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Introduced in Season One
Alyssa Anderson
Alyssa Anderson
"You're like my guardian angel, Max."
Voiced by: Dayeanne Hutton
Another student of Mr. Jefferson's class. Keeps to herself.
- Alliterative Name: Alyssa Anderson
- Big Beautiful Woman: She's chubby and a cute purple-haired girl.
- Born Unlucky: She can't seem to help wandering into misfortune.
- Butt-Monkey: Each episode has her suffer some kind of misfortune. In Episode 1, it's Zach's football. In Episode 2, it's a roll of toilet paper some random girl throws from the bathroom. In Episode 3, it's a car driving by that splashes her with water. In Episode 4, she gets knocked into the Blackwell pool by a thrown pool noodle. Max can intervene each time to help her, though. In Episode 5, she finds herself stranded on top of a crumbling building during the storm. You can let her probably die (which will happen no matter what you do when you skip out on helping her all four times you can), or be nice once more and save her. If Max saves her one last time, Alyssa helps her dodge a flying signpost.
- Deadpan Snarker: As seen in ''Before The Storm" when she offers her opinion on a social media conversation about a photo of Chloe and Rachel Amber:
- Designated Victim: Moreso than Chloe! Max literally has to save Alyssa Once per Episode. If Max is successful all five times, Alyssa eventually returns the favor by saving Max during episode 5.
- Goth: Wears lots of grey and black. Her voice actress Dayeanne Hutton even describes her as such.
- Guilty Pleasure: Is seen reading Chick Lit outside the girls dorm in Episode 1.
- Makes Us Even: If you save her in Episode 5, she returns the favor by saving Max from a falling sign and says "Now we're even."
- Not So Stoic: She can be seen clutching Warren in horror while watching Kate attempting to commit suicide.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: In the alternate timeline, there's a text on Max's phone where Max accuses her of throwing things, though Alyssa denies Max being the target.
- Shipper on Deck: Not to the same extent with Dana, but she does mention that she understands why Warren is attracted to Max.
- The Stoic: She almost always looks and sounds bored.
- Uncertain Doom: While this is technically the fate of most characters from the original game in one ending, Alyssa is a noteworthy case: the end of the comics arc reveals that she survived the storm in the Save Chloe ending, something that Max (and the audience) had been unaware of until that point.
Brooke Scott
Brooke Scott
"I'm all about robotics, not chemistry. Give me a drone over a beaker."
Voiced by: Dani Knights (uncredited)
A nerdy honors student who's often immersed with her camera drone.
- Brutal Honesty: She'll readily own up to her jealousy over Warren's crush on Max, if asked about it, and even admits that she's petty. But she'll eventually apologize for it and reconcile with Max during the party in episode 4.
- The Cameo: Her sole appearance on Before the Storm is through a text sent to Chloe and a photo of herself linked to the text.
- Clingy Jealous Girl: Downplayed. She isn't possessive of Warren, but she's plainly jealous of his crush on Max. Brooke will even refuse to let Max fly her drone if she accepts Warren's movie invitation.Max: (incredulously) "I can't fly your drone Just 'cuz I'm going to the movies with Warren? Seriously...?"Brooke: (snarkily) "You are perceptive, Max."
- Green-Eyed Monster: In Episode 4, Brooke gets very snippy towards Max if Max agreed to go to the movies with Warren back in Episode 2. She later apologises to Max at the party.
- Hollywood Atheist: Possibly, in an unused sound during Kate's suicide attempt, Kate mentions that Brooke made fun of her for not being an atheist.
- Hopeless Suitor: To Warren, due to his own crush on Max.
- If Max turns down Warren's offer to go to the drive-in, Warren will go with Brooke instead but insists that he got Max an extra ticket if Max wants to change her mind. In the alternate timeline, Warren still isnt interested in her and hooks up with Stella.
- It can be subverted if the player turns down Warren's movie invitation in episode 2, then advises Daniel against going to the End of the World party in episode 4. If Max speaks to Brooke during the party, she'll tell Max that Warren asked her out and that he plans to take her to dinner afterward. Max replies that she's happy for Brooke.
- Nerd Glasses: She's a nerd and wears glasses.
- Ship Tease: Max is impressed to see Daniel flirting with Brooke if she convinced him to attend the party.
Courtney Wagner
Courtney Wagner
"A Vortex Club party has a strict dress code. Do you even have a dress? Sorry, but nice try."
Voiced by: Hannah Telle (uncredited)
A Vortex Club member, and a member of Victoria's Girl Posse.
- Beta Bitch: Victoria's personal pocket dog who follows her in all her catty schemes. Though considering she gets most of Victoria's insults compared to Taylor, she's more of an "Gamma Bitch".
- Extreme Doormat:
- At the beginning of Episode 2, Victoria rudely orders her to do her homework for her, with Courtney happily agreeing before having the door slammed in her face.
- In Episode 5, Victoria made her "gatekeeper" for VIP section, something that she's seemingly unhappily with as she has another girl do the work for her while she's drinking alone.
