The supporting cast of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.
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Mountaintop (formerly Whitefeather and Associates)
Mrs. Hernandez
Mrs. Hernandez
Played by: Gina Gallego
...
Whitefeather and Associates' Communications Director (a joke, since she never speaks). She is friends with Paula.
- Hidden Depths: Mrs. Hernandez is surprisingly athletic, engaging in parkour/freerunning on her nights off.
- Only Sane Man: One of the very few people at Whitefeather and Associates to not get sucked into drama and craziness.
- The Silent Bob: Characters (and subtitles!) react to her as though she's speaking. Subverted later on, as she does eventually speak, but it's limited to terse moments.
- The Voiceless: As soon as she starts to say something, someone always interrupts. In "Josh and I Are Good People!," she even gets a voiceless reprise. She speaks in the second season finale onwards.
- Took a Level in Jerkass: Upon gaining a voice, Mrs. Hernandez developed an ENORMOUS attitude. The implication, though, is that she was always mean, but Rebecca's self-obsession prevented her from noticing when Mrs. Hernandez spoke.
Karen
Karen
Played by: Stephnie Weir
A case assistant at Whitefeather and Associates. Commonly referred to as "Weird Karen" around the office.
- Ambiguously Bi: She's in a relationship with an incarcerated male convict, but marvels at Rebecca's breasts when the Santa Ana winds blow Rebecca's blouse open.Karen: Wow, those are beauts!
- Bestiality Is Depraved: But then again, she might have other interests, as heavily implied with her extremely unhealthy attachment to her pet snake Long John Slither.
- Butt-Monkey: Not as bad as George, but Karen is riddled with numerous body problems, is told to shut up by numerous people and usually has something calamitous happening in her life.
- Cloudcuckoolander: Oh, is she ever. Amongst other off-putting quirks, Karen has an alias in the form of Eva Longoria (Darryl immediately pointed out that's already a real person), once started a finger-painting business on impulse (during a song!) and is in a love triangle with her boyfriend and her snake.
- The Friend Nobody Likes: Safe to say, not many of the people at Whitefeather are fond of her company. While Paula was already having a terrible girl's night with Rebecca, Heather and Valencia, she drew the line at having to be friends with Karen.
- Put on a Bus: In season 3 it's mentioned she has left the firm to become a hand model. Knowing Karen, it's hard to say whether this is just what she told everyone or if it's actually true.
- Sexier Alter Ego: Parodied and subverted with her "friend" Angelique, a French, leather-wearing purveyor of sex toys.
- Too Much Information: Prone to sharing her various bodily issues unprompted, much to her co-workers' disgust.
Maya
Maya
Played by: Esther Povitsky
An administrative assistant at Whitefeather and Associates.
- Bespectacled Cutie: She wears a huge pair of glasses and is a cute, clumsy young woman.
- Boss's Unfavorite Employee: The otherwise fairly nice Darryl seemingly picked on her for no reason. It is later clarified that he did so because Maya reminded him of himself, and they are on better terms after they sort this out.
- Butt-Monkey: At first, Darryl picks on her for no apparent reason. Subverted in season two, where she calls him on it and he apologizes and begins treating her better.
- Everyone Is Bi: She's bisexual, just like Daryl and Valencia.
- Fire-Forged Friends: Appears to be this with Darryl as of Season 2 Episode 10: she's so overworked that she regretfully has to cancel "Shirley Temples and karaoke".
- The Glasses Gotta Go: In Nathaniel's fantasy, she undergoes a makeover that involves shedding her glasses.
- Grew a Spine: At first, she just took Darryl's constant berating of her without comment. Understandable, since back then she was a new hire. By season two, she's willing to stand up for herself.
- Hopeless Suitor: She falls pretty hard for Father Brah, which, as he points out, is never going to work, since he is a priest and sworn to celibacy.Maya: Um, everything you said was super smart, and I just wanted to ask what are you doing later, and do you like oatmeal draft lattes? 'Cause I do.Father Brah: I'm a priest.Maya: I'm a Capricorn! I think this could work.
- Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: With Nathaniel in his "romcom" fantasy as she is only about five feet tall and petite while he is over six feet and muscular.
- Nerd Glasses: Sports a massive pair. She admits that they’re not prescription; she only wears them “to honour Velma from Scooby Doo.”
- Nice Girl: She seems to be a sweet, friendly girl for the most part. She's so nice that when Nathaniel has stomach trouble from eating unwashed kale and keeps breaking wind, and then not-so-subtly orders someone else to claim that they did it, Maya steps up even though everyone in the room can see it's not true. She does it again, unprompted, when he loses control of his bowels.
- Shipper on Deck: She's really invested in Darryl and White Josh's relationship.
- Straw Feminist: She's even more fond of feminist theories than Rebecca, and even less prone to being right when invoking them. Although she's different from most portrayals of the trope, seeing as that she's less of a stereotypical "man-hater," and more of a young feminist who gets a little too into it.
George
George
Played by: Danny Jolles
An employee at Whitefeather and Associates, whose name nobody can remember.
- Ascended Extra: Had very few lines and appearances in the first season. He gets a larger role when Nathaniel and the rest of the office start picking on him.
- Bumbling Sidekick: He gets very subservient and loyal to Nathaniel in Season 3, but his attempts to help him rarely turn out well.
- Butt-Monkey:
- Has been fired, reinstated, fired again, and reinstated. When he finally gets a Villain Song, it cuts to black halfway through the third line.
