Line #39 Characters/DorkDiaries


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3	%%% Zero-context examples are not allowed and they have been commented out
4	%%% Don't uncomment them unless you provide proper context and explain how the characters fit the tropes.
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6	%%% Labels ("she is type II of this trope") are also zero-context examples.
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10
11	[[foldercontrol]]
12
13	[[folder:Nikki J. Maxwell]]
14	[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/f91ee6ac_398a_4be0_bf52_9ec2961e2d5a.png]]
15	The protagonist of the story, an unpopular and utterly unlucky teenage schoolgirl who narrates her wacky daily life, usually on the topics of her family, her schooling, her crush, and other exotic events.
16	----
17	* AesopAmnesia: Despite the fact that, at the end of each story, she learns that she should [[BeYourself be proud for being a dork]], the next book will always start with her being ashamed of it.
18	* AlmostKiss: [[spoiler:Happens twice between her and Brandon. They get interrupted by [=MacKenzie=] both times. They do get a real kiss between those two scenes though.]]
19	* {{Animesque}}: The Dork Dairies have anime drawing style supposedly because Nikki's an artist.
20	* BadLiar: Every time she has to think of a lie on the spot, chances are she'll come up with something completely ridiculous, such as having to take care of a sick unicorn. Some people believe her anyway.
21	* BadlyBatteredBabysitter: Whenever she has to babysit Brianna, she ends up this way. Something always ends up burned, broken or ruined (including Nikki's reputation).
22	* BrattyTeenageDaughter: [[ZigZaggingTrope Zig-zagged]]. She isn't shown insulting her parents in their faces or getting into fights with them, but doesn't really share the desire to bond with her family and writes about how much they annoy her in the diaries. {{Justified\|Trope}}, considering how odd and annoying they can be.
23	* BrutalHonesty: Subverted as she often says something brutally honest, and then admits "but I just said that inside my head, so no one heard it but me."
24	* BuffySpeak: Doesn't always know the correct word for something and ends up using "thingy", like calling a fake wireless headset (made out of a hearing aid) a "faux cell phone thingy".
25	* ButtMonkey: A lot of bad things tend to happen to Nikki in each book on an almost every page basis.
26	* CatchPhrase:
27	** "but I just said that inside my head, so no one heard it but me." whenever she is saying something, but is actually just thinking it.
28	** "Calling [=MacKenzie=] a mean girl is an understatement. [[MadLibsCatchPhrase She is a [insert dangerous animal] in [insert two fashionable items]!"]]
29	** "I just HATE it when [=MacKenzie=] sashays!" whenever she sees [=MacKenzie=] strut out of the scene in a fashionista-like manner.
30	* DeadpanSnarker: Her comebacks to [=MacKenzie=] definitely qualify, and she shows shades of this around others too.
31	* DiscoSucks: She really hates it when her dad plays his disco cds.
32	* DoesNotLikeSpam: She hates pickles.
33	* DramaQueen: She has a tendency to freak out over minor problems and panic too much. Her lively imagination doesn't help either. [[DownplayedTrope To her credit]], she is careful not to insult people out loud or hurt others' feelings for the most part and she is able to get over small things eventually.
34	* EatingLunchAlone: She's a loner and is seen eating alone at school before meeting Zoey and Chloe in gym class.
35	* EyePop: Her eyes fly out of their sockets when she imagines she'll get to meet-and-greet the hottest boy bands in the universe.
36	* FatalFlaw: Pretty much the flaws any teenage girl would have. She is insecure about her appearance and attention she gets from the people around her. She is also shy, overdramatic, vulnerable, and quite sensitive about many things. She also has a tendency to believe that she doesn't need, or rather can't get, help or support from others so she spends a good majority of the books struggling alone.
37	* FirstPersonSmartass: Prone to snarky remarks, but she rarely (if ever) says them out loud.
38	* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: The Responsible to Brianna's Foolish
39	* GeniusDitz: Nikki is not the brightest bulb in the shed… but she's a very talented artist, and her illustrations are one of the most entertaining parts of the series. However, one of her blog entries says that she is normally a good student...[[BrilliantButLazy when she needs to be]].[[note]]Actually done by Rachel Russell herself, and occasionally her daughter, also named Nikki.[[/note]]
40	* GirlishPigtails: Her most common hairstyle, likely to emphasize her youthful and teenage status.
41	* GymClassHell: Gym is easily her worst subject. Most her awkward, embarrassing or frustrating moments that happen in class here, from being PickedLast to failing at ice skating, having to deal with a SmallNameBigEgo karate teacher, or [[ItMakesSenseInContext almost drowning in four feet of water]].
