Characters / Reservation Dogs

Reservation Dogs

In General

• Gender-Equal Ensemble: Following Daniel's death, the Rez Dogs gang is comprised of two boys and two girls.
• Stupid Crooks: They're not good thieves but dumb kids. They've only gotten away with it due to a combination of dumb luck and the grace of the people they've stolen from who casually tell Bear they always knew.

Bear

Bear Smallhill

"It's tough being the leader. People lie on you and shit."

Portrayed by: D'Pharaoh Woon-a-tai

The self-styled leader of the Rez Dogs. He begins to see spirit visions.

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• Arbitrary Skepticism: He regularly converses with a spirit but he still thinks the curse Willie Jack put on Jackie is childish superstition.
• Disappeared Dad: His father is a complete deadbeat who can't even recall how old his son is. In the third season, he ends their relationship on his own terms, leaving a farewell letter with the most recent baby mama.
• It's All About Me: According to Elora, Bear's problem is that he can't see outside himself.
• The Leader: He considers himself to be the Rez Dogs' leader, though his friends laugh at the designation. He decides how to spend their savings and is the one to get jumped by the NDN Mafia. He grows as a person when he learns that he doesn't need to be the sole leader; he has a community around him he's proud to be a part of.
• Superpowerful Genetics: The ability to see spirits is a family trait.

Elora Danan

Elora Danan Postoak

"Yeah, and I was the one saving the money. I'm the one who got the car. I'm the one who got the license."

Portrayed by: Devery Jacobs

The Dog most determined to leave the rez for California, as it was Daniel's unrealized dream.

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• Getaway Driver: She drives both the stolen chip truck and her own clunker when her driving instructor needs to escape a methhead he shot.
• Hypocrite: Chides Bear during the decolonization symposium in "Decolonativization" by claiming that Bear is incapable of "seeing outside himself", ignoring the fact that she took the money the gang was saving for the trip to California they were all to make together just so she could travel on her own, and the fact that Bear is trying to be more responsible around his house like doing the chores and getting a job as a roofer.
• In the Blood: Coach Bobson says she inherited her mother's caring heart and basketball skills.
• Lady Swearsalot: She, like Willie Jack, curses all the time.
• The Lost Lenore: Implied that she had feelings for Daniel, having taken him dancing the night before his death. That and being the one to find his body harden her resolve to move to California like he wanted to.
• Minor Living Alone: She becomes the sole resident of her house following Mabel's death. Downplayed in that she's almost an adult by this point.
• Parental Abandonment: Her mother died in a car accident when she was little, and her father was always absent. She's never known her father's identity, as her grandmother didn't want to talk about it. Later she learns he's white and still living. She meets him, initially to just get information Elora needs for getting her college financial aid. He tells her about his relationship with her mother and apologizes for not being there in her life, with them bonding somewhat. Elora also meets her half-siblings and promises she'll visit them.
• Raised by Grandparents: She lives with her mean grandmother Mabel because her mother passed away when she was very young, and her birth father wasn't involved.
• Stopped Caring: Tries to claim she's stopped caring, but Coach Bobson believes she still cares.
• Strong Family Resemblance: Her uncanny resemblance to her mother is remarked upon multiple times. She doesn't need to introduce herself for her father to know who she is.
• Tell Me About My Mother: By talking with Uncle Brownie and Coach Bobson, she learns more about her mother, who died when she was very little.
• The Unfettered: Be it through pickpocketing gamblers or stealing a chip truck, she is leaving the rez.
• Unusual Pop Culture Name: She is named after the baby Elora Danan in Willow.

Willie Jack

Wilhelmina Jacqueline "Willie Jack" Sampson

"Everyone wants to leave to California, but... It's really hard leaving everyone here."

Portrayed by: Paulina Alexis

A foul-mouthed tomboy who is still reeling from the loss of her cousin.

