How to Write Dialogue for (most) Dream SMP Characters
A few months ago, I remembered seeing a lot of posts giving advice on how to write dialogue for DSMP Characters. And while those posts contained numerous helpful pointers, overall, they fall just short of capturing what it means to write in a character’s Voice.
Unique character Voices, while tricky to get right, are usually achieved by giving each character a distinct set of words to say, in a manner that distinguishes them from the rest of the cast.
With this in mind, I’ve spent the past few days combing through almost Thirty Hours of VOD footage to collect nearly all of the unique words, phrases, and speaking habits of every major and minor character on the Dream SMP (involved in 2+ story arcs.)
Before Reading:
Sentence-Starters are single words or phrases which begin a sentence. (ie. “Y’know, maybe you should try something different.”)
Sentence Paddings are reoccurring words added to the middle of sentences. (ie. “It’s like he just can’t cry.”)
Sentence Endings are single words or phrases which end a sentence. (ie. “There’s no need to fight, I hope.”)
All three of these types can be combined with one another to create more natural-sounding sentences. For instance, if a character has the two Sentence-Starters “Okay” and “So,” they can be used like this; “Okay, so, I’m a bit worried.”
(Note: When certain traits or phrases aren’t obvious with how they should be applied to dialogue, an (ie.) will be added below to illustrate them.)
Wilbur
General Traits:
Repeats himself for emphasis. Sometimes these repetitions will add additional information. More often, this repetition is focused around a specific word with the circumstance of the sentence being changed each time.
ie. “I’m living in an eternal limbo again. I’ve been through limbo, I’m out of limbo, and socially, I’m still in this limbo.”
Highly eloquent in language, bordering on poetic.
Highly introspective; significantly less so after Eret’s betrayal and onward.
Occasionally makes literary analogies and references, sometimes breaking the Fourth Wall to do so.
Curses semi-frequently. Wilbur is the only known character to use the word “cunt,” although rare.
Common Go-To Swears - Fuck, Shit, Prick, Bastard, Hell, Ass (Including all variations and combinations.)
Tends to hum when he thinks to himself.
Stutters most often when offended, shocked, or surprised.
Generally addresses characters semi-formally, often by title or role.
Often slips into long-form monologues when self-reflecting.
Usually defaults to being the head of a conversation; introducing, managing, and elaborating on topics throughout, especially when speaking to three or more people.
Circumstantial Phrases:
You and I, we’re ━ (To connect positively with someone.)
ie. “You and I, we’re used to seeing the good in people.”
I wanna pick your brain / Can I pick your brain? (To ask about someone else.)
Don’t say that, I’ll cry (Affectionate banter, only to Tommy.)
I’m afraid ━ (When hopeless or delivering bad news.)
ie. “I’m afraid there’s no getting out of this now.”
There’s no reason to ━ / There’s no reason for ━ / There’s no need for ━ (When being threatened or breaking up a fight.)
It is the Ordem Paranormal fandom's first year being represented in the Tumblr Sexyman Competition ( @sexy-people-contests-2026 )!! And we ask you tumblr masses to help our representative Arthur Cervero win against Bill Cipher! Second place to Howl of Howl's Moving Castle will be an honor.
Ordemblr also extends an alliance to all other niche fandoms! Divided, we are few! Together, we are many!
Tumblr sexyman tournament is coming, and an obscure character very dear to me is in it. Unfortunately, he will face a powerhouse in the first match... but I will not give up!
And that is why I did this presentation for you, Howl fans. Let's make an alliance against an evil triangle out there.
@sexy-people-contests-2026 some piece of propaganda.
niche fandoms in the tumbr sexyman poll! here my call!! divided we are few, but together we are many!!!!!!!!!
as a representative of the ordem paranormal fandom i would like to propose an alliance with the other niche fandoms who would just like their guy to survive the first round, please and thank you
im talking to YOU, camp here and there fans! (so sorry about rowans situation btw)
im talking to YOU, the mechanisms fans!
im talking to YOU, in stars and time fans!
