Charlie Dompler is one of the two main protagonists (alongside Pim) of Smiling Friends. He is a yellow critter that helps out at Smiling Friends Inc.
Appearance
Body
Charlie is a yellow-skinned Critter with a large nose and big lips. His eyes are small, black, and beady, and he has six single hairs on the back of his neck. When his eyes widen (usually out of surprise or pain,) his white sclerae are visible. He has a somewhat overweight build and black body hair on his chest and belly. He seems to be of average height.
Clothing
Charlie regularly wears a brown baseball cap, an orange hoodie with a grey undershirt, dark grey pants, and a white pair of nondescript shoes. Charlie is also shown to wear white boxer shorts. In colder temperatures, Charlie wears dark red gloves and a brown beanie. In "Enchanted Forest," Charlie dons a full suit of plate armour.
Personality
Charlie is a nonchalant and laid-back critter with a rational, if pessimistic, outlook on life. He tends to speak in a nasal monotone, rarely raising his voice. He often acts as the straight man to Pim and encourages other characters to calm down in an indifferent manner. Despite this, Charlie considers himself an 'alpha male', and sometimes escalates situations by trying to take control, such as when he tries wrestling a gun off an aggravated DJ Spit in "Frowning Friends" twice. Charlie often bickers with Pim about mundane topics and semantics, even escalating to an argument which causes Charlie's death in "Charlie Dies and Doesn't Come Back," but the two always eventually reconcile their differences.
Compared to Pim, Charlie is much more pragmatic, often trying to help people in ways that might help in the long term. For example, he tried to repair Mr. Frog's image when the disgraced host said he wasn't sorry for swallowing the TMZ reporter, and wanted to help Shrimp move on rather than try to win Shrimpina back, as he figured out that there was probably a reason why the two broke up. However, this pragmatism often stems from laziness and cynicism. He often tries to get a job done as quickly as possible despite the consequences, such as suggesting he and Pim let Desmond kill himself rather than help him. Charlie also seems to care about his image more than Pim, or at least dislikes cancel culture, stating that he doesn't dress up for Halloween in case his costume is deemed offensive in ten years' time. Despite his sloth and selfishness, Charlie does have some morals, as he opposes homicide of any kind and goes out of his way to solve Simon S. Salty's murder.
Unlike Pim, who seems to be looking for a relationship, Charlie is dating a human woman named Zoey. Charlie may be bisexual or pansexual, as he reciprocated Mip's attempt to seduce him in "Enchanted Forest" and kissed Pim on the head in "A Allan Adventure." In "Who Violently Murdered Simon S. Salty?" Mustard also attempts to seduce Charlie - this could imply that Charlie is considered an attractive critter.
Despite his rather sinful habits, he is a devout Catholic. He wears a crucifix and instinctively prays to God in times of great stress, as seen in "Charlie, Pim, and Bill vs The Alien." He also attempts to exorcise Glep with a cross necklace he has in “Curse Of The Green Halloween Witch.” In "Who Violently Murdered Simon S. Salty?" he states that he’d never break the 6th commandment. It’s likely his faith was reinforced once he met and was saved by God himself.
Charlie appears to be a foodie, as he has stated to enjoy century eggs, and is a regular customer of The Flying Meepling restaurant. He also enjoys fast food chain Salty's, smacking his lips at prospect of eating their burgers.
A more submissive side of Charlie is seen in "Gwimbly: Definitive Remastered Enhanced Extended Edition DX 4K (Anniversary Director’s Cut)", when aggressive client James takes advantage of the Smiling Friends Inc. policy of employees needing to go through with their customers' every demand. Charlie begrudgingly complies with every request out of fear of what James might do to him, at one point exhaustedly pleading for a smile from him while wearing a maid dress.
Charlie is shown to be particularly sensitive and protective when it comes to his nose. In "Gwimbly: Definitive Remastered Enhanced Extended Edition DX 4K (Anniversary Director's Cut)," Charlie screamed in horror after James casually ripped it off. Charlie managed to get his nose reattached but was offended that the rest of the crew seemed to ignore his trauma from the incident. In "The Magical Red Jewel (aka Tyler Gets Fired)," Charlie called Allan out for playfully sucking on his nose in "Desmond's Big Day Out," stating that it made him uncomfortable. He also furiously strangled Allan after he head-butted it in their fight over Jason's apparent death.