42	* HairTriggerTemper: The tone in which she writes her diaries can be quite angry sometimes. She also panics very easily.
43	* HappyDance: She does a happy dance whenever she’s pleased, which she calls her "Snoopy happy dance".
44	* HiccupHijinks: At one point in ''Tales From a Not-So-Popular Party Girl'', she and her family go to a funeral but she gets the hiccups to the point it's constantly interrupting a guy's euology.
45	* HypocriticalHumor: At the very beginning of the first book she swears she'll never write in her diary again. [[GilliganCut Cut to her next entry two days later.]] To be fair, [[HypocrisyNod she admits to being hypocritical]].
46	* HypocrisyNod: Sometimes, Nikki makes hypocritical remarks in her diary, but she quickly admits the hypocrisy.
47	* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: She's somewhat bratty, shallow, easily annoyed, and can be overly dramatic. But she is overall a sweet-natured girl who loves her friends and family.
48	* LargeHam: She has tendency to yell out and use all-caps when writing.
49	* LockedInTheBathroom: She often locks herself there when she's upset and/or very embarrassed.
50	* MeaningfulName: Her name means [[BilingualBonus "diary" in Japanese]].
51	* MysteriousMiddleInitial: Her full name is Nikki J. Maxwell. We never find out what the J stands for.
52	* NightmareSequence: Has one in ''Tales From a Not-So-Popular Party Girl'' [[ItMakesSenseInContext where she imagines herself being chocolate and people are eating her]]
53	* ObliviousToLove: Simply doesn't get that Brandon ''clearly'' likes her back - not even when [[spoiler:he kisses her]].
54	* OnlySaneMan: Nikki tries to make herself out to be reasonable and she feels other people are idiots. Although she shows NotSoAboveItAll tendencies.
55	** When it comes to [[AmazinglyEmbarrassingParents her]] [[{{Cloudcuckoolander}} family]], she definitely counts.
56	%% * ProtagonistCenteredMorality
57	%% * NaiveEveryGirl - Yup
58	* SingleWomanSeeksGoodMan: Falls for Brandon because he is sweet and kind to her.
59	* SmittenTeenageGirl: Acts this way towards Brandon.
60	* SurroundedByIdiots: Usually has this mindset when she feels desperate or everyone annoys her.
61	%% * {{Tsundere}}: Type II toward Brandon
62	* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Nikki really likes to eat Wing-Dings. Recent books also point out she usually gets red velvet cupcakes at the Cupcakery.
63	* TrueCompanions: With Chloe and Zoey. No matter what happens, they remain friends.
64	* TwiceShy: With Brandon. They've been in love with each other for over eight months and both just don't get that the other likes them back.
65	[[/folder]]
66
67	[[folder:Brandon Roberts]]
68	[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/514462a5_f4e3_4e8e_ac67_cb0897b402d8.png]]
69	Nikki's LoveInterest. He appears charming and handsome, but he's also a lovable dorky guy. He works as a school reporter.
70	----
71	* AlmostKiss: [[spoiler:Happens twice between him and Nikki. They get interrupted by [=MacKenzie=] both times. They do get a real kiss between those two scenes though.]]
72	* GreenEyedMonster: In ''Not-So-Secret Crush Catastrophe'', when Nikki starts spending time with Andre.
73	* HeroesLoveDogs: He loves the dogs at Fuzzy Friends and wants them all to find nice, caring homes. When Fuzzy Friends has no room for Holly and her puppies he is genuinely upset at the thought that she might get into a different shelter without a no-kill policy.
74	* NiceGuy: One of the friendliest characters in the series.
75	* OnlySaneMan: Brandon is the most adjusted of the cast as his friends tend to be either [[{{Cloudcuckoolander}} Cloudcuckoolanders]] or NotSoAboveItAll.
76	* ParentalAbandonment: He's living with his grandparents. [[spoiler:His parents died sometime before the series.]]
77	* SatelliteLoveInterest: He's a NiceGuy, he works at Fuzzy Friends and he's Nikki's LoveInterest... and that's about all we know about him.
78	* SchoolNewspaperNewshound: He is the photographer for the school newspaper.
79	* TwiceShy: With Nikki. They clearly like each other, but they just can't muster the courage to ''tell'' each other. [[spoiler:He did finally muster the courage to kiss her in ''Not-So-Glam TV Star'' though. Which doesn't mean that they're dating now.]]
80	* WomenAreWiser: Inverted; he is the most sane character in the book
81	[[/folder]]
82
83	[[folder:Chloe Christina Garcia]]
84	[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/f1307af5_b674_44d2_86e2_ae6d49bb5ca6.png]]
85	One of Nikki's classmate and Best Friends Forever. Chloe is an avid reader of young adult's romantic novels. She claims to be a dating expert.