- Green-Eyed Monster: In the alternate timeline, she insults Max and Taylor and is implied to be jealous at Victoria's clingy friendship with Max. Notably, Max never had text conversation with her in this timeline while she had them with Victoria and Taylor.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: She shows nicer side to Max in Episode 2 if Max compliments her about dress code and fashion sense in Vortex Club. Befriending her can allow Max to enter VIP section during End of the World party in Episode 5.
- I Just Want to Have Friends: Implied to be the reason why she's willing to be "slave" in Victoria's Girl Posse. Though she made fun of Max for not being in the same fashion with Vortex Club, once Max rewinds and compliments her about dress code and fashion sense, she's quickly pleased with the compliment and decides to personally write Max's name on the party's guest list without Victoria's consent.
- I Need a Freaking Drink: She's shown drinking alone during End of the World party, likely because she's unhappy of being "gatekeeper" for the VIP section instead of being allowed to stay in the VIP section.
- Kick the Dog: If Max couldn't save Kate in Episode 2, Courtney will leave a mean comment on Max's webpage at the beginning of Episode 3.
- Like Is, Like, a Comma: She uses "like" in every line other of dialogue she speaks.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: At the end of Episode 3 in the alternate timeline. She warns Victoria that they shouldn't have let Max in the Vortex Club, then calls Taylor a bitch when she defends her. This is despite the fact that Max can optionally befriend her in Episode 2, which shows her nicer side in the main timeline.
- Pet the Dog: Is the only member of Victoria's Girl Posse to not record Kate's attempted/successful suicide.
- Professional Butt-Kisser: Towards Victoria. Even if the latter constantly insults her and treats her with little to no respect, Courtney is still always happy to do whatever she wants.
- Yes-Man: She always nods and agrees to everything Victoria says and does.
Dana Ward
Dana Ward
"I don't need any club to be cool or have friends"
Voiced by: Dani Knights (uncredited, Season One), Maura Corsini (Before the Storm)
A member of the Vortex Club and cheerleader at Blackwell. Max notes that she's very nice.
During the events of Before the Storm, Dana took part in a production of The Tempest.
- Ambiguously Bi: Dana writes in a girls-night-out flyer that it's "bi-monthly & bi-friendly ;)".
- Berserk Button: Invading her privacy. If Max looks at her pregnancy test, Dana will get angry and tell her to leave. If Max chooses not to rewind this action, she has to reconcile with Dana later.
- The Cutie: She is beautiful as she is sweet.
- Dude Magnet: Dana's a looker with a bikini model's body, so she has no shortage of admirers. During episode 2, she can be seen posing for photos by a group of guys.
- Easily Forgiven: Should Max look at Dana's pregnancy test and not rewind. Max apologizes to Dana in the next episode and Dana seems to get over it quickly.
- Girl Next Door: Easily one of the most down-to-earth and accessible students at Blackwell, despite her social status as a cheerleader and being a member of the Vortex Club. Dana is shown to be a supportive friend of Max and encourages her to get together with Warren.
- Good Girls Avoid Abortion:
- Subverted. However, there is a book on her shelves titled "How to Be A Good Baby Mama", so it seems like she was considering keeping it.
- Played straight in the comic, where Max briefly glimpses an alternate timeline where Dana had the baby and brings it to Two Whales Diner.
- Heel–Face Turn: Downplayed. She goes from supporting the Vortex Club to writing a report on how they've only made their school worse by the fifth episode.
- Ms. Fanservice: Best seen during episode 2 when Max shows up for class and finds Dana surrounded by a group of student photographers, including Hayden. If Max tries to speak with her, Dana simply replies, "Not now Max, posing in progress."
- Nice Girl: The nicest member of the Vortex Club that Max knows. In Episode 3, she leaves encouraging messages on Max's webpage whether you kept Kate from killing herself, or not.
- Nightmare Fetishist: Episode 2 shows that she is really psyched about Halloween. She's sent out a mass e-mail to everyone inviting them to the Halloween dance, personally invites Max to come, and has a whole box of decorations in her room.
- Odd Friendship: She and Max genuinely like each other despite both being in two different social circles.
- Shipper on Deck: It's implied that Warren's crush on Max is common knowledge at Blackwell, as Dana is among those who encourage Max to hook up with him.
- Single Woman Seeks Good Man: She falls for sweet skater boy Trevor who treats her right and would do anything for her.
- Teen Pregnancy: She became pregnant by Logan, but had an abortion.
- Token Good Teammate: She, along with Hayden, is one of the only two Vortex Club members Max doesn't consider an "asshat", which is why she's among the few friends Max has at school.
Daniel DaCosta
Daniel DaCosta
"Oh, hi Max. Could I, um, ask you a question? Would you mind letting me sketch you?"
Voiced by: Nik Shriner (uncredited)
A talented sketch artist who is frequently bullied by his peers.
- Alliterative Name: Daniel DaCosta.
- All of the Other Reindeer: In the beginning of Episode 1, he can be seen being tackled on a locker by Logan. Due to his weight and shyness, he's the frequent target of most popular kids.