He’s also shown to be rather egotistical, frequently talking up his own abilities to sometimes absurd degrees despite his general lack of competence, such as in “Pim and Charlie Save Mother Nature” where he states he would be an “elite super spy” if not for his job at smiling friends, and that despite the fact he’s “so good at it” he keeps it hidden in order to not “freak (Pim) out,” all while walking directly into animal feces on the trail that Pim easily spotted and walked around. He also frequently makes excuses (usually poor excuses) for any of his potential shortcomings or failures in an effort to save face and maintain the image he thinks he has, such as in “Pim Finally Turns Green” where his reason for not “laying out” the yeti that had barged into their break room was that his “arm was so freakin sore from the gym, or whatever.”
Background
Charlie's family seems to be cursed with bad luck, and violent accidents often occur to his family. In "Mr. Frog," Charlie mentions that he took a bottle of sleeping pills from his uncle which were prescribed to him after he rammed his car into a crowd of people. In "Shrimp's Odyssey", Charlie tells Pim that his grandma passed away after eating a peanut. In "Charlie Dies and Doesn't Come Back," Charlie's grandma tells Charlie that she permanently resides in Hell because she said 'damn' in 1958 when her husband was shot by a burglar (which Charlie reasonably believes is an overreaction by Satan). Charlie himself dies earlier in the same episode after a Christmas tree he was chopping down fell on him and killed him instantly. However, he was eventually revived and removed from Hell by God.
He’s also been shown to have a drinking problem, and claims to have a pacemaker installed due to chronic heart problems.
Relationships
Pim
Pim is Charlie's best friend and workmate at Smiling Friends Inc. The two have known each other for 7 years, as revealed in "Charlie, Pim, and Bill vs The Alien." Charlie tends to doubt Pim's ambitious methods to make their clients smile, and often suggests doing something more practical and requiring less work. He is quick to point out Pim's naivety in the field, such as when Pim mistook a human woman for a female Shrimp while trying to reunite Shrimp with his ex-girlfriend, and when he screamed "I love kids" in public. He also was defensive when Pim criticized his pessimism and laziness in "Charlie Dies and Doesn't Come Back." However, there are times where Charlie finds Pim's optimism and energy humorous, and he clearly values his friendship with him, even going as far as to train the Shmaloogles and joining them in a raid on the Wizard's tower to save him in "Shmaloogles," getting very upset at their initial inaction after his kidnapping. He is also physically affectionate with Pim, tousling his "hair" at the end of "Who Violently Murdered Simon S. Salty?" and kissing him on the head in "A Allan Adventure." In "Brother's Egg," both Charlie and Pim are shown to be fluent in Spanish and choose to communicate in the language to hide their private conversations.
Mip
Charlie managed to get it on good with Mip while on a job to make the Princess of the Enchanted Forest smile. He was very appreciative when Mip offered a potion that cured his headache. With Mip's guidance, Charlie completed several quests and became a renowned warrior, and was chosen by the dwarf to deliver a present to the Princess. Charlie was horrified at Mip's brutal death (partly at his own hand, by accident), and was thoroughly disturbed upon learning that Mip was actually the Princess' stalker and his "present" was an IED.
Shrimp
Shrimp was one of Charlie's clients. While Charlie sympathized with Shrimp's desire to reconnect with his ex-girlfriend, he decided it was instead best to help Shrimp build a better physique in order to attract a new partner. Charlie comforted Shrimp as he sulked over his failed relationship.
Allan
Allan is Charlie's workmate at Smiling Friends Inc. The two appear to be on relatively good terms, with Charlie laughing and calling Allan a "crazy character," during which Allan playfully nipped at his nose. However, it was later revealed that Charlie was disturbed by this act, with the two awkwardly talking it out while taking care of Jason, later getting into an argument and physical fight over who was responsible for Jason's perceived death. Thankfully, the two later reconciled, sharing a relieved hug when Jason transformed into a butterfly. Charlie also reacted with surprise when Allan arrested him while he was working for Frowning Friends security. Overall, while they tend to get along fine, they have no special relationship with each other.
The Boss
Charlie sees to get along well with the Boss. He showed concern when the Boss became paranoid about the Frowning Friends, and was happy to accept a figurine of his employer when Allan didn't want it. Charlie was also willing to give the Boss true love's kiss to revive him from his magical stupor. In turn, the Boss trusts Charlie with the jobs he assigns him, and delivered a poetic eulogy at Charlie's funeral shortly before he was resurrected. In addition, as revealed in "Squim Returns", the Boss has Charlie added on Steam.
