Mickey is a complex character, rapidly displaying many different facets to his personality throughout the 6 seasons of his appearance. He is violent, but never without reason, even if those justifications range from acceptable to tenuous. He generally seems to have physical violence. He is seemingly self-serving. He at first refuses to engage in anything deeper than a friend with benefits with Ian, but displays surprising tenderness for the boy.
He's dropped out of high school, and has admitted himself to be "fucked for life". Despite him announcing to everybody at the end of season 4: "I'm fucking gay, big ol' mo", he has multiple heterosexual encounters throughout the series, even post-coming out.
This shows his insecurities about his sexuality and the macho image he puts on to hide it. His behavior is equally erratic. He is fairly self-aware. However, he displays a severe inability to express himself.
His contradictions can be attributed to his upbringing: Mickey has been raised with the expectations of the violent nature of the Milkovich family.
He truly cares for his family, being close with his sister Mandy Milkovich and jumping to her defense, when she's threatened. After his relationship with Ian was revealed to her, they seemed closer in regards to him.
