Henry is a Korean American spy working for a private intelligence firm in New York City. He specializes in investigating immigrant communities and political groups, using his bilingual abilities and cultural adaptability to craft convincing false identities. Emotionally guarded and professionally compromised, he deals with the recent separation from his wife and the grief of losing his young son.

Lelia is a white American speech therapist who works with immigrant children learning English. She is expressive, direct, and increasingly frustrated by her husband's emotional distance and secretive nature. Her grief over the death of her biracial son deeply strains her marriage, prompting her to separate from Henry and reevaluate their relationship.

John is a charismatic and highly popular city councilman in Queens. He holds immense sway over various immigrant communities and is viewed as a strong potential candidate for mayor. Behind his inspiring public persona, he operates complex financial and political networks to maintain his influence in a racially divided city.

Jack is an older, experienced Greek spy and colleague of Henry's who mostly works from the office. He acts as a cynical but caring mentor to Henry, encouraging him to finish his assignments efficiently and salvage his personal life. Jack carries his own grief from the loss of his wife, Sophie.

Mitt is Henry and Lelia's biracial son who died in a tragic childhood accident at age seven. He represents the union of his parents' different worlds. His sudden death leaves a lasting, unresolved trauma that fractures their marriage.

Mr. Park is Henry's late father, a Korean immigrant who abandoned an engineering degree to work as a grocer in America. Strict, traditional, and emotionally reserved, he achieved financial success through relentless hard work, passing his stoic and pragmatic worldview down to his son.

Mrs. Park is Henry's late mother, remembered as frail and frequently in ill health during Henry's early childhood. Her early death left a young Henry to be raised by his strict father and a silent live-in housekeeper.

Dennis is the founder and boss of the private intelligence firm where Henry works. He specifically recruits immigrants and non-white minorities to exploit their cultural access, treating espionage as a ruthless, profit-driven enterprise.

Sherrie is John Kwang’s public relations and media director. Intimidating and highly protective of Kwang's public image, she orchestrates the councilman's schedule and carefully manages his political optics.

Janice is a dedicated political operative and protégé of Sherrie Chin-Watt. She is highly attuned to Kwang's charisma and frequently attempts to analyze Korean culture through her interactions with Henry.

Eduardo is a favored, young volunteer in John Kwang's political office. He serves as a trusted confidant to Kwang, handling sensitive and specialized projects behind the scenes.

Pete is a highly skilled spy at Dennis Hoagland's firm who helped train Henry. He is known for his brilliant and methodical ability to socially engineer and deconstruct the targets he investigates.

Emile is a Filipino psychoanalyst and alleged Marcos sympathizer. Henry posed as a patient to gather intelligence on him but compromised the mission by forming a genuine emotional attachment during their therapy sessions.

De Roos is the incumbent mayor of New York City. He views John Kwang as a significant political threat and leverages xenophobic rhetoric to question Kwang's ethics and distract from his own public controversies.

The housekeeper is an unnamed Korean woman who essentially raises Henry following his mother's death. She maintains a strict, silent boundary with the family, focusing solely on her domestic duties.

May is John Kwang's wife of fifteen years. Active in their church and the local Korean community, she supports her husband's intense political ambitions despite the heavy toll it takes on their private lives.

Peter is John Kwang's son. He represents the next generation of Korean Americans growing up in the shadow of intense public ambition, showing Henry a different path to assimilation.