I'M TALKING TO YOU, THOSE IN FANDOMS I DONT EVEN KNOW, LET US ALIGN OUR VOTES TO GET THROUGH THIS!!!!!!!
you CANNOT read too much old timey fiction because I was playing Raft with the lads this morning and without a THOUGHT said we could sail over to another island "if the wind would consent to blow" & let me tell you. This did not pass by unremarked.
no such thing as wasting your 20s your 20s are for recovering from whatever the fuck happened to you as a kid so that youre ready to get weird with it in your 30s
you need to understand that i have two sets of headcanons. there's the set of realistic headcanons based on my genuine reading of the show, and then there's me playing pretend with my dolls.
I made this blog to talk about language because I find it fun and fascinating, so while I'm not thrilled to acknowledge 431 any more than I have to, there's really hilarious shit happening in this scene and the people need to know.
So, the first fucking thing we hear outta Katsuki's mouth is this:
"Jeez, why the hell do I gotta be Deku's private little chauffeur!"
There are a few ways you could translate this. It's an indignant complaint with some rudeness, but comparatively mild for Katsuki. Some people might rephrase this to something more like "why do I gotta drive Deku's ass around" but I'm keeping the original, possessive grammar of デクのアッシー (Deku no asshii) because I think it highlights an important implication.
Sooooo... the word Katsuki uses here アッシー (asshii) is uniquely loaded slang.
Jisho.org
This term originates from Japan's bubble economy era of the late 80s and saw continued use through the 90s. During the economic bubble, the unemployment rate was very low; the related increased presence of women in the workplace led to a cultural perspective that women were gaining social power and financial independence.
From this new social dynamic emerged several terms:
Asshii-kun, Messhii-kun, and Mitsugu-kun.
English Journal, written by University of Kitakyuushuu linguistics professor Anne Crescini
There's also the lesser known Tsunagu-kun, who hooks up electronics for a woman, and Keep-kun, a "backup boyfriend" for when a woman's preferred partner dumps her.
A couple Japanese websites I looked at talked about luxury vehicles gaining in popularity during this time, so Asshii-kun are associated with expensive sports cars, something Katsuki is probably referencing since his car is fancy as fuck!
It's not a well known term anymore, to the point that I saw a number of jpn fans joking about having to look up what it means, haha. Katsuki's dialogue often has interesting, unusual word choices, and of course, reigning queen of up-to-date slang Camie teased him about his delinquent shtick being "out of fashion"!
In that journal article, Crescini explores English terms which roughly convey the same meaning as asshii. I've used google translate here to show you what is written, so let's take a look!
O--oh.
Oh.
fdkjslhsmh;lkshm;
LISTEN I WAS TRYING TO BE FUCKING EMPIRICAL AND SHIT
oh. is that right.
yeah
yeah he is
FYI shiri ni shikarareru of course carries the implication of a man being dominated or bossed around by his wife.
Now, on social media, I saw people (likely in their 40s and 50s) using the term jokingly to describe having to chauffeur someone around for errands. It was mostly men talking about their wives, but there were a couple instances of it being used for friends and family members. It definitely has the energy of "being forced to drive someone around without getting anything in return."
But notice that Katsuki voices this complaint about Izuku specifically, even though Kirishima is also in the car. Like yeah, he yells about Kirishima threatening to scratch his car, but he doesn't fucking call himself Kirishima's asshii!
He could have used a plural "you" pronoun or even pluralized Izuku's name with Deku-tachi to make it "Deku and the people with him," but no, it's "Deku's asshii."
Tell me, Kacchan, when it comes to Izuku, are you hoping to get something in return?
"If somebody'd just said the words 'I wanna surpass Dynamight,' I'd have taken 'em."
"You ain't gonna give up teaching?"
date me date me date me fucking do hero work with ME Izuku be a hero with ME
[sigh...]
"Man, you got dumped, huh, Bakugou!!"
Listen. My jaw dropped when I saw Kirishima say this.
Weblio (google translated)
This definition specifies "amorous feelings of being in love" (恋愛感情). I'm not joking when I say I've almost exclusively heard this word used for rejected confessions or couples breaking up.
Japanese Stack Exchange question, "Can フラれて be used in any non-romantic sense?"
The Japanese example sentence describes a business proposal being immediately rejected. The comedy here is inherently tied to the verb being used for romantic rejection, like someone saying "I applied for a promotion, but those fickle hiring managers went and broke my heart."
Even if you aren't literally suggesting romantic love, the association makes it sound over the top and dramatic.
Kirishima is drawing attention to how serious and emotionally invested Katsuki is in making this offer and affectionately teasing him for it. Note that he doesn't just use the simple past tense for this verb (フラれた), which would have sounded direct and not particularly sympathetic. He's using a [verb] + shimau construction (further contracted as slang to "-chimatta") which makes it a "regrettable" outcome, like an "aww man!"
You can add that construction to any verb and it would sound funny/sympathetic, so he could have phrased it differently:
断られちまった ("You got turned down," common word used for all kinds of rejection)
拒められちまった ("You got denied," used for romantic, platonic, and familial relationships)
撥ね付けられちまった ("You got totally rejected," used for when someone coldly or flatly rejects an offer or request)
撃沈しちまった ("You got shot down," uses battleship sinking imagery for failure in daily life, business ventures, romance, hopes and dreams, etc.)
轟沈しちまった ("You got crushed," similar to above, but more severe and instantaneous sinking: instant kill, KO, torpedoed, etc.)
The last few in particular are very dramatic and humorous, so they would work well if Kirishima wanted to joke about the speed or bluntness of Izuku's refusal.
BUT NO.
DUDE USED THE VERB SPECIFICALLY ASSOCIATED WITH ROMANTIC REJECTION, which centers the feelings of heartbreak and disappointment.
He is commiserating with Katsuki for "putting his heart on the line" and getting the cold shoulder, and then he fucking wingmans for Katsuki by spelling it all out to Izuku!!
You can say all you want "it's just lighthearted banter, they're joking!" Sure. You're right, this is a funny scene.
But the joke is that Izuku is a cute girl Katsuki keeps trying (and failing) to woo. That he's taking advantage of Katsuki's feelings for him and stringing him along.
The joke is that Katsuki wants Izuku at his hero agency so bad, the rejection is essentially on the level of getting dumped or having your love confession rejected.
The joke is that Izuku is completely oblivious when it comes to love.
oh interesting doesn't that sound familiar
LITERALLY EVERYBODY KNOWS THIS NERD WOULDN'T NOTICE LOVE IF IT PUNCHED HIM IN THE FACE
'cause Katsuki already tried that one
But I will say, for all Katsuki's complaints, the problem is obviously not a lack of reciprocation. The problem is that Izuku doesn't recognize what Katsuki feels for him. He doesn't get what Katsuki is trying to express to him. He can't answer honestly if he doesn't even understand the question.
The comedic parts of MHA are often wrapped up in important plot points and messages. Sure, it's funny, but why does that mean we're supposed to dismiss it?
Also, Kirishima says this:
"Midoriya sure is dense when it comes to these things."
その辺 (sono hen) is a perfectly ordinary phrase for "that area," "that topic," "in that regard," or "around there," and I wouldn't think anything of it if not for this next bit:
"On that note, what about you guys?"
They are talking about the Class B students who started dating, and Sero uses the same phrase to ask whether Jirou and Kaminari are a couple. Again, this isn't unusual, and if these moments were separated by whole chapters, it would not read as notable in any way. その辺 is a common enough phrase that it's not something you could pin down as a "thematic phrase" or anything like that.
But the repetition struck me. Sero could have said, そういえば (speaking of which, now that you mention it, on that subject), this is a very common sentence starter, but he also could have said things like 付き合ってといえば (speaking of dating) to be more specific.
In this conversation, その辺 is framed as the topic of dating or romance by the preceding remarks. Meanwhile, the "topic" Kirishima suggests Izuku is thickheaded about is only really defined by his own previous comment...
which framed Katsuki's rejection as romantic heartbreak.
anyway
here's the funniest translation of Katsuki's asshii comment I could think of:
"Jeez, why do I gotta be Deku's vehicular bitch boy!"
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