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• Ambiguously Gay: When asked whether she has a boyfriend or girlfriend she responds with a playfully dismissive "can't be tamed", leaving whether she's interested in boys, girls, both or neither ambiguous.
• Braids of Action: She's more than willing to scrap with the NDN Mafia, enjoys hunting, and generally wears her hair in two long braids.
• Daddy's Girl: Despite being a tomboy, Willie Jack is very much one to Leon. They spend a day hunting together just because she wants to, he supports her moving off the reservation if it makes her happy, and they share a long hug while mourning Daniel together.
• It's All My Fault: Everything on the rez takes a turn for the worse after she gets someone to curse Jackie. She believes the problems all stem from her decision to go through with the bad medicine.
• The Lad-ette: Willie Jack dresses like a tomboy and swears the most out of the cast.
• Lady Looks Like a Dude: Willie Jack's easily mistaken as a boy from a distance due to her very masculine clothing style.
• Lady Swearsalot: Almost every other word out of Willie Jack's mouth is an F-bomb, even when she's otherwise-respectfully addressing elders.
• Meaningful Name: Willie Jack's name is a nod to the half-Native ass-kicker Billy Jack. She's the feistiest member of the Rez Dogs.
• Never Bareheaded: Almost always seen wearing some kind of hat, usually a baseball cap.
• Only Known By Her Nickname: Only once is her real name used, with variations of her nickname used otherwise.
• Talking to the Dead: Both at his gravesite and in her kitchen where the family photos are hung, Willie Jack talks to her cousin Daniel. This is utilized for an exposition dump to start the second season.
• Tomboyish Name: She dresses boyishly and loves going hunting with her dad. Auntie B reveals that "Willie Jack" is short for "Wilhelmina Jacqueline."

Cheese

Chester "Cheese" Williams

"My name's Cheese. My pronouns are he, him, and his."

Portrayed by: Lane Factor

The sweet, mild-mannered, and youngest Rez Dog.

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• Ambiguously Absent Parent: He responds to a question about his parents being around with a Blunt "No". All that's known is that he feels abandoned.
• Ambiguously Gay: He doesn't deny the label when Tino refers to him as queer, and he always states his pronouns when introducing himself.
• The Baby of the Bunch: He's two years younger than the rest of the Rez Dogs. This makes him worry that his friends will move on without him.
• Blind Without 'Em: A long-overdue optometrist visit reveals that Cheese has very poor vision. When he gets his glasses in the third season, the lenses are extremely thick.
• Character Catchphrase: Always says "My pronouns are he, him, and his" when he introduces himself.
• Happily Adopted: In the latter half of the second season, Cheese's guardianship moves to Irene, his "grandmother." She happily dotes on him.
• The Heart: Cheese is the most emotionally intelligent of the Rez Dogs. He mentions that he did a lot of reading after Daniel's suicide in an attempt to understand why he did it.
• The Movie Buff: He spots the six additional frames that were included in a different cut of Big Trouble in Little China. The prayer he gives quickly descends into film references before being brought back on track.
• Nephewism: Lives with his uncle Charley.
• Nerd Glasses: In the third season, he gets chunky black glasses with thick lenses. This adds to his characterization as a gaming nerd.
• Nice Guy: He breaks a lonely grandmother out of the clinic so that she can enjoy the fresh air, then continues to visit with her at her home. Beyond that, he is just generally genial and easygoing, especially when compared to his friends.
• Only Known By His Nickname: Cheese is mostly called by this. Season 2's "Stay Gold Cheesy Boy" reveals his first name is Chester, but it's a name he prefers not to use.
• Raised by Grandparents: Though she's not his relative by blood, Cheese moves into his surrogate grandmother Irene's home. He refers to her as his grandma.
• Sensitive Artist: Cheese is the most introspective, empathetic member of the Rez Dogs and loves to draw.
• Soapbox Sadie: Includes his pronouns in his introduction and is more passionate about political and environmental issues than his friends.

Daniel

Daniel Johnson

Willie Jack: Hope you're with Grandpa somewhere. Hunting. Probably singing, dancing...farting.

Portrayed by: Dalton Cramer

A member of the friend group who died a year prior to the events of the story. He is also Willie Jack's cousin.

