
The Four Man Band is a primarily comedic group, designed for a sitcom or domcom. The four distinct personalities are specifically designed to play off each other so that whatever happens that day, Hilarity Ensues.
Please note that this trope does not include The Hero. The focus is evenly spread among them. The Protagonist can easily be any one of the Band, or the focus can just be switched between episodes to different characters. Even the four roles can be shuffled around a little.
Compare and contrast Four-Temperament Ensemble, Four-Philosophy Ensemble. The band most commonly includes:
- Only Sane Man - Or maybe just the guy who comes the closest to being sane most often. Every zany gang must have a Straight Man, and the other three leads have to share one. While his (or her, although the role is usually male) friends act out, the Only Sane Man's role is to Lampshade and be embarrassed by their behaviour. He will be more successful with the opposite sex than his friends, notably The Casanova Wannabe.
- The Smart Guy - More intelligent than his friends. This variant is primarily geared towards Lampshading the relative stupidity of the others and being humiliated for his arrogance. Alternatively he may be a Mad Scientist type, with insane inventions.
- The Casanova Wannabe - This guy has a perverted mind. He usually takes one of two common forms - the Lovable Sex Maniac whose high sex drive is his most memorable trait, or the Comedic Sociopath, who has bursts of hilarious violence. In lighter examples, certain concepts may be Played for Laughs, whereas in darker examples the character may draw on Black Comedy Rape.
- The Butt-Monkey - A character who serves as a target for the others' jokes. There are a few tropes that could make the Band's Butt-Monkey; The Ditz, the Extreme Doormat or others. This member has remarkably less charisma than his friends or is a better target for jokes. The others will pick on him frequently and make him the target of practical jokes. Sometimes, however, this character may get one over on his bandmates, and this will thoroughly humiliate the others.
Compare Comic Trio (where The Casanova Wannabe leads, The Butt-Monkey goes along with him, and The Only Sane Man complains but is ignored). For the Distaff Counterpart, see Four-Girl Ensemble.
Examples:
Only Sane Man | Kagami Hiiragi |
The Smart Guy | Miyuki Takahara |
The Casanova Wannabe | Konata Izumi |
The Butt-Monkey | Tsukasa Hiiragi |
Lupin III reminds us that situational comedy humour can be found in many genres.
Only Sane Man | Jigen | Keeps the most level head, gets to snark instead of gasp at the other characters. |
The Smart Guy | Goemon | Head in the clouds, but not obsessed with his intelligence. Still gets into humiliating situations. |
The Casanova Wannabe | Lupin | Depending on the story, his actions may be more or less explicit. |
The Butt-Monkey | Inspector Zenigata | Especially in Lupin III: Part II, his role is to be humiliated by Lupin. |
Shaman King Yoh and co. group searching for Dobi village
Only Sane Man | Yoh Asakura |
The Smart Guy | LenTao |
The Casanova Wannabe | Ryu |
The Butt-Monkey | Trey/Horohoro |
Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt
Only Sane Man | Garterbelt |
The Smart Guy | Stocking |
The Casanova Wannabe | Panty |
The Butt-Monkey | Brief |
Doraemon Nobita and the three neighborhood kids he interacts with the most.
