough. The normal but rumpled suit-and-tie look contrasts with White, whose outfit is [[TheEighties outdated]] and eccentric but usually impeccably crisp.
* WideEyedIdealist: Certainly compared to most of the people he knows. He's enthusiastic about almost any opportunity to go on a wacky adventure, really thinks the red ball from the [[Music/DuranDuran "Is There Something I Should Know"]] video is magic, and usually looks slightly pained when White gets him to bullshit Rusty so they can jack up their fees.
-->'''Brock Samson:''' It's Level One, Billy. It's a show. He stuns you, you stun him, he vows revenge, and then you tell him that good always triumphs over evil.\\
'''Billy Quizboy:''' ''[like he really thinks he just might hear a "yes"]'' Does it?\\
'''Brock Samson:''' Of course not. Now get out there and get this crap over with. You're blocking traffic.
* YoungerThanTheyLook: While his stature gives him the silhouette of a child, he has the craggy, wrinkled face of a man in his fifties, despite still being a relatively young man of 35. This is made especially egregious when compared to Pete, who is 43 and could pass for a man a decade younger.

A hydrocephalic neurogeneticist of dubious professional accomplishment, he was once a child prodigy and often capitalizes on his pedomorphic looks to pass for one in his adulthood. His nickname stems from his reign as champion of a TV quiz show in his youth. He lives, platonically, with Pete White in a trailer that doubles as the headquarters of their startup tech business, Conjectural Technologies.

* ArchEnemy: [[RememberTheNewGuy Apparently]], Billy has a longstanding rivalry with the exceptionally rich collector/fanboy Augustus St. Cloud, who becomes his official arch-enemy at the beginning of season 5 (Augustus joined the Guild solely for this reason).

* BackAlleyDoctor: Even without a license Billy is as good, if not better, than any 'real' doctor, performing next to impossible surgeries in less than ideal conditions, including transplanting a gorilla's heart into a giant in his underwear, and attaching Dragoon's head to Red Mantle without killing either of them.
* BetterLivingThroughEvil: Because Monstroso lavishes him with gifts, amusements, a medical degree, and prostitutes during ''The Silent Partners'' as payment for helping with his unorthodox heart transplant, Billy seriously considers joining the Guild of Calamitous Intent but reconsiders it when Brock points out that as nice as Monstroso was treating him (especially in comparison to how Team Venture and the OSI does) he's ultimately a remorseless criminal who isn't going to stop hurting people if the operation is successful.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: After being pushed too far in {{Flashback}}, he managed to punch [[BadassNormal Brock Samson]] in the balls and escape from him and Col. Gathers.

A tech start-up by Dr. Venture's college friend Pete White and former child prodigy Billy Quizboy. The two are Venture's closest friends and he frequently calls on them and serves as their primary source of income. Both have since moved to New York and work in Ventech Industries' super science department under Venture.

[[folder:General]]
* AscendedExtra: Initially recurring at first, the two are cemented as main characters by Season Five. Though Rusty firmly cements that they'll never be a part of Team Venture.

** ''[[Recap/TheVentureBrosS3E3TheInvisibleHandOfFate The Invisible Hand of Fate]]''. A WholeEpisodeFlashback that focuses on the history between the two.
** ''[[Recap/TheVentureBrosS4E15TheSilentPartners The Silent Partners]]''. Where Billy is kidnapped by The Investors and the relationship between him and Pete White is put into question.
** ''[[Recap/TheVentureBrosS5E4Spanakopita Spanakopita!]]''. Where they accompany Rusty on his vacation in Spanakos.
** ''[[Recap/TheVentureBrosS6E2MaybeNoGo Maybe No Go]]''. Where we see a peek into the duo's lives as heroes.
** ''[[Recap/TheVentureBrosS7E6TheBellicoseProxy The Bellicose Proxy]]''. Where the two are trained for their next arching against St. Cloud.
* CharacterizationMarchesOn: In very early material, such as the pilot and "Ice Station Impossible", they're treated as scientific peers to people like Rusty and Richard, getting invited to big events. By the second season, this idea largely vanishes, and their science skills are downplayed in favor of focusing on surgery and computer work (which, one supposes, are still ''forms'' of science, but rather distinct from the typical brand of it in the series), with Billy not even being accredited.