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• Driven to Suicide: It's revealed that the cause of his death was self-inflicted.
• Gasshole: Willie Jack and her father mock his "atomic farts" though he never actually does this onscreen. The Dogs leave lactase pills meant to treat lactose intolerance at his shrine.
• Hanging Around: Elora finds his body in one of the dilapidated buildings at their hangout spot. Only his legs are shown on-screen.
• The Movie Buff: Daniel was the original film buff of the group, turning Cheese into one by introducing him to different movies.
• Parental Neglect: His mother implies this, saying she was so wrapped up in her and her husband's problems that she didn't notice her son was hurting until it was too late.
• Plot-Triggering Death: It was Daniel's dream to go to California, and his untimely death that spurs his friends into making that dream a reality.
• Posthumous Character: The first episode takes place on the first anniversary of his death.

Reservation Dogs' Family Members

Bear's family

Rita

Rita Smallhill

"Don't you think it's time we find you, like, a lawyer dad or a doctor dad?"

Portrayed by: Sarah Podemski

Bear's single mother who works at the clinic and hopes to find a wealthy husband.

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• Dude Magnet: She catches the eye of Big, Dr. Kang, the white doctor at the bar, and the native doctor at the IHS conference.
• Good Angel, Bad Angel: They show up behind her in mirrors sometimes. "Good Rita" has blue beaded earrings, while "Bad Rita" (who isn't really evil, just selfish and impulsive) has orange ones.
• Grass is Greener: She wishes she were able to take a vacation and live out her dreams rather than be tied to the rez her whole life.
• Struggling Single Mother: While she works and owns a house, she dreams of finding a wealthy stepfather for her son to counteract his deadbeat rapper father.
• Teen Pregnancy: Her teenage son Bear has reached the same age she was when she had him. She doesn't want him to become a teen parent like her. Since she had him young, she never had time to put herself first.

Punkin Lusty

Punkin Lusty

Portrayed by: Sten Joddi

A rapper and Bear's father. He lives in L.A.

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• Disappeared Dad: He had barely any relationship with Bear and can't even remember how old he is. It seems that Bear's not the only child he's ditched.
• Hate Sink: A selfish, neglectful jerk who gets worse the more you learn about him.
• A Hero to His Hometown: He has a lot of fans on the reservation, though he seems to be only moderately successful.
• No Hero to His Valet: He has a lot of fans on the reservation, but Rita just sees him as a loser and deadbeat dad.
• Parental Neglect: He's supposed to return to the reservation for a show but blows it off (after Bear spent lots of the Dogs' California money on clothes and gifts).
• Really Gets Around: His phone lists Rita as "Babymama #2." The Dogs later meet a woman who has two kids by Punkin that are younger than Bear, making her at least "Babymama #3."

Elora's family

Uncle Brownie

Uncle Brownie

^{Brownie as a teenager} 

"You know that bad luck medicine can turn back on you tenfold. Don't mess with bad medicine."

Portrayed by: Gary Farmer and Nathan Alexis (young)

Elora's stoner uncle/cousin who grew up with her grandmother.

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• Ambiguous Criminal History: When Big pulls him over for stealing a lawnmower, he says Brownie has additional warrants. What the warrants are for is not elaborated upon.
• Cassandra Truth: Says he can get a tornado to change course with just an axe and some tobacco. Nobody takes him seriously, only for William Knifeman to confirm the prayer was received after the tornado abruptly reroutes. He also tells Mose and Mekko that he could deflate their tires with just a whistle, which also succeeds.
• Cool Old Guy: A generally laid-back elderly man who smokes weed and teaches the Dogs how to fight, which is unexpectedly more about philosophy, but he once knocked out 20 people and a cop in two minutes, actually 30 people and 2 cops. Turns out he had accidentally got high on some meth because he thought it was cocaine.
• Cop Hater: He calls Big a "traitor, po-po blackheart" for becoming a tribal cop.
• The Hermit: Did his best to ward people off his secluded property before the Rez Dogs convinced him to rejoin the community.
• Living Legend: The Rez Dogs heard that he knocked out ten people in two minutes. He tells them that it was actually 20 people and a cop in one night. The bartender corrects them all, as it was actually 30 people and 2 cops.
• Magical Native American: Or at least, he has strong medicine. His prayer to reroute the tornado succeeds, almost costing him his life in the process.
• My Sister Is Off-Limits: Would fight with his friend Rodney for dating Cookie, purely because Brownie was Cookie's relative.
• The Stoner: He quickly discovers that weed is a lot stronger than it used to be when he tries some at the dispensary. The vest he wears has a weed patch on it. He's been a stoner since his days as a high school dropout.
• Stout Strength: Since his youth, he's been a heavy guy and a strong brawler.
• Vehicle-Based Characterization: His vehicle of choice is a stolen riding lawnmower, which seats one. It's fitting for an odd, cop-hating ex-hermit.

