The Search Party Character You Are Based On Your Zodiac Sign
The darkly comedic "Search Party" follows troubled Dory Sief (Alia Shawkat) on a journey unlike any other. At various points throughout the series, she is an amateur detective, murder suspect, and kidnapping victim. Dory typically associates with her sometimes-boyfriend Drew Gardner (John Reynolds) and her college buddies Elliott Goss (John Early) and Portia Davenport (Meredith Hagner). Elliott is a flamboyant grifter, while Portia is a struggling actor. The quartet's adventures are full of peril, despair, and tremendous hilarity.
This cult favorite series, created by Sarah-Violet Bliss, Charles Rogers, and Michael Showalter, earned five seasons on the strength of its wickedly smart and utterly inimitable humor. But once every episode has been watched, how are "Search Party" fans supposed to fill the yawning void? By discussing how "Search Party" characters might align with the 12 signs of the zodiac, of course! From idealistic Aquarius to capable Capricorn, we've found a fit for every single astrological animal within the "Search Party" universe.
Aries: Chantal Witherbottom
Chantal Witherbottom (Clare McNulty) plays a key role in the "Search Party" story. When she "goes missing" due to events that take place before the premiere episode, Dory goes looking for her, setting the entire series into motion. Folks born under the sign of Aries are similarly forward-leaning. They're also not all that great at thinking through consequences, and much better at starting things than they are at finishing them. Chantal is definitely their "Search Party" avatar.
Chantal also demonstrates malignant self-involvement and a wildly inflated sense of her own importance. These traits aren't necessarily common among Aries folks, but they do tie into her sign-typical impulsivity. For instance, during an LSD episode, Chantal hallucinates a visit from F. Scott Fitzgerald, Maya Angelou, R.L. Stine, Virginia Woolf, and other all-time literary greats. They tell her it's her life's mission to write a book. Lots of people see absurd things while tripping, but Chantal experiences a pretty specific delusion of grandeur — one that matches her Aries-ish dynamism and desire for action.
Taurus: Keith Powell
Some experts on astrological matters suggest that those born under the sign of Taurus demonstrate a reward-oriented disposition. Keith Powell (Ron Livingston) initially gets involved in Chantal's disappearance because he hopes to collect the money offered for her safe return. That's a pretty cut-and-dry example of reward-oriented behavior, in our opinion.
Taurus folks are also known for taking a direct and tactile approach to life's difficulties and upsides. Keith certainly projects this through his scrappy, focused, working-class demeanor. Livingston also emits this sort of "I'm a regular guy" vibe in the Mike Judge classic "Office Space" — he's basically an old hand at playing Taurus types.
Now, every "Search Party" fan knows that Keith doesn't really stick around past Season 1. But that's really only an incidental instance of flakiness for which he can't be blamed. When Keith is around, he follows through on what he sets out to do, and is about as dedicated to finding Chantal as Dory is. In fact, he might even be better off if he dialed down his dedication ...
Gemini: Elliott Goss
Star-sign experts broadly agree that Geminis exhibit a loquacious temperament and a greater-than-average intellectual curiosity. On the flipside, they can be prone to inconsistency and take a mercurial approach to interpersonal interactions.
Throughout the many episodes of "Search Party," Elliott Goss' attention-seeking actually makes him look more like a Leo than a Gemini. But we think there's a nuance to his narcissism that moves him closer to twins territory. "Elliott Goss" is, in fact, an identity fabricated by the individual originally known as Eldad Tupper. Eldad had to put a lot of time and thought into creating Elliott. Then, once he became Elliott, he had to learn about lymphoma into order to convince people he used to have it. Furthermore, he runs a possibly fake charity during Season 1 — some knowledge of actual nonprofits is certainly necessarily to prop up a pretend one.
Unlike a mediocre actor or social media influencer, Elliott doesn't just say he's important and expect the word to agree with him. Instead, he cons the world into believing he's important, which requires communication skills and a willingness to soak up knowledge in order to weaponize it later. These are the classic marks of a Gemini.