* EndOfAnEra: Billy and Pete are coerced by Augustus St. Cloud into giving up their company and all their associated assets midway through season 6, and while the pair stick around to help Rusty out in New York for the remainder of the show, they can no longer officially refer to themselves as Conjectural Technologies.
* FakeRelationship: Billy's mom assumed they were in a relationship, and for some reason, he didn't feel like denying it, so now at this point they're committed to it. And she sent them a sideboard and other gifts as some sort of domestic-partnership gifts, so, win. Apparently, it doesn't take much more to keep the ruse going than just not denying it when, for instance, Colonel Gentleman refers to White as Billy's "pigmentally-challenged better half".
* HeterosexualLifePartners: To each other.
* IntergenerationalFriendship: The duo has a bit of an age gap between them.
* LikeAnOldMarriedCouple: They've lived together for almost twenty years and would do just about anything for each other, but they start bickering at the drop of a hat. Or... in ''[[Recap/TheVentureBrosS4E11AnyWhichWayButZeus Any Which Way But Zeus]]'', when a scarf is dropped to cue the start of the tragic friend-versus-friend gladiator match they're supposed to have, they instead resume the argument they'd been having earlier about whether one of them is the other's sidekick until the announcer has to yell at them to "stop fighting and fight!" It's usually the sort of extremely married bickering where they're both yelling at once so it's practically unintelligible to listen to, but they understand each other well enough to retort to something the other hasn't finished saying yet.
* ManChild: Both of them, in different ways. At one point Billy scolds White for wanting to keep [=HELPeR=] after they win him off St Cloud, because "you never even play with Robo-Bo anymore", exactly like a parent telling off a kid who wants more toys. But despite being fairly sensible and responsible, Billy gets ''really'' into make-believe and playing dress-up. And they both trick-or-treat at the Venture compound on Halloween, although it seems like they're mostly just trying to be sociable. Occasionally they act like OneOfTheKids with Hank and Dean.
* ThePeterPrinciple: Once they and Augustus St. Cloud are officially recognized as arches by both the OSI and the Guild of Calamitous Intent, their clashes (which previously had everything from giant robots and attempted murder) wind up becoming even lamer due to the constraints placed upon both parties by their new Level 1 status. Even worse, they're not allowed to use their old homemade costumes and have to make do with cruddy rental ones while their new proper (and approved) attire is being made.
* ThePiratesWhoDontDoAnything: A few episodes have pointed out that Conjectural Technologies rarely seems to... you know, be a company. They're apparently a tech startup, but the kind of technology they work with, their products, and who's buying and selling their stuff? Who knows, if they even exist. Unless you count helping out the Ventures as their business model, which it may very well be.
* SuperZeroes: They become level 1 heroes. It's a lot like {{LARP}}ing (with extra-embarrassing costumes), although Billy does genuinely believe they once saved all of pop culture since the '80s from a tragic Music/DuranDuran deficiency.
* ThoseTwoGuys: They are rarely seen separately.
* TrueCompanions: The two have stuck together for most of their adult lives and have shown to care about each other. Though, Pete White vehemently denies this. [[WhatTheHellHero Hatred calls him out on this later on]].
-->'''Pete White:''' He's not my best friend. I just work with him.\\

'''Pete White:''' I always thought of Rusty as my best friend.\\

->'''Voiced by:''' Christopher [=McCulloch=]

The "ever-popular" Pete White is an unlikely friend of Dr. Venture who attended State University with him and Baron Underbheit in the early 1980s. He is a computer scientist and lives in a trailer with Master Billy Quizboy, where the two have launched their own tech company, Conjectural Technologies. He patterns his trademark new wave look after Phil Oakey of Music/TheHumanLeague. And he's an albino.