- Foil: To Mark Jefferson. Both are bespectacled artists who had Rachel - and depending on your choices, Max - as their muses. However, while Jefferson is a photographer who is highly respected by his peers, is superficially charming, and takes photos of his subjects without their consent, Daniel is a sketch artist who is frequently bullied, is genuinely friendly, and asks for his models' permission before he sketches them.
- Graceful in Their Element: He's not a good photographer, but talented illustrator, something that Max can point out to him.
- Nice Guy: One of the kinder students around.
- Planet of Steves: He shares his name with Daniel Diaz, the deuteragonist of Life Is Strange 2, and his name is also Warren's middle name.
- Ship Tease: He is seen apparently flirting with Brooke if Max convinced him to go to the party in Episode 4.
- Shrinking Violet: He's rather shy and has low self-esteem.
Evan Harris
Evan Harris
"My, my. This quiet child knows things."
Click here for his appearance in Before the Storm
Voiced by: Carlos Luna (uncredited, Season One), Casey Leach (Before the Storm)
A photography student that Max respects.
- The Ace: He's one of the more talented photographers at Blackwell and he knows it.
- Ascended Extra: In Before the Storm, Evan gains a lot more screen time and interaction than he did in the original game. He even has moments where he tries to bond with Chloe.
- Brutal Honesty: Most students either don’t have any idea what might have happened to Rachel or are optimistic that she just skipped town. Evan bluntly admits that something really bad probably happened to her.
- Hidden Depths: Despite his aloof behaviour, Episode 2 of Before the Storm highlights some of these. He can be seen looking quite goofy as he obsessively tries to set up a shot with a bird, and in his conversation with Chloe he tells Chloe that he admires her approach to life (especially if she seriously signed his petition), and compliments her intelligence (albeit backhandedly by accusing her of wasting it).
- Hipster: A bigger, more obnoxious one than Max, evidenced by both his wardrobe and his trivia questions about obscure photography facts.
- Like Brother and Sister: Describes his friendship with Rachel as this.
- Only the Knowledgable May Pass: If you want to look in Evan's photo album, you have to pass a photography trivia question. He'll ask you who photographed the "Falling Soldier". The correct answer is Robert Capa.
- Too Dumb to Live: He figures that a vicious tornado is an excellent photo-op. He gets a fridge door upside the head if Max doesn't warn him.
- Small Name, Big Ego: He's very self-important about his photography for a high schooler.
- Soapbox Sadie: In Before The Storm, according to Chloe. She even wonders what soapbox he's on this time (it's wildfires).
- Vocal Dissonance: In Season One, due to being voiced by Carlos Luna, otherwise known as Warren’s voice actor. He gets a much more mature, fitting voice in Before the Storm.
Hayden Jones
Hayden Jones
"I'm in this world to have fun."
Voiced by: Don McManus (uncredited, Season One), Ike A (Before the Storm)
A member of the Vortex Club who has a fondness for marijuana.
During the events of Before the Storm, Hayden took part in a production of The Tempest.
- Ascended Extra: Was more or less a background character in the original game, but in Before the Storm he gains a subplot where he's in a play with Rachel.
- Flat Character: Not much in the personality department other than his archetype as The Stoner, at least not until Before the Storm, where it's revealed that he takes a liking to acting, being quite good at it.
- Hidden Depths: Turns out that Hayden enjoys acting in the Drama Club, including in Shakespeare plays, despite his position as cool jock.
- He Really Can Act: In-Universe, everyone at the Drama Club is genuinely surprised that Hayden can go from a ditzy jock into a Shakespearean actor.
- Horrible Judge of Character: Due to being a stoner, Hayden is really not a good judge of character.
- Hayden believes that Nathan is just a harmless prankster who likes drugs. Hayden continues to defend Nathan, even after the rest of the Vortex Club starts to realize that Nathan is creepy.
- He also believes Victoria respects Rachel, even if she kept a vandalized Rachel's missing person poster and is shown tearing down some missing person posters from message board.
- The worst of all, he defends Sean Prescott if Max blames the Prescott patriarch for Nathan's mental instability.
- Nice Guy: Max admits in her inner monologue that despite being a member of the Vortex Club, he's actually not an ass. Indeed, he's very approachable in optional dialogue, and even has nice things to say about Nathan of all people.
- The Stoner: He is almost never sober.
- Token Minority: One of the few non-white students at Blackwell.
Juliet Watson
Juliet Watson
"Thanks Max. You're like the Blackwell Ninja."
Voiced by: Dayeanne Hutton (uncredited, Season One), Krystina Tasker (Before the Storm)
Another member of the Vortex Club who writes for the school gazette.
During the events of Before The Storm, Juliet takes part in the Blackwell drama department's production of The Tempest.
- Clingy Jealous Girl: She admits to Dana that she's "stupid jealous" after Max proves Dana's innocence.
- Horrible Judge of Character: Believed Victoria over Dana, her best friend, when the former said she saw a sext from the latter on Zach's phone.
- Innocently Insensitive: In Episode 3, she emails both Max and Dana if she can question them over Kate's attempted/successful suicide for an article. Dana gently reminds her that now is not the right time for that.