Cancer: Gail
Astrological guides often describe Cancers as "sentimental" and most effective when focused on matters connected to the idea of "home." There's one person on "Search Party" who provides ongoing support and encouragement to Dory and/or Dory's pals, without asking much in return: Gail (Christine Taylor). When Dory needs a clearly pointless job to avoid starving to death in Season 1, Gail the depressed divorcée hires her to run errands. When Dory needs help finding a lawyer to defend her against murder charges in Season 3, Gail hooks her up with Cassidy Diamond, her friend's daughter and a recent law school graduate aiming to become the millennial Gloria Allred. Gail testifies on behalf of the defense and provides evidence she probably understands is not legitimate. At one point, Gail even shows up in Dory's literal worst nightmare ... to help out and lend words of encouragement.
Basically, Gail helps Dory out a lot. Moreover, the show doesn't spend enough time on her for us to get a real sense of her dark side — assuming such a thing even exists. Hence, she exists as a vaguely maternal and altogether benevolent presence, and definitely the Cancer of this list.
Leo: Cassidy Diamond
It's been said that Leos appreciate the limelight. Cassidy Diamond (Shalita Grant), Dory's lawyer during her Season 3 murder trial, literally stands in the middle of a room and argues in front of an audience for a living. Granted, plenty of "Search Party" characters adore holding the proverbial center stage. But considering Cassidy seems to have the fewest sinister ulterior motives for her attention-seeking behavior, she's our representative for folks born between July 23 and August 22.
Now and again, Leos can get a little quixotic with their ambitions. This description fits Cassidy better than any of the series regulars. Elliott doesn't want to actually accomplish anything — he just wants credit for accomplishing stuff. Portia wants to be a famous actress for pretty mundane reasons. Meanwhile, Cassidy wants an innocent verdict for a client she believes everyone knows is a big liar and definitely killed a guy. If that's not an attempt to shift the narrative, we don't know what is.
Virgo: Chip Wreck
We should note right off the bat that Virgos are not necessarily known for sadism, so this isn't a perfect fit. But because of this sign's capacity for focusing on details and operating like paragons of precision, we're making Dory's stalker Chip Wreck (Cole Escola) this list's official Virgo.
When we first meet him in Season 3, Chip manages to slip a broken glass bomb of some sort into an annoying YouTuber's mailbox. Soon thereafter, he disguises himself as a waiter, kidnaps Portia, and almost successfully feeds her to hungry rats in the middle of Elliott's heavily-attended wedding ceremony. The following season, he abducts Dory, brainwashes her into becoming his best friend, and brings her along on trips through the quiet tourist town of Babyfoot, Massachusetts, where he lives and impersonates his aunt Lylah (Susan Sarandon).
Chip is a person who makes intricate, elaborate, and completely ludicrous plans work, because he considers their many potential snags in advance. His mind isn't analytical enough for any of his schemes to completely work out in the end, but the fact that he comes close makes him a solid Virgo.
Libra: Marc
Is Marc (Jeffery Self) a good boyfriend, or is he just a much better boyfriend than Elliott? He accompanies Elliott on a trip to Africa, which might've principally been a photo-op. He sticks with him during his descent into raving madness during Season 2. Despite ending the relationship repeatedly over Elliott's pathological lying and emotional unavailability, Marc always takes him back. Perhaps Marc is a glutton for punishment?
That wouldn't be out of step with the traits associated with Libras. These folks contain a greater-than-average affinity for all forms of companionship. According to the experts, Libras also tend to avoid uncomfortable confrontations — for example, a Libra might break off an engagement with a message written in lipstick on a bathroom mirror minutes before he's scheduled to walk down the aisle. As "Search Party" viewers, we only really see Marc within the context of his relationship with Elliott. This might seem like it makes him a too-obvious choice for our Libra representative — but really, when you examine the evidence, there's no other conclusion to be drawn. Someone who does the things Marc does for Elliott couldn't be anything but a Libra.
Scorpio: Dory Sief
Scorpios enjoy detective work, don't necessarily do well when their lives require functioning in ethical grey areas, and can demonstrate a manipulative streak when circumstances call for it. All that sounds quite a bit like Dory Sief, doesn't it?
The central character of "Search Party," Dory's completely voluntary involvement in the hunt for Chantal Witherbottom launches Season 1. At the time, she thinks her life lacks purpose, and figures finding Chantal will do the trick. Finding Chantal does no such thing, however, and Season 2 focuses on the terrible consequences of Dory's botched quest for meaning.