Teenie

Teenie Postoak

"I like my life in Phoenix. I do miss home, though."

Portrayed by: Tamara Podemski

Elora's aunt who moved away when Cookie died.

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• Grass is Greener: She wishes she were raising a family on the rez, envying her childhood friends.
• Old Maid: In the city, she's undesirable because she's over 25.

Cookie

Cookie Postoak

"I just know that you should do something with y'all's lives while you still can."

Portrayed by: JaNae Collins

Elora's late mother.

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• The Heart: Was this for the aunties' generation on the reservation. They all speak fondly of her and after she died, everyone went their separate ways until Mabel's funeral.
• Posthumous Character: Died before the events of the story, when she was twenty and Elora was three.
• Spirit Advisor: As a spirit, she's been providing guidance to Rita, though she doesn't make her presence known for a decade and a half.
• Teen Pregnancy: She had her daughter at 17.

Mabel

Mabel Postoak

"I want to raise little Indian babies. Be a mama. Better one than mine."

Portrayed by: Geraldine Keams and Shelby Factor (young)

Elora's grandmother and guardian.

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• Breaking the Cycle of Bad Parenting: In her youth, her life goal was to raise a family and be a better mother than hers was. She became a wonderful mother, but losing her daughter hardened her into a neglectful guardian to Elora.
• Ghostly Death Reveal: She dies offscreen, acknowledged by her appearance to Elora in spirit form.
• Gruesome Grandparent: Following her daughter's death, kindly Mabel became sour and neglectful to her granddaughter.
• Parental Neglect: Guardian neglect, as after Cookie died and Teenie left, she shut down emotionally and basically ignored Elora.

Rick Miller and Miller family

Rick Miller

"I just... I don't understand why I didn't just go down there and knock on your door like you did."

Portrayed by: Ethan Hawke (Rick), Ava Hopper (Ally), Charlotte Jackson (Megan)

Elora's biological father Rick and half-siblings Ally, Marty, and Megan. They're white.

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• Disappeared Dad: Elora never saw him or knew his name until she was reaching adulthood. Due to becoming a father too young, he was a self-admitted shitass. He recognized and took the chance to do better with his new family.
• Like Father, Like Daughter: Rick and Elora both have the tendency to run when things get tough.
• Missing Mom: Rick's wife's opiate addiction caused them to separate. The kids miss her, especially Marty.
• The Stoner: The first thing Elora learns about Rick is that he's a stoner. He offers her his joint.

Willie Jack's family

Leon

Leon Sampson

"You know, people leave here all the time. They come right back. 'Cause this is where their people are. This is their home."

Portrayed by: Jon Proudstar

Willie Jack's father who also helped raise her cousin Daniel. He's the IHS janitor.

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• The Casanova: Formerly, as Big recalls how Leon used to snag around and tepee-creep at the stomp dance. He doesn't like this being brought up.
• Good Parents: Willie Jack dubs Leon and Dana good parents who've been there for her and all her friends when announcing their anniversary to everyone in the church basement.
• Happily Married: He and his wife celebrate their anniversary while in a storm shelter, though only their daughter remembers their anniversary date.
• Parents as People: He apologizes to Willie Jack if he's seemed different to her over the past year since Daniel's death. The grief has caused his OCD to flare.
• Roguish Poacher: Takes his family hunting on land that his ancestors used to own, which technically makes them poachers.

Cheese's family

Irene

Grandma Irene

^{Irene as a teenager} 

"Don't get too busy for the people who care about you, okay?"

