Danny: Look, he admitted it was his fault. He assumed responsibility. It'll be all the worse for him.
Ernest: [coldly] It's all the better for that.
(you'd just love to know the source, huh?)
Ernest is hypercritical of everything and anything that meets his eye. He
complains about the weather, the color of the walls, the temperature of
his coffee. He scolds Box for not being cheerful enough (WTF??!); he chastises Danny for being too intelligent; he grumbles at Dolly for being too polite. Jody is dubbed "you impertinent young minx." Mike gets called anything from "lazy jackass" to "you f—ing bastard" to all manner of unprintable material.
It's not that Ernest doesn't like the others. In fact, he admires many of them, and he especially loves Ruby's
beautiful ability to listen to anything he says. No one knows quite
what Ernest is trying to say, but they all put up with his grumbling,
more or less. Angelo tends to cut him off with something sharp and witty; Louie talks over him; Rags falls asleep.
Ernest might be gruff and ornery with everyone else, but he's terribly fond of Eric. He pampers the little chap like a firstborn son, taking him on missions often and chuntering to him in Gaelic. Eric seems to be terribly fond of Ernest as well, actively seeking him out and spending lots of time with him. They are the cutest, most improbable pair in existence.