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| “ | Barry Berkman did this. | „ |
| ~ Fuches telling Gene that Barry killed Janice. |
| “ | I used to think I was a soldier, ignoring the fact that I’d never fought in a battle in my whole life. I was a poser. Yeah. And I fancied myself a mentor, fostering other men’s natural abilities. But it wasn’t until I was in prison and I got beaten to within an inch of my life, day after day, that I finally dropped the bullshit and just accepted who I am. A man with no heart. | „ |
| ~ Fuches to NoHo Hank about coming to terms about who they are. |
Monroe Fuches is the main antagonist of HBO's tragicomedy crime series Barry.
He is a former army officer and Barry Berkman's longtime friend and father figure who uses his connections in the army to arrange Barry's discharge after the latter unintentionally kills a civilian in Afghanistan during a mental breakdown, only to further the gap between him and morality by turning Barry into a hitman and using him as a way of making money. To a certain extent, he serves as the series' comic relief, to later show his true colours of an uncaring, self-centered, cunning, obnoxious and deceitful manipulator with little regard for anyone's life but his own, willing to do nearly anything to get his way and earn a quick buck along the way if possible.
Although he is capable of reform, fails at some more heinous things and is attached in his own way, he ultimately casts it aside in his pursuit for revenge on the latter, only to finally be intercepted by law enforcement and imprisoned (likely with Barry himself).
He was portrayed by Stephen Root, who also portrayed Jim Hudson in Get Out, Unity and Reverend Amos Howell in Superman: The Animated Series, Frank in Ice Age, Mildew in Dragons: Riders of Berk, Martin Mertens in Adventure Time, and will voice Grampa in Dog Man.
Biography[]
Relationship and manipulation of Barry Berkman[]
Monroe Fuches's presence in the Berkman family was very prominent long before the show takes place; he was especially close to Barry, describing himself as "like an uncle to him". He shared his military background with Barry when Barry was a child who dreamed of "playing soldier", which influenced the adult Barry to follow his footsteps into the army, becoming a Marine stationed in Afghanistan. As he and his colleague were on a lookout tower one day on mountain patrol, Barry spotted a man on an enemy side within seven hundred meters and, encouraged by his friend Albert Nguyen, managed to take him and two others out with a sniper rifle. With his impressive skills evidenced, the rest of the present troops celebrated the kill, gleefully chanting his name and for the first time showing Barry killing isn't always deemed inherently bad from a certain point of view.
At one time in a village in the Korengal valley during an argument with a villager, Albert was almost fatally shot in the face during a sudden attack (he survived, but with a prominent scar on his right cheek), which drove Barry to a mental breakdown and brutal execution of the one he deemed responsible, only to discover he had killed an innocent civilian. With his war crime left to haunt him and a stained reputation, the devastated and guilt-ridden Barry was sent to a mental hospital, only being discharged thanks to Fuches' influence. Fuches later seemingly took Barry under his care and made him come to a conclusion that, with his violent tendencies, he was destined to killing people, and offered to also make it financially beneficial for both of them. The two spent the next few years arranging and committing hits on various people's lives. While Barry still had a moral code of sorts and was willing to kill only people who he deemed deserving of it, Fuches cared a lot more about the profit granted from the jobs and, although he was genuinely fond of him, was still using Barry for his own selfish ends. That was until an unsuspicious hit later caused the status quo of their partnership to change indefinitely.
Job from the Chechen mafia[]
One day, Barry and Fuches received a hit deal from a section of the Chechen mafia led by Goran Pazar and NoHo Hank stationing in Los Angeles: the target was a gymnast and an aspiring actor Ryan Madison, who had an affair with Pazar's wife. Berkman unexpectedly became entangled with Ryan's acting class, making a connection with him and another attendee Sally Reed. Despite his poor and unpolished acting skills, Ryan took a liking of Barry and invented him a stage name - Barry Block. After a warning to proceed with the hit, Barry went to Ryan's pickup to resume his job, only to find Ryan already shot dead by one of the Chechens from a car - with Hank on the passenger seat - nearby. As the Chechen struggled to reload his sniper rifle, Barry warned him not to attempt killing him as well. When his warning came unanswered, Barry killed two of the Chechens in the car and wounded Hank, who managed to escape, in the arm. Barry then walked away to a diner, unaware the event was recorded by Hank's camcorder.