- Intrepid Reporter: She's a reporter at the school journal, and she's ready at everything to have the latest gossips for her articles.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: The recurring theme with Juliet is that every time Max speaks with her, she seems to learn from her mistakes.
- In the first episode, she apologizes after Max proves Dana didn't sext Zachary. She regrets her gullibility to Victoria's lies and jealous behavior, and offers to buy Dana dinner as reconciliation.
- In the second episode, after being chided by Max for participating in the gossip and watching Kate's video, she promises not to watch it again or spread it around.
- Unlike Victoria, she's also shown to be visibly distraught along with Dana upon watching Kate's attempted suicide near the end of the second episode.
- Lovable Alpha Bitch: She acts quite rude and is clearly a popular girl, but mostly she is just reckless and has a tendency to jump to conclusions. When reasoned with she proves to be a decent girl willing to change her behavior for the better, which sets her apart from Victoria and her Girl Posse.
- Operation: Jealousy: She's seen flirting with Logan in Episode 2 to spite Zach. Since she reconciles with Zach in Episode 4, she's clearly not serious when she flirted with Logan.
- Prim and Proper Bun: Her haircut.
- School Newspaper Newshound: She takes a stand against the Vortex Club by writing an article about them, denouncing the loss of their original counterculture values and transformation into a snobby elite.
Justin Williams
Justin Williams
"If you can't even name a simple noseslide or a tre flip, you should walk on."
Voiced by: Carlos Luna (uncredited, Season One), Chad Skiles (Before the Storm)
A skater boy who is constantly stoned.
- Everyone Has Standards: He is a stoner, but hates Victoria and the Vortex Club.
- Green-Eyed Monster: He has a falling out with his best friend Trevor after Trevor hooks up with Justin's crush Dana.
- Ship Tease: He is once seen flirting with Chloe.
- The Slacker: Is almost always seen chillaxing somewhere.
- The Stoner: He is almost always baked.
- Vocal Dissonance: Much like Evan, in Season One, he had a very high-pitched voice provided by Carlos Luna. Also like Evan, he gets a more age-appropriate voice actor in Before the Storm.
Logan Robertson
Logan Robertson
"Why don't you ever want to see me, Max? You're so cute and we never really talk..."
Voiced by: Don McManus (uncredited)
A Vortex Club member and football player who likes to bully people.
- Abhorrent Admirer: He hits on Max in Episode 4. She's understandably not impressed.
- Aesop Amnesia: He clearly regrets abandoning Dana after he got her pregnant, but this doesn't stop him from propositioning Max at the End of the World Party.
- The Bully: He's first seen shoving Daniel into a locker. It's implied that this is a fairly regular occurrence.
- Hate Sink: While not as repulsive as Sean Prescott or Mark Jefferson, he's still a nasty piece of work. His first appearance shows him bullying Daniel DaCosta and he gets his girlfriend Dana pregnant. While he does write her an apologetic letter, he later demonstrates that he's learned nothing when he hits on Max at the Vortex Club party, to which she can respond by calling him out on all his dreadful behavior.
- Jerkass: He's a huge bully and a sexist creep. You can tell him this to his face in Episode 4.
- Jerk Jock: Is a football player that wears a varsity jacket, is in the cool kids group and bullies kids and creeps every girl he can find.
Luke Parker
Luke Parker
"Max, I don't feel like talking..."
Voiced by: Nik Shriner (uncredited)
A student who hates the Vortex Club.
- The Aloner: He's always seen alone. Even at the End of the World party, he says he actively avoids seeing people, though he's glad to see Max.
- Headphones Equal Isolation: According to Max, he uses his phone as a shield to avoid talking to people.
- Pet the Dog: In episode 1, if you report Nathan to the Principal for having a gun, you can later tell Luke that you "busted" Nathan, which cheers him up considerably.
Stella Hill
Stella Hill
"You have a lot to learn here at Blackwell. Rachel Amber absolutely had sex with him. Well... I heard that from a good source."
Voiced by: Ashly Burch (uncredited)
A Blackwell student who studies frequently.
- Ambiguous Situation: Frank's logbook shows that she purchased ADHD medication from him at least once. She may actually have the condition and has problems getting the medication legally, she may be using it recreationally, or she may be using as a stimulant to help study and improve concentration, the latter making sense in light of the fact that she's under pressure to escape an impoverished life.
- Dark and Troubled Past: She says she escaped poverty and an abusive home, however the truth of this becomes ambiguous when one remembers that it was said while in Max's nightmare.
- Go-Getter Girl: In Max's own words, she didn't come to Blackwell to mess around. Her possible past of poverty and abuse reinforces her as an archetypal self-made woman.
- Hot for Teacher: She tells Max that she'd totally try to get a fling with Mr. Jefferson, like Victoria and many other female students.
- Nerd Glasses: She wears glasses and is one of the smartest students at Blackwell.
- Nice Girl: A kind and sweet bookworm.