* AFoolAndHisNewMoneyAreSoonParted: He can't hang onto money (or anything he could sell to get more spending money) for any length of time. When he was younger he blew all his savings on cocaine. These days he's apparently more interested in dumb toys, but it seems almost as compulsive. Billy usually tells him off for it (especially since it's usually really Billy's money), but does say the [=ConjectureCycle=] is "the best ten million bucks we ever spent." He also blew all their money on a bad bet back when they were younger. He's ''really'' bad with money.
* AlbinosAreFreaks: Self-describes as a "freak" in [[Recap/TheVentureBrosS3E3TheInvisibleHandOfFate "The Invisible Hand of Fate"]]. He gets a few demeaning comments from other characters related to his albinism, such as Monstroso describing Billy's home as "infested with albinos scurrying from {{UsefulNotes/Xbox}} to UsefulNotes/PlayStation" like he's a giant white rat. And characters tend not to use his name when "the albino" works just as well. St Cloud, for his part, regards him like some sort of exotic pet that belongs to Billy, until it's too much even for White's usually apathetic personality.

* BoringButPractical: One of his suggested inventions for Rusty's new super science research division in season 6 is a "silent washing machine" which in spite of how lame it sounds, apparently worked. Rusty, being something of a subdued MadScientist, is quick to wave it aside in favor of Billy's "God Gas".
* BrilliantButLazy: Heavy on the "Lazy" part. When he applies himself, he is the cast's defacto computer expert, and is able to pitch-in with Billy's surgeries and Ventech R&D later in the series. Most of his hobbies (video games, radio DJ, internet) further reflect this.

* TheEighties: Heavily influenced by the culture.
* HollywoodNewEngland: Speaks with a New England accent.
** The New England stereotype of being strangely obsessive about route optimization shows up in ''[[Recap/TheVentureBrosS3E11ORB ORB]]'', where he gets [[ComicallyMissingThePoint sidetracked]] by noticing a shortcut on a mysterious secret map.
--->"Look at that, I could save 1.3 miles if I take Ridge Street!"

* KarmaHoudini: He basically destroyed Billy's life, first ruining his reputation as a Quizboy by cheating for him, then losing both the money that Billy had been saving for college and the boy's hand by accidentally entering him in a dogfighting ring. After Billy's failed mission with the O.S.I., Brock brings him, memory wiped, into Pete's care. Over the years since, Billy has been the only competent member of their duo and, whenever Billy regains his memory, Pete takes him to have his memory wiped once again. Pete has basically avoided all consequences for his actions, aside from, well, being Pete White. It's really no wonder that Zero introduced Billy as "under the villain Pete White".
* LastNameBasis: Almost everyone just calls him "White", probably because it fits him so well. Billy and Rusty have been his closest friends for twenty years -- Billy's even shared a ''bedroom'' with him for twenty years -- and they both still address him with his surname.
* LostHimInACardgame: In "What Colour Is Your Cleansuit?", St. Cloud made Billy wager him as a prize in a trivia game. Fortunately, Billy won.
* TheMillstone: While he is ''occasionally'' useful, the series heavily implies that he's mostly holding the actually-surprisingly-competent Billy back.
* MistakenForGay: Several times, even by his best friend Billy. It gets more common when Billy's mother assumes they are a couple in season 6. And season 7 confirms the old folks on the show still think this.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: His attempt to save Rusty and the rest of the people in Ventech Tower during the Season 7 premiere results in him destroying Jonas' life support system. In all fairness, he was likely suffering a concussion as Jonas arranged for him to be knocked out by a heavy wrench so he couldn't interfere with his hack of the tower. Of course, [[KickTheSonOfABitch Jonas Sr. really had it coming.]]
* [[NotWorthKilling Not Worth Memory Wiping]]: The O.S.I/Sphinx don't bother wiping his memory whenever they wipe Billy's, due to him being, as Hunter Gathers put it, "A Lazy Bastard". (It actually works out, since White can bring Billy to them whenever he does regain his memory.)
* OlderThanTheyLook: He's roughly the same age as Rusty, Brock, Baron Ünderbheit, and the Monarch, but time's been rather kind to him. This could be a case of TruthInTelevision as Pete's albinism means he needs to take care of his skin and stay out of the sun, which has likely slowed the ageing process.
* ParasolOfPrettiness: Fits in with his general CampStraight demeanor.
** Justified in how (again) he's albino.
* ProneToSunburn: He can ''catch on fire'' in sufficiently intense direct sun. It seems depending on RuleOfFunny, though: another scene shows him after sitting out in the desert sun for who-knows-how-long and just realistically getting the sort of sunburn people go to the ER for. He sometimes carries a parasol to avoid this.
* PunnyName: An albino with the last name of "White."
* TheSlacker: Obviously he's better off sticking with indoor activities to begin with, but he usually spends his time playing video games rather than making himself useful as co-founder of Conjectural Technologies.
* ThisLooksLikeAJobForAquaman: He has excellent computer skills, having managed to keep up with the times despite the squalor he lives in, but most of the sci-fi technology in the show is analogue so they're only useful during extremely rare occasions.