Kidnapping and ultimatum[]
Barry returned to the hotel to find Fuches ready to defend them both because of his betrayal of the mafia. While Barry walked away to the balcony, the Chechens broke in, assaulted and kidnapped Fuches without Berkman noticing and later took the latter as well. Since Barry had betrayed them and additionally killed one of the Chechens' own brother, Pazar and the recovering Hank threatened Fuches' life unless he does as told. Barry consented, and was presented with a deal of killing a Bolivian cartel member - Paco - in exchange of Fuches' safety and freedom. In reality, Pazar had no intention to release Fuches and planned to kill both him and Barry when he returns. As the deal was halted by Hank's scheme, he informed Pazar that an immensely skilled and infamous Chechen assassin - Stovka - was being sent to them from Chechnya to personally kill Fuches and Barry. When the seasoned assassin arrived and sat on a chair next to Fuches, the man attempted to appeal to him by treating him with a friendly manner. Instead, Stovka expressed his dissatisfaction with his life, burnout and severe depression, and as Fuches continued to talk, killed himself with his rifle. The Chechens came over to find his body in shock, while Fuches denied any responsibility. While in captivity, Fuches brokered a deal with Pazar by encouraging Pazar to get into a war with the Bolivians using Barry as a footsoldier. Barry raided a Bolivian stash house for the Chechens, although unbeknowst to them he was working with another unhinged ex-Marine, Taylor Garrett. Fuches encouraged Barry to kill Taylor, since he was a liability, while Taylor encouraged Barry to kill Fuches. On another mission for the Chechens to assassinate Bolivian crime lord Cristobal Sifuentes, Taylor brought along two other ex-Marines without Barry's consent: Vaughn and Chris, the latter of whom had never seen combat. Taylor's recklessness ruined the mission, getting both Taylor and Vaughn killed, forcing Barry to kill Chris to keep him from going to the police, and sparking a gang war between the Chechens and the Bolivians. Fuches surrendered to the Chechens after the failed mission in the hopes they would show him mercy, but Pazar decided to have Fuches tortured to death instead. Meanwhile, Pazar's right-hand man, NoHo Hank, defected and warned Barry that the Chechens intended to kill him. Rather than leaving town, Barry returned to kill Pazar and his men, saving Fuches's life in the process. Resenting his criminal life, Barry dropped Fuches off at the airport and announced that he was retiring as a hitman. Fuches returned to Cleveland.
Working as an informant[]
Without Barry to handle assassinations, Fuches recruited another hitman to work for him, but the new hitman's lack of skill lead to the hitman's death and Fuches's arrest. Fuches was pressured by Detective Loach in California to wear a wire and get a confession out of Barry to the murder of Detective Janice Moss in exchange for Fuches's freedom. While Fuches initially intended to do so, since he harbored resentment towards Barry, after the two reconnected Fuches changed his mind and did his best to protect Barry from the police. Despite his best efforts, Barry confessed to the murder of Detective Moss on tape while recounting a heart-to-heart he had with his acting teacher, Gene Cousineau, regarding his actions in the military. Rather than arrest Barry, Detective Loach used the tape as blackmail so he could send Barry and Fuches to assassinate his ex-wife's new lover, Ronny Proxin. While Fuches was happy to murder Ronny, Barry attempted to warn Ronny to skip town instead. Ronny and his daughter Lilly attacked and severely wounded Barry, with both escaping into the night. Lilly also wounded Fuches, taking a bite out of his right cheek. Fuches continued the mission instead of taking Barry to an emergency room, until Ronny and Detective Loach encountered each other in a convenience store, resulting in both of their deaths. With his secret safe once more, Fuches was free, but Barry once again rebuffed Fuches and said he would never work with him again.
