open/close all folders
Frankie Drake
Played by: Lauren Lee Smith
A private detective working in 1920s Toronto, Frankie is the daughter of Con Artists, and a former spy and dispatch rider who served with distinction in the Signal Corps during World War I. Following the end of the War, she set up shop as a private detective in Toronto the Good.
- Action Girl: She was a dispatch rider and spy for the Signal Corps during the War, packs heat, and has a mean right hook. If there's a fight, Frankie is the one most likely to be int he middle of it.
- Belligerent Sexual Tension: Wtih Ernest Hemingway (yes, that Ernest Hemingway) in season 1, and Detective Greyson in season 2.
- Boxing Battler: She trains with professional boxer Moses Page, and takes part in an underground match during a case in "Counterpunch".
- Broken Bird: It's subtle, but Frankie is still deeply troubled by being duped into killing a youth during the War by her commander. The boy was an enemy agent, but she continues to be haunted by his death, and angry over her commander's duplicity in setting her up to make the hit.
- Con Woman: She was raised by a pair of conmen, and learned more than her share of the same tricks of the trade as a result. This allows her to make use of them herself as a detective, and more than one case (especially when her mother is involved) is cracked by running a con on the baddie of the week.
- Embarrassing First Name: Narrowly avoided. Frankie's mother wanted to name her Cleopatra, but her father prevailed. It doesn't stop Norah from embarrassing Frankie over it, however.
- Everyone Loves Blondes: Frankie trades her fiery red locks for a blonde bob in season 3, and immediately catches wolf whistles while out with a friend.
- Fiery Red Head: She has fiery red hair, and can have a temper to match. Brackenreid himself points out as much, noting she has a wicked right hook.
- Gender-Blender Name: Her full name is spelled Francis Drake, instead of the feminine Frances. It's part of the reason why Norah didn't approve.
- Hardboiled Detective: She has a nasty right hook, has the balls to stare down Al Capone himself, is a good shot, and has her own still for making moonshine. She's a private detective who doesn't just catch the occasional philanderer, but often finds herself drawn into murder investigations and other major crimes. She also has more than a few demons in her closet, though she's a bit less jaded than is usual for the trope.
- Inappropriately Close Comrades: During her time in the Signal Corps Frankie had an affair with her commanding officer. Frankie keeps quiet about it, but it seems to be something of an open secret with her wartime buddies among the dispatch riders. And Agatha Christie (yes, that Agatha Christie) spots the history between them immediately.
- Lightning Bruiser: Frankie hits hard enough that she can even drop men a good deal stronger than her with her wicked right hook. She's also very fast on her feet. This is best demonstrated in "Counterpunch" where she boxes against another woman who's at least a weight class over her.
- Named After Someone Famous: Her criminal father named in honour of pirate and adventurer Sir Francis Drake.
- Noodle Incident: The War is one big In-Universe one for Frankie. She was officially a dispatch rider with the Signal Corps, but this was just a cover for covert operations she carried out. Otherwise she's very quiet about her experiences and actions even with her friends, and is only truly open with the others she served with. She did possess high security clearance that she was able to requisition highly-classified files about the testing of poison gas on the Allies' own troops simply by turning up in uniform while investigating the murders of former comrades surrounding Remebrence Day festivities.
- Old Shame: In-Universe. During the War, her commanding officer would use her to rout out enemy spies. In one incident, he knowingly sent her into an ambush intending for her to survive and kill one such spy. However the enemy agent was just a boy, and this — and the fact her commander kept her in the dark about the nature of the mission — has haunted Frankie ever since.
- Spy Versus Spy: One of Frankie's specialties in the Signal Corps; her commander would assign her to identify and rout out enemy agents within his own chain of command.
Trudy Clarke
Played by: Chantel Riley
Frankie's best friend and partner, Trudy and Frankie met while Frankie was in Toronto searching for a German spy towards the end of the war. After losing her job as a maid, Trudy joined the fledgling Drake Detective Agency.
- Action Girl: After Frankie, Trudy has the most action scenes of any member of the Drake Detective Agency. She doesn't have Frankie's right hook, but can still hold her own in a scuffle, and is more than capable with a firearm.
- Big Sister Instinct: Trudy is the eldest of four children, and looks out for her younger siblings as best she can. She takes caring for them very seriously.
- The Chanteuse: Trudy sings jazz, and frequently shows off her pipes, and when out on a night on the town has the looks to match.
- Disappeared Dad: Very little is known about Trudy's father, and he has yet to appear in the series.
- Immigrant Parents: Trudy's mother is a Jamaican immigrant.
- The Lancer: As the other full-time employee of Drake Detective Agencies, Trudy is Frankie's right hand. When Frankie is out of town Trudy typically holds down the fort, and will often pursue her own lines of investigations to solve the case.
- Glamorous Wartime Singer: Not precisely, as Frankie Drake is set between the Wars, but she nonetheless evokes this. Trudy is a glamorous dresser with a sultry jazz voice.
- Scullery Maid: Trudy was working as a maid at the house where Frankie stayed during her Spy Versus Spy mission at the end of the War. Trudy's fearlessness when confronting Frankie after mistakenly identifying her as an enemy agent helped cement their friendship and, after Trudy lost her job as a result of the goings on, their partnership.
Officer Mary Shaw
Played by: Rebecca Liddiard
A Morality Officer in the Toronto Constabulary, Mary frequently uses her posting within the department to help provide Frankie information on cases, and at times even assists directly by going undercover. Her father was a cop, inspiring Mary to join the force as well, and she aspires one day to be a real policewoman.
