Multilayered characters in TV

[EmilyMiller]

I’m nominating one.

The wonderful Annie Murphy (who I unforgivably called Murray in another thread ) playing Alexis Rose in Schitt’s Creek.

On the surface, an airhead rich girl, lost in her own world, with not a thought for, let alone understanding of, others. Someone who views intellect as a dangerous obstacle to having fun. A girl who is unaware of how other people live, and has zero interest in finding out. She comes equipped with a filter that lets her hear only what she wants to hear. At times her ignorance verges on cruelty.

But…

Even from the beginning of episode one, something else. Vulnerability. Self-doubt. Tics, like constantly playing with her hair. An ability to see the best in people and situations. An openness to the new. And, sweetness and kindness that comes bursting through ever more frequently. Combined with growing self-awareness and and understanding of her impact (good and bad) on others. Even intellectual curiosity becomes her wheelhouse in time.

And eventually, a strong, sensitive, self-effacing, yet much more confident woman, who thinks about others and acts on these thoughts.

All handled with consummate precision and economy of gesture by a fine actress.

And she is fucking hilarious with it.

I’m an Alexis fan.

Em

 

[Djmac1031]

Okay I'll chime in.

The Doctor. From the show Doctor Who, of course.

While there have been many great actors playing the role, with various takes, I'll specifically address the David Tennant Era.

His version of The Doctor embodied a brilliant mix of childlike wonder, whimsy and humor, sadness and pathos, and a dark, brooding, seething rage just beneath the surface that occasionally let itself loose on his enemies.

Sometimes, all this in a single episode.

Even in the goofiest, campiest episodes, DT always brought his A Game and allowed viewers to suspend disbelief at the ridiculous "science" because we loved the character so much we could look beyond the impossibleness of it all.

 

[djrip]

I feel like I need to watch Schitt's Creek.


I'd nominate Marceline the Vampire Queen, from Adventure Time.

She starts out as a vampiric antagonist, and from there grows into a friend, musician, someone with past history with princess bubblegum, someone who was a (half) human child thousands of years ago with a deeply emotional child-parent-like relationship with Ice King before he became Ice King, and watched her adult protector lose his marbles and forget about her. She has the best songs in the show, emotional and deep and philosophical, about friendship and communication and family, and of course fries.

 

[AchtungNight]

Joey from Dawson’s Creek

Zoe from Cybill. Wendy Crowe from Justified.

Angie Polanski from Will Trent. Julia from Parenthood.

Jessie from Once & Again. Dolores from Westworld.

Felicity from… the show of the same name.

Faith from Buffy and Angel. Echo from Dollhouse.

For a male character, Owen from Gargoyles.

There are others but as usual I’m concentrating on people I know from my fanfics. You need proof of my choices, go watch the shows.

 

[EmilyMiller]

Faith from Buffy and Angel. Echo from Dollhouse.

You missed out Sissy from JASBSB and Tru Davies from Tru Calling.

 

[SimonDoom]

Two in particular come to mind.

Tony Soprano from The Sopranos. One of the most interesting and fully drawn and layered characters in TV history. Family man, vicious mob boss, vulnerable therapy patient.

My favorite probably is Walter White from Breaking Bad. The closest thing I can think of to a Shakespearean tragic hero in a TV series. Evolves from a mild-mannered chemistry teacher into a murderous drug kingpin, who enjoys it.

 

[AchtungNight]

You missed out Sissy from JASBSB and Tru Davies from Tru Calling.

Sissy’s from a movie. You said TV. Thx for reminding me about Tru.

For some characters I haven’t portrayed directly in fanfic- Shawn, Gus, Juliet, and Lassie from Psych.

 

[EmilyMiller]

Sissy’s from a movie. You said TV. Thx for reminding me about Tru.

Just joking, hun .

Em

 

[Treeview]

Jim Ignatowski from TAXI​

 

[Two21B]

Omar Little from "The Wire." A brilliant tactician willing to fall back on brutality. A criminal with a deep sense of honor.

 

[SimonDoom]

Three of the female lead characters in Sex and the City, Samantha, Miranda, and Charlotte, were multi-layered characters whose romantic arcs over the course of the show ran counter to the way their personality types initially were introduced. I would exclude the character of Carrie, who, though nominally the lead character in the group and the narrator, was much less interesting.

 

[StillStunned]

Emperor Peter, as portrayed by Nicholas Hoult in The Great.

 

[Bramblethorn]

Gene Hunt, from Life on Mars/Ashes to Ashes. Not even the protagonist, but he was the soul of that story.

 

[alohadave]

I’m nominating one.

The wonderful Annie Murphy (who I unforgivably called Murray in another thread ) playing Alexis Rose in Schitt’s Creek.

On the surface, an airhead rich girl, lost in her own world, with not a thought for, let alone understanding of, others. Someone who views intellect as a dangerous obstacle to having fun. A girl who is unaware of how other people live, and has zero interest in finding out. She comes equipped with a filter that lets her hear only what she wants to hear. At times her ignorance verges on cruelty.

But…

Even from the beginning of episode one, something else. Vulnerability. Self-doubt. Tics, like constantly playing with her hair. An ability to see the best in people and situations. An openness to the new. And, sweetness and kindness that comes bursting through ever more frequently. Combined with growing self-awareness and and understanding of her impact (good and bad) on others. Even intellectual curiosity becomes her wheelhouse in time.

And eventually, a strong, sensitive, self-effacