ISFJ: Alfred Pennyworth, “Batman: The Animated Series”

ISFJ – the Protector, the Steward, the Cultivator

A common joke among fans is that Alfred is Batman’s “batman,” the term meaning a personal assistant to an officer of the British military. He’s a classic part of the Batman mythos, and the Bat-family couldn’t function without him (much like the ISxJ butler of another gothic-style family I’ve profiled).

He only ever got one episode that focused on his own adventures—and then he spends most of it tied up to a chair (“The Lion and the Unicorn”)—but he’s such a well-established character that I think we’re okay extrapolating what we know of him in general to fill out his profile. After all, what would a Batman series be without Alfred?

Dominant Function: (Si) Introverted Sensing, “The Study”

Alfred is a man with a long history. He served Thomas and Martha Wayne for many years, and saw no reason to leave once they were gone. He raised Bruce and continues to care for him into adulthood—with the help of fellow family friend, secret-keeper, and Si-dom Dr. Leslie Thompkins (an ISTJ)—out of respect for his parents’ memory.

Alfred keeps Wayne Manor in tip-top shape seemingly all by himself—the dusting alone you have to figure takes all week just to get to every room. He tends tirelessly to Bruce’s every need, whether it’s dinnertime or crime-fighting time. Bruce depends on his reliability and constancy for just about everything, and Alfred always comes through.

Alfred carries on the tradition, both of old-fashioned British domestic service, and of working for the Wayne Family, even though he doesn’t have to. It seems to suit his tastes and his skills, and despite his apparently daunting responsibilities, he seems to be able to conduct his own business as he sees fit. He remarks to an old friend that he’s become accustomed to his style of living, so life in Wayne Manor seems to be comfortable for him—slightly psychotic boss aside.

ISTJ: Neal Page, “Planes, Trains & Automobiles”

The Inspector, The Sentinel, The Trustee

Steve Martin was known for playing “wild and crazy guy” types, when suddenly he took a turn for the uptight with Neal Page. Neal and his travel buddy Del make yet another ISTJ/ENFP pair for this blog—like Spock and Kirk, or Zoë and Mal—and the personality conflicts make great fun. The cognitive function stacks are exactly flipped, so Neal and Del push each other’s buttons in just the right places on their wild and crazy adventure home for Thanksgiving.

Dominant Function: (Si) Introverted Sensing, “Relive the Experience”

Neal goes into every situation expecting things to be just so—a first class seat for a quick flight home, a clean and comfortable hotel, a rental car waiting in its assigned parking space—and he’s constantly disappointed. He suffers through the indignities of coach, cringes at the sight of his cheap motel room, and glares at his raucous fellow bus passengers with an air of put-upon longsuffering. He’s highly sensitive to annoying changes in his environment, and Del’s bodily functions, sloppy habits, and endless chatter drive him mad.

Neal’s family and home, waiting for him in the suburbs of Chicago, is warm and comfortable and traditional. He likes old-fashioned showtunes, a preference not shared by the other passengers on his bus. He wears crisp, neat business clothes and hat, slightly older than the current fashion (even for 1987, when the movie was released), and a very nice watch. He tries to maintain his decorum and appearance throughout his adventure, and each piece he loses strips him of a little more of his sanity.

ISFJ: Marion Crane, “Psycho”

The Protector, The Cultivator, The Steward

Good evening.

Welcome to this bonus Halloween post. Spoilers for a 55-year-old film.

The term “Scream Queen” has been around for almost a hundred years now, since before Fay Wray shrieked her head off in the clutches of King Kong (1933). Janet Leigh’s performance as Marion Crane, however, gave birth to a dynasty. Slasher films from 1978’s Halloween—starring her daughter Jamie Lee Curtis—all the way to the new TV show Scream Queens—also featuring Jamie Lee—owe their pedigree to the ill-fated leading lady of the original Psycho.

If you really, truly, seriously don’t know what happens in Psycho, do not read this post. Go get yourself in touch with one of the milestones of pop culture and watch Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece. This blog will wait. So will your shower.