- Not a Morning Person: She's still sleeping in the morning in Episode 2 and yells at Dana for playing music loudly and Max for knocking her door. Max even quotes the trope verbatim.
Taylor Christensen
Taylor Christensen
"I'm not about tearing people down, Max."
Voiced by: Ashly Burch (uncredited, Season One), Emily Sargent (Unused audio in Before the Storm)
A Vortex Club member, a member of Victoria's Girl Posse, and arguably her second in command.
- Beta Bitch: Seen with Victoria the most and is given a bit more respect than Courtney.
- Dummied Out: Unused audio and text files in Before the Storm shows that Taylor was going to appear in Episode 1 and have a Backtalk challenge with Chloe, but the scene was cut for unknown reasons.
- The Fashionista: Part of being in the Vortex Club and in Victoria's Girl Posse.
- Hypocrite: In Episode 2, she claims she is 'not about bringing people down', right after hassling Kate with Victoria in the bathroom.
- Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Victoria.
- Innocent Beta Bitch: Despite being Victoria's closest lackey, she's a bit more decent person when Victoria's absent.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: While around Victoria, she is just as eager to make fun of people. Alone, she is a bit easier to talk to.
- Kick the Dog: Is seen videotaping Kate about to jump with Victoria in Episode 2, though she later regrets her bullying of Kate in Episode 3.
- Like Is, Like, a Comma: She frequently adds "like" to her sentences.
- Long Hair Is Feminine: She has long waist-length hair and is a popular girl.
- My God, What Have I Done?: After Kate's attempted/successful suicide in Episode 2, she can apologize to Max for what happened in the last episode.
- Odd Friendship: Despite being one of the rudest students to Max early on, she can become very friendly to her in Episode 4 when spoken to at the party, depending on Max's past actions, and even regard Max as her friend.
- Took a Level in Kindness: If Max sympathizes with Taylor about her mother, she will be way easier to talk to and will even consider Max a friend and be nice to her in Episode 4.
Trevor Yard
Trevor Yard
Voiced by: Nik Shriner (uncredited)
A skater boy.
- Epic Fail: In Episode 1, Max can talk to the skaters, and potentially ask them to show her a tre flip. Trevor will attempt the move...only for him to slip, and cause his skateboard to hit him in the nads. Max then has the option of taking a picture of him in pain for a trophy. His friends don't care about his plight but laugh their asses off if Max takes his photo.
- I Can't Dance: Just look at him dancing with Dana in the "End of The World" party in episode 4. Dana finds it funny, though.
- Nice Guy: Part of his limited characterization. It's one of the main reasons Dana fell for him.
- Relationship Upgrade: He and Dana become a couple in Episode 2.
Zach Riggins
Zach Riggins
Voiced by: Derek Phillips (uncredited)
A Vortex Club member, quarterback for the Blackwell Bigfoots, and Juliet's boyfriend at least until Episode 2, although come the Vortex party in Episode 4 they've made up. And how..
- Characterization Marches On: He seems to be a stereotypical Jerk Jock in Episode 1, as Max mentions he bullied Luke at one point and supposedly cheating on Juliet with Victoria, as well as dismissing Max and calling her hipster. As of Episode 2, however, he's shown to be nicer and pretty friendly to Max.
- Genius Bruiser: Considering that he is a talented football player at an elite Art School, this is probably the case.
- Jerk Jock: Seems to be this in the first episode, what with the whole cheating on Juliet by sexting Victoria, but as we see in Episode 2, he's actually a decent guy.
- Kick the Dog: If you fail to save Kate, he sends Max a message with an insensitive remark about how when their team loses a game, no one dies.
- Lovable Jock: He's very friendly with Max if you talk to him and seems genuinely worried about Kate's attempting suicide. He's also implied to be the jock whose room slate has supportive message for Kate (the other jock's room slate only mentions football, clearly implying Logan's).
Introduced in Before the Storm
Eliot Hampden
Eliot Hampden
Voiced by: Cameron Quiseng
A student at Blackwell who seems to have a crush on Chloe.
- All Love Is Unrequited: He appears to have a crush on Chloe. Her diary entries reveal they've hooked up a few times in the past; while she didn't see it as anything more, he is clearly smitten by her.
- Amazon Chaser: A very borderline example, but he seems to have a crush on Chloe, who is the toughest girl at Blackwell. In episode 3 it's revealed to be more of an obsession.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: On the surface he appears to be a trustworthy, dorky guy who cares for Chloe, but it's just a way to hide his demented lust for her. When Chloe is forced to confront him on this he drops all kindness he had and starts threatening her.
- Crazy Jealous Guy: He's jealous of Rachel for taking Chloe's time, and gets aggressive towards Chloe about it, telling her to focus on him instead.
- Dogged Nice Guy: He comes off as a low-key yearning type initially. Eliot makes his feelings for Chloe obvious but doesn't push her too hard, seemingly willing to just hang around as friends so he can be there if she changes her mind. However, it turns out that he's got an unhealthy obsession with her and feels that he deserves her love. Once he grows tired of waiting, he turns nasty.
- Entitled to Have You: How he feels about Chloe.
