Line #156 Characters/ADogsPurpose


1	Characters from the book ''Literature/ADogsPurpose'', its sequel ''A Dog's Journey'', and their respective [[Film/ADogsPurpose film adaptations]].
2	----
3	[[foldercontrol]]
4
5	[[folder:The Boss Dog (Toby/Bailey/Ellie/Tino/Bear/Buddy/Molly/Big Dog/Max)]]
6	!!!'''Voiced by:''' Creator/JoshGad
7	A dog who goes through various lives trying to find their purpose. They serve as the protagonist and the narrator.
8	----
9	* AbledInTheAdaptation: Ellie in the film never received her CareerEndingInjury that ruined her nose. [[spoiler:She died before that could happen]].
10	* AdaptationalAngstUpgrade: Inverted. He doesn't angst about repeatedly being reincarnated in the film.
11	* AdaptationalSpeciesChange:
12	** Buddy in the book is a purebred Labrador Retriever with a well-known parentage. Quite a bit of ruckus is made over how good his stock is. In the film he's a St. Bernard and Australian Shepherd mix in a box sold out of a car.
13	** For ''A Dog's Journey'', Molly is a poodle in the book, but a beagle in the film. Also in the same book, Max is a Chorkie, but in the film, he's just a Yorkie.
14	* AdaptationDyeJob: Bailey in the book is a standard yellow-ish Golden Retriever. In the film he's a "red" Golden Retriever.
15	* AdaptationNameChange:
16	** In the film Bailey thinks his name is "Bailey-Bailey-Bailey" because Ethan kept on repeating it to him as a puppy. In the book, Bailey knows his name is just "Bailey".
17	** Bear is named "Waffles" in the film.
18	** Unlike the books, where Buddy maintains his name between books, the films have Ethan rename him "Bailey" after realizing who he is.
19	* AngryGuardDog: In his life as Max, a Chihuahua/Yorkie mix, Bailey takes on this role: he's particularly aggressive because he wants to show that even though he's tiny, he can still protect his girl.
20	* BigEater: The protagonist likes to eat a lot and is food-motivated, with Tino from the film being ''especially'' fond of eating.
21	* BigFriendlyDog: Most of his incarnations are large breeds. He is a very friendly dog and only becomes kinder and more mature with each reincarnation.
22	* BuryYourDisabled: Toby gained a paw injury in a fight. The shelter was too crowded, so he was considered unadoptable and gassed.
23	* CanonForeigner: The films give him two more incarnations. ''A Dog's Purpose'' introduces Tino, a corgi incarnation between his lives as Ellie and Buddy, while ''A Dog's Journey'' has Big Dog, a mastiff from between his lives as Molly and Max.
24	* CareerEndingInjury: As Ellie (in the book), her career as a rescue dog was cut short after [[spoiler:an injury during a rescue ruined her sense of smell]]. She later retired and began working with children and seniors.
25	* ChasteHero:
26	** In the books, being neutered kills all sex drive for him and thus he isn't interested in mating. Because he's neutered (or spayed in the case of the female incarnations) quickly in every life, he doesn't even know what mating ''is''. He thinks it's a "game" and refers to his humans doing it as them "playing".
27	** Averted in the film. Tino falls for a dog named Roxy. They do, however, have a [[ChastityCouple chaste romance]] with no sexual interest implied.
28	* CradleToGraveCharacter: ''A Dog's Purpose'' stars a dog from birth to death over and over again. He goes through several {{reincarnation}}s over the book and its sequel.
29	* DeathByAdaptation: In the book [[spoiler:Ellie's first handler Jakob]] was shot but survived. [[spoiler:Ellie]] died years later of natural causes. In the film [[spoiler:''Ellie'']] was shot and died.
30	* DeathOfAChild: He dies as an adolescent in his first life.
31	* DemotedToExtra: Toby appears for all of five minutes in the film and isn't even named.
32	* DiesDifferentlyInAdaptation: In the books, Ellie dies of old age. In the film, [[spoiler:she's shot in her prime]].