Portrayed by: Casey Camp-Horinek and Quannah Chasinghorse (young)

A woman who Cheese meets at the IHS.

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• Granola Girl: In her youth, she was interested in joining AIM (American Indian Movement) and protesting.
• Hairstyle Inertia: From her youth to her older years, she's worn her hair in two neat braids.
• Parental Substitute: Not actually related to Cheese. However, she eventually becomes his legal guardian and gets him out of a group home where he's being kept. He calls her his grandmother, even if she isn't by blood.
• Scatterbrained Senior: Zig-zagged. She initially mistakes Cheese for her grandson at the IHS, and Cheese plays along and visits several times once she's discharged. However, she eventually reveals she's known they weren't related for quite some time.

Charley

Uncle Charley Johnson

Portrayed by: Nathan Apodaca

Cheese's cousin-uncle.

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• Bad Influencer: Downplayed. He's active on social media and he's arrested for having illegal marijuana plants but he's otherwise not a bad guy.
• Put on a Prison Bus: He's last seen being arrested for growing weed.

Daniel's family

Daniel Sr.

Daniel Johnson, Sr.

Portrayed by: Michael Spears

Daniel's father and one of Bear's coworkers at the roofing company he works at.

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• A Place Holds Memories: He explains that the reason for selling the family home was that he couldn't stand living there after Daniel died.
• The Teetotaler: He quit drinking after his son's death.
• Workaholic: His coworkers say he used to be one of the worst workers on the crew, but after his son died, he became one of the best.

Hokti

Hokti Johnson

Portrayed by: Lily Gladstone

Daniel's mother, who is currently incarcerated and has her own Spirit Advisor.

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• Cool Aunt: When Willie Jack was little, she would always go to her aunt when she needed help or healing. She and Willie Jack seem to share a fondness for downing vending machine snacks.
• Gleeful and Grumpy Pairing: Her grief has turned her into a family-rejecting grump, which contrasts heavily with her cheerful spirit advisor.
• Magical Native American: She can call on her spirit advisor to help with her ancestor-summoning prayers.

NDN Mafia

Jackie

Jackie

"Everything in the city is better. Everybody sticks to themselves. Nobody fսcks with anybody else."

Portrayed by: Elva Guerra

A "City Indian" whose mother sent her to the reservation to live with her aunt Bev.

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• Action Girl: Jackie isn't afraid to get physical, beating up Bear alongside the boys in her gang and kicking a man in the face repeatedly when fearing he was going to kidnap her.
• Boyish Short Hair: Jackie, a tomboy Action Girl who's One of the Guys in her gang, wears her hair in a short punk cut.
• City Mouse: Jackie hates her "boring" new rural life, not content with simply relaxing and doing nothing like her gang members. She's such a city girl that she's never even made frybread before. In time, she befriends people there and grows to like the rez.
• The Corrupter: The other gang members are mostly chill guys who want to sit around getting high. She's the one who founded the gang and started the feud with the Rez Dogs.
• Defrosting Ice Queen: She begins as sour and cold, wanting nothing more than to leave the rez. Befriending Elora is what starts her slow defrosting.
• The Leader: Jackie, the new girl from the city, serves as the NDN Mafia's founder and leader.
• One of the Boys: Jackie is only seen with the boys in her gang prior to befriending Elora.
• Perpetual Frowner: Jackie rarely smiles, instead usually wearing a sad or sour expression.
• Sixth Ranger: She occasionally helps out the Rez Dogs. By the end of Season 2, the gangs have buried the hatchet and Jackie is sometimes seen hanging out with the Dogs.
• The Smurfette Principle: Jackie is the only female member of her gang.
• Sour Outside, Sad Inside: Jackie's dourness stems from the loss of her beloved older brother.
• Tomboyish Name: Jackie is a tomboy gang leader with a unisex name.

White Steve

White Steve

"Call me White Steve like white bread/White on the outside, inside rez"

Portrayed by: Jack Maricle

The only white member of the NDN Mafia.