However, they have a major conflict in "Squim Returns", when Mr. Boss finds out Charlie is skipping work, he calls him various insults, and threatens to fire him if he doesn't arrive to work by noon. Charlie ends up keeping his job despite failing to return to work.
Desmond
Desmond was one of Charlie's clients. After being called up to help a woman's son smile, Charlie was shocked to find Desmond - a clinically depressed adult man - preparing to commit suicide due to his estrangement from his wife and children, and realized that he may be a lost cause. He didn't display much effort in showing Desmond that life was worth living and insisted he just sign paperwork disclosing that the Smiling Friends failed to make him smile. At the office, Desmond shot a Bliblie that tried to attack him, and Charlie assured him that he "had to do it." Desmond then found a new purpose in life by establishing Desmond's Bliblie Control. Charlie appeared to be satisfied with this outcome.
Mr. Frog
Mr. Frog was one of Charlie's clients. Charlie reacted with disgust upon learning that Mr. Frog was fired from his own show and was determined to help the celebrity mend his reputation. Charlie was enamored by Mr. Frog's luxurious mansion, taking advantage of the shooting range and hot tub whilst on the job, and reacted with great shock when the celebrity spouted an offensive rant on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.
Glep
Glep is Charlie's workmate at Smiling Friends Inc. The two have had little no to interaction, though Glep did willfully punch Charlie in the leg while the former worked as security for Frowning Friends Inc., hinting at some animosity.
Satan
Charlie went to Satan's abode to make him smile, hoping the devil could give him a second chance at life in return. Charlie made suggestions for Satan to drop his lazy habits and addictions but the devil was offended by this and ordered him tortured by his minions.
Jeremy
Jeremy was Charlie's only form of hellish entertainment. During his time in Hell, Charlie found Jeremy extremely obnoxious and threatened to assault him if he bothered him again, which he later did and received a punch to the throat by the critter. Jeremy later got his revenge by punching Charlie in the face as Satan's minions tortured him.
Grim and Gnarly
Grim and Gnarly were Charlie and Pim's rivals working for Frowning Friends Inc. Charlie was determined to stop the Frowning Friends's negative influence on others and was surprised when the Renaissance Men killed the duo with arrows.
Zoey
Charlie has a girlfriend named Zoey. The two seem to bicker a lot, with the latter being annoyed by Charlie refusing to wear a costume for Halloween, but broadly seem to get along. She appeared grieving at Charlie's funeral, during which he was resurrected by God. Despite his relationship with her, he is somewhat disloyal, being receptive to seduction and kissing one of his co-workers on the forehead (though the latter could be a platonic gesture).
God
God resurrected Charlie upon making Satan smile and confronting his own shortcomings as Satan didn’t honor his deal.
James
James, a client, holds Charlie hostage at work, forcing him to degrade and emasculate himself in order to make James smile. He breaks Charlie's nose off out of spite and threatens to decapitate him before they get interrupted. Once James kills the CEO for being a "fat, ugly nerd," he earns his smile and leaves. Charlie is left with a temporary wound where his nose had been, stating that James "should not be allowed to walk the streets." During a post-credits scene, however, it's revealed that James may have targeted Charlie due to repressed and unrequited feelings for him. He is seen drinking his sorrows away over a framed image of a smiling Charlie, which he tenderly holds in his hands while he cries.
Quotes
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| Click here to see Charlie Dompler's quotes. |
Gallery
Trivia
- In the episode, "Erm, the Boss Finds Love?" it is revealed that Charlie has a heart condition that required him to get a pacemaker.
- Charlie is shown to be a devout Christian as he is seen praying and wearing a cross necklace under his shirt.
- It is implied that Charlie is bisexual or at the very least queer.
- There exists a running gag where Charlie will take an exaggerated gulp during intense situations.
- Charlie's voice is Zach Hadel's natural speaking voice.
- In the episode "Who Violently Murdered Simon S. Salty?" Charlie mentions that he has gone to Salty's since he was a homunculus. This implies that Charlie is part human, or that Charlie is a handsome motherfucking beast.
- Charlie is supposedly made out of goo like when he's thrown on the ground in Charlie Dies and Doesn't Come Back and when he melts into goo after being sprayed by Glep's acid in Curse of the Green Halloween Witch.
- Charlie's crotch area is censored in Squim Returns. This heavily implies that Charlie has genitals.