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Gary Smith is the main antagonist of Rockstar’s boarding-school sandbox game Bully. He is labelled by the students at Bullworth Academy as a sociopath, who “enjoys torturing people.” He is several stereotypes rolled into one, yet is one of the most original video game antagonists ever created.
Distinguished Appearance
Gary sports a notable scar over his right eye. He wears a teal vest over a grey shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the forearm, revealing a silver watch on his left wrist and a leather wristband on his right. He has short brown hair with a part on the left. Slightly taller and slimmer than main character Jimmy, Gary has solid physique that ensures he is respected on sight. He talks with an air of over-confidence and a hint of sarcasm — reminiscent of the similarly arrogant and conceited Sebastian Valmont (played by Ryan Phillippe) from Cruel Intentions. He dresses in a Schutzstaffel (SS/Nazi) uniform for Halloween.
Certifiably Insane
Gary freely admits to having attention deficit disorder, and begins Bully on behavior medication, but he displays behavioral evidence that suggests he suffers from much more. He appears narcissistic and paranoid — to the point where he accuses Jimmy of plotting against him (while they are still “friends”). He has a superiority complex, believing himself to be smarter and more capable than everyone else. And he seems completely devoid of morals, doing whatever he deems necessary to achieve his goals, which includes manipulating teachers and social cliques into fighting each other, in addition to getting one teacher falsely admitted to a mental institution. He has no regard for the health or well-being of others. Gary is, as his fellow students surmise, a sociopath.
“Let me see — uhh, it's Halloween. All the prefects are at some party and the teachers are 'entertaining' — I use the word loosely — the kids. No, I'd say the opportunities for fun are pretty much nil.”
Friend or Foe?
Gary befriends Jimmy at the beginning of Bully, and it initially seems as though the two of them — as well as Pete “Petey” Kowalski — will work together to bring down the cliques. His intentions are not as honorable or pure as Jimmy’s, though, and they soon fall out. Gary stops taking his behavior medication around Halloween, much to the concern of Jimmy and Petey, who worry what he might do with no inhibition. It quickly becomes clear that Gary is not Jimmy’s friend; he is incapable of being anyone’s friend. Gary is “too good” for the people of Bullworth — and that includes Jimmy.
In order to achieve his aim of running the school (and town), Gary works behind the scenes. He pulls the strings in the story, pitting cliques against each other; against Jimmy, and manipulating them into helping his cause — unbeknownst to Jimmy, the other characters, or even the player. Jimmy is the star of Gary’s twisted scheme, just as he is the star of Bully, for he is both a threat to Gary’s ambitions and his best means of reaching the top. One clique at a time, Gary makes Jimmy a hated figure, forcing Jimmy to endure various trials to clear his name.
But this is not immediately obvious to players, who see and hear little of Gary through the middle parts of the game. Here, Jimmy’s motivation is clearly established through other means — namely, bringing down the social clique’s and ending the fighting between their constituents; also, to a lesser extent, to become “king of the school.” This he achieves just before Gary returns to the story, triumphant in his supreme arrogance, delighted that he so completely fooled Jimmy with his scheme. With what seems to be little more than a click of his fingers, Gary turns Jimmy’s kingdom to dust, and picks up the spoils for himself — precisely the person that Jimmy wants to keep out of power. Cruel and sadistic, Gary ties up the headmaster, sends the school into chaos, and taunts and provokes Jimmy into one final battle.
A Walking Cliché
Gary admits everything in a clichéd fight atop a series of falling platforms, following a tense climb up a building in which he further taunts Jimmy, cackling maniacally all the way. He becomes the classic mega-villain of over-the-top comic books and action movie plots, revealing all his secrets to the hero who is facing imminent defeat because he gets a kick out of telling people how smart he is.
Gary is a caricature and a cliché, but this is precisely what makes him such a great character. He is Jimmy without the morals; the hero if he was a sociopath. Gary is an amalgamation of the dark side of every stereotype combined with a remarkable intelligence. You want to punch him in the face, but know he’ll just laugh then trick someone into hunting you down with a chainsaw. He is logical in the most illogical ways. And he is the master at manipulation. In many ways, Gary is the perfect antagonist.