Only Sane Man | Shizuka, Nobita’s crush who is often the voice of reason. |
The Smart Guy | Suneo, the neighborhood rich boy who is smarter than the other boys, but is often Gian’s patsy |
The Casanova Wannabe | Gian, Comedic Sociopath. The neighborhood bully. In later comics and more recent anime episodes and movie serials he’s shown to be more affable, but he’s usually the closest thing to a consistent antagonist who beats up other kids because he’s having a bad day |
The Butt-Monkey | Nobita, the main character, often can't do anything right, sucks at pretty much everything, and has bad luck like no one else. As such, he often relies on Doraemon. |
Only Sane Man | Jughead Jones |
The Smart Guy | Betty Cooper |
The Casanova Wannabe | Veronica Lodge |
The Butt-Monkey | Archie Andrews |
Only Sane Man | Sue Storm |
The Smart Guy | Reed Richards |
The Casanova Wannabe | Johnny Storm |
The Butt-Monkey | Ben Grimm |
Only Sane Man | Hobbes |
The Smart Guy | Andy |
The Casanova Wannabe | Socrates, Comedic Sociopathy |
The Butt-Monkey | Calvin |
Dragon Ball Z Abridged (Of the four main human fighters)
Only Sane Man | Krillin |
The Smart Guy | Tien |
The Casanova Wannabe | Master Roshi |
The Butt-Monkey | Yamcha |
Only Sane Man | Cathy |
The Smart Guy | Ami Mizuno |
The Casanova Wannabe | Jered |
The Butt-Monkey | Snyder |
Only Sane Man | Saya |
The Smart Guy | Roku |
The Casanova Wannabe | Reiko, Lovable Sex Maniac |
The Butt-Monkey | Shiro |
Only Sane Man | Cheelai |
The Smart Guy | Cuit |
The Casanova Wannabe | Freeza |
The Butt-Monkey | Yamcha |
Only Sane Man | Chicken Little |
The Smart Guy | Fish Out of Water |
The Casanova Wannabe | Abby Mallard |
The Butt-Monkey | Runt of the Litter |
Only Sane Man | Manny |
The Smart Guy | Diego |
Casanova Wannabe | Sid |
Butt-Monkey | Scrat |
Only Sane Man | Mrs. Brisby |
The Smart Guy | Justin |
The Casanova Wannabe | Jeremy |
The Butt-Monkey | Mr. Ages |
Only Sane Man | Zeppo |
The Smart Guy | Chico |
The Casanova Wannabe | Groucho |
The Butt-Monkey | Harpo |
Only Sane Man | Oz |
The Smart Guy | Kevin |
The Casanova Wannabe | Finch |
The Butt-Monkey | Jim |
American Wedding instead goes:
Only Sane Man | Kevin |
The Smart Guy | Finch |
The Casanova Wannabe | Stifler |
The Butt-Monkey | Jim |
Only Sane Man | Dr. Raymond Stantz |
The Smart Guy | Dr. Egon Spengler |
The Casanova Wannabe | Winston Zeddmore |
The Butt-Monkey | Dr. Peter Venkman |
Only Sane Man | Dr. Abigail Yates |
The Smart Guy | Dr. Jillian Holtzmann |
The Casanova Wannabe | Patty Tolan |
The Butt-Monkey | Dr. Erin Gilbert |
The Beatles in A Hard Day's Night and Help!
Only Sane Man | Paul McCartney |
The Smart Guy | George Harrison |
The Casanova Wannabe | John Lennon |
The Butt-Monkey | Ringo Starr |
Only Sane Man | Mikey Walsh |
The Smart Guy | Data |
The Casanova Wannabe | Mouth |
The Butt-Monkey | Chunk |
Only Sane Man | Chris Chambers |
The Smart Guy | Gordie LaChance |
The Casanova Wannabe | Teddy Duchamp |
The Butt-Monkey | Vern Tessio |
Only Sane Man | Doug Billings (to the point the plot always ditches him to turn it into a Comic Trio) |
The Smart Guy | Dr. Stu Price |
The Casanova Wannabe | Phil Wenneck |
The Butt-Monkey | Alan Garner |
Horrible Bosses 1 & 2
Only Sane Man | Nick Hendricks/Motherfucker Jones |
The Smart Guy | Motherfucker Jones/Nick Hendricks |
The Casanova Wannabe | Kurt Buckman |
The Butt-Monkey | Dale Arbus |
Only Sane Man | Dorothy |
The Smart Guy | Scarecrow |
The Casanova Wannabe | Tin Man |
The Butt-Monkey | Cowardly Lion |
Only Sane Man | Liz Sherman |
The Smart Guy | Professor Krauss |
The Casanova Wannabe | Abe Sapien |
The Butt-Monkey | Hellboy |
Star Trek (2009) (Kelvin line, which upgraded Uhura, the original timeline had a more Comic Trio dynamic)
Only Sane Man | Uhura |
The Smart Guy | Spock |
The Casanova Wannabe | Kirk |
The Butt-Monkey | McCoy |
The Hobbits:
Only Sane Man | Frodo |
The Smart Guy | Pippin |
The Casanova Wannabe | Merry |
The Butt-Monkey | Sam |
Non-Hobbits:
Only Sane Man | Aragorn |
The Smart Guy | Gandalf |
The Casanova Wannabe | Legolas |
The Butt-Monkey | Gimli |
Only Sane Man | Caleb Danver |
The Smart Guy | Pogue Parry |
The Casanova Wannabe | Reid Garwin |
The Butt-Monkey | Tyler Simms |
Only Sane Man | Dante Hicks |
The Smart Guy | Silent Bob |
The Casanova Wannabe | Randal Grave |
The Butt-Monkey | Jay |
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Only Sane Man | Sallah |
The Smart Guy | Dr. Henry Jones, Sr. |
The Casanova Wannabe | Dr. Indiana Jones |
The Butt-Monkey | Marcus Brody |
The Godfather: Vito's sons.