- Was apparently a high school classmate of Josh, Greg, and the rest, but Josh just never noticed him.
- Disproportionate Retribution: When Rebecca and Nathaniel get stuck in a lift, George says he'll let them out if they can remember his name. They can't, so he leaves them in there for (as far as he's concerned) the entire weekend. Averted when Nathaniel remembers George's name on Monday, tells him that he's finally made his mark, and fires him.
- Expansion Pack Past: He seems to have a new anecdote about his past every time the plot demands it."Okay, so, long story, my old camp counselor is the real-life guy from 127 Hours. I wasn't there for him that day in that slot canyon, and now he has no arm."
- The Generic Guy: He is this to the point that nobody can remember his name. Nathaniel tells him it's because he hasn't made his mark.
- Nice Guy: You'd have to be to become friends with Nathaniel.
- Odd Friendship: He develops one with Nathaniel.
Tim and Jim
Tim Campbell and Jim Kittsworth
Played by: Michael McMillian (Tim) and Burt Moseley (Jim)
Jim and Tim
Two lawyers at the film who are frequently seen together.- 10-Minute Retirement: Jim quits law in favor of running a pretzel shop in "I'm on My Own Path". When corporate shuts him down at the end of the episode for violating their regulations, he decides he's much happier not being in charge and returns to his old job.
- Ascended Extra: Despite being one-off 'work' characters in season one, season three has them as prominent office characters, forming something of a Greek Chorus with Maya. They even both get solo songs later in the show.
- Casanova Wannabe: Jim seems to see himself as something of a ladies' man, and is implied to have thought something was going on between him and Rebecca. Unfortunately his attempts to charm Cornelia fall completely flat.
- Dead Sparks: Tim has a entire subplot in "To Josh, With Love" devoted to his realization that he is unable to sexually satisfy his wife, and that she often sneaks off to the toilet to use a vibrator in order to climax. He even gets a song about the subject ('The Buzzing from the Bathroom')!
- The Illegal: Tim is an illegal immigrant from Canada.
- Mr. Fanservice: Jim gets a scene in swimwear that shows he is ripped which he attributes to protein shakes.
- Smug Snake: Both of them (but Tim in particular) seem to think that they're a lot cooler than they actually are and are rude and condescending to everyone because of it.
- Those Two Guys: In their initial appearances they would act as a duo, occasionally bullying Paula. Bonus points for being named rhyming, monosyllabic names.
Sunil Odhav
Sunil Odhav
Played by: Parvesh Cheena
Paula's classmate and friend from the San Dimas College School of Law. He joins the firm in season 3 as a paralegal.
- Birds of a Feather: With Paula. They bond over being friendly middle-aged parents at law school.
- Commonality Connection: Defied. Despite sharing a love of musical theater with Rebecca (with the other staff members even suggesting that they befriend each other), the two of them deeply hate each other.
Bert Buttenweiser
Bert Buttenweiser
Played by: Michael Hitchcock
An eccentric West Covina resident introduced as a star witness in Rebecca's class action lawsuit before being discredited for mental illness. Later turns up again as a member of Rebecca's therapy group before loaning her money to buy out the firm, and is installed as the boss in season four, as he also happens to be a licensed attorney.
- Ascended Extra: From a one-off character in season one to a recurring member of Rebecca's therapy group in season three to the firm's boss in season four.
- Benevolent Boss: Issues aside he is very amiable and easily wins over the rest of the employees, to Darryl's consternation.
- Bunny-Ears Lawyer: He's eccentric, to say the least, but has multiple degrees in various impressive areas, is quite wealthy due to good investments and proves to be surprisingly good at running the office.
- Conspiracy Theorist: How he is originally presented. Turns out he is 100% right about the plot to steal West Covina's hot water.
- Cloudcuckoolander: Downplayed but Justified. He suffers from Schizophrenia, but is heavily medicated and in therapy, and is very high functional. It barely gets mentioned outside of Season 1, and he has no problem running the firm.
- Eccentric Millionaire: Or "Thousandaire" as he puts hit. Originally of the Secretly Wealthy variety. He hit big with Bitcoin and doesn't really need to work again, preferring to go fishing. However, because fishing isn't expensive, he doesn't have anything to do with the money before deciding to invest in the firm.
- Hidden Depths: Despite his illness, he has multiple degrees in various fields, including two PHD's and a Law degree.
- Running Gag: He will tell pretty much anyone about how his seven sisters all died in the same accident.
- Unfortunate Names: Bert Buttenweiser says it all. Nathaniel is immediately sorry for him upon learning his full name.
Main Characters' Families
Naomi Bunch
Naomi Bunch
Played by: Tovah Feldshuh
♫ By the way, you're looking healthy,
And by healthy, I mean chunky,
I don't mean that as insult, I'm just stating it as fact ♫
Rebecca's mother. She lives back in New York, but calls her daughter and visits during Hannukah.And by healthy, I mean chunky,
I don't mean that as insult, I'm just stating it as fact ♫
- Abusive Parent: Not intentionally, but the way she treated (and still treats) Rebecca is just not okay. She did this with the intention of making her daughter tough and successful, she only succeeded in the later part.
- Break Her Heart to Save Her: Well, to prevent her heart from breaking further. Rather than let Rebecca know her dad didn't want to spend time with her, she allowed Rebecca to think it was all her doing.
