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Iago and Othello have a deeply complex relationship. Iago both wants to be in Othello's good graces, to be his lieutenant, (albeit by any means necessary) and he also wants to see Othello ruined for the supposed crime of cucking him, of which Iago has no proof. This is best exemplified by one of their earliest interactions in the play, from Act 1, where Iago says that “Nay, but he prated

And spoke such scurvy and provoking terms

Against your honor

That, with the little godliness I have,

I did full hard forbear him. But I pray you, sir,

Are you fast married? Be assured of this:

That the Magnifico is much beloved

And hath in his effect a voice potential

As double as the Duke’s. He will divorce you,

Or put upon you what restraint and grievance

The law (with all his might to enforce it on)

Will give him cable.”
Iago feigns disgust at the words and actions of Brabantio, despite the fact that Iago is the one who has provoked and supported said words and actions. It is in this way that we see both his desire to outperform Othello, through his sucking up to him, and his desire to see Othello burn, through his provocation of Brabantio.

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Cassio, as played by a man far too young to be playing him

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Iago's relationship with Cassio is one of the most complex in the play. Iago acts as a friend and confidant to Cassio, while actively plotting his downfall in private. Their best conversation, I believe, is a short one; In Act 5, they state CASSIO: "My leg is cut in two.”

IAGO: “Marry, heaven forbid!

Light, gentlemen, I’ll bind it with my shirt.”
This interaction is key, especially with the knowledge that the injury Cassio has sustained was due to the attempted assassination planned by Iago. Even as Cassio bleeds, rather than reveal himself and risk losing face, Iago tends to his wounds. I believe that this is a key example of Iago's willingness to do anything to put himself in the best light. Iago manages to use his rhetoric to take a botched assassination and turn it into something that he could have used to become an influential figure within Cassio's entourage once the play ends (if Emelia hadn't figured it all out.)

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Roderigo, as depicted by a man far too old to be playing him

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Throughout Othello, Roderigo serves as an unaware patsy for Iago's purposes, whether that be as a moneybag or as a tool to use; Roderigo even dies by Iago's hands. Their relationship is best exemplified in the quote from act 2, “Do thou meet me presently at the harbor.—Come

hither. If thou be’st valiant, as they say base men

being in love have then a nobility in their natures

more than is native to them, list me. The lieutenant

tonight watches on the court of guard. First, I must

tell thee this: Desdemona is directly in love with him.”. In this quote, Iago directly lies to his supposed 'friend', purely for personal gain. He plays upon Roderigo's love for Desdemona, his youth and inexperience, and his willingness to believe Iago, who he trusts. Iago is careful to not let slip more than is needed, and sets up lines of thought so that no story is contradicting. He gives Roderigo the idea that he's letting him in on some sort of advice, but in reality he's setting the first step to Roderigo's doom.

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While Iago's interactions with Desdemona are limited, much can be gained by analyzing them. Iago's interaction with Desdemona in Act 2 where he states that "Come on, come on. You are pictures out of door, bells in your parlors, wild-cats in your kitchens, saints in your injuries, devils being offended, players in your housewifery, and housewives in your beds." shows Iago's true feelings regarding women in general (his wife also included). He makes the accusation with no evidence, no logical claim, no nothing. Iago feels that he does not need such things to make allegations. We as readers know that this indictment is how Iago truly feels as in this scene he has no reason to lie; his plans will not be impeded by this action. Iago is so rhetorically competent that he is able to gauge such things with ease.

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Pictured: Not the right Iago, but it caught your eye, eh?

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In Othello, Iago has a complete lack of character development throughout the play. From his aside in Act 1 where he states that "I hate the Moor, And it is thought abroad that ’twixt my sheets He’s done my office. I know not if ’t be true, But I, for mere suspicion in that kind, Will do as if for surety." (1.3) to when he kills his own wife, Emelia, in act 5, Iago shows a willingness to treat those around him as mere tools in order to get what he feels he needs, no matter how small the issue and no matter how high the cost. In this regard, he makes no development. Iago is such a master manipulator that those 'closest' to him, Othello and Cassio, both regularly and frequently refer to him as "Honest" Iago.