Only Sane Man | Tom Hagen, the serious adopted sibling who serves as the voice of reason when Sonny or Michael start getting too bloodthirsty. |
The Smart Guy | Michael, very cunning and The Chessmaster |
The Casanova Wannabe | Sonny, Hot-Blooded and violent |
The Butt-Monkey | Fredo, the weak-willed and incompetent sibling who suffers from Middle Child Syndrome |
Only Sane Man | Steve Rogers / Captain America |
The Smart Guy | Tony Stark / Iron Man |
The Casanova Wannabe | Bruce Banner / The Hulk |
The Butt-Monkey | Thor Odinson |
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
Only Sane Man | Rick O'Connell |
The Smart Guy | Evelyn Carnahan-O'Connell |
The Casanova Wannabe | Alex O'Connell |
The Butt-Monkey | Jonathan Carnahan |
The Marauders:
Only Sane Man | Remus Lupin |
The Smart Guy | James Potter |
The Casanova Wannabe | Sirius Black |
The Butt-Monkey | Peter Pettigrew |
The main characters themselves:
Only Sane Man | Harry Potter |
The Smart Guy | Hermione Granger |
The Casanova Wannabe | Ron Weasley |
The Butt-Monkey | Neville Longbottom, before he Took a Level in Badass |
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Only Sane Man | Arthur Dent |
The Smart Guy | Trillian |
The Casanova Wannabes | Ford and Zaphod |
The Butt-Monkey | Marvin |
Only Sane Man | Wendy |
The Smart Guy | John |
The Casanova Wannabe | Peter |
The Butt-Monkey | Michael |
Only Sane Man | Tommy Solomon, high school student, Information Officer |
The Smart Guy | Dick Solomon, physics professor, High Commander |
The Casanova Wannabe | Sally Solomon, homemaker, Security Officer |
The Butt-Monkey | Harry Solomon...um, they had an extra seat, so... |
Only Sane Man | Face |
The Smart Guy | Hannibal |
The Casanova Wannabe | B.A. |
The Butt-Monkey | Murdock |
Only Sane Man | John Sheridan |
The Smart Guy | Delenn |
The Casanova Wannabe | G'Kar |
The Butt-Monkey | Londo Mollari |
Only Sane Man | Brandon |
The Smart Guy | Dylan |
The Casanova Wannabe | Steve |
The Butt-Monkey | David |
Only Sane Man | Leonard Hofstadter |
The Smart Guy | Sheldon Cooper, and how. |
The Casanova Wannabe | Howard Wolowitz, Lovable Sex Maniac until he met Bernadette |
The Butt-Monkey | Raj Koothrappali. For the first six seasons, he's shy to the point he can't even speak to women unless drunk and is generally awkward. As he overcomes his fear of speaking to women, he retains his awkwardness but remains the Butt Monkey because he sometimes acts "metrosexual." |
Only Sane Man | Buffy Summers |
The Smart Guy | Rupert Giles |
The Casanova Wannabe | Xander Harris, overlap with Butt Monkey |
The Butt-Monkey | Willow Rosenberg, overlap with Smart Guy |
Only Sane Man | La Chilindrina |
The Smart Guy | Ñoño |
The Casanova Wannabe | El Chavo |
The Butt-Monkey | Kiko |
Only Sane Man | Dawson |
The Smart Guy | Joey |
The Casanova Wannabe | Jen |
The Butt-Monkey | Pacey |
Only Sane Man | Luke Cage |
The Smart Guy | Daredevil |
The Casanova Wannabe | Jessica Jones |
The Butt-Monkey | Iron Fist |
Only Sane Man | Phillip Banks |
The Smart Guy | Geoffrey |
The Casanova Wannabe | Will Smith |
The Butt-Monkey | Carlton Banks |
Only Sane Man | Olivia Dunham. Peter sometimes takes a crack at this, especially when Olivia shows up at his apartment at ungodly hours. |