33	* DogStereotype: He started life presumably as a mutt, but doesn't display many stereotypes as Toby. As Bailey he is a friendly Golden Retriever, as Ellie he is a heroic German Shepherd, and as Buddy he is a sweet Labrador Retriever. Tino the Corgi sees it as his ''job'' to be funny and thus amuse Maya, in keeping with that breed's PluckyComicRelief image. Additionally, like many/most corgis, he is ''very'' food motivated. Max is a snappy Chihuahua/Yorkie, fitting the "yappy aggressive dog" stereotype associated with both breeds.
34	* EmbarrassingNickname: He dislikes being referred to as "fella" due to bad attachments with the term.
35	* FantasticRacism: The protagonist's [[AnimalJingoism dislike for cats]] borders on this. He considers cats purposeless animals who aren't good for anything. Even when his owner has cats, he never bonds with them and at most just tolerates them.
36	* GenderBender: Most of the time, he's male; however, he has had a few female reincarnations.
37	* HeroicDog:
38	** As Bailey he helps his owner through the woods when he's lost.
39	** As Ellie, he's a certified rescue dog.
40	** As Buddy, he rescues CJ from a rampaging horse.
41	** As Molly, he saves CJ from being attacked by Sean by biting Sean on the leg.
42	** As Max, he alerts Trent to his cancer.
43	* IHaveManyNames: He's had many names over various incarnations.
44	* InnocentInaccurate: It's a recurring theme. Sometimes, he's inaccurate due to being unexperienced, but other times, it's just because some things are beyond a dog's understanding.
45	* LivingForeverIsAwesome: By the third book, Bailey has fallen into this mindset. He realizes how much he gets to help people achieve their goals and make an impact on their lives, so he gladly reincarnates again each time he dies. Meeting a female dog named Lacey who can also reincarnate and keeps bumping into him in each life also makes him happy as well, as he's never had a companion on his journey before.
46	* LoveAtFirstSight: Tino falls for Roxy from the start.
47	* MatingSeasonMayhem:
48	** In his first life, Toby lives in a compound with several other dogs. One day he notices that he's discovered a new "game" to play with his best friend, a female named Coco. She doesn't like it so much. Toby's annoyed that all the other males also want to play his new "game". As it turns out, Coco was in heat and all the males wanted to mount her. Coco, Toby, and a few other dogs are promptly neutered.
49	** As Ellie is their first female incarnation, she doesn't understand her first heat cycle. She just finds it uncomfortable and smelly. Ellie is promptly spayed after her cycle ends.
50	** In his first reincarnation in the third book, he doesn't get neutered because his owners kept putting it off, something they sheepishly admit to when it turns out he has puppies with Lacey, the female companion who keeps reincarnating along with him. Fortunately, this is the only time this happens, as both of them get responsibly neutered and spayed in each life after that before they get the chance to mate again.
51	* MisterMuffykins: Max is an aggressive Yorkshire Terrier and Chihuahua mix. It's portrayed sympathetically because Max wants to be protective of his human even despite his small size.
52	* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: Tino loves to eat pizza and junk food. When he suddenly has no interest in pizza, it means something is wrong. [[spoiler:He dies a few moments later]].
53	* ParentalSubstitute: Ellie becomes an unwilling one for Tinkerbell after the other cats die. Ellie at most only tolerates Tinkerbell, but Tinkerbell ends up very attached to her nevertheless.
54	* ReincarnationFriendship: He has a reincarnation friendship with Ethan. He meets him as a boy when he's Bailey and they meet again when [[spoiler:Ethan's a senior as Buddy]].
55	* ReincarnationIdentifyingTrait: As Buddy, he attempts to tell Ethan that he and Bailey are one and the same by spinning around and catching his tail in his mouth. In ''A Dog's Journey'', this is also how he lets Ethan in on his identity as Molly. There's also the trick where he jumps off Ethan's back, which ultimately clues Ethan in on his identity (and in ''A Dog's Journey'', CJ).
56	* RunningGag:
57	** In the book he gets neutered/spayed every reincarnation and gets put into a ConeOfShame.
58	** In the film he gets needles and complains about them.
59	* SeenItAll: By his last life in the second book, Bailey is completely zen about everything around him after seeing so much in his many reincarnations. He doesn't get surprised by much and doesn't have strong emotional reactions to anything, which makes him the perfect dog to be trained as a therapy dog for hospice. (Keep in mind, doing the math, he's probably lived longer over all his lives combined than some elderly ''humans'' have, so he's got a vast pool of life experience at this point.) This carries over to the third book, where nothing really riles him up no matter what situation he's in.