- Character Development: After Rebecca stands up to her, Naomi's relationship to her changes, leading her to become a case of Amazingly Embarrassing Parents. Her snipes at Rebecca still continue, but this time in a joking manner.
- Crazy Survivalist: Not a typical one, but she's dead convinced that "the Cossacks" are coming and thus she's very harsh on Rebecca so she can fight back when the time comes.
- Damned by Faint Praise: Noelle shows Rebecca that, despite her rough exterior, Naomi does truly love her. Rebecca isn't impressed, saying that's the bare minimum for a parent.
- Education Mama: Pushed Rebecca into becoming a lawyer and be high-achieving, which long term damaged Rebecca's psyche.
- Everyone Has Standards: As bad as she is, she's appalled at Silas' neglect of Rebecca and apparent disinterest in being her father. She is also taken aback when she finds out that Rebecca is suicidal, implying she had no idea how serious her problems were.
- Freudian Excuse: For Rebecca. Any scene with Naomi provides a good insight into how Rebecca ended up as messed up as she did.
- Gone Horribly Right: Her intention was to make Rebecca into a dynamic, successful career woman. She succeeded, but the process turned Rebecca into a dysfunctional mess who was barely holding herself together.
- Heel Realization: She gradually begins to realize what a terrible mother she's been.
- I Could A Been A Contender: She had plans to become a lawyer before becoming pregnant with Rebecca and is now set on forcing Rebecca to carry out her ambitions.
- Jerkass: Oh yeah. Pretty much no one likes being around her and with good reason.
- Jewish Complaining: Her entire first scene is her complaining about everything from the traffic to Rebecca's life choices. In song.
- Jewish Mother: Her entire character runs on this trope, so much so that she has an entire song about it. Deconstructed somewhat in that she's used the stereotype to excuse some of her more abusive parenting, and Rebecca eventually calls her on it.Naomi: I'm your Jewish mother now, and I will always have two things — indigestion, and all the answers.
- Misery Builds Character: Her approach to parenting was to be as tough on Rebecca as possible to make her stronger and grow up to be successful. The results were...mixed, to say the least.
- Pet the Dog: In a flashback, it's revealed she tried to make Silas spend time with Rebecca when she was a teen. When he kept refusing, she called him out for being a crappy father to Rebecca and never told Rebecca anything, to protect her feelings and let herself be the villain.Rebecca: She never told me any of this. Why?
Dream Ghost!Dr. Akopian: Because she didn't want to hurt you. Because someone did love you. Someone still does. Just didn't happen to be him. - Tough Love: Deconstructed. She loves Rebecca, and her primary reason for being so stern was to teach Rebecca to stand up for herself and be tough, but her methods often border on emotional abuse, and it's clear a lot of Rebecca's mental problems are at least partly Naomi's fault.
Silas Bunch
Silas Bunch
Played by: Jay Huguley (I Hope Josh Comes to My Party!), John Allen Nelson (Josh Has No Idea Where I Am! onwards)
Rebecca's deadbeat dad.
- Abusive Parents: Of the neglectful variety. He walked out on the family after a big fight with Naomi, and his only words to Rebecca on the way out were "good luck, kid". After the divorce, Rebecca traveled cross-country to surprise him, and he immediately sent her home so he wouldn't have to cancel a date. In the present, he thinks nothing of showing up and asking for money nor does he seems all that concerned about Rebecca's serious mental health issues.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: He seems like a pretty decent guy at first but we gradually find out that he's a selfish jerk.
- Broken Pedestal: After years of idolizing him, Rebecca finally realizes what a self-centered jackass he is in the Season 2 finale and wants nothing more to do with him.
- Disappeared Dad: Walked out on Naomi and Rebecca after a brutal fight during Rebecca's birthday party. Rebecca only saw him sporadically after that. It left her with a bunch of issues.
- Glorified Sperm Donor: Naomi thinks very little of him and refers to him as "the Westchester sperm donor", as he walked out on them and hardly helped in raising Rebecca afterwards. Despite idealizing their relationship at first, Rebecca eventually comes to this conclusion as well.
- Hate Sink: A terribly negligent and self-involved father. By the time he and Rebecca meet again, he is outright emotionally manipulative and uses her abandonment issues against her, threatening to leave when she doesn't give him money. He actually manages to make Naomi look like a good mother.
- It's All About Me: It's clear that Silas is concerned exclusively with himself and doesn't seem to think of his daughter at all, not even when she nearly takes her own life.
- Jerk with a Heart of Jerk: Unlike Naomi, who has at least some redeeming qualities, he pretty much is just an abusive, neglectful jerk. At the end of season 2 when Rebecca gets dumped just before her wedding and almost is Driven to Suicide all he cares about is how the whole thing is inconveniencing him.
- Parental Neglect: He has abandoned Rebecca as a child and has zero interest in being there for her as an adult. He's not much better for her half-brother Tucker.
- Put on a Bus: Doesn't appear again after Rebecca's wedding and it's unclear if he even knows she tried to take her own life shortly after. Of course, given what we know of him, it's quite possible he knows but still didn't do anything or care very much.
Tucker Bunch
Tucker Bunch
Played by: Luca Padovan
Rebecca's thirteen-year-old half-brother.
- Creepy Child: He has a bit of this as long as he's succeeding in manipulating Rebecca.
- Former Child Star: Tucker's song 'I Want to be a Child Star' is actually about how he wants to be one of these, and it loses him the audition for Peter Pan.