- Evil All Along: After a few hints were dropped on Eliot not being as kindhearted as he appears on the surface, the finale of Before the Storm outright confirms that he's an insane stalker.
- Evil Counterpart: To Warren. They're both shy, nerdy Dogged Nice Guys with romantic interest in both games' protagonists. But while Warren takes Max's potential romance with Chloe quite well and is a genuine nice person, Eliot snaps when Chloe takes interest in Rachel, revealing his niceness was an act.
- False Friend: He tried to win Chloe's heart by acting like a caring friend, but after she chooses Rachel and brushes him off, he drops the act. Chloe even points out that he always took their "friendship" for granted and had no right to tell her everything bad that happened to her if he actually cared about her.
- Gaslighting: Eliot shows typical signs of a toxic gaslighter, even before showing his true colors, like he usually deflects Chloe's concerns and promises "he'll always have her". Later on in episode 3, Eliot pulls off a Why Did You Make Me Hit You?, reminds her of her dad's death, and everything bad happening is somehow just because she's more interested in Rachel than him. He's not concerned for Chloe's well-being, but was trying to guilt-trip her as an effort to make her question her relationships with the good things in her life. This comes to show that, even if Chloe had any interest in him... he wouldn't exactly be the "nurturing" type of boyfriend.
- Green-Eyed Monster: Eliot makes little secret of his disdain for Rachel, brought on by his jealousy of her close relationship with Chloe. That envy becomes clear during Eliot's confrontation with Chloe in the DA's office.
- Hate Sink: By the final episode, once his true colors are revealed he becomes an unsympathetic Jerkass and a gaslighter.
- Hidden Depths: Subverted. Chloe finds some poetry he's written that is clearly inspired by her and is impressed by it, but it later turns out that he just has an unhealthy obsession with her.
- Hypocrite: He says that Rachel is only manipulating Chloe with her acting skills, which he has done to Chloe by pretending to be a good friend. Also, he accuses Chloe of breaking and entering the DA's office... even though he's literally done no better by following her inside which Chloe calls him out on.
- Irony: Being caught in the DA's office by the police gets him expelled from Blackwell, something that he grilled Chloe, and by extension, Rachel for.
- Jerkass Has a Point: Although clearly Gaslighting, Eliot is correct that Chloe's life has suffered for her relationship with the self-centered and highly troubled Rachel. In just a few days, Chloe has gotten expelled/suspended from Blackwell, confronted dangerous criminals for Rachel's sake, and broken into the DA's office to steal his money and tamper with evidence. While Eliot's only making these points in an attempt to guilt Chloe into his arms, he's not technically wrong.
- Laser-Guided Karma: After stalking, interrogating, and potentially shoving Chloe, he ends up tripping an alarm of the DA's office if Chloe wins the backtalk and is left alone while she escapes. This leads to his expulsion.
- Masculine Girl, Feminine Boy: He's the artistic, awkward loner trying to impress Chloe, the toughest girl in school.
- Meaningful Name: He's named after Elliot Rodger, who committed a mass shooting over ostensibly being unable to get a girlfriend.
- Plot-Irrelevant Villain: His antagonistic role in Episode 3 has virtually no impact on the overall narrative, other than taking the money before she could bolt.
- Romantic False Lead: He's initially set up to be Chloe's Straight Option love interest, much like Warren was to Max in the original game. However, the events of the prequel reveal that he's anything but boyfriend material, leaving Rachel as Chloe's sole romantic option in this game.
- Stalker with a Crush: The finale reveals that he's been following Chloe for a long time.
- Teens Are Monsters: He's a jerk who feels like he deserves Chloe's love, but when she avoids him for too long he starts threatening her.
- They Look Just Like Everyone Else!: At first glance he seems to be a shy nerd who's close friends with Chloe, but in reality he's a self-entitled creep who obsesses over her.
- Walking Spoiler: He's not important to the main plot, but it's hard to talk about him without spoiling his obsessive nature over Chloe.
- Wants a Prize for Basic Decency: In episode 3, he behaves like he's entitled to Chloe's affection because he was there for her after Max left and William died. Mixed with a little Gaslighting, because he claims that 'no one else gave a shit' about Chloe except for him.
- Why Did You Make Me Hit You?: In episode 3, has him ask Chloe why she "made" him shove her into a desk, if she tries to walk past him during their confrontation
- Would Hit a Girl: In Episode 3, trying to walk past Eliot when he begins to confront Chloe will result in him shoving her back.
- Yandere: His poetry journal is all about his crush on Chloe. The last poem is his fantasy of murdering her for rejecting him. In episode 3 he lashes out at her for spurning him in favor of Rachel, though she can talk him down.
Steph Gingrich
Click here for Steph's page.
Mikey North
Michael "Mikey" North
Click here for his appearance in Wavelengths
Voiced by: Dillon Winfrey
A nerdy Blackwell student who often plays tabletop roleplaying games with Steph.
- Affectionate Gesture to the Head: On the receiving hand of this by his older brother.
- Bespectacled Cutie: A male example. His glasses makes him look even cuter, even moreso by the time of Wavelengths.