60	* StockAnimalName: "Bailey" is a popular name for Golden Retrievers and "Buddy" is a popular name for Labs.
61	* SupportingProtagonist: In ''A Dog's Journey''. Bailey may be the narrator, but it's ultimately CJ's story as much as it is Bailey's.
62	* TrademarkFavoriteFood: The protagonist likes food in general but is especially fond of biscuits, dog biscuits or otherwise.
63	* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior: As Buddy, he doesn't act like a normal puppy due to being heartsick over being reincarnated again. This causes him to be passed over for long past the norm. As a result, he's less money than the other puppies because he's an "unadoptable" oddity.
64	* VocalDissonance: In the films, ''all'' of Bailey's various lives, regardless of size or gender, are voiced by Josh Gad. Justified because they're all the same dog, so having all of them share the same voice gets this across.
65	* WhoWantsToLiveForever: After reincarnating as Buddy in the book, he is confused about just ''why'' he keeps on getting reincarnated. He ends up acting distant and jaded as a result, which causes him to be overlooked by potential owners. He eventually snaps out of it when he finds Ethan again.
66	[[/folder]]
67
68	[[folder:Major Characters during its Life as Toby]]
69	!!"Fast", "Sister", and "Hungry"
70	The protagonist's siblings during his first life.
71	----
72	* BigEater:
73	** Hungry was called such because he suckled more than his siblings.
74	** Fast got his name for getting to the food before Toby could start eating it.
75	* BashBrothers: Fast and Toby briefly have this while defending Sister from Spike.
76	* BigBrotherInstinct: Fast towards Sister, although the narrative is vague if it also includes an animal version of BrotherSisterIncest.
77	* BrokenBird: Sister ends up living in the wild on her own for several months. When reunited with her siblings, she's a sickly, anxious mess. Toby decides that all dogs without humans end up beaten down and miserable like her.
78	* DeathOfAChild: Hungry died not soon after they began leaving their den.
79	* DemotedToExtra: They're unnamed in the film and only appear briefly in the prologue.
80	* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: We never learn what their names were, if they were ever given any. Their names are simply what Toby refers to them as.
81	* SleepyHead: Due to his weakness, Hungry was very sleepy and inactive.
82	* TheSmurfettePrinciple: Sister was the sole female of the litter, thus her name.
83	* StrongFamilyResemblance: Toby doesn't recognize Sister at first when he sees her for the first time in months. He mistakes her for their mother until he smells her.
84	* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: While Sister is a bit malnourished and ragged, neither she nor Fast has any serious injuries or aggressive tendencies and so they presumably weren't gassed, but they also never encounter Toby in any of his later lives.
85
86	!!"Mother"
87	Toby's mother. A nameless stray dog.
88	----
89	* BrokenBird: Mother is a shy, unsociable dog due to being a stray (or possibly even a feral) dog.
90	* DemotedToExtra: Mother is all but nonexistent in the film.
91	* MissingMom: She disappears early in the book. Toby doesn't particularly mind because he was past the age where mothers leave their young.
92	* ParentalAbandonment: She runs away from Senora's place and is never seen again.
93	* SmallRoleBigImpact: She is only a passing character in Toby's first life. However her act of Parental Abandonment above shows Toby that he ''can'' escape lock-up, and does not need humans to survive, though is probably better off in human-care than out. Toby uses the gate-opening trick repeatedly through-out his lives and keeps referencing back to his first mother thanks to it.
94	* UnnamedParent: She is simply known as "Mother".
95
96	!!"Senora"
97	A woman who takes in stray dogs.
98	----
99	* AdaptedOut: She's not in the film.
100	* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: Toby hears her referred to as "senora" (Spanish for "Ms"/"Mrs") and believes that's her name. By the end of the book, he seems to have learned that "Senora" wasn't her name.
101
102	!!Coco
103	A small, wire-furred female dog who is Toby's best friend.
104	----
105	* AdaptedOut: She's not in the film.
106	* ChildhoodFriendRomance: Subverted. Toby begins displaying sexual desire towards Coco, but both end up neutered, killing any "romance" (or as close to "romance" as two dogs can get) between them before they can even understand the feelings.