A CaptainErsatz family of the ''Franchise/FantasticFour''.

A fellow super-scientist and CaptainErsatz of ''Franchise/FantasticFour'' leader Reed Richards AKA Mr. Fantastic, but much, much darker. At first, he seemed just like his counterpart... and then it was revealed his fellow members got useless, or in one case harmful, powers and that he kept them under wraps to save face. Doctor Venture won over his wife, Sally, while working with Impossible but left her behind when they left. She finally escaped with Doctor Venture's brother J.J. along with her and her son Rocket. He didn't take it well. He soon fell into a deep depression until his old buddy Phantom Limb convinced him to go over to the evil side while remaining a super scientist to the public. He became a supervillain and part of Phantom Limb's Revenge Society until it was dissolved after the destruction of Gargantua-2.

* CaptainErsatz: Of [[Franchise/FantasticFour Mr. Fantastic]].

* CaptainErsatz: Of The Invisible Woman from ''Franchise/FantasticFour''.

* CaptainErsatz: Of The Human Torch from ''Franchise/FantasticFour'', except without any control of his fire powers.

* CaptainErsatz: Of The Thing from ''Franchise/FantasticFour'', except mentally handicapped.

!The Impossibles

[[folder:General]]
A CaptainErsatz family of the ''Franchise/FantasticFour''.

* BlessedWithSuck: Each of them except for Richard gets saddled with an actively detrimental "ability".
* DarkParody: The family was exposed to a SuperEmpowering event that left 3/4 of them with severe physical ''detriments''. It negatively impacts them to the point where Sally leaves Richard who, in his despair goes into a suicidal depression and eventually turns to outright villainy. A far cry fro their inspiration.
* ExpyCoexistence: They exist in a world where the ''Fantastic Four'' is a comic book, and even went as them for Halloween one year (winning the prize for best group costume).
* TheFantasticFaux: Richard is almost a note-for-note parody of Reed Richards, down to being a scientist with rubber abilities, with his ForScience sociopathy played up. The rest of his group includes his wife Sally, who can only turn her ''skin'' invisible, Sally's mentally-impaired cousin Ned, whose skin became one giant callous, and Sally's brother Cody, who bursts into flame if his skin touches oxygen (and with no immunity to burning). The parody plays up the darker aspects of the ''FF'' and turns them up to eleven, with the team eventually falling apart and Impossible becoming an antagonist in later seasons.
* FreakLabAccident: How they all ended up with their "powers". It happens offscreen before the series and is left ambiguous about what actually took place.

[[folder:Professor Richard Impossible]]
->'''Voiced by''': Creator/StephenColbert (Seasons 1, 2 and 6), Creator/BillHader (Season 4), Peter [=McCulloch=] (The Terrible Secret of Turtle Bay)
->''(When asked by Sally about what's more important than family) "Sciiiennnceee?"''
[[quoteright:200:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/richard_impossible_1135.jpg]]

A fellow super-scientist and CaptainErsatz of ''Franchise/FantasticFour'' leader Reed Richards AKA Mr. Fantastic, but much, much darker. At first, he seemed just like his counterpart... and then it was revealed his fellow members got useless, or in one case harmful, powers and that he kept them under wraps to save face. Doctor Venture won over his wife, Sally, while working with Impossible but left her behind when they left. She finally escaped with Doctor Venture's brother J.J. along with her and her son Rocket. He didn't take it well. He soon fell into a deep depression until his old buddy Phantom Limb convinced him to go over to the evil side while remaining a super scientist to the public. He became a supervillain and part of Phantom Limb's Revenge Society until it was dissolved after the destruction of Gargantua-2.

