Brooklyn Nine-Nine: One Quote From Each Character That Perfectly Sums Up Their Personality
No two characters on Brooklyn Nine-Nine are the same and each individual has contrasting characteristics that make them more intriguing. Jake is the silly one who never misses a chance to have fun at work, but he is also the best detective in the precinct. Scully, on the other hand, cares more about the contents of the office vending machine than any actual cases, but he can be quite insightful when he needs to be.
Their choices and actions in the show help set them apart, just as much as the things they say. Most characters have unique catchphrases, like Jake's "cool, cool, cool," and Terry's exaggerated "why?" But apart from these, there are some quotes on the show that perfectly encompass the personalities of the characters speaking them.
To keep up with a fellow captain who was up for the position of Commissioner, Holt joined Twitter in the episode, "Gray Star Mutual." Due to his lack of knowledge of social media etiquette, his account was deactivated shortly after his first tweet and Gina told him it was because Twitter thought he was a bot on account of his odd user name and formal tweets. Offended, Holt protested with this hilariously awkward quote.
The bot thing was a neat reference to one running gag on the show of how Holt spoke and acted like a robot, from his word choice to his formal sign-off on texts. His line about being a human male only reinforced this because it sounded more like something a robot would say.
When Wuncth moved Holt to the Public Relations office, Gina went along with him. She introduced herself as the human form of the 100 emoji to the rest of the team while they were picking a name for the pigeon mascot. Gina was one of the funniest characters on Brooklyn Nine-Nine, as well as snarky, funny, puzzling, and enigmatic and while she mostly liked picking on her friends, sometimes she could be supportive.
Following Holt proved to be a blessing for him because she provided some positivity and encouragement when he was feeling down because of Wuncth. In general, Gina was always 100% positive and she rarely ever let anything get her down, even when she was hit by a bus. So, her description of herself as the 100 emoji was fairly accurate.
Full quote: "... follow rules to a fault, don't know how to relax, and every now and then, I smoke a cigarette."
Amy struggled to find the right thing to say to Holt and Terry during her self-evaluation in "The Apartment," and after fumbling a bit, she listed her biggest flaws. At the time, she worried that she got the evaluation wrong and only realized at the end of the episode that her biggest flaw was actually caring too much about what Holt thought of her.
Amy's list of her worst traits, however, was a perfect description of her character. She always wanted to be the best, whether they were playing games or solving a case, and her obsession with winning Holt's favor and following the rules resulted in her being labeled a teacher's pet. While it's true that she was rather uptight in the beginning, she learned to relax, thanks to her relationship with the ever-playful Jake.
When Charles lost his dog, Jason, in season 5's "Nutriboom," Rosa bought him a replacement so he could get over his grief and get back to work. But Charles refused so she had to take care of it. She grew attached to the dog and named Arlo then organized a memorial for Jason where she made this speech.
The quote might have been about her new four-legged friend, but it was a good reflection of Rosa's personality. Her love for Arlo showed she could be a loving and caring person, even though she often presented herself as someone who's tough, doesn't show emotions, and wouldn't hesitate to use her collection of knives if she needed to.
In the season 1 episode, "The Party," Jake stopped at a bottle store to buy a bottle of wine to take to Holt's birthday party. When he heard how expensive the good wine was, he asked for something much cheaper instead. The funny line speaks to Jake's humor, as well as his terrible financial state that was a major aspect of his personality for most of the show.
Of all the characters, Jake had the funniest quotes on Brooklyn Nine-Nine and the funniest catchphrases. His personality was a mixture of so many different traits that it's almost impossible to define him by a single quote. This one, however, combines a lot of those qualities perfectly: from his humor to his thrifty way of showing his friends he cared.
Based on his obsession with yogurt, the quote "Terry loves yogurt," might be the first thing that comes to mind when fans think of the character. However, there is so much more to him than his love of the treat, and one quote that comes close to encompassing his personality is his favorite chant, "Nine, Nine."
He was the first to use it on the show and it was the character's last line on Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Whenever Terry and the others use it, it's meant to hype up the rest of the squad, for example in "New Captain," and it's become their family identity. This ties in well with a big part of Terry's identity as a family man, both with his wife and children, as well as with his work squad.
Even though Brooklyn Nine-Nine made each character, Charles' personality often got lost in Jake's shadow because he was always following him around and doing whatever Jake wanted. This quote, in response to Jake calling himself a man-hunter, is a prime example of their dynamic where Charles treated Jake like his superior.
This aspect of Charles' character, along with his love for food, lasted throughout the show, although towards the end he started acting a little independently. For example, even though his best friend was leaving the NYPD, Charles stayed on the force. His relationship with Genevive and their son Nikolaj also contributed to his growth into a family man and less of Jake's yes-man.
In preparation for Rosa's wedding to Pimento in "Monster in the Closet," Amy asked Hitchcock and Scully to organize seating and Scully happily responded with this quote, highlighting his expertise in sitting all day.
Throughout the show, there was nothing Scully loved more than sitting at his desk and eating, which is why this quote of him bragging about being a master at it fits his personality so well. Although he spent most of his time on his chair with Hitchcock, there were times when the two of them literally stood up for what was right -- even though those times were few and far between.
During one of the precinct's most hectic days in the episode "Ava," Scully saved the day by informing Amy of the location of extra fax machines. Hitchcock included himself in his praise of Scully and when Amy pointed out that he hadn't actually helped in any way, he told her they were a package deal.
His justification was completely ridiculous in this instance, but the quote rang true for his character. Wherever Scully was, Hitchcock was sure to be lurking around too. The two of them were inseparable and even after Hitchcock retired, he was always present with Scully through their video calls. Both of them were rather odd and Hitchcock had a tendency to make inappropriate comments but they had a beautiful friendship.