107
108	!!"Top Dog"
109	A large, mastiff-type dog who is the dominant dog in the yard.
110	----
111	* AdaptedOut: He's not in the film.
112	* DogStereotype: He's a mastiff mix who, while not overly aggressive, is dominant over the other dogs.
113	* FaceDeathWithDignity: Or rather face the animal control with dignity, although given his lack of aggressiveness or crippling injury he presumably isn’t deemed un-adoptable and put to sleep.
114	* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: His real name is unknown. Toby just refers to him as "Top Dog".
115	* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Top Dog intentionally keeps an order to pack-dynamics in The Yard. Though he does take things from the other dogs, he also lets them defy him on occasion to build their character... just not about anything important.
116	* SergeantRock: He asserts himself over the other dogs, but occasionally lets others defy him, as long as it is for minor things like keeping biscuits or toy bones. When other dogs get into fights with him, he intentionally goes for the scruff of the neck to avoid serious damage while still asserting great pressure to a small area.
117
118	!!Rottie
119	The largest dog in the pack.
120	----
121	* AdaptedOut: He's not in the film.
122	* ADogNamedDog: He is a Rottweiler named "Rottie".
123
124	!!Spike
125	A large, muscular dog implied to be an ex-fighting dog.
126	----
127	* AdaptedOut: He's not in the film.
128	* AlasPoorVillain: As mentioned above he was used as a fighting dog and due to his aggressiveness he is put to sleep along with Toby.
129	* CoveredWithScars: His face is covered in scars.
130	* RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil: Zigzagged, given that we are talking about dogs, but he does show some sexual aggressiveness towards Sister and it isn’t viewed as a good thing by either her or her brothers.
131
132	! Bobby and Carlos
133	Senora's primary assistants.
134	----
135	* DiabolicalDogCatcher: Averted. Carlos and his unnamed partner do go out and capture dogs but only seem to look for strays that are having trouble surviving on their own and try to provide a good home for them.
136	* IgnoredExpert: Bobby often serves this role to his more idealistic boss, warning her that Spike will cause trouble and that they have too many dogs and the city might take them away.
137	* ThePollyanna: Carlos is usually optimistic and smiling.
138
139	[[/folder]]
140
141	[[folder:Major Characters during its Life as Bailey]]
142
143	!!Ethan Montgomery
144	!!!'''Played by:''' Bryce Gheisar (child), Creator/KJApa (teen), Creator/DennisQuaid (adult)
145	The protagonist's first owner.
146	----
147	* BrokenBird: As an old man, he regrets his life choices and lives by himself on his grandfather's farm. Buddy helps bring him out of his shell.
148	* CareerEndingInjury: He had a promising future in football. An injury caused by [[spoiler:jumping out of his burning room]] caused an end to that.
149	* CheerfulChild: As a kid, he was quite plucky.
150	* ChildhoodFriendRomance: In the book he met Hannah while at his grandfather's farm during the summer. He [[PuppyLove had a crush on her]] even then.
151	* DecemberDecemberRomance: He and [[spoiler:Hannah]] meet as seniors after having drifted apart years ago.
152	* DiesDifferentlyInAdaptation: [[spoiler:In the books, he dies of a stroke. In the films, he dies of old age.]]
153	* MayflyDecemberFriendship: He has one with Bailey. He met Bailey as an eight-year-old and Bailey lasted until his late teens to early twenties. [[spoiler:Later turned around when Bailey's reincarnation Buddy outlives him.]]
154	* OfficialCouple: With [[spoiler:Hannah]].
155	* RomancingTheWidow: [[spoiler:Hannah]]'s husband Matthew died a few years prior.
156	* SparedByTheAdaptation: Zig-zagged. Ethan dies [[spoiler:of a stroke]] at the end of the first book. He doesn't in its film adaptation, but [[spoiler: he bites the dust at the end of the second book's film adaptation]].
157
158	!!"Mom"/Elizabeth
159	!!!'''Played by:''' Creator/JulietRylance
160	Ethan's mother.
161	----
162	* DomesticAbuse: Implied. Bailey mentions them arguing a lot. [[spoiler:They end up divorcing.]]