Framing of Gene Cousineau[]
Furious with Barry, Fuches tracked down the body of Detective Moss and pinned the murder on Gene Cousineau, who was her lover. Barry planted a pin from the Chechen mafia on her body before police could arrive, which would later be used to pin the murder on the Chechen mob. Gene was arrested for the murder of Detective Moss, and Fuches taunted Barry over the phone that he could exonerate Gene by turning himself in. Fuches brokered a heroin deal between the Chechen and Bolivian mobs. NoHo Hank, unaware that Barry intended to kill Fuches in revenge for framing Gene Cousineau, inadvertently tipped Barry off to Fuches's location. Barry stormed the location of the heroin deal, massacring every member of the Bolivian mob present except for Cristobal, and most of the Chechen mob. NoHo Hank and Fuches both managed to successfully hide from Barry and escape. The Chechen mob sent Fuches into hiding in a cabin in Chechnya, while pinning the massacre and the murder of Detective Moss on Fuches under the pseudonym "The Raven" so their men could continue their operation in America. Gene would recall the night after being released from custody that Fuches told him Barry killed Detective Moss. This sparked a major rift between Barry and Gene, but Barry eventually managed to bribe Gene into staying silent with mob money and acting opportunities. Fuches was delighted by his new, simple life in Chechnya, but angrily abandoned it to seek revenge after a phone call with Barry revealed his plot to turn Gene and Barry against each other didn't work as planned.
Posing as a private investigator[]
Fuches returned to California under the name "Kenneth Goulet". He posed as a private investigator and informed the families of Barry's victims that Barry was their killer, hoping to inspire them to take the law into their own hands. The widow and son of Barry's last victim before moving to California, the widow of Chris, and the sister of Taylor (who was not technically killed by Barry) all attempted to kill Barry, though none of their attempts were successful. An associate of Taylor's sister also shot Fuches and left him for dead, but Fuches was rescued by a family and treated on their farm. Fuches again considered abandoning his quest for revenge, but a newspaper article about Barry and Gene's acting relationship goaded him into seeking revenge. He attempted to rope Janice Moss's father, Jim Moss, into his scheme, but Jim saw through the plot and drove an unaware Fuches to the police station, where he was arrested as "The Raven". While being interrogated, Fuches recognized his interrogator as Barry's former war buddy Albert, and revealed that Barry killed Chris hoping Albert would either kill or arrest Barry. Albert angrily confronted Barry, but ultimately let Barry go with a warning.
Prison[]
Shortly after Fuches's arrest, Barry was arrested for the murder of Janice Moss in a police sting arranged by Gene and Jim. Fearing Barry would kill him, Fuches attempted to get into witness protection by once again getting a confession out of Barry while wearing a wire. However, after finding Barry beaten by a guard, Fuches abandoned the wire and consoled Barry, with the two finally admitting their own mistakes to each other. Fuches began to recruit a prison gang with Barry's assistance, but quickly learned that Barry was now working as an informant so he could get into witness protection. Feeling betrayed after giving up his own chance at witness protection for Barry, Fuches used a hidden cell phone in the prison to contact NoHo Hank and arrange a hit on Barry behind bars. The two assassins sent to kill Barry failed, and Barry escaped in the midst of the chaos. The prison guards, believing Fuches was behind the escape attempt, began to savagely beat him.
Life after prison[]
Fuches was released from prison after eight years, now fully embracing his persona as "The Raven" with his own loyal gang. Initially working for NoHo Hank, Fuches quickly soured their relationship after his release by drunkenly mocking the death of Cristobal, which he correctly deduced was perpetrated by a remorseful NoHo Hank and his associates. This ignited a war between NoHo Hank and Fuches, although Fuches consistently had the upper hand. Hank ultimately surrendered and agreed to help Fuches kill Barry in retaliation for the events eight years earlier. Hank tried to kidnap Gene as bait to lure Barry into a trap, but managed to inadvertently kidnap Barry's wife Sally and their son instead. Arriving at Hank's headquarters to retrieve Sally and Barry's son for his trap, Fuches had a change of heart. He confessed to NoHo Hank that he realized during his time in prison that he had never been a soldier or a mentor as he previously styled himself as, but was instead "a man with no heart". Fuches promised to leave without incident if Hank admitted that he killed Cristobal and acknowledged his regrets. This caused Hank to weep and confess, but a moment later, Hank announced that their deal was off in a fit of rage. Fuches fatally shot Hank, igniting a firefight that killed everyone in the room except for Fuches, Sally, and Barry's son. Barry arrived at Hank's headquarters ready for a fight, but found that the battle was already over. Barry and Fuches shared a wordless exchange, and Fuches walked away into the night.
Trivia[]
- Fuches’ cowardly actions makes Barry more violent and unstable at the same time, making it clear that Fuches was just using him.
Nagivation[]
 
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