- Hollywood Beauty Standards: He suffers from these, in spite of being by anyone's standards Obliviously Beautiful.
- Manipulative Bastard: Ultimately defied. He steals Rebecca's high school diary and brilliantly uses it to manipulate her into doing what he wants, but he makes the mistake of giving it to Nathaniel in return for Nathaniel bribing the Peter Pan director into giving him the role. Nathaniel then makes the mistake of claiming to have seen Slumbered on cable, which Rebecca knows to be untrue, and which arouses her suspicions and ultimately leads her into figuring out that Tucker has been manipulating her.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Tucker's not really a bad kid, he just has a lot of the same issues that Rebecca has had. She recognizes this about him and tells his mother, who in turn puts him into therapy to combat his problems early.
- Practically Different Generations: As a result of being her half brother, he's about sixteen years younger than Rebecca.
- Tenor Boy: He's a fantastic singer.
The Chans
The Chan Family
Played by: Amy Hill (Lourdes), Alberto Isaac (Joseph), Tess Paras (Jayma), Coryn Mabalot (Jastenity), Lea Salonga (Aunt Myrna)
Josh's Filipino-American family, consisting of his parents Lourdes and Joseph and his sisters Jayma and Jastenity.
- Aerith and Bob: The children of the family, named Josh (extremely common), Jayma (unusual but not unheard of) and Jastinity (extremely unusual).
- Alliterative Family: Josh and his sisters' names all start with J, mirroring their father Joseph.
- Happily Married: In a sharp contrast to Rebecca's and Greg's parents, Josh's parents still clearly love each other very much even in their late middle age.
- Parental Marriage Veto: Subverted. It's clear that Josh's entire family dislikes Valencia, and they all adore Rebecca. This didn't stop Josh from dating Valencia for fifteen years, and an argument Josh and Valencia have about it (and the subsequent make-up sex) results in them moving in together.
- Shipper on Deck: Seemingly the only person to approve of Valencia is Josh's Aunt Myrna, who even gives him the family heirloom ring to propose to her (at Valencia's behest).
Scott Proctor
Scott Proctor
Played by: Steve Monroe
Paula's husband and father of her two sons. At the start of the series, they are having marital problems.
- A Cappella: Is in a barbershop quartet. Ironically, while he's the only character who appears to be into performing music in the "real world", he hasn't had a song yet, outside of an in-universe performance with his group at an office party.
- Awful Wedded Life: Although it's getting better.
- Character Development: He has steadily become a more attentive and caring husband since the beginning of the series. By season 2, he's become her strongest form of support and advice.
- The Confidant: More or less becomes Paula's Paula by season 2.
- Guys are Slobs: He's not particularly adept at housework or organization.
- Hypocritical Humor: When Paula seems very interested in the guy who's going to help her drive her new desk to her house.Scott: Sounds like you're going on a date with him or something.Paula: TANYA!Scott: [nodding like 'I deserve that] Have a great day! Hope it's a great desk, you deserve it. [He leaves]Paula: [to herself] God, I love that.
- Lazy Husband: This and his barbershop quartet are basically his only defining character traits when the series starts. As he and Paula start to reconnect, he gradually grows out of it, to the point of taking on most of the work around the house when Paula starts law school.
- Nice Guy: While he's initially presented as being a lazy, oblivious husband, he reveals himself to be an open-minded and supportive guy once he and Paula finally start to bond again.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Paula invites Scott along on one of her Zany Schemes involving faking a break in at Rebecca's apartment. Scott has to throw a rock through the sliding glass door, but ends up choosing a decorative rock from inside the house. Josh discovers this and Rebecca's plan is ruined.
- Took a Level in Kindness: He becomes a lot nicer and more supportive as the series goes on.
Brendan and Tommy Proctor
Brendan and Tommy Proctor
Paula and Scott's two sons.
- Dumbass Teenage Son: Paula especially views them as this, since they're initially portrayed as lazy, unmotivated slackers. Brendan is also mentioned to be a drug dealer. It's eventually subverted with season 4 gives both boys Hidden Depths.
- Hidden Depths:
- Both regularly frequent Renaissance faires.
- Brendan eventually leaves to join a Peace Corps-like organization.
- Tommy stopped eating meat because it's statistically the most efficient way to save the environment.
- Together they breeze through an escape room, an amazed Paula in tow.
- Despite their initial aversion and only doing it to cheer Paula up, they both get really into a fairy themed board game aimed at young girls and have a genuinely good time.
Madison Whitefeather
Madison Whitefeather
Played by: Olivia Edward
Darryl's daughter with his ex-wife Stacy.
- All Girls Like Ponies: By season two, she's moved on from liking snails to unicorns.
- Adorably Precocious Child: Despite being young she runs a vlog about raising snails and offers legitimate insight on her father's relationship with White Josh.
- Collector of the Strange: Madison is really into snails; she even runs a vlog about snail care.
- Nice Girl: Madison is a very sweet kid.
Nathaniel Plimpton II
Nathaniel Plimpton II
Played by: David Grant Wright
Nathaniel's father.
- Abusive Parents: Nathaniel says in one episode that his father used to take him over his knee and not do anything - just to scare him. Nathaniel's father was a firm believer in "All work and no play," and believed things like sick days and naps to be for weaklings. He instilled this intense sense of drive in Nathaniel, who to this day does everything he can to please his father.