- Birds of a Feather: He and Steph are best friends and share common interests such as their love of filmography and tabletop games.
- Black and Nerdy: He's black and your typical D&D nerd.
- The Bus Came Back: After years of his only canonical appearance being in the prequel, he returns to play a significant supporting role in the Wavelengths bonus chapter to Life Is Strange: True Colors.
- Crippling Overspecialization: His Dungeons & Dragons character has a vast array of fire spells and one acid spell which is unsuitable for close quarters, which proves troublesome when Steph's boss monster has an armband protecting it from fire.
- He Is All Grown Up: Probably the Intended Audience Reaction to his reappearance in Wavelengths, where he's gone from a frail and skinny 13-year-old to a seemingly rather well-built and undeniably handsome young adult.
- Large Ham: Whenever he plays roleplaying tabletop games.
- Made of Plasticine: As stated above, a single slap in the wrist by Damon is enough to sent him to the hospital. It's later stated that he may have a brittle bone condition.
- Morality Pet: His Jerk Jock older brother Drew is very protective of him.
- Nice Guy: Chloe says in her diary than Mikey is one of the few genuinely nice people around Blackwell.
- Only Known by Their Nickname: His real name is Michael, but he usually goes by Mikey.
- Platonic Life-Partners: With Steph.
- Precision F-Strike: He's not above using curse words, but he's nowhere near most foul-mouthed characters such as Chloe.
- Protectorate: To his older brother Drew. Chloe also notes that despite barely knowing him, she feels a strong need to protect him.
- Satellite Character: Somewhat deconstructed in his appearance in Wavelengths. Mikey believes himself to be this to Steph, which is why he comes back to her even when she does her best to push him away; he didn't know what he was at Blackwell outside of being Steph's best friend, an attitude that hasn't gone away.I need you because I'm not strong enough to be my real self without you in my life.
- Stepford Smiler: He's normally in good spirits, but Chloe mentions in her description of him that he can sometimes be a little morbid. Episode 2 implies that he has some sort of serious illness that his family can barely afford to treat, so it's no wonder.
- True Companions: With Steph, even extending beyond their time in school.
Drew North
Drew North
Voiced by: Trey Hutch
A Blackwell football player who is upset at how the Prescott family bought Nathan a seat on the team (especially since his father's fallen on very hard times thanks to the Prescotts' dealings). He is protective of his little brother Mikey.
- Berserk Button: He doesn't appear to like Nathan insulting his lower-class background. The fact that his dad's been left homeless by Nathan's dad's business decisions probably doesn't help.
- Big Brother Instinct: Chloe's notes mention that while Mikey looks like the sort of uber-nerd who would be mercilessly bullied, no one at Blackwell is dumb enough to mess with Drew North's baby brother. Also, the code to open the box with the money in his room is Mikey's birthdate.
- The Bully: His Establishing Character Moment has him messing with Nathan Prescott and threaten to throw his photography book in the fountain (and can do so if Chloe doesn't intervene).
- Bus Crash: Wavelengths revealed that in the Sacrifice Arcadia Bay timeline, he was one of the casualties of the storm. If Mikey's comments are anything to go by, he was crushed to death by a falling building. What happens to him in the other timeline(s) isn't clear, however.
- Career-Ending Injury: Implied if Damon breaks his knee, since at the end of Episode 3, he'll no longer be wearing his letterman jacket.
- Character Death: If Max chose to sacrifice Arcadia Bay the Wavelengths DLC of True Colors reveals that he died during the storm after being crushed by cinderblocks.
- Cool Big Bro: As big of a jerk he appears to be in his first scene, he's actually revealed to be a protective and supportive big brother to Mikey.
- Dumb Jock: Subverted. Chloe thinks of him as one at first, but according to Frank, he's actually pretty sharp. Searching his room not only confirms this, but drives home how much he cares about his family.
- Game-Breaking Injury: Staying inside with Mikey when Damon confronts Drew, results in Damon busting Drew's leg, which puts his football scholarship and possible future professional football career at risk.
- Genius Bruiser: Despite his meatheaded attitude, he's a lot smarter than he looks, according to Frank. His response to a scholarship offer on his computer is quite eloquent.
- Good Counterpart: To Nathan. Both boys are very popular jocks in high school with violent tempers and a very troubled home life, but Nathan's habits lead him down a much darker path where he ends up being manipulated into doing terrible things while Drew is trying to be a genuinely good student at Blackwell and his motives are to help his caring family instead of himself.
- Heel–Face Turn: By the finale he mends his ways and finally treats Chloe with respect.
- Jerkass Has a Point: He definitely goes too far in bullying Nathan, but he has a legitimate reason for holding a grudge against the Prescott family, seeing as Sean Prescott ruined his father and put him out of a job. He's also correct that Nathan didn't earn his spot on the team, since Sean bought the position for him.
- Jerk Jock: Comes off as a huge asshole, although Chloe's diary and Mikey claim that he's actually a decent person. He shows a softer side in Episode 2.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He may be a rude bully who deals drug and steals from his supplier, but he cares very deeply about his family. He would rather get beaten to a bloody pulp than endanger Mikey and give away the money their father desperately needs.