One of Season 3's themes is fame and public exposure, which contrasts Dory's isolation and total surrender of ego in Season 4. In Season 5, Dory discovers her true purpose ... or at least she thinks she does. If "Search Party" has a moral, it might be that expecting a sense of purpose in life is futile and dangerous, because the universe is random and chaotic, as well as an infinite abyss in which we are tiny insignificant specks. (That, and Alia Shawkat needs an Emmy for this show — that's the other moral.) This is Scorpio territory: Murky, weird, and uncomfortable for most people to fathom.
Sagittarius: Portia Davenport
Sagittarians are broadly thought of as spiritually and philosophically adventurous. Portia dabbles in Christianity during a guilt-ridden stint in Season 3. While this religious excursion provides some rationale for making her the Sagittarius of our list, there's oodles more.
The experts think of Sagittarians as seekers of existential truth. What is acting, if not a constant exploration across the spectrum of human emotion? Portia's not a successful actor, but there's nothing on the show to indicate she doesn't try as hard as she can. We can surmise that Portia does, in fact, devote plenty of time and attention to examining the nuances of life and its innumerable possibilities in order to better inform her acting. She doesn't have the talent to stick any of her proverbial landings, but that's okay — all she needs to do to be our Sagittarius representative is seek the truth. It doesn't matter that she never finds any.
Capricorn: Drew Gardner
Drew Gardner begins "Search Party" as an unpaid intern working in a fancy Manhattan office building. Throughout the show, he's essentially the only member of the core four characters who usually holds down some sort of conventional job. In order to qualify as a Capricorn, a person needs work ethic and reasonable life expectations. Thus, Drew's our best (and only) option for a Capricorn avatar.
The only snag in Drew's status as our Capricorn is the fact that it's hard to determine whether he's genuinely modest and practical, or just good at convincing other people he is. That's not to say he's either 100% authentic or 100% phony — it might be closer to a 60/40 situation. But the fact remains that his job at the beginning of "Search Party" is an unpaid internship. Who's covering his rent that whole time? The show never says, but we're guessing it's mom and pop Gardner. If that's true, the only difference between Drew and someone who moves to New York and pursues a purely creative endeavor — acting or music, let's say — on their parents' dime is the appearance of a responsible lifestyle.
But in the world of "Search Party," appearances are more important than substance. Even a pessimistic reading of Drew makes him look more sincere than, say, Elliott, a literally made-up person. He's our Capricorn, on a show almost entirely bereft of them.
Aquarius: Julian Marcus
The sources we consult about such matters describe Aquarians as socially conscious humanitarians and intellectual types. This gives them a greater-than-average chance of pursuing careers in journalism or politics, just as Julian Marcus (Brandon Micheal Hall) does before the unfortunate events of Season 2.
In his capacity as a journalist, Julian blows up Elliott's bogus cancer survival story. Unfortunately, doing the same thing to the official explanation of Chantal's disappearance backfires when the internet hivemind accuses him of harboring a misogynistic agenda. Then, he gets sexually harassed while working for the state senate campaign of Mary Ferguson (J. Smith-Cameron, practically playing a predatory alternate universe version of her character from "Succession"). Considering he's the only main cast member of Season 1 who's not remotely involved in any murders, Julian has a seriously rough time on "Search Party." Good thing he has his Aquarian ideals to guide him.
Pisces: April and June
Some experts describe Pisceans as prone to eclecticism and illusions. Fan-favorite April (Phoebe Tyers) might have an extremely cluttered apartment and be hyper-assertive in some of her day-to-day interactions, but if anything, she's the opposite of delusional. In fact, it's her clear understanding of reality that ultimately leads to her vanishing. Likewise, her twin sister June (Claire Tyers) accurately determines April's sad fate by reading her final journal entries. June's naturally jubilant disposition might indicate a shaky stability, but when the rubber hits the road, quite like her sister, she knows exactly what's up.
However, as June explains to reporters following her shocking courtroom revelation, April's journal is written in a language only her twin sister can read. June believes all twins have a secret language. It just so happens that one of the reporters on the scene is a twin herself: She proceeds to volunteer the information that this secret language business is not a real thing. It is ... an illusionary thing. How very Piscean.