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• Fat Bastard: White Steve is overweight and the most obnoxious member of the NDN Mafia. Subverted in the Season One finale, when he performs a good-natured, self-deprecating freestyle rap that earns him a round of applause from the natives, including the Dogs.
• Friendly Enemy: White Steve is loyal to the NDN Mafia but still has some positive interactions with the Rez Dogs one-on-one.
• Pretty Fly for a White Guy: Steve is so white it's in his nickname, but he (like Kenny) performatively acts like he's Native. It's to the point where he aspires to be an elder someday.
• Token White: Of the teenagers in the show, White Steve is the only white one.

Bone Thug Dog and Weeze

Bone Thug Dog, Weeze

"We're the bad guy gang."

Portrayed by: Jude Barnett, Xavier Bigpond

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• Delinquents: The NDN Mafia are a gang that terrorizes the Rez Dogs, including beating Bear up.
• Only Known by Their Nickname: Neither Bone Thug Dog or Weeze's government names are used, by them or anyone else.
• Wicked Cultured: Bone Thug Dog is not just a gang member; he's also a skilled painter.

Spirits

William Knifeman

William Knifeman/Spirit

"Like I said, I have no answers. Just stoic wisdom. But maybe, just maybe, that's not what the fսck I was talking about."

Portrayed by: Dallas Goldtooth

A Lakota warrior who appears to Bear and later Brownie to offer spiritual guidance.

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• Braids, Beads and Buckskins: This is the outfit he appears to Bear in. He points out that since it's pretty cold in the spirit world, his nipples are always hard.
• Cloudcuckoolander: He's an odd spirit guide, and it's unclear how many of his anecdotes are things that he actually experienced or if he's just messing with people. For example, he claims that Crazy Horse menstruated, weighed 300 pounds and had one leg that was a foot shorter than the other.

• Magical Native American: Parodied. He's a spirit warrior who offers guidance to our heroes, but he's more of a doofus than anything else. He's most often encountered snacking or relieving himself. (Or both simulatenously.)
• Miles Gloriosus: He makes a big deal of being a warrior and having a personal hatred for Custer, but he never actually got to fight at Little Big Horn and didn't actually know Crazy Horse personally.
• Spirit Advisor: Though he is a spirit guide, the advice he gives isn't wise so much as self-evident.
• Too Much Information: How his spirit advice tends to go. One such "motivational" anecdote has him detailing to Bear how he lost a testicle to untreated engorgement. He would also apparently discuss battle strategies with his fellow warriors while they all took a shit in a ditch.
• Undignified Death: He died after his horse tripped in a gopher hole and fell on him at the Battle of Little Bighorn, before he ever got to fight Custer and his men.

Deer Lady

Deer Lady

"You take care of yourself. And keep being good."

Portrayed by: Kaniehtiio Horn and Georgeanne Growingthunder (young)

A guardian spirit of women and children who kills bad men.

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• Dark and Troubled Past: Before she was the Deer Lady, she was a regular Kiowa child forced into an Indian residential school who suffered physical and psychological abuse at the hands of the Catholic administrators. She witnessed the same happen to her friend, who would later be killed by the school offscreen.
• Did We Just Have Tea with Cthulhu?: The young Big (and later Bear) is clearly startled when he realizes who she is, but she's nothing but friendly to him.
• Guardian Angel:
  • Seems to fill this for Big, looking out for him when he's a kid and later saving him from the Midstreamers.
  • She later becomes this to Bear offering him pie and a ride home.
• Friend to All Children: Per her legend, she's kind to Big when he's a child and later to Bear.
• Heroic Seductress: Uses her charms to seduce men, but only those with ill intent.
• Humanoid Abomination: Albeit a fairly benevolent deer-humanoid abomination, as long as you're a good person.
• Mark of the Supernatural: Has hooves instead of feet, which she makes no effort to conceal.
• Real After All:
  • Big is genuinely shocked when he realizes Kenny not only can see her, but knows her from previous experience.
  • Bear is stunned to learn that she's real after seeing her hooves.
• Passing the Torch: Implied, as the Deer Lady legend has existed in Native American cultures for ages, while this Deer Lady was born a human less than a century ago.
• Transhuman Abomination: Before becoming a cloven-hooved vigilante spirit, Deer Lady was a normal human girl from the Kiowa tribe.
• Vigilante Woman: She kills bad men (and women) herself, extrajudicially.
• Was Once a Man: She was originally a 20th century girl in a residential school. She gained her powers when she ran away and received help from a deer spirit.
• Weapon Specialization: The only weapon she ever uses is a two-pronged bone that she wields as a knife.