The Smart Guy | Peter Bishop: IQ 190. |
The Casanova Wannabe | Walter Bishop. He would be the smart guy, but he's just too darn insane to function. |
The Butt-Monkey | Astrid. Walter can't even remember her name. |
Only Sane Man | Sofia |
The Smart Guy | Dorothy |
The Casanova Wannabe | Blanche |
The Butt-Monkey | Rose |
Only Sane Man | Fonzie |
The Smart Guy | Richie |
The Casanova Wannabe | Ralph |
The Butt-Monkey | Potsie |
Only Sane Man | Q |
The Smart Guy | Sal |
The Casanova Wannabe | Joe |
The Butt-Monkey | Murr |
Only Sane Man | Simon Cooper. Not, however, The Protagonist. |
The Smart Guy | Will Mackenzie, who speaks French and is something of a high flyer |
The Casanova Wannabe | Jay Cartwright, who has been singularly attributed with bringing the word clunge back into the popular lexicon |
The Butt-Monkey | Neil Sutherland. While he is more successful with the opposite sex than the others, he takes The Ditz to extreme levels and is the target of the others' jokes |
Only Sane Man | Jen |
The Smart Guy | Moss |
The Casanova Wannabe | Roy or Douglas |
The Butt-Monkey | Roy or Richmond |
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia note
Only Sane Man | Dee |
The Smart Guy | Dennis |
The Casanova Wannabe | Mac |
The Butt-Monkey | Charlie |
Kamen Rider Build: The Kamen Riders
Only Sane Man | Gentoku Himuro/Kamen Rider Rogue, wacky fashion sense aside. |
The Smart Guy | Sento Kiryu/Kamen Rider Build |
The Casanova Wannabe | Kazumi Sawatari, who pines for Mii-tan's affections. |
The Butt-Monkey | Ryuga Banjou/Kamen Rider Cross-Z |
Last of the Summer Wine The "Trio" in the years after Compo's death
Only Sane Man | Norman Clegg |
The Smart Guy | Herbert "Truly" Truelove |
The Casanova Wannabe | Alvin Smedley |
The Butt-Monkey | Billy Hardcastle |
Only Sane Man | Medina |
The Smart Guy | Santos |
The Casanova Wannabe | Ravenna |
The Butt-Monkey | Lamponne |
Only Sane Man | Peg |
The Smart Guy | Marcy |
The Casanova Wannabe | Jefferson |
The Butt-Monkey | Al |
Only Sane Man | Mike |
The Smart Guy | Micky |
The Casanova Wannabe | Davy |
The Butt-Monkey | Peter |
Only Sane Man | Kermit |
The Smart Guy | Piggy |
The Casanova Wannabe | Gonzo |
The Butt-Monkey | Fozzie |
Only Sane Man | Niles |
The Smart Guy | Maxwell Sheffield |
The Casanova Wannabe | Fran Fine |
The Butt-Monkey | C.C. Babcock |
Only Sane Man | Nick |
The Smart Guy | Schmidt |
The Casanova Wannabe | Coach |
The Butt-Monkey | Winston |
Only Sane Man | Dawn. She's oldest of the quads and considers herself the leader. |
The Smart Guy | Ricky. He's the smartest one of the quads. |
The Casanova Wannabe | Dicky, although he's more of a Kidanova. |
The Butt-Monkey | Nicky. He tries to stay out of his siblings' shenanigans, but trouble finds him anyway. |
Only Sane Man | Pam |
The Smart Guy | Jim |
The Casanova Wannabe | Dwight |
The Butt-Monkey | Michael |
Package Deal
Only Sane Man | Kim |
The Smart Guy | Danny |
The Casanova Wannabe | Sheldon |
The Butt-Monkey | Ryan |
Only Sane Man | Juliet O'Hara |
The Smart Guy | Burton Guster |
The Casanova Wannabe | Shawn Spencer |
The Butt-Monkey | Carlton Lassiter |
Only Sane Man | David Lister |
The Smart Guy | Kryten. |
The Casanova Wannabe | The Cat. Lovable Sex Maniac |
The Butt-Monkey | Arnold Rimmer |