86	----
87	* BetaCouple: With Marcus in ''Not-So-Happy Heartbreaker''. It's not clear what became of them after the Sweetheart Dance though.
88	* BewareTheNiceOnes: Usually very nice. However, she will gladly put the beatdown on anyone who lies or hurts her friends, unless stopped or restrained.
89	* {{Bookworm}}: Owns over 900 books and has read most of them twice. She's also often seen raving about the newest [[ShowWithinAShow YA]] [[StylisticSuck novels]].
90	* BrutalHonesty: She and Zoey are always quick to tell Nikki when her plans or ideas kind of suck.
91	* DivergentCharacterEvolution: She and Zoey used to be treated as one similar, inseparable pair, but now it's becoming clear that she's the silly one of the duo.
92	* MotorMouth: As pointed out when she appears as Goldilocks in ''Not-So-Happy Ever After''.
93	* PuppyDogEyes: She and Zoey make a few in ''Tales From a Not-So-Popular Party Girl''
94	* ShipperOnDeck: She supports the Nikki-Brandon pairing.
95	* SpicyLatina: She's more temperamental than Zoey and willing to beat up anyone who messes with her friends.
96	* StraightManAndWiseGuy: Wise Guy to Zoey's Straight Man, especially in later books. Out of the two of them she's clearly the goofier one.
97	* ThoseTwoGuys: With Zoey. Especially in the early books, when they had very little personality difference.
98	* TrueCompanions: With Nikki and Zoey. They're friends no matter what.
99	[[/folder]]
100
101	[[folder:Zoeysha Ebony "Zoey" Franklin]]
102	[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/53a520f4_9dda_4224_88a4_46442808fa32.png]]
103	One of Nikki's classmates and Best Friends Forever. She loves reading self-help guides and knows a lot of quotes that she sometimes uses to cheer up her friends, or when she doesn't know what else to say.
104	----
105	* AmbiguouslyBrown: In ''Tales From A Not So Popular Party Girl'', it is remarked that she looks ''a lot'' like Beyoncé, who is mixed.
106	* BetaCouple: With Theo in ''Not-So-Happy Heartbreaker''. There's no mention of their budding relationship after that though.
107	* BrutalHonesty: She and Chloe are always quick to tell Nikki when her plans or ideas kind of suck.
108	* CelebrityResemblance: She claims to looks like Beyonce in ''Tales From a Not-So-Popular Party Girl''
109	* CloudcuckoolandersMinder: She tries to keep Chloe in check, who seems to become more goofy with every new book.
110	* DivergentCharacterEvolution: In the beginning she and Chloe seemed very similar, but it turns out she's usually the more mature of the duo.
111	* PuppyDogEyes: She and Chloe make a few in ''Tales From a Not-So-Popular Party Girl''
112	* ShipperOnDeck: She would love if her friend Nikki and her love interest Brandon became a couple.
113	* StraightManAndWiseGuy: Quickly becoming the Straight Man to Chloe's Wise Guy. She's more mature than her friend and keeps an eye on her and her antics.
114	* ThoseTwoGuys: With Chloe. Especially in the early books, when they had very little personality difference.
115	* TrueCompanions: With Nikki and Chloe. No matter what happens they remain friends.
116	[[/folder]]
117
118	[[folder:[=MacKenzie=] Hollister]]
119	[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/b3e79684_a32a_40e9_b9f9_228ad4d07bc5.png]]
120	The most popular girl in Westchester Country Day middle school. She’s an AlphaBitch who leads the CCP (Cute, Cool & Popular) and the main antagonist of the story.
121	----
122	* AbhorrentAdmirer: Mackenzie is completely obsessed with Brandon and will do anything to make him her boyfriend, even though he makes it clear that he doesn't like her back because of her nasty attitude and the way she treats his friends and other people in general.
123	* AlphaBitch: She's the most popular girl at school and she's quite mean to Nikki and others.
124	* BeautyIsBad: She's very attractive but is also a [[ManipulativeBitch manipulative]], cruel AlphaBitch.
125	* CatchPhrase:
126	** She frequently says "OMG" and "hon".
127	** In ''Not-So-Dorky Drama Queen'': "Yay me!"
128	* CheatersNeverProsper: Her attempts at CripplingTheCompetition are always doomed to fail, and some end up backfiring on her to boot.
129	* ConsummateLiar: She lies ''all the time'' to get what she wants or humiliate Nikki. Most people (read: everyone except for Nikki and Brandon, and sometimes the rest of their group) believe her.