Dominant Function: (Si) Introverted Sensing, “Relive the Experience”

Marion’s been living a quiet life for a long time, just her and her spinster sister in their old family home, with pictures of mom still on the mantel. On the day we meet her, Marion’s acting wildly out of character, but she’s been reliable and dependable at her job for so long, no one suspects that she’s up to anything.

As crazy as it is what she’s doing, Marion remains careful and deliberate through the whole operation. She packs plenty of clothes, stops for a nap rather than drive through the night, and trades in her car for a new one to keep the police off her trail. When bad weather hits, she pulls in to a motel.

She really just wants a shower and a good night’s sleep, simple creature comforts to soothe the anxiety of her troubled day. She studies her room for a safe place to hide her stolen cash, and then joins her host for dinner. A weird but enlightening conversation with him convinces her to return home and go back to her normal life.

ISTJ: Lurch, “The Addams Family” (TV)

The Inspector, The Sentinel, The Trustee

Lurch loves his job. No, really. Look at that happy twinkle in his eye. The Addams family simply couldn’t function without him. Amidst all the explosions, sword-fighting, and man-eating plants, Lurch is the steady, lumbering rock that keeps the household managed.

Dominant Function: (Si) Introverted Sensing, “Relive the Experience”

Lurch keeps a predictable routine and will always show up when the bell is rung. He’s careful and deliberate in the execution of his duties, and tends to the family’s practical, physical needs—like making dinner and…cleaning, I guess? I’ve seen him with a feather-duster, but perhaps he’s applying the dust rather than removing it.

Lurch is comfortable with himself in that he knows his strength and won’t be deterred from performing his job by frightened visitors. On the other hand, he turns down invitations every year to the Butlers’ Ball because he can’t dance. When he has to pretend to be the rich owner of the house to impress his mother, he finds it terribly awkward to act like a wealthy man instead of a servant.

Lurch is fond of playing the harpsichord and often entertains the family with his music in his off hours—usually old, classical pieces. When Morticia and Gomez hastily offer the antique instrument to a museum, Lurch quits on the spot. They later find him sitting in a chair, pretending to play, with tears streaming down his face (honestly, it’s played for laughs, but it’s pretty damn heartbreaking). Fortunately, Lurch gets his harpsichord back, and household harmony is restored.

ISFJ: Morticia Addams, “The Addams Family” (TV)

The Protector, The Cultivator, The Steward

Members of the ISFJ personality type are often portrayed as the ones who try to keep things normal. Of course, “normal” is all in the eyes of the beholder—or in this case, the Si-dom. Morticia Addams is a one-of-a-kind homemaker and Fe-user extraordinaire who lives contently in her weird little world, and wishes nothing more than to graciously welcome you into it.

Dominant Function: (Si) Introverted Sensing, “Relive the Experience”

Morticia’s a classic homebody. Though she gladly joins her husband on adventures, she’s always eager to return to the comforts of home. She loves the old family mansion and takes care to make sure that it’s furnished and decorated according to her unique tastes. She sees nothing odd or unusual about the way she lives, and usually doesn’t comprehend that others find it strange at all. For her, this way of life is perfectly natural, and all of her efforts go towards preserving and delighting in it.

Like her fellow Sensor-dominant husband, Morticia enjoys physical hobbies, but of a more quiet, contemplative nature. She gardens, she knits, she paints—anything that engages her physically, but in cozy, familiar ways. Her hobbies gradually build to results over time—plants fully grown, sweaters completed for family members, paintings finished—rather than Gomez’s go-for-broke escapades.

Morticia’s tastes, while frightening to the outside world, are highly sophisticated and discerning. Only the finest bed of nails or toadstool stews will do for the Addamses. She loves everything around her to be elegant, lovely, and homey—even if “homey” means cobwebs and broken windows—and is pleased when others compliment her fashion sense or décor.

ISFJ: Christine Chapel, “Star Trek: The Original Series”

The Protector, The Cultivator, The Steward

Funny how if you step back and look at your life, you discover that you’re a supporting character in someone else’s life.

I suspect that Christine Chapel’s years on board the Enterprise were not her best. For the rest of the crew, the five-year mission was a time of adventure in which they pursued greatness and became legends. For Chapel, it was a detour in the middle of her career, before she got back on track.