A tech start-up by Dr. Venture’s college friend Pete White and former child prodigy Billy Quizboy. The two are Venture’s closest friends and he frequently calls on them and serves as their primary source of income. Both have since moved to New York and work in Ventech Industries' super science department under Venture.

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: His attempt to save Rusty and the rest of the people in Ventech Tower during the Season 7 premiere results in him [[spoiler:destroying Jonas' life support system.]] In all fairness, he was likely suffering a concussion as [[spoiler:Jonas arranged for him to be knocked out by a heavy wrench so he couldn't interfere with his hack of the tower. Of course, [[KickTheSonOfABitch Jonas Sr. really had it coming.]]]]

* OlderThanTheyLook: He's roughly the same age as Rusty, Brock, Baron Ünderbheit, and the Monarch, but time's been rather kind to him. This could be a case of TruthInTelevision as Pete's albinism means he needs to take care of his skin and stay out of the sun, which has likely slowed the ageing process.

* LaserGuidedAmnesia: He doesn't know how he got his metal hand. He eventually remembers… or maybe Col. Gathers wiped his memory again.

** Interestingly, while he is a capable necromancer in both the original and popular sense of the word[[note]]communing with the dead and raising the dead, respectively[[/note]], he clarifies that the actual magic of necromancy isn't his preferred practice. He explains that most terms for a magic-user have become cliché or fallen out of favor in modern times, so he simply goes by "necromancer" not to seem silly.
* NeverMyFault: Blames the Outrider's youth and persistent advances on Tatyana as the reason for her leaving him, rather than examine his own shortcomings as a husband.
* NiceGuy: Seriously, he's the nicest guy in the show. And a good dad, too, at least compared to all the other ones on the show. (…but repeatedly wiping his daughter's memories of the portal to another dimension in her closet is quite the exception to this.)

Another old friend of Dr. Orpheus, who is searching for the philosopher's stone ("as a metaphor for enlightenment") as well as a cure for AIDS. Unlike Twilight and Orpheus, it would seem that he is much less serious about his business and would rather mix business with pleasure; however, his true opinion on the Triad was revealed in the episode "Showdown at Cremation Creek", where he stated that he was more into helping the balance of the Universe than running around fighting one Super-Villain. It has been openly acknowledged that he is gay and a fan of Jimmy Buffett. He is sometimes referred to as "Al", but whether this is his real name or merely short for Alchemist is uncertain. He has an open hatred of the internet due to finding out his boyfriend was cheating on him via Website/MySpace. At least that's what he thinks happened after an O.S.I. mindwipe. [[spoiler:Actually, ''he's'' the one who broke up with his boyfriend after he met Shore Leave.]]

-->'''The Alchemist''': ''"But being a magic superhero that keeps chasing the same guy? It’s completely gay. And that is coming from a guy that voluntarily has sex with men!"''

* WillTheyOrWontThey: With Shore Leave in "Operation P.R.O.M." [[spoiler:They did.]]
* WouldHurtAChild: Downplayed. He initially balks at the idea of punching Dermott, knowing he's just a mouthy teenager, but then the kid presses his luck.

* PowerPerversionPotential: He turns into Catherine the Great's horse so that he can [[strike:re-enact Catherine's supposed sexual encounter with it]] teach Orpheus a lesson about biting off more than he can chew, turns into Cerberus to [[strike:lick his own genitals and talk at the same time]] teach Orpheus a lesson about being a stuffy know-it-all, and takes the form of [[spoiler:Orpheus's ex-wife]] to [[strike:enjoy the curvy, sexy body]] hit Orpheus where it hurts the most. His shapeshifting always has a purpose and a point, but he milks the Perversion Potential as much as he can.

* LaserGuidedAmnesia: [[spoiler: Whenever she finds the portal to the Burning Nowhere in her closet her father erases her memories of it. The Master eventually points this out to her and she doesn't tell her father about her latest visit.]]
* LimitedWardrobe: She always wears the same outfit, which is later [[JustifiedTrope justified]] because her father put a portal to a mystical realm in her closet and she has nightmares as a result, [[spoiler:seeing as she can venture into the closet to see the Master like her father, but Dr. Orpheus keeps wiping her memory every time she reveals the truth to him]].
* MissingMom: Eventually [[spoiler:leaves the Venture Compound to study magic with her mother.]]
* NotSoStoic: She seems to be an apathetic goth girl in the first season, taking her father's LargeHam tendencies and necromantic powers in stride along with the catastrophic super science escapades of the Ventures next door, but [[spoiler:the thought of Dean and Hank brought back from the dead by sorcery reduces her to trembling and tears.]]