130	* CripplingTheCompetition: Very fond of doing this -- [[HoistByHerOwnPetard not that it works]]. Both her attempt to keep Nikki out of the talent show and [[spoiler:the time she steals Nikki, Chloe and Zoey's skating costumes]] don't work as planned. [[spoiler:Locking her competition in a storage closet almost did, though...]]
131	* CuteButCacophonic: Mackenzie certainly is very pretty. However, according to Nikki, she has a screechy, nasally voice, as revealed in one of the website's blog posts.
132	* ADayInTheLimelight: ''Tales from a Not-so-Dorky Drama Queen'', after stealing Nikki's diary and writing in it.
133	* DidntThinkThisThrough: [[spoiler:In the fourth book, she switches Nikki and her friends pretty outfits for the ice skating competition out for clown costumes. She also knows Nikki has problems not falling on the ice. Because of this, once Nikki goes on the ice dressed in her clown costume and falls, the audience thinks she's doing it on purpose and loves it and they win the competition.]]
134	* DramaQueen: Mackenzie is a Drama Queen to the max, and she is proud of it.
135	* EstablishingCharacterMoment: Her first appearance has [[MakeWayForThePrincess a path immediately clearing for her]] as people shout out compliments to her.
136	* EvilLaugh: She is often described as cackling like a witch.
137	* TheFashionista: Throughout the series she is always commented on for her fashionable looks. She has even shown an interest in making fashions as a career.
138	* GirlPosse: She has a group of avid followers, the most prominent member being her best friend Jessica.
139	* HostileShowTakeover: Does one in the ninth book, thanks to her stealing Nikki's diary and writing in it for some time.
140	* HoistByHerOwnPetard: Most of her plans to ruin Nikki end up backfiring on her. [[spoiler:The one time she does defeat Nikki in the talent show, the latter's band gets a record deal out of it.]] Also, her plan of publishing an embarrassing video of herself on the Internet really bit her in the behind. This is because it made her a target of bullying at North Hampton Hills International Academy.
141	* HypocriticalHumor: Mocks her mother for being "totally addicted to lipstick" when she's pretty addicted to lip ''gloss'' herself.
142	* ItsAllAboutMe: She's not above lying, manipulating or cheating to get her way. The reason why she messes with Nikki so much is because she sees her as a rival.
143	* KarmaHoudini: Sometimes, she can get away with a few of her rotten schemes:
144	** She sends Nikki a fake tuition fee, making Nikki think she'll be kicked out of the school if she doesn't pay it. This would get ''anyone'', rich or not, suspended or expelled. No one finds out about this and Nikki doesn't tell anyone.
145	** Mackenzie not only steals Nikki's identity once, but ''twice''. She gets away with the first one because Nikki's friend guilt trips Nikki into not getting her arrested despite the fact that Mackenzie herself almost got Nikki and her friends arrested. Then, she steals Nikki's persona as Miss-Know-It-All when she stole her diary, sending malicious and hurtful replies to the students who sent her the anonymous notes. She gets away with ''this'' one because Nikki feared that if she gave the diary to her school, they'll read all the escapades Nikki and her friends had in the janitor's closet and spend the rest of their school time in detention since being caught in the janitor's closet is three day's detention.
146	* KarmaHoudiniWarranty: That being said, she's not entirely immune from karma.
147	** During her party in ''Tales From a Not-So-Popular Party Girl'', she and Jessica flip a plate of fruit onto Nikki's dress but one of them ends up in a chocolate fountain. Shortly later, she and Jessica try to get their picture taken by the fountain but it explodes on them from the fruit piece clogging it up.
148	** [[spoiler:In ''Tales from a Not-So-Happily Ever After'', she is forced to clean to gym bathrooms. And, to her disgust, [[CreepyCockroach roaches]] infest them.]]
149	** After transferring schools, she's subjected to the same kind of bullying she put Nikki through.
150	* MakeWayForThePrincess: Literally happens in the first book, where Nikki witnesses everyone moving to get out of her way.
151	* ManipulativeBitch: She manipulates everyone and their mothers to get her way.
152	* MirrorCharacter: Aside from the fact that one is rich, snobby and popular while the other is a normal friendly dork, she and Nikki have quite a lot in common (such as their relationships with their younger sisters). Their diary-writing styles are similar too, and both of them started out thinking writing in diaries is lame but ended up getting addicted to it themselves. Also, they're both drama queens and act bratty and shallow, although Nikki is the less bratty and shallow of the two.