- Mistaken for Cheating: Rebecca spies on him meeting a woman and her daughter and jumps to the conclusion that they're his Secret Other Family. It turns out the woman was just his secretary.
- Jerkass: Imposes very high standards on his son, and reacts extremely negatively when Nathaniel asks about his mother's suicide attempt.
- Perpetual Frowner: Almost always has an angry scowl on his face.
Marco Serrano
Marco Serrano
Played by: Robin Thomas
- The Alcoholic: Like father, like son. It's implied that his restaurant failed because of this. By Season 4, he is sober and attending AA with Greg implied to be his sponsor.
- Cool Old Guy: He's in his later years but still incredibly witty, sharp and charming, enough to even seduce Rebecca.
- Deadpan Snarker: Another trait shared by him and Greg.
- Parental Marriage Veto: Greg and Rebecca were never close to getting married, but Marco made it very clear that he did not approve of their relationship, thinking Rebecca was bad for Greg. This doesn't stop him from sleeping with her in "Josh's Ex-Girlfriend is Crazy", however.
- Parents as People: Marco is a bit abrasive and snarky, not to mention his struggles with alcoholism, but he is fundamentally a good person and clearly loves his son very much. Marco is also supportive of Greg's recovery and encourages him to leave West Covina and go to business school.
- Small Role, Big Impact: Marco does not appear in many episodes, but he is responsible (either directly or indirectly) for two major plot points.
- He decides to sell his house and give Greg half the profits, which enables him to leave West Covina and go to Emory. With this, he also successfully encourages Greg to cut things off with Rebecca for good.
- He encounters Rebecca at a bar during a low point in her life and pays her a compliment, and they end up sleeping together, which is shown in "The End of the Movie" as Rebecca hitting rock bottom.
Other Secondary Characters
Father Brah
Father Joseph "Brah"
Played by: Rene Gube
"Oh, nothing but net! And Christ!"
A priest at Josh's church, he counsels both Josh and Paula and her husband through any problems.
- Brutal Honesty: Part of why he gives such good advice. He's not afraid to call it like it is."Can I be real with you? You're being a little bitch right now."
- Bunny-Ears Lawyer: He talks more like a stereotypical Frat Bro than a traditional priest, shoots hoops during counseling sessions, and is occasionally stoned (on prescription painkillers). At the same time, he consistently gives honest and genuinely helpful advice, and seems to be very popular with his parishioners.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Apparently, he once lied and told his family that his brother had killed the class bunny instead of him. This was the first step in his brother getting addicted to drugs and joining a cult...which Father Brah was later able to help get him out of. (All of this was revealed is a stoned monologue.)
- Good Shepherd: He's a priest and a kind person who sincerely cares about and wants to help others.
- Nice Guy: Bluntness aside, he's a kind person who enjoys helping others.
- Only Known by Their Nickname: His name is actually Father Joseph, but Josh called him "Father Broseph" and then "Father Bro" and then "Father Brah." It stuck.
- The One That Got Away: He and Valencia apparently fell in love in high school, and she hid a letter in his varsity jacket telling him to spend the rest of his life with her. Due to Hector hoarding that jacket in his truck with other student items, however, he never got the letter, and they ignored each other for years afterwards.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Even though church officials are usually portrayed as stern, Father Brah is actually laid back and pretty helpful. He councils Paula and her husband to have dinner and work out their problems and he tells Josh that he has to confess to Valencia about kissing Rebecca.
- Sophisticated as Hell: He's very smart and gives awesome advice, such as, "You're being a little bitch," and, "If Rebecca seems happy, you gotta bow out, dawg."
- The Stoner: He has a bad back. It's awesome.
- They Call Me MISTER Tibbs!: Parodied.Father Brah: Please, Mr. Brah was my father. I'm Father Brah.
- You Know I'm Black, Right?: After turning down sex from Valencia, Josh Chan tells FB he didn't even know guys could turn down sex. This gets an exasperated look from Father Brah, since he's, you know, celibate.
Dr. Akopian
Dr. Noelle Akopian
Played by: Michael Hyatt
Rebecca's therapist. She tries oh-so very hard to create a healthy dialogue between her and Rebecca - it's too bad Rebecca hardly ever listens to her."This session is gonna be useful
If she's truthful about how she feels
So I'll give it my all
With my requisite therapy shawl
Kiss my fancy degrees on the wall
For good luck that it's gonna be different...!"
If she's truthful about how she feels
So I'll give it my all
With my requisite therapy shawl
Kiss my fancy degrees on the wall
For good luck that it's gonna be different...!"
- Big "NO!": When Rebecca and Josh get engaged, mainly because Rebecca was so, so close to actually confronting her problems. Poor Dr. Akopian looks like she wants to cry when Josh shows up and proposes.
- Helpful Hallucination: A more vibrant "dream ghost" version of her appears when Rebecca falls asleep on a plane to New York, seated next to the real Dr. Akopian. She even gets her own song lampshading the trope, funnily enough called "Dream Ghosts." Ironically Rebecca actually listens to this version's advice, most likely because she is probably a figment of Rebecca's subconscious."It's not clear if I'm hallucinated,
Or actually magic,
Let's leave it vague, it's more interesting that way." - Hidden Depths: She's apparently big into kayaking. Saving up for a new one is the only reason she continues to see Rebecca despite Rebecca's refusal to listen to anything she says.