- Lovable Jock: What he becomes after Character Development.
- Promotion to Parent: His and Mikey's father seems to be living in a homeless shelter, so Mikey appears to be currently living in his dorm room.
- Took a Level in Kindness: By the finale he's mellowed out and more approachable. He even starts playing Dungeons & Dragons with Mikey and his friends.
- If Chloe stays in the room with Mikey and keeps Mikey from running out to confront Damon, he genuinely thanks her for protecting his brother even if she ripped him a new one over bullying Nathan.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: Naturally, due to being a retconned prequel character, we don't get to see what became of him three years later. It can be assumed that he went pro and started gaining legitimate money for his family if Chloe saved him, or gave his father the money he hid from Damon and got him out of the homeless shelter if he took the beating.
- What the Hell, Hero?: He'll call Chloe out for interfering if she gives Damon the money he owes him to stop him getting beaten up (especially if she called him out for bullying Nathan), though he does later admit she was only trying to help.
- Ungrateful Bastard: Subverted. His reaction to Chloe giving Damon the money she was sent to retrieve in order to save him from his beating (and, as we see if you stay out of it, getting his knee broken) is to bark at her for intervening. Then again, getting involved got Mikey's arm broken, and it's heavily implied that he has a brittle bone condition, so Mikey getting hurt in any way is significantly worse than Drew suffering a beating. Drew was also deliberately hiding that money to give to his father, so it's perfectly understandable for him to get peeved. He does lighten up and apologize to Chloe later on, though.
Samantha Myers
Samantha Myers
Voiced by: Hailey Hayes
A shy, bookish student of Blackwell. She has a crush on Nathan.
- All Girls Want Bad Boys: She appears to have a crush on the emotionally damaged Nathan and seemingly wants to help him out of his shell.
- Beware the Nice and Quiet Ones: If Chloe succeeds in defending Nathan from Drew, Samantha's snickering will provoke Drew into telling her to shut the fuck up. She immediately retorts by telling him (literally) to do the same, much to Chloe's approval.
- Brooding Boy, Gentle Girl: The Gentle Girl to Nathan's Brooding Boy.
- The Cutie: Much like Max, she is a nice girl trying to do what's right and has absolutely no problem befriending the likes of Chloe or Nathan of all people.
- Cute Bookworm: She loves to read and is very cute.
- Demoted to Extra: In the finale to Before the Storm, she goes from a side character to a background character with less than two scenes with Nathan before the storyline concludes.
- Doomed by Canon: She doesn't die but we know that no matter what, her efforts to help Nathan won't succeed.
- Innocent Blue Eyes: A cute, gentle, and reserved girl with blue eyes.
- Morality Pet: Played with. If Chloe's choices lead to Nathan accepting Samantha's friendship, she will become this to him; her support helps him give an amazing performance as Caliban during The Tempest (instead of messing up his lines and running off) and he will even give her ice cream at the hospital if she got injured by a cyclist. Unfortunately, if Chloe fails to make them friends, Nathan's emotional state will deteriorate and he can even go as far as breaking two of her ribs.
- Nice Girl: Appears to be generally sweet and mild-mannered.
- No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: Potentially; if Chloe encourages her to befriend Nathan, but the player doesn't make enough choices that benefit him, then in Episode 3, she will be hospitalized courtesy of Nathan breaking two of her ribs due to "unwanted advances". Even if Nathan ends up on good terms with her, she's still injured by a cyclist while hanging out with him.
- No, You: If Chloe successfully Backtalks Drew, he'll tell Samantha to "shut the fuck up" after she laughs about how Chloe owned him. Samantha throws it back in his face, telling him to "shut the fuck up", which impresses Chloe and seems to convince Drew to drop it.
- Out of Focus: She gets the least amount of screentime among the new student characters and by the finale she's been Demoted to Extra.
- Precision F-Strike: If you succeed in defending Nathan during his fight with Drew North, Samantha will step in and throw the F-bomb at Drew as well.
- Put on a Bus: Some time after the prequel, since she does not appear or get mentioned in the main game at all.
- Shrinking Violet: Chloe even compares her to Max.
- Suspiciously Similar Substitute: Seems to be one for Max (to whom Chloe internally compares her), being a shy, softspoken brown-haired girl who sides with Chloe.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: This is pretty much entirely owed to her being a retconned prequel character, but it's never revealed what came of her by the events of the original game. Seeing as Nathan later hangs out with the Vortex Club, it can be assumed that her friendship with him may have failed at some point.
- What the Hell, Hero?: She becomes disappointed in Chloe if she doesn't help Nathan when he's being harassed by Drew North.
- Uncertain Doom: Assuming you got her and Nathan to become friends, what became of her as of 2013? Considering Nathan's.. interests later in life.. Though, in that case, the Dark Room has no binders labeled "Samantha", so she thankfully wasn't a victim. At best, they drifted apart due to Nathan's increasingly toxic influences or she just moved away.