Behind-the-scenes, actress Majel Barrett, wife of Gene Roddenberry, was initially cast as the steely Number One, first officer of the Enterprise in Star Trek’s original pilot. When the show and the character were rejected, she donned a platinum wig and a miniskirt and finagled her way into a part on the new version of the show.

She didn’t get a lot of love—from the fans, or from her unrequited romantic interest, Spock. As progressive as it was, Star Trek still wasn’t ready for the kind of woman leader Majel could deliver. But she’s in there, hidden around the edges of a personality type as much maligned and underestimated as Nurse Chapel herself.

Dominant Function: (Si) Introverted Sensing, “Relive the Experience”

Christine Chapel presents herself as calm, patient, and practical. She’s rarely less than composed, even when assisting in surgery on a Vulcan in the middle of an attack on the ship (“Journey to Babel”). When Spock tries to sit up and talk shop during the operation, she quickly puts him out.

Chapel takes care of the practical needs of her patients—making sure they eat and rest, and in Uhura’s case, receives tutoring (“The Changeling”). In the first movie, she provides personal details of navigator Ilia’s life to help the probe version of the woman recall her memories.

Christine carries a torch for her missing ex-fiance for several years (“What Are Little Girls Made Of?”). In fact, it’s the whole reason she joined Starfleet, leaving a career in bio-research in hopes of exploring the galaxy for her lost love. She believes beyond reason that Roger Korby is still alive, and recognizes his voice when the Enterprise makes contact. She still trusts him at first, but begins to have doubts when his motivations contradict his once ethical character. She’s dubious of the authenticity of his android creations, disagreeing with him that they’re as good as human—and she’s upset that she can’t tell the difference between the real Kirk and the android Kirk.

In the end, she discovers that Roger is an android duplicate, but by that point she’s already decided he’s not the same man she once loved. “Everything you’ve done has proved it isn’t you,” she tells Roger. He ends himself, and Chapel returns to her duties on the Enterprise.

ISFJ: Leonard McCoy, “Star Trek: The Original Series”

ISFJ – the Protector, the Cultivator, the Steward

McCoy breaks a nice handful of ISFJ stereotypes. For one, he’s not a housewife, obviously. For another, he’s super cranky most of the time. And finally, even though he can be traditional and old-fashioned, he’s also on board a starship exploring strange new worlds.

Dominant Function: (Si) Introverted Sensing, “The Study”

McCoy is fond of referring to himself as a simple “country doctor.” At heart, he’s an old-fashioned Southern gentleman, and he never forgets his roots. He appreciates simple pleasures like a mint julep (“This Side of Paradise”), fresh air and the outdoors (“Shore Leave”), or a good home-cooked, non-replicated meal (“Arena”). He quickly discerns that the lavish spread provided by Trelane has only the appearance, and none of the flavor, of real wine and food.

McCoy’s also infamous for his distrust of technology, despite serving on Starfleet’s most advanced ship. He has particular disdain for the transporter, disliking the idea of his molecules being scrambled and squirted through space. At the same time, McCoy shows disdain for the “medieval” medicine of Earth’s 20th century, because it’s not up to snuff with the technology he knows.

ISTJ: Spock, “Star Trek: The Original Series”

The Inspector, The Sentinel, The Trustee

In my Star Trek Returns post, I confessed to not having seen as much of the Original Series as I thought I had (that’s been fixed with a complete re-watch). For years, my idea of Spock came from the movies I’d watched over and over, especially my personal favorite The Undiscovered Country. Now, even after catching up on everything I missed, I’m going to have to stick with old Spock as my favorite Spock.

See, the great thing about a long-running character like Spock is that we get to watch him grow as a person, literally over a lifetime. In the Star Trek universe, Vulcans are long-lived, so our last visit with Spock is roughly 80 years after our first introduction. In that time, Spock has gone from stereotypically uptight ISTJ to a man of great patience and wisdom—and yes, even feeling.

Dominant Function: (Si) Introverted Sensing, “Relive the Experience”

Spock is half-Human, half-Vulcan, but he chooses to identify as fully Vulcan. It’s from his Vulcan heritage that he derives his life philosophy and outlook. Every new experience Spock has gets filtered through his Vulcan-trained Si, comparing it to the traditions he was taught and raised with.