- Ignored Expert: Very correctly points out that despite what Rebecca thinks, she is not in a love triangle with Greg and Josh because neither man is offering her a relationship. She dispenses a lot of sensible and sound advice, not that it is ever put to good use. Season 3 suggests that it's a pattern, as what we get to see of her session with Kevin goes much the same way as Rebecca's have.
- Magical Negro: Subverted. She's black and gives excellent advice and guidance — even appearing as a "Dream Ghost" at one point — but her insight comes from being a therapist, not a black woman.
- Nice Gal: While she's understandably frustrated by Rebecca's cluelessness and inability to acknowledge her issues, Dr. Akopian does want to help her, and is thrilled when it looks like Rebecca may actually be ready to start truly trying to heal. And she's devastated when Rebecca gets engaged to Josh ten seconds later, sending her back to square one. She's sincerely happy when Rebecca returns to therapy later and actually starts to listen and sees real improvements in her life as a result.
- Only in It for the Money: She very genuinely wants to help Rebecca, but her advice is so uniformly ignored that she wonders whether it's even ethical to keep letting Rebecca pay for sessions. But she decides to keep doing them because she's saving up for a kayak.
- Only Sane Man: She's completely detached from the Rebecca/Josh debacle and all the insanity that comes with it, and is one of the few people able to be completely objective about it.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: She agrees not to press charges against Rebecca and Heather after they broke into her office (while stoned), on the condition that Rebecca attends therapy.
- The Shrink: Has the qualifications, gives the sage advice and compassionate enough to be the Awesome Shrink, but more often than not ends up as the Ineffective because Rebecca is too self-centered to take said advice.
- Survival Mantra: Played for laughs whenever Rebecca frustrates her. "The kayak, Noelle, remember the kayak..."
- Throw the Dog a Bone: After numerous fall starts and backsliding, Rebecca goes back into therapy in season 4 and actually starts listening to Dr Akopian and putting her advice into action, something she's clearly very happy to see.
Dr. Shin
Dr. Daniel Shin
Played by: Jay Hayden
Rebecca's second therapist, whom Rebecca starts seeing midway through season 3.
- Hospital Hottie: He's a very handsome doctor, so much to the point that Paula nicknames him "Dr. Damn."
- Nice Guy: Like Dr. Akopian, he's understanding and genuinely cares for her mental well-being.
- Only Sane Man: Like Dr Akopian, he's very good at providing guidance and helping Rebecca maintain perspective.
- Small Role, Big Impact: He has a smaller number of appearances than Rebecca's other therapist Dr. Akopian but Dr. Shin is the one to correctly diagnose that Rebecca suffers from borderline personality disorder.
Trent
Trent Maddock
Played by: Paul Welsh
- "You know what they say, one person's blackmail is another person's love story."
A former law school student who went to law school at the same time as Rebecca, who Rebecca and Paula decide to use as her fake boyfriend. When Valencia calls him and he comes to West Covina, he's perfectly willing to play along... because he's been in love with Rebecca since law school.
- And I Must Scream: Played for laughs when he is hit by a truck and stuck in a full body cast, unable to speak and forced to listen to his doctor's terrible stand-up routine every day.
- Ax-Crazy: Trent practically oozes insanity whenever he's on screen.
- Bad Liar: Not only that, but he seems to have an almost compulsive need to tell the truth.
- Broken Ace: An incredibly handsome Ivy League graduate who is an Instant Expert at everything he tries, but he's also creepily obsessed with a single girl, so much that it consumes his entire life.
- Comically Missing the Point: Where the Sexy Getting Ready song is about how much pain women go through to look sexy, Trent's stops after 30 seconds due to the pain of him cutting himself.
- Consistent Clothing Style: Trent wears turtlenecks in all his appearances, which at first make him look like the successful lawyer Rebecca wants, but it later turns unsettling as his dark side is revealed.
- Distaff Counterpart: Trent is, effectively, Rebecca from one Season ago. They perform similar misdeeds; the reaction to them reflects society's attitude to emotionality and obsession in women and men.
- Even Evil Has Standards: For all his stalking and blackmail, Rebecca does note that he is surprisingly respectful of consent and hasn't forced her into sex or intimacy.
- Girlfriend in Canada: He is Rebecca's "boyfriend" from law school to throw Valencia and Greg off from investigating her. It goes a little too well.
- Heel–Face Turn: At the end of season 3 he tries to murder Nathaniel and Rebecca pushes him off the roof to save him. She ends up in jail for attempted murder. After she's in jail for a few weeks Trent confesses to everything and Rebecca is set free.
- Hopeless Suitor: He's hopelessly infatuated with Rebecca, but she couldn't care less.
- Hunk: His lean, handsome figure and impressive square jaw contrasts his desperate and creepy personality.
- Mirror Character: Rebecca has Trent, her own obsessed ex, who shares many of her own flaws and tries many of the same tricks to get with her that she does to win back Josh. Trent is necessary to the audience realizing the antagonist Valencia is actually quite right in her assessment of Rebecca.
- Murder the Hypotenuse: He tries to kill Nathaniel in the Season 3 finale.
- No Social Skills: His efforts to befriend Josh and his buddies are... laughable, to say the least.
- Perpetual Smiler: Almost always has a wide grin on his face.
- Psycho Ex-Girlfriend: A gender flipped version of this to Rebecca.
- Sex God: When Rebecca allows him to have sex with her to get him to leave her alone, she's shocked to find out that he's the best lay she's ever had by a long shot. Not only that, but it was his first time, too. Of course, given the implication earlier in the season that she's as self-centered in bed as she is with everything else, it may simply be his eager-to-please nature.