163	* NamedByTheAdaptation: She's named "Elizabeth" in the film.
164	* UnnamedParent: Bailey doesn't know her name.
165
166	!!"Dad"/Jim
167	!!!'''Played by:''' Creator/LukeKirby
168	Ethan's father.
169	----
170	* AdaptationalJerkass: He's more abusive in the film than in the book and it's made more obvious from the start.
171	* TheAlcoholic: In the film.
172	* DomesticAbuse: Implied by their arguing. [[spoiler:They later end up divorced.]]
173	* NamedByTheAdaptation: He's named "Jim" in the film.
174	* Standard50sFather: It's hard to tell when that part of the book takes place, but it's before humans landed on the moon. He acts as Ethan's distant father.
175	* UnnamedParent: Bailey doesn't know his name.
176
177	!!Hannah
178	!!!'''Played by:''' Creator/BrittRobertson (teen), Peggy Lipton (adult, ''A Dog's Purpose''), Creator/MargHelgenberger (adult, ''A Dog's Journey'')
179	A girl who lives nearby Ethan's grandparents farm.
180	----
181	* ChildhoodFriendRomance: In the book, she met Ethan as kids and they later began dating. [[spoiler:They broke up but were reunited years later.]]
182	* DecemberDecemberRomance: Buddy reunites her with [[spoiler:Ethan]] after they broke up decades prior in high school.
183	* DemotedToExtra: She meets Ethan as a teen in the film, not as a child, and a lot of her scenes are missing.
184	* FirstGirlWins: [[spoiler:Ethan]] had other lovers, but none of them lasted. Hannah was his first girlfriend and presumably the first girl he ever liked as well.
185	* OfficialCouple: With [[spoiler:Ethan]].
186	* ShesAllGrownUp: Ethan and Bailey encounter her again when she's an adult, with her scent tiping Bailey off to her identity.
187
188	!!Todd
189	!!!'''Played by:''' Logan Miller
190	A boy who moves to the neighborhood.
191	----
192	* AdaptationalNiceGuy: He's still a jealous jerk but the film removed his more troubling behaviors like killing animals and attacking children.
193	* BadPeopleAbuseAnimals: He attempts to kill Bailey several times, kills Bailey's friend Marshmallow, and is implied to have killed Smokey.
194	* DemotedToExtra: He meets Ethan later in the film and appears far less often.
195	* GreenEyedMonster: He was friends with Ethan for a while, but they grew apart once Ethan noticed how weird Todd's behavior was. Todd is jealous of Ethan, which [[spoiler:causes him to try and kill him and his family in a fire]].
196	* LonersAreFreaks: He has no friends due to his odd behavior.
197	* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior: He displays a lot of troubling behaviors, such as playing with fire, throwing eggs at preschoolers (including his sister), and killing animals. It only gets worse as he gets older.
198	* WeUsedToBeFriends: Ethan used to be very good friends with Todd and enjoyed hanging out with him, until Ethan noticed Todd’s weird behaviour, such as him killing animals and throwing eggs at preschoolers (included his own younger sister).
199
200	!!Smokey
201	A cat that belongs to Ethan's parents.
202	----
203	* CatsAreMean: Though it's likely due to not understanding cats, Bailey considers Smokey to be good-for-nothing and mean.
204	* DemotedToExtra: He's a footnote in the film and is only ever called "the cat".
205	* KarmaHoudini: Smokey and Bailey once raided the kitchen while everyone was out. Bailey was the only one blamed, because no one suspected the cat of wrongdoing. That didn't help Bailey's animosity towards Smokey.
206
207	! Linda
208	Todd’s little sister.
209	----
210	* ChildrenAreInnocent: Zigzagged. She is a sweet little kid but being Todd’s sister seems to have affected her innocence and when he locks Bailey inside their house she quickly understands that he means to hurt him and lets Bailey out with a sense of urgency.
211	* FriendToAllLivingThings: She’s very nice to Bailey.
212	* SmallRoleBigImpact: A lot of the story wouldn’t have happened if she hadn't saved Bailey from her brother.
213
214	[[/folder]]
215
216	[[folder:Major Characters during its Life as Ellie]]
217
218	!!Jakob/Carlos
219	!!!'''Played by:''' Creator/JohnOrtiz
220	Ellie's handler. He's a jaded and aloof man.
221	----
222	* AdaptationNameChange: Jakob is renamed "Carlos" in the film.