Gram

Gram

"You know, ignoring your responsibilities is ignoring your ancestors. And nobody likes to be ignored."

Portrayed by: Tafv Sampson

Hokti's perky spirit guide.

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• Manic Pixie Dream Girl: An optimistic, bubbly, free-spirited woman who tries to get a brooding, unhappy person to smile and enjoy life more.
• May–December Romance: Played with Gram and her new beau. She's a young woman in appearance while he's a white-haired old man, but she lived and died a century before him.
• The Pollyanna: Managed to find time to smile even while she was walking the Trail of Tears.

Others

Big

Officer Big Hill

Deer Lady: So, I guess what I am saying is be good. Fight evil. You do that, and you'll never, ever have to see me again.

Portrayed by: Zahn McClarnon and Bodhi Okuma Linton (young)

A nobly-intentioned but bumbling tribal cop.

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• Chubby Mama, Skinny Papa: Big and Bev get together in the third season. He's one of the slimmest cast members, while she's the heaviest.
• Clueless Detective: His Establishing Character Moment is missing the Dogs stealing a truck because he was too busy watching a conspiracy theory video on his phone. The few times he actually solves a crime, he mostly just gets lucky.
• Conspiracy Theorist: He buys into JFK/moon landing conspiracies and believes sugar was invented to kill Native Americans.
• Hairstyle Inertia: Flashbacks show young Big with the exact same hair and braids he has as an adult.
• I Let Gwen Stacy Die: He's bottled up and placed the blame solely on himself for the motorcycle deaths of his two friends.
• It's All My Fault: Blames Cookie's death on himself because he wasn't able to convince her drunk boyfriend to stop driving, leading to their fatal crash.
• My Greatest Failure: He saw Cookie the night she died and tried to pull her and her boyfriend over after realizing both were intoxicated, but he was too late and they crashed.
• Odd Friendship: Big the tribal cop forges a friendship with Kenny the meth head drug dealer when they're taken hostage by the The Order of the Midstreamers while tripping on psychedelics.
• Only Known By His Nickname: Is only ever called "Big," which is likely a nickname. Eagle-eyed viewers will see that the surname on his nametag is "Hill."
• Raised by Grandparents: Flashbacks show he was raised by his grandmother until her death.
• You Are Better Than You Think You Are: He has some real guilt about his failures. But despite them, Deer Lady still says he's being good.

Mose and Mekko

Mose and Mekko

"I'm Mose, and that's Mekko/Two little Natives like you start with a sequel"

Portrayed by: Lil Mike and Funny Bone

A pair of rap-spitting brothers who bike through the neighborhood.

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• The Dividual: The brothers are popping up together, with all their characterization being shared traits.
• Nice Guy: They're always chipper and friendly whenever they roll up.
• Those Two Guys: The pair provide commentary on the feud between the Reservation Dogs and the NDN Mafia.

Kenny Boy

Kenny Boy

"Hoka hay. It's Lakota for 'tis a good day to die.'"

Portrayed by: Kirk Fox

The meth head owner of the local scrapyard who loves native cultures.

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• Affably Evil: He is a dangerous criminal, but he is never without his friendly demeanor, even in his worst moments.
• Foreign Culture Fetish: He is really into all native cultures, regularly spouting phrases and references to peoples that the locals have nothing to do with. It's revealed that he does know what tribe's land he's on, and deeply respects indigenous land rights.
• Getting High on Their Own Supply: Kenny Boy appears to have no problem drinking some of the drugged soda, despite that meaning there's less to sell to his customers.
• Hidden Depths: Despite his usual demeanor, he respects indigenous people and the Deer Lady considers him a good person and knows him from previous experience. He becomes a supporter of the teens as they try to do good for healing and their community.
• Odd Friendship: Kenny the meth head drug dealer forges a friendship with Big the tribal cop when they're taken hostage by the The Order of the Midstreamers while tripping on psychedelics.
• Pretty Fly for a White Guy: Kenny is a Caucasian guy who believes himself to be Native and acts in a performative way as such, including insisting on the usage of kinship terms with Muscogee neighbors and applying war paint when going on an adventure.
• You Are Better Than You Think You Are: He doesn't think he's good, but his trying is sufficient for Deer Lady to protect him.