- Slasher Smile: His grin could give The Joker nightmares.
- Spear Counterpart: He is a spear counterpart to Rebecca, right down to trying the same tricks that she does but to lesser effect. Even has his own "Trent is Getting Ready Song" counterpart to the "Sexy Getting Ready Song", and later his own reprise of the Season 2 theme song, "I'm Just A Boy In Love".
- Stalking Is Funny If Its Female After Male: Played with. His obsession with Rebecca isn't all that different from the one that Rebecca has on Josh, but is portrayed as being much more overtly creepy. It helps that our view of him isn't painted by Protagonist-Centered Morality.
- Stalker with a Crush: Keeps tabs on Rebecca at all times. Mostly Played for Laughs, until the last couple of episodes of Season 3 when it becomes genuinely horrifying. He crosses the line when he tries to kill Nathaniel to have Rebecca for himself.
- Supreme Chef: For all his serious faults, he is an outstanding cook.
- Unexpected Virgin: He's good-looking, highly educated, owns a successful company, and cooks like a dream, but didn't lose his virginity until he slept with Rebecca, which surprises her.
Hector
Hector
Played by: Erick Lopez
Another one of Josh's friends.
- Ascended Extra: He easily gets the least focus out of Josh's friends early on. Once Greg leaves, he gets to spend more time in the spotlight, and he eventually becomes Heather's boyfriend in Season 3.
- Basement-Dweller: Still lives at home with his mother. At least until he moves in with Heather.
- Berserk Button: His failure to fulfill his campaign promise of extended lunches as student body president is still a sore spot twelve years later.
- Character Development: After moving in with Heather, he becomes noticeably more mature and sensible, even calling out Josh on his behavior in the season 3 premiere and becoming a good romantic partner.
- The Ditz: Takes him a couple of tries to realize that AA members shouldn't use alcohol to solve their various problems.
- Dumbass Has a Point: He's not too bright, but his confusion about why everyone's falling in love with Rebecca is very welcome and justified.
- Flanderization: Him living with his mother is only shown once in the first season. By the second, his almost improbably close relationship with his mom has become his defining character trait. He grows out of it by season 3, after Hector's mom becomes friends with Josh and Hector grows closer to Heather.
- Happily Married: He and Heather get married in Season 4, albeit primarily so that she can add him to her health insurance plan. Nonetheless, they seem to genuinely be content
- Hidden Depths: He can be surprisingly insightful at times. He is one of the few people to not get why Josh and Greg are so into Rebecca and after her suicide attempt, he shows a surprisingly good understanding of suicidal feelings and mental illness and later provides Josh with some insight into his own issues, not that Josh listens.
- Innocently Insensitive: Toasts Greg's decision to quit drinking... with a mug of beer in his hand.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Generally selfish and stupid, but comes off as a well-meaning friend most of the time.
- Manchild: He still lived at home with his mom in season two, which wouldn't be a bad thing in and of itself if it weren't for the fact that she still takes care of him like she did when he was a kid (doing his laundry, making him meals, etc.), and he doesn't seem to see anything wrong with it. Once Josh moves in, he starts to pick up on how weird it all is, prompting him to start growing out of this trope.
- Men Can't Keep House: He's messy, and Heather has to pick up after him.
- Momma's Boy: Seems very attached to her, up to and including recording a regular podcast with her.
- Nice Guy: Hector isn't too bright or mature but he's overall a good guy. Valencia even notes that he's very likable, unlike her.
- Only Sane Man: He's one of the few people baffled as to why Josh and Greg are so head over heels for Rebecca and accurately calls out Josh's behavior in season three.
- Parental Incest: Not quite the case, although Hector's childish closeness with his mom frequently borders on being incestuous now that he's an adult. He compares other women to her when evaluating their looks and sleeps in the same bed as her whenever he has a nightmare.
- Satellite Character: One of Josh's three most present friends, but isn't as developed as White Josh or Greg. Subverted later on when his caring, supportive nature shines through in his relationship with Heather.
- The Slacker: He was apparently student body president in high school, but his track record for handling the associated responsibilities in a timely manner is spotty at best. The ten-year reunion he was supposed to organize happened two years too late, and while he got a box of stuff from the school's lost-and-found to return to the other students when they graduated, he left it in the trunk of his car until the aforementioned reunion.
- Toxic Friend Influence: Briefly to Greg in season 1; when Greg has gotten together with Rebecca, Hector encourages him to engage in petty passive-aggressive power struggles with her to "maintain the upper hand" rather than simply be honest and straightforward about his feelings.
- What Does She See in Him?: Very pointedly questions why all his heterosexual friends are in love with Rebecca.
Audra Levine
Audra Levine
Played by: Rachel Grate, Daniela Somers (young)
"Since we were toddlers I've studied every
Chink in your armor
And between your folks' divorce
And that haircut on you
I'm not really sure
Which one's the bigger shondeh"note
Chink in your armor
And between your folks' divorce
And that haircut on you
I'm not really sure
Which one's the bigger shondeh"note
Rebecca's nemesis from New York.
- Anti-Villain: She's not even really a villain, just The Rival to Rebecca.
- Broken Ace: She's just as accomplished as Rebecca and heavily implied to be just as depressed underneath it.
- Freudian Excuse: She's been stuck in Rebecca's shadow since childhood and is heavily implied to have some serious issues from that and other things.