223	* BrokenBird: He suffers from depression.
224	* CareerEndingInjury: He had been shot prior to meeting Ellie, but that didn't end his career. [[spoiler:In the book, the second time he was shot he had to retire. He ended up becoming a lawyer.]]
225	* CompositeCharacter: Carlos is one of Ellie's two handlers: Jakob and Maya. Like Maya he's latino, is a handler to Ellie, and is the one to be with her [[spoiler:when she dies]], but like Jakob he is depressed and is Ellie's first handler.
226	* RaceLift: From white to non-white latino.
227	* TheStoic: Due to his depression, he isn't expressive and isn't very emotionally attached to anything.
228
229	!!Maya
230	!!!'''Played by:''' Creator/KirbyHowellBaptiste
231	In the book she is a newbie policewoman who becomes Ellie's second partner. In the film she is a college student.
232	----
233	* AdaptationalAngstUpgrade: She's much more lonelier in the film.
234	* BigEater: In the film she starts off as a lonely college student prone to eating junk food.
235	* IntrovertedCatPerson: In the books, she starts off as a loner with several cats.
236	* KindheartedCatLover: In the book she loves cats and has three already when she brings home Ellie.
237	* RaceLift: Latino in the book, black in the film.
238	* WeightWoe: While a normal size in the book, she's not up to par for the type of job she's getting into. She has a hard time losing weight and almost quits due to thinking she's not fit for the job.
239
240	!!Stella, Tinkerbell, and Emmet
241	Maya's three cats.
242	----
243	* AdaptedOut: None are present in the film.
244	* InterspeciesFriendship: Tinkerbell has a one-sided one with Ellie.
245	* InSeriesNickname: "Tinker" for Tinkerbell.
246	* ShrinkingViolet: Tinkerbell is a shy cat.
247
248	!!Albert
249	!!!'''Played by:''' Creator/PoochHall
250	A neighbor of Maya's who has a crush on her. In the film, he is a college classmate of hers.
251	----
252	* InSeriesNickname: "Al".
253	* OfficialCouple: He and Maya end up married [[spoiler:and have a daughter named Gabriella in the book (three unnamed daughters in the film)]].
254	* TwiceShy: Al and Maya clearly like each other but it takes a long time for them to begin dating.
255
256	[[/folder]]
257
258	[[folder:Major Characters during its Life as Tino]]
259	!!Roxy
260	A female dog Tino becomes smitten with.
261	----
262	* CanonForeigner: She isn't in the book.
263	* StatuesqueStunner: She's a huge dog and Tino adores her.
264	[[/folder]]
265
266	[[folder:Major Characters during its Life as Buddy]]
267
268	!!Wendi
269	Buddy's first owner. In the book her boyfriend brought her a puppy on a whim and in the film she brought Waffles on a whim.
270	----
271	* AdaptationalJerkass: In the film most of her characterization is missing, and she's [[CompositeCharacter mixed with]] her parents. It just appears as if she brought a cute puppy on a whim, attached him to a leash in her yard, and all but ignored him after he started growing too big.
272	* AffectionateNickname: She gives Bear a series of cutesy nicknames such as "Cuddle Bear" and "Barry".
273	* CompositeCharacter: The film mixes characteristics of her and her boyfriend with her parents.
274	* DemotedToExtra: Most of her dialogue and characterization is missing from the film.
275	* MyNaymeIs: Her name is "Wendy", but with an "i" instead of the more common "y".
276	* ParentalNeglect: She loves Bear, but is woefully unprepared and clueless on how to raise a puppy.
277
278	!!Victor
279	Wendi's step-father.
280	----
281	* AdaptedOut: His role in the film is replaced with Wendi's boyfriend.
282	* AlcoholicParent: He's portrayed as a loud drunkard.
283	* BadPeopleAbuseAnimals: He's an abusive owner who keeps Bear in subpar conditions. [[spoiler:Despite this, he is unable to shoot Bear. He just lets him loose.]]
284	* DomesticAbuse: He physically abuses his wife Lisa and they frequently fight.

Context Characters / ADogsPurpose