Fixico

Old Man Fixico

"A lot of rain headed this way. Metaphorically."

Portrayed by: Richard Ray Whitman and Josiah Wesley Jones (young)

An elderly medicine man whose table is set up outside the IHS clinic.

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• Big Man on Campus: His popularity in high school is augmented by being a trainee in traditional medicine already, with Maximus feeling that some worship Fixico like a Pope.
• Clashing Cousins: He and Maximus were cousins and they had a rough falling out in the 70s.
• Last-Name Basis: None of the teens know his first name since he's only ever referred to as (Old Man) Fixico. Even in his youth, his friends called him by his surname.
• Passing the Torch: He feels his death is nearing, but there's no one to pass his medicinal knowledge to. Willie Jack takes up the torch.
• Snake Oil Salesman: Downplayed. While it's not confirmed that any of his medicine is fake, he doesn't have anything for something as simple as a stomachache.

Bucky

Buchanan "Bucky"

^{Bucky as a teenager}  

"Well, we're just men, you know? We don't know everything. We make mistakes and... We don't know shit!"

Portrayed by: Wes Studi and Mato Wayuhi (young)

A petty criminal with an interest in science.

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• The Bro Code: Had a minor but long-standing grudge against Brownie, who had sex with his at-the-time ex-girlfriend.
• Hidden Depths: He's a copper thief who's first introduced sleeping on a sidewalk bench but he also has an interest in string theory, or at least a New Age-like version of it.
• I Was Quite a Looker: In his youth, Bucky was a charismatic, handsome, magnetic pretty boy. Now he's aged and surly.
• Relationship Revolving Door: His wife's kicked him out three times in the past month.
• My Greatest Failure: He feels he failed Maximus by not helping him when he suffered Sanity Slippage. When Cheese starts isolating himself from his friends it worries him, Irene, and Brownie enough to intervene so he doesn’t end up like Maximus.
• Snake Oil Salesman: Believes that hanging up copper sculptures and wearing copper bracelets will protect him from disease and plans to sell these to other people.

Bev

Beverly "Bev"

"I got a niece. Shit's hard. I'm not her mom, but I got to be one to her."

Portrayed by: Jana Schmieding

Jackie's aunt who she moves in with. She's the IHS receptionist.

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• Apathetic Clerk: She's the clinic's receptionist and is decidedly unenthusiastic about customer service.
• Chubby Mama, Skinny Papa: Bev and Big get together in the third season. She's the heaviest cast member, while he's one of the slimmest.
• Oral Fixation: Usually seen chewing gum.
• Really Gets Around: Based on her extensive lanyard collection, she's snagged with a ton of host tribe members at IHS conferences. She's entirely unashamed of her promiscuity.

Maximus

Maximus "Cvpon" Fixico

"We are just echoes of things that came before."

Portrayed by: Graham Greene and Isaac Arellanes (young)

An estranged elder originally from Okern who believes in Star People.

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• Arbitrary Skepticism: He believes in Star People but is skeptical of Bear's spirit visions.
• Conspiracy Theorist: He believes that he's had encounters with Star People (read: The Greys), who he dutifully grows eggplants for.
• Crazy Survivalist: Maximus's ranch home is protected by trip wires. He stays off the grid as much as he can. This is only when he's off his meds.
• Electroconvulsive Therapy Is Torture: He's been a victim of shock therapy in psych wards.
• No Medication for Me: The authorities haul him into the psychiatric hospital only when he stops taking his meds. He's fine when he's on them, preferring to live at the hospital because it's hassle-free.
• Parental Abandonment: Both his parents died at some point before he finished high school.