History Characters / TheWonderYears

[[AC: The Arnold Family]]

The show’s protagonist, who spends the entire show reminiscing about his time in high school in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

* DidNotGetTheGirl: [[spoiler: In the show's closing epilogue, we learn that Kevin and Winnie parted ways and he married someone else.]]

** in "Summer Song", while Kevin is focused on pictures of himself and Teri, Teri tells him that the stuffed frog she won was "ugly, like you", though in this case she was probably trying to get his attention.

** In "Ladies and Gentlemen... The Rolling Stones", Kevin gets grounded. When the parents go out for the night, Jack tells Kevin [[ExactWords not to drive his car]], so Kevin drives Jack's car. He ends up wrecking the back of the car, and fears his parents finding out when they get back... [[spoiler: only for the person who had driven them to accidentally bump into the car before Jack could see that it was already wrecked... and then Kevin learns Norma had already wrecked it.]]

!! John "Jack" Arnold

Kevin’s father, a man of few words and short temper.

!! Norma Arnold (née Gustafson)

Kevin’s mother, a friendly and upbeat woman.

!! Karen Arnold

Kevin’s eldest sister, an opinionated, rebellious hippie.

!! Wayne Arnold

Kevin’s older brother, an insufferable bullying jerk.

* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Wayne never quite grew out of being the obnoxious older brother, but he eventually showed a BigBrotherInstinct and genuine concern for Kevin as the show went on. The episode "The Lost Weekend" is a good case in point, where Wayne [[spoiler: takes the heat for the mess caused by a huge party that Kevin threw over the weekend]].

[[AC: Kevin’s Neighbours]]

[[folder: Winnie]]
!! Gwendolyn "Winnie" Cooper

Kevin’s neighbor and main love interest throughout the show.

* BrainyBrunette: It's sort of implied that she's academically conscious throughout the series, as evidenced in "White Lies" where she's very concerned about studying for the SAT's. "The Little Women" confirms her braininess when she scores higher on her SAT's than Kevin.

[[folder: Paul]]
!! Paul Pfeiffer

Kevin’s neighbor and best friend.

!! Robert F. Kennedy Junior High School

[[folder: Mr. Diperna]]
!! Mr. Diperna

[[folder: Coach Cutlip]]
!! Coach Ed Cutlip

[[folder: Miss White/Mrs. Heimer]]
!! Mrs. Diane Heimer (née White)

[[folder: Mr. Cantwell]]
!! Mr. Cantwell

[[folder: Mr. Collins]]
!! Mr. Arthur Collins

[[folder: Randy Mitchell]]
!! Randy Mitchell

[[folder: Doug Porter]]
!! Doug Porter

[[folder: Becky Slater]]
!! Rebecca "Becky" Slater
->'''Portrayed by:''' Creator/CrystalMcKellar

[[folder: Craig Hobson]]
!! Craig Hobson

[[folder: Carla Healey]]
!! Carla Healey

Kevin's junior high school classmate and Paul’s girlfriend.

[[folder: Madeline Adams]]
!! Madeline Adams

[[folder: Chuck Coleman]]
!! Chuck Coleman

[[folder: Alice Pedermeir]]
!! Alice Pedermeir

Kevin's classmate and Chuck’s girlfriend.

[[folder: Jeff Billings]]
!! Jeff Billings

[[folder: Wart]]
!! David "Wart" Wirtshafter

!! Relatives

!! "Grandpa" Albert Arnold

Kevin’s paternal grandfather, a jovial man who constantly annoys his son Jack.

Karen’s boyfriend and eventual husband.

[[/folder]]

* {{Jerkass}}: Jack could be a complete asshole to his family when he was in a bad mood, to the point that somethimes his kids walked on eggshells around him.

* LikeParentLikeChild: Despite their differences in politics and opinions, Karen was the most like Jack of all Arnold children, being massively stubborn, opinionated and prone to yelling.
* NotSoAboveItAll: She constantly decries the capitalist and materialistic society she lives in, but when it comes time to buy a new family car, she is as exited as her brother about getting the shinny new convertible, and the one who calls her father cheap for not buying it.

->'''Portrayed by:''' Raye Birk

->'''Portrayed by:''' Wendel Meldrum

->'''Portrayed by:''' Steven Gilborn

->'''Portrayed by:''' Michael Tricario

->'''Portrayed by:''' Brandon Crane

->'''Portrayed by:''' Crystal [=McKellar=]

->'''Portrayed by:''' Sean Baca

->'''Portrayed by:''' Krista Murphy

->'''Portrayed by:''' Julie Condra

->'''Portrayed by:''' Andy Berman

->'''Portrayed by:''' David Huddleston

* {{Meganekko}}: She is never seen without her massive glasses.

Wayne's best friend who enlists in the Army,

* ShellShockedVeteran: On impulse and with few other options that they can see, Wayne and Wart sign up in the Army. Although Wayne fails his physical, Wart passes and enlists. He is sent to Vietnam immediately after completing basic training. When he comes back, his friends are envious of his experiences in Vietnam and see him as a hero, but right away it's evident that Wart is having trouble dealing with being home, as he states he doesn't want to talk about it when his friends ask if he killed anyone in combat. His likely PTSD is exacerbated when Wart is heckled as a "murderer" at the homecoming game. Kevin and Wayne find him, broken down in tears behind the bleachers and stripped to his boxers and his dog tags, where Wayne comforts him by letting him wear his shirt.