Shameless (UK) has the Maguire boys
Only Sane Man | Paddy Maguire. Frustrated at the failed initiatives and incompetence of his sons |
The Smart Guy | Jamie Maguire. Generally speaking, the most independent and able of the sons |
The Casanova Wannabe | Mickey Maguire. Mainly his obsessive love for gay porn |
The Butt-Monkey | Shane Maguire. Pretty much identified for his lack of common sense or intelligence, early on. |
Only Sane Man | Jerry Seinfeld |
The Smart Guy | Elaine Benes |
The Casanova Wannabe | George Costanza |
The Butt-Monkey | Cosmo Kramer |
Only Sane Man | Wade Wells |
The Smart Guy | Quinn Mallory |
The Casanova Wannabe | Rembrandt Brown |
The Butt-Monkey | Maximilian Arturo |
Only Sane Man | Samantha Carter |
The Smart Guy | Daniel Jackson |
The Casanova Wannabe | Teal'c |
The Butt-Monkey | Jack O'Neill |
Only Sane Man | Teyla Emmagan |
The Smart Guy | Rodney McKay |
The Casanova Wannabe | John Sheppard |
The Butt-Monkey | Ronon Dex |
Only Sane Man | Eric |
The Smart Guy | Hyde |
The Casanova Wannabe | Kelso |
The Butt-Monkey | Fez |
Only Sane Man | Wyatt| |
The Smart Guy | Lisa |
The Casanova Wannabe | Gary |
The Butt-Monkey | Chett |
Only Sane Man | Grace |
The Smart Guy | Will |
The Casanova Wannabe | Karen |
The Butt-Monkey | Jack |
Only Sane Man | Mike by default |
The Smart Guy | Vyvyan, by mad scientist standards anyway. |
The Casanova Wannabe | Rick |
The Butt-Monkey | Neil, oh Neil. |
The Young Ones (Alternate Character Interpretation)
Only Sane Man | Neil by default |
The Smart Guy | Vyvyan, by mad scientist standards anyway. |
The Casanova Wannabe | Mike, Casanova Wannabe |
The Butt-Monkey | Rick, who gets beat up and tormented even more than Neil. |
The Young Ones (Alternate Character Interpretation)
Only Sane Man | Mike by default |
The Smart Guy | Neil, a Genius Ditz who got the highest test scores |
The Casanova Wannabe | Vyvyan, the poster child for Comedic Sociopath |
The Butt-Monkey | Rick, who gets beat up and tormented even more than Neil |
Big Time Rush (Alternate Character Interpretation)
Only Sane Man | Kendall Knight |
The Smart Guy | Logan Mitchell |
The Casanova Wannabe | James Diamond |
The Butt-Monkey | Carlos Garcia |
Only Sane Man | Darryl Wilson |
The Smart Guy | Henry Oak |
The Casanova Wannabe | Glenn Close |
The Butt-Monkey | Ron Stampler |
Only Sane Man | Russel Bergman, The Generic Guy in a cast full of weirdos and often the one who tries to break up fights. |
The Smart Guy | Leona Garstein, a cool-headed Ace Pilot. |
The Casanova Wannabe | Katina Tarask, a Hot-Blooded Leeroy Jenkins prone to over the top threats of violence. |
The Butt-Monkey | Tasuku Shinguji, a tactless ditz who earns his punishment by saying the wrong things. |
Only Sane Man | Fox McCloud |
The Smart Guy | Peppy Hare |
The Casanova Wannabe | Falco Lambordi |
The Butt-Monkey | Slippy Toad |
Only Sane Man | Rogue |
The Smart Guy | Virus, he's the most book smart at least |
The Casanova Wannabe | Eastwood |
The Butt-Monkey | Lothar |
8-Bit Theater, Light Warriors
Only Sane Man | Thief |
The Smart Guy | Red Mage, or so he thinks |
The Casanova Wannabe | Black Mage (mostly of the Sociopathic type, except when White Mage is featured) |
The Butt-Monkey | Fighter |
Homestuck: the Beta Kids
