Characters / The Red Line

The Calder-Brennans

Jira

Played by: Aliyah Royale

Harrison and Daniel's adopted daughter.

• Bratty Teenage Daughter: Subverted. She sometimes gets angry with Daniel, but always with good reason.
• Break the Cutie: As a direct result of Harrison's death.
• Calling the Old Man Out: She's willing to do this to both Daniel and Tia when necessary.
• Happily Adopted: Played with. She was, and she still loves her dads very much, but she feels the need to know her black birth mother.
• Soapbox Sadie: A positive and thoroughly justified version about racism.
• Tell Me About My Mother: She repeatedly asks this, much to Daniel's grief.

Daniel

Played by: Noah Wyle

Harrison's white husband, and now Jira's main caretaker.

• Crusading Widower: He becomes one after Harrison's death.
• Papa Wolf: He's not always a positive version, as he frequently keeps things from Tia that she needs to know. But it's very satisfying to see him beating up a Nazi who threatens Jira.
• Parents as People: He often does the wrong thing (such as telling Jira that Tia doesn't want her) but he's struggling with deep grief, racial tensions, and being a single father.
• White Man's Burden: Lampshaded. Although he naturally feels devastated about Harrison's death, Jira and Tia repeatedly call him out as it's easier for him to be the white face of the movement.
• Straight Gay: He's proudly openly gay.

Harrison

Played by: Corey Reynolds

Daniel's black husband and Jira's adoptive father, who dies in the opening episode.

• Shoot the Medic First: Although not in a wartime situation, Paul shoots him because he mistakes him for an attacker.
• Straight Gay: Like Daniel.
• Too Good for This Sinful Earth: Although he did cheat on Daniel, he always loved Daniel and is a perfect father to Jira, as well as a heroic ER doctor.

Police

Paul Evans

Played by: Noel Fisher

The police officer who faces legal and moral consequences for killing Harrison.

• Abusive Parents: This is apparently why he lets his father die.
• Dirty Cop: He initially appears to be a deconstruction (although he wrongly shot and killed Harrison, he appears to feel a great deal of guilt and admits what he did was wrong), but then he lies and steals the videotape, and it all gets worse from there.
• Idiot Ball: Vic is protecting him by taking the tape, but he steals it from her because he doesn't trust her, and takes it to a police station.
• Jumping Off the Slippery Slope: While racism in the system definitely helps him to get away with Harrison's murder in the shooting, he has a point when he defends himself - but then he leaves his father to die.
• Mama's Boy: He describes himself as such about his dead mother to his girlfriend Abby.
• "Well Done, Son" Guy: Deconstructed. He apparently wanted to please his father (who is also a police officer) and appears to be genuinely upset by the bad press he's brought to his family, but he then describes his father as selfish and abusive, and lets him die.
• Wild Card: Paul apparently feels guilty for killing Harrison, but it doesn't stop him from lying, constantly trying to justify himself, and avoiding consequences.

Jim Evans

Played by: Michael Patrick Thornton

Paul's older brother, an ex-police officer who was paralyzed in a shooting.

• Abusive Parents: Apparently. Paul says Jim got treated worse by their father than he did, but Jim is always reluctant to say anything.
• Big Brother Instinct: To Paul in a big way. He constantly tries to make sure Paul doesn't face consequences for his actions, even when Paul doesn't want him to.
• Career-Ending Injury: The shooting that resulted in him being in a wheelchair.
• Unresolved Sexual Tension: With Vic.
• Hair-Trigger Temper: It's shown when he beats up a guy in a bar for being ableist towards him.
• Wheelchair Woobie: Played with. He can be aggressive and rude, but it stems from his injury.

Vic Renna

Played by: Elizabeth Laidlaw

Paul's police partner and Jim's sort-of girlfriend.

• Gender-Blender Name: Her name is probably Victoria, but she's always called Vic by everyone.
• The Lad-ette: Downplayed, but she hangs out with dudes and is extremely blunt and confrontational.
• Mama Bear: Played with. She mentions having children but she's stuck between her surrogate family (the Evans) and her real family, who need her to keep her job.
• She Cleans Up Nicely: At Gary's funeral, it's clear that she does as she looks beautiful.
• Unresolved Sexual Tension: Their scenes together make it clear that she and Paul have some sort of romantic relationship, but how much remains unanswered.
• Women Are Wiser: She lies for Paul and hides the tape appropriately. This might not be heroic but she's the only one with the intelligence to get away with it. The trouble starts again when Paul steals the tape from her.

Other Citizens

Tia Young

Played by: Emayatzy Corinealdi

An aspiring alderman and Jira's birth mother.

• Action Politician: Realistic and downplayed, but she'll put herself where her mouth is, as shown when she joins in with Jira's parade.
• Power Hair: A high-powered engineer and aspiring politician with very short hair.