- Friendless Background: Just like Rebecca, she was a loser with no friends in High School.
- Hypocrite: Back in high school she bullied Rebecca for "being a loser with no friends", even though she was exactly like her.
- Jewish American Princess: A successful Jewish lawyer implied to be from a pampered upbringing. Even parodied in her song with Rebecca, the "JAP Battle Rap."
- Madness Mantra: "This is what happy looks like" is not the kind of thing you generally hear from well-adjusted people. The manic grin she wears while saying it doesn't make her claims any more convincing.
- Politically Correct Villain: In their "JAP battle rap," she and Rebecca compare their liberal credentials and eventually concede that they're equally progressive.
- The Rival: She's been competing with Rebecca for all of their lives. In "I Need to Find My Frenemy" they seem to call a truce, although calling them friends now is a stretch.
- Schoolyard Bully All Grown Up: She's been Rebecca's rival since childhood.
- Sitcom Archnemesis: She's been Rebecca's petty rival since childhood, and Rebecca rags on Audra in all her appearances. At one point Rebecca even tries to make peace with her, noting a "Not So Different" Remark, but Audra's not interested. They finally make up in "I Need to Find My Frenemy" after Rebecca talks her out of making a rash life decision.
- Shadow Archetype:
- Basically Rebecca, if the latter hadn't put her own happiness first. She's driven, motivated, and deliriously unhappy. Rebecca reminds her to prioritize happiness, but Audra shrugs it off. This is emphasized by her wearing the outfit Rebecca wore in the pilot.
- Audra finally snaps and pulls a Rebecca by impulsively deciding to move to Las Vegas in season 4. By this point, Rebecca is mature and self-aware enough to recognize it for what it is — an escape — and is able to talk her out of it.
- Stepford Smiler: Just like Rebecca. It's implied that she's unhappy despite her success but her professional smile is so plastered on her face it looks practically manic.
Kevin
Kevin
Played by: Johnny Meeks
"Listen up, gang! Greg does not want to be treated differently for his addiction! So be cool, be cool."
The manager of Home Base and Greg and Heather's boss. A nice guy, despite Greg's insistence to the contrary.
- Benevolent Boss: Despite being quirky, he's incredibly easy to work for. His first scene was being incredibly supportive when Greg quit to go to business school (ruining the angry speech Greg had planned). When Greg had to beg for his job back, he welcomed him with open arms.
- Dark and Troubled Past: His mother shot his dad on his birthday. He insists he isn't too bothered by it though.
- Keet: A grown-up version. He's aggressively upbeat and positive to the point that it makes Greg uncomfortable.
- Nice Guy: Kevin is a really supportive and good-natured person.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: After Rebecca starts spreading lies about Josh to his friends, calling him a homophobe and Holocaust denier among other things, he becomes noticeably colder and more hostile towards Josh.
- Stepford Smiler: He always seems happy and friendly, but his sessions with Dr. Akopian suggest that he's refusing to face some serious personal issues.Kevin: I'm just so happy and feel so good all the time, and I know everyone else doesn't feel that way, and that makes me sad.Dr. Akopian: That's great, Kevin, but I'd like to circle back to what we talked about last week, about your mother shooting your father, in cold blood, in front of you, on your birthday.Kevin: [cheerfully] Oh, that? I've moved beyond that.
Beth
Beth
Played by: Emma Willmann
Valencia's girlfriend, introduced in season 3.
- Satellite Love Interest: To Valencia. Not much is known about Beth besides the fact that she's in the P.R./party planning business, and their relationship isn't as fleshed out as the other characters'.
Other Rebecca
Other Rebecca aka Fabulous Girl
Played by: Siri Miller
Appears as a more glamorous and vivacious version of Rebecca, happily riding a bicycle in the opening titles of Season 4. The title song regards her as a better Rebecca than the actual Rebecca, who's sitting nearby on a park bench looking resigned.
- Cloudcuckoolander: The one-liners she says at the end of every credits scene are increasingly eccentric.
- Couch Gag: She delivers one at the end of each set of opening credits.
- Merlin Sickness: In one episode she claims she has "Benjamin Button disease" and is really 70.
- The Other Darrin: Parodied. The title song wants her to be the real Rebecca.
- Sanity Slippage: She only says a single line in each episode, but they're getting weirder and weirder.Other Rebecca: [angry] My name's Debra!Other Rebecca: I live in this park!Other Rebecca: I think I'm a fork! Uh-oh!Other Rebecca: Don't look, I'm behind you!Other Rebecca: I eat my own eyelashes!Other Rebecca: [barks like a dog]Other Rebecca: I miss the Season One theme song!Other Rebecca: I'm dating my uncle! [The camera zooms out and we see the boom mic operator shaking his head in disgust and walking away]
AJ
AJ
Played by: Clark Moore
Introduced as a pre-law student working at Jim's pretzel stand in season 4. He becomes Rebecca's employee and confident.
- Ambiguously Gay: When Rebecca is angsting over which of her three suitors she'll pick, he snarks that he wishes he had problems like hers. It's unclear if he meant that in general terms or if he specifically wishes that three hot guys wanted him.
- Deadpan Snarker: AJ is less than thrilled to be working at the pretzel stand, especially with Rebecca, and he’s not afraid to let you know.
- Straight Man: Often reacts to Rebecca's bonkers personal life with deadpan flatness or bemusement.