- 10-Minute Retirement: She loses her job when Detective Grayson catches her snooping around his desk after she discovers him hiding and removing evidence from a crime scene. She subsequently joins the Drake detective agency full-time...at least until she helps solve the case and catch the actual dirty coppers Greyson was tracking, and is restored to her normal position.
- Culture Police: This is literally her job. As a Morality Officer, her position exists to police the length of womens' skirts, deal with prostitutes, enforce curfews, enforce prohibition, and address other violations of "public decency." Mary finds the work meaningless and degrading, and despairs that she's not allowed to be a real officer because she's a woman. That said, she does have some actual police powers, including the power to make an arrest.
- Fair Cop: Mary is a tall, slim, and pretty woman with youthful features. This often makes her ideal for certain forms of undercover work.
- Fangirl: She positively geeks out over meeting Watts and Brackenreid in A Cold Case. She mentions having followed Watts' arrest record, which is nearly as impressive as Murdoch's, and her face positively lights up whenever Brackenreid pays her a compliment.
- Fat and Skinny: Mary is the slimmest member of the main cast, and she's often paired up with Flo, who is by far the largest.
- Friend on the Force: Mary is the Friend On The Force. She uses her posting with the Toronto Constabulary to help Frankie on cases by running finger marks, "borrowing" evidence,and gaining access to police files and records.
- Genki Girl: Chipper, upbeat, enthusiastic, and a boundless ball of energy.
- Guile Hero: Mary is not nearly as good in a fight as Frankie and Trudy. However she demonstrates a lot smarts and an ability to think quickly on her feet. And whenever a suspect mocks her badge and dismisses her because she's "just" a morality officer, Mary is often able to turn the tables on them by finding a violation that does fall under her jurisdiction she can use to put a twist on them.
- Hidden Depths: Mary is an amateur baseball player, and is a talented enough pitcher to win a championship in a semipro women's league.
- Nice Girl: Mary may be the kindest and most sweet-natured part of Frankie's circle. This makes her an odd choice for a private detective, but she still makes it work for her.
- No-Respect Guy: Despite showing talent as a detective, and her enthusiasm and pride for the police force, as a Morality Officer Mary is often ridiculed by her fellow officers and treated as little more than a glorified meter maid, while very few people take her badge seriously.
- Shrinking Violet: Ironically, despite being the only professional law enforcement officer in the agency, Mary is the most timid of the group. While playing tough comes second nature to Frankie, Trudy, and even Flo, Mary is the one most likely to be a little jittery and nervous. She even admits in "Counterpunch" that going under cover always makes her nervous.
Flo Chakowitz
Played by: Sharron Matthews
Flo works as an assistant in the Toronto Coroner's office. Although she's only a medical student, she's nonetheless quite skilled at her work, and often picks up details her boss (who may not entirely be competent in the first place) misses. Flo uses her position to assist Frankie, slipping her details from the coroner's report when her boss's back is turned, and often directly performing autopsies herself to provide her with important information.
- Almighty Janitor: She's only a medical student, but actually manages to be even more competent than the actual medical examiner.
- Big Beautiful Woman: She's a quite husky woman, but oozes confidence, has more than her share of dates, and when out on the town can dress to the nines with the best of them.
- The Coroner: Subverted. She's not the Coroner, but she does assist the city coroner while attending medical school...often doing much of the actual work he can't be bothered to.
- Deadpan Snarker: Flo is the biggest snarker in the cast, and almost always has a dry remark ready to go.
- Hard on Soft Science: "Counterpunch" reveals Flo doesn't think highly of holistic medicine and initially dismisses it as "snake oil." While still not sold on it as a replacement for modern medicine, she does begin to recognize it can have some medicinal value after working with Harland Walcott on replacing a spiked batch of his curative.
- Fat and Skinny: Flo is quite heavyset, so has this dynamic with all of the other three women in the agency. However she's most often paired with the willowy Mary, who's notably the skinniest.
- Rape as Backstory: In "Out on a Limb" Flo reveals to Mary that she'd been raped by a man she was dating.
Norah Drake
Played By: Wendy Crewson
Norah is the mother of private detective Frankie Drake, a Con Woman and former member of the Drake gang with her husband Ned.
- Con Woman: Norah's a good one, even able to pull one over on her own daughter from time to time. Needless to say, Frankie and Norah frequently butt heads.
- Cool Old Lady: Norah is quick-witted, personable, fashionable, and a legendary Con Woman.
- Long-Lost Relative: Frankie bumps into Norah while working a case in the pilot, and they learn who each other is shortly after.
- Missing Mom: Frankie grew up believing she was dead; Ned told her that Norah had died when she was four, and it came as a shock to both when they encountered each other for the first time since she was a child.
- Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: Norah and Frankie have a rough relationship, and usually when they work together they just end up butting heads.
Detective Grayson
Played by: Anthony Lemke
A new detective assigned to the Constabulary in the 1920s, Grayson quickly comes to butt heads with Frankie when her cases end up intersecting with his. However they quickly develop a grudging respect (and mutual attraction) for one another, and Grayson is willing to make use of her to get the job done.
- Dirty Cop: Mary suspects him of being one after she catches him hiding evidence. It turns out Grayson is clean and was building a case on an actual dirty constable, and didn't want the man to know he was on to him.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Once he and Frankie put (some of) their animosity behind them, Grayson is willing to share his information with her so long as she shares back. Especially because Frankie is able to gain access to places in which his own hands are tied.