While others panic or jump to action, Spock responds with caution and healthy skepticism to most situations the Enterprise encounters. He patiently gathers information rather than acting on emotion or speculation. He excels at detail, and shows open disdain for guesswork and imprecision.

This is the Vulcan way, and despite being only half-Vulcan, Spock lives it better than almost any full-blooded Vulcan we meet. He’s the archetypal Vulcan, and among fictional characters, an archetypal ISTJ. Thanks to his steady, unflappable Si, he serves as a balancing counterpart to his captain and best friend, the intrepid—and not always cautious—James T. Kirk.

ISTJ: Simon Tam, “Firefly”

The Inspector, The Sentinel, The Trustee

Simon gets typed as an INTJ a lot because, hey, remember that time he came up with a plan? That’s what INTJs do, right? Plan things?

Just like any type can be an artist, so too can any type can come up with a genius plan. And if you pull out those two big instances of Simon coming up with a plan and take a look at them, you see him stepping out of his comfort zone. He’s stretching himself by using his lower functions to follow through on the convictions of his higher functions.

Simon doesn’t live in the conceptual world of an Intuitive. For someone who’s lost in space, he’s remarkably grounded and practical. His smarts come mostly from book-learning, but he applies them with intelligence.

More about that in the function breakdown.

In the meantime, since this post is about a big brother, let me be all big brotherly and remind everyone not to assume someone’s a dullard just because of their type. Like our young doctor, they might just surprise you.

Dominant Function: (Si) Introverted Sensing, “Relive the Experience”

Simon lived a privileged life on the core worlds as a promising and brilliant young doctor from a wealthy family. Even after he escapes that life, he continues to dress finely and act formally, the way he was raised. He tells Kaylee that being proper with her is his way of showing respect, not to mention the only way he has of retaining who he is.

Simon’s first suspicions that something bad was happening to his sister came from reading her letters and recognizing that she didn’t sound like herself. She referenced things that didn’t happen, people who didn’t exist, and even spelled things wrong. “She started correcting my spelling when she was three,” he reminds his parents, who don’t—or won’t—acknowledge that anything’s wrong.

It takes a great deal for Simon to give up his comfortable, familiar life and strike out into the edge of civilization. In “Objects in Space,” he notices that Serenity has become River’s home, but even after all these months, he’s still having trouble adjusting. He’s constantly cautious, questioning Captain Mal’s decisions and showing exasperation at the crew’s unpredictable and uncouth ways.

ISTJ: Zoë Alleyne-Washburne, “Firefly”

The Inspector, The Sentinel, The Trustee

In many ways, Firefly is the un-Star Trek of science fiction television. And yet, both share the nifty similarity of having an ENFP/ISTJ pair at the helm. Star Trek has Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock, and Firefly has Captain Mal and Zoë.

Zoë’s human through-and-through, but she approaches her job with the same sensible attitude and deadpan wit as her Vulcan counterpart. She and Spock have the tireless task of keeping their ENFP captains from getting lost in space. There’s no telling what kind of extra trouble Mal would find himself in without Zoë at his side.

Dominant Function: Introverted Sensing (Si), “Relive the Experience”

Zoë’s a trained, disciplined soldier, and leans on her finely honed skills to back Mal up in their adventures. She continues to call him “Sir,” and defer to him like her commanding officer, just as she did in their military days. Years after one of her comrades bit into a booby-trapped apple, she still carefully slices hers open before eating, just to be safe. She’s cool, cautious, and prepared, and acts as the voice of reason to Mal’s impetuousness.

Zoë doesn’t like Wash when she first meets him. He’s probably too much energy, garish and loud and impulsive. Eventually, somehow, they end up married. Wash’s Extraverted Sensing balances out Zoë’s Si, and the two make a weirdly perfect match as a couple.

Zoë prefers life on Serenity because it feels real. She expresses no desire to visit the core planet Ariel when they stop by because it’s too sterile. Serenity is her home, and Zoë will defend it with her life.