* PerkyGoth: A phenomenally well-adjusted example, especially for the daughter of a high-level, NiceGuy, LargeHam sorcerer. As of season four, she [[spoiler:[[PutOnABus leaves to study magic herself]]]], but her personality remains the same.

* CorruptedCharacterCopy: Is very clearly one of Reed Richards, otherwise known as [[ComicBook/FantasticFour Mr. Fantastic]]. He's basically Reed devoid of all empathy and completely selfish, and a complete burden to society rather than a benefit to it. Hilariously, he actually predates a lot of Marvel's own deconstructions of Reed, like his extremely selfish [[spoiler: turned supervillain]] Ultimate universe counterpart, and the Council of Reeds.
* {{Deconstruction}}: His turn to the dark side is itself a deconstruction of the idea that HeroWithAnFInGood is better suited to being a villain as the same traits that made him a bad hero, such as his lack of empathy and absent mindedness, continue to hamper him in his new career path.
* DistinguishedGentlemansPipe: Usually seen with one [[spoiler:Eventually changes it for one that looks like a skull as part of his EvilCostumeSwitch]]

* HeelFaceRevolvingDoor: In the first two seasons he identifies as a "good guy" despite being very despicable. In season three, after Sally leaves him, he crosses the DespairEventHorizon and at least has enough good in him to attempt a HeroicSacrifice. Then in season four, he joins Phantom Limb's Revenge Society and embraces his inner evil. [[spoiler:Then in the special ''All This and Gargantua-2'', he leaves the Revenge Society after his ex-wife convinces him to leave with her instead of dying on the space station.]]

* NotSoHarmlessVillain: While his lack of experience has kept him from being an effective supervillain thus far, it must be remembered that this is the same person who has devised a biological agent capable of turning living creatures into bombs and has harnessed [[spoiler:his brother-in-law's self-combustion powers]] to provide Impossible Industries with enough free electricity to go completely "green", all of which occurred before he decided to become a real supervillain.

* VillainDecay: Starts as a [[KnightOfCerebus pretty intimidating presence]] but after his TraumaCongaLine and Creator/StephenColbert [[TheOtherDarrin being replaced by]] Creator/BillHader he became about as ineffective as the shows other villains. [[spoiler:Thankfully [[EvilMentor Henry Killinger]] then showed up.]]

* PetTheDog: [[spoiler:She still hates Richard, but saves him anyway cause he's Rocket's dad.]]
* PutOnABus: After "All This and Gargantua 2", she takes her [[spoiler:share of Jonas Jr.'s inheritance]] and goes elsewhere.

* YankTheDogsChain: She finally escapes her abusive husband, ends up with a man who truly loves and appreciates her [[spoiler:only for the said man to die just a few years later, leaving her only with her young child and mentally handicapped cousin.]] Though, this is mainly downplayed as she [[spoiler:was still given a huge amount of inheritance money, and is now the current owner of Spider Skull island]]. So her life is still leaps and bounds better than it was when we first saw her in the series.

* PutOnABus: She moved in with her mother to study magic.

* PerkyGoth: Phenomenally well-adjusted for the daughter of a high-level sorcerer.
** She's now studying magic herself, but her personality remains the same.

* KarmaHoudini: He basically destroyed Billy's life, first ruining his reputation as a Quizboy by cheating for him, then losing both the money that Billy had been saving for college and the boy's hand by accidentally entering him in a dogfighting ring. After Billy's failed mission with the O.S.I., Brock brings him, memory wiped, into Pete's care (though Pete apparently felt horrible enough about it to attempt suicide before Billy had arrived). Over the years since, Billy has been the only competent member of their duo and, whenever Billy regains his memory, Pete takes him to have his memory wiped once again. Pete has basically avoided all consequences for his actions, aside from, well, being Pete White. It's really no wonder that Zero introduced Billy as "under the villain Pete White".