153	* MomentKiller: She has a habit of ruining many a Nikki/Brandon moment and [[spoiler:even interrupts two AlmostKiss scenes]].
154	* {{Narcissist}}: She knows she is beautiful and is not afraid to let everyone (especially Nikki) know it.
155	* ProudBeauty: She's very proud of her looks.
156	* RichBitch: Mean and very rich; her father owns a large company and Nikki claims that she spends "twice the gross national product of a small third-world country" on clothes every month.[[note]]Nikki was probably exaggerating, but still.[[/note]]
157	* SitcomArchNemesis: Seems to view Nikki as this. She goes out of her way to humiliate her, even ''before'' Nikki does anything to deserve that hatred (aka [[GreenEyedMonster jealousy]]).
158	* UnreliableNarrator: In ''Not-So-Dorky Drama Queen''. She tells her version of events that happened in the previous books, and it's very different from Nikki's version of the story. How much she actually believes and how much she's just making up is up for debate, she and Nikki may have been spending a lot of time trying to spite each other from behind-the-scenes.
159	* VillainEpisode: She's a cruel AlphaBitch who serves as the protagonist for most of ''Tales from a Not-so-Dorky Drama Queen''.
160	[[/folder]]
161
162	[[folder:Brianna Maxwell]]
163	[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/9e098339_c539_4905_a0dc_fe6152b6c740.png]]
164	Nikki's playful younger sister. Usually the source of her older sister's annoyance. She likes playing around with her hand puppet, Ms. Penelope.
165	----
166	* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: Her [[{{Cloudcuckoolander}} wacky antics]] and overactive imagination drive [[BadlyBatteredBabysitter Nikki]] insane on a regular basis.
167	* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: She believes unicorns are real, thinks the Tooth Fairy wants to steal all her teeth, and is a neverending source of wacky plans and ideas.
168	* DreadfulMusician: Sometimes, she tries to sing like a famous pop star, but to put it simply, she's not really good at it and can't sing on-key.
169	* GirlishPigtails: Wears them just as much as her sister.
170	* FairyGodmother: Book 8, where her fairy-tale land counterpart plays this to Nikki. She's as ditzy as her real self.
171	* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: The Foolish to Nikki's Responsible
172	* GenkiGirl: Very cheerful and energetic, much to Nikki's dismay.
173	* InnocentlyInsensitive: Has a habit of saying quite rude things to people and being surprised when they get mad. Nikki wonders if she's really this or if she just enjoys messing with her.
174	* ImaginaryFriend: Her talking hand, Ms. Penelope.
175	* LethalChef: When she makes chocolate pudding, she not only adds egg shells to the mixture along with the eggs, she also insists on putting it in the ''oven'' instead of the fridge. She ''does'' learn to make caramel popcorn balls, however.
176	* LittleGirlsKickShins: She kicks [=MacKenzie's=] shin [[ItMakesSenseInContext when mistaking her for the tooth fairy]].
177	* NeverMyFault: She blames Miss Penelope for all of her shenanigans, such as stealing snacks or doodling on a poster in her ballet school.
178	* NighttimeBathroomPhobia: In the first book, due to [[WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes Brianna's fear of fairies]], she refuses to use the bathroom at night until Nikki makes sure there are no fairies in there.
179	* NoIndoorVoice: Like other young children her age, she sure likes to yell a lot.
180	* PuppyLove: Possibly with Oliver in ''Not-So-Happy Heartbreaker''.
181	[[/folder]]
182
183	[[folder:Tiffany Blaine Davenport]]
184	A phone-obsessed AlphaBitch who attends the prestigious school North Hampton Hills International Academy. She becomes enemies with Nikki and [=MacKenzie=].
185	----
186	* AlphaBitch: So much to the point Nikki believes she out-[=MacKenzies MacKenzie=]
187	* BitchInSheepsClothing: At first she seems like a NiceGirl and even gave Nikki a massive hug. She's really an AlphaBitch who is even meaner than Mackenzie though.
188	* EvilRedhead: She has red hair and is even meaner than Mackenzie.
189	* MakeWayForTheNewVillains: She is introduced in Book 11, who in Nikki's words, out-[=MacKenzies MacKenzie=].
190	* PhoneaholicTeenager: Tiffany is completely obsessed with selfies and cell phones, and uses them to bully people.
191	* ProudBeauty: Big time; the reason she is so preoccupied with selfies is because she feels she wants to capture her "exquisite beauty".
192	[[/folder]]
193
194	[[folder:Andre]]
195	A French exchange student who develops an interest in Nikki. He is Tiffany's stepbrother.
196	[[/folder]]
197

Context Characters / DorkDiaries