Only Sane Man | Jade Harley |
The Smart Guy | Rose Lalonde |
The Casanova Wannabe | Dave Strider |
The Butt-Monkey | John Egbert |
The Alpha Kids
Only Sane Man | Roxy Lalonde |
The Smart Guy | Dirk Strider |
The Casanova Wannabe | Jake English |
The Butt-Monkey | Jane Crocker |
Only Sane Man | Green Link |
The Smart Guy | Blue Link |
The Casanova Wannabe | Red Link |
The Butt-Monkey | Purple Link |
Homestar Runner, Teen Girl Squad
Only Sane Man | Cheerleader |
The Smart Guy | So and So |
The Casanova Wannabe | The Ugly One |
The Butt-Monkey | What's Her Face |
Only Sane Man | Katie |
The Smart Guy | Soren (maybe not the smartest, but the most adept and most likely to be crushed for his hubris) |
The Casanova Wannabe | Michael |
The Butt-Monkey | Dan |
Only Sane Man | Virgil (sort of deconstruction) |
The Smart Guy | Logan |
The Casanova Wannabe | Roman (or rather, Love Freak) |
The Butt-Monkey | Patton |
Only Sane Man | Charlie Brown |
The Smart Guy | Linus |
The Casanova Wannabe | Peppermint Patty |
The Butt-Monkey | Snoopy |
Only Sane Man | Peter Griffin |
The Smart Guy | Joe |
The Casanova Wannabe | Quagmire, who brings this character to its most outrageous (and darkest) levels |
The Butt-Monkey | Cleveland Brown. He personifies Extreme Doormat in his pre-spinoff appearances |
Only Sane Man | Ex Butt-Monkey Cleveland Brown |
The Smart Guy | Tim the Bear |
The Casanova Wannabe | Holt Richter |
The Butt-Monkey | Lester |
Only Sane Man | Stan |
The Smart Guy | Kyle |
The Casanova Wannabe | Cartman (Comedic Sociopath) |
The Butt-Monkey | Kenny |
Only Sane Man | Skipper |
The Smart Guy | Kowalski |
The Casanova Wannabe | Rico, Comedic Sociopath |
The Butt-Monkey | Private |
Only Sane Man | Hank Hill |
The Smart Guy | Dale Gribble |
The Casanova Wannabe | Boomhauer |
The Butt-Monkey | Bill Dauterive |
Only Sane Man | Bugs |
The Smart Guy | Tina |
The Casanova Wannabe | Lola |
The Butt-Monkey | Daffy |
The Super Mario Bros. Super Show
Only Sane Man | Mario |
The Smart Guy | Luigi |
The Casanova Wannabe | Toad |
The Butt-Monkey | Toadstool |
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2012)
Only Sane Man | Michelangelo |
The Smart Guy | Donatello |
The Casanova Wannabe | Leonardo |
The Butt-Monkey | Raphael |
The Simpsons: The Simpson family
Only Sane Man | Marge |
The Smart Guy | Lisa |
The Casanova Wannabe | Bart |
The Butt-Monkey | Homer |
Moe's Tavern Regulars
Only Sane Man | Lenny |
The Smart Guy | Carl |
The Casanova Wannabe | Moe |
The Butt-Monkey | Barney |
Only Sane Man | Spot |
The Smart Guy | Lucky |
The Casanova Wannabe | Cadpig |
The Butt-Monkey | Rolly |
Only Sane Man | Chip |
The Smart Guy | Gadget |
The Casanova Wannabe | Dale |
The Butt-Monkey | Monterey Jack |
Only Sane Man | Dr. Raymond Stantz |
The Smart Guy | Dr. Egon Spengler |
The Casanova Wannabe | Winston Zeddmore |
The Butt-Monkey | Dr. Peter Venkman |
Only Sane Man | Eduardo Rivera |
The Smart Guy | Kylie Griffin |
The Casanova Wannabe | Roland Jackson |
The Butt-Monkey | Garrett Miller |
Kaeloo: The main four
Only Sane Man | Kaeloo |
The Smart Guy | Quack Quack |
The Casanova Wannabe | Mr. Cat |
The Butt-Monkey | Stumpy |
Only Sane Man | Wally |
The Smart Guy | Jeremy |
The Casanova Wannabe | Shades |
The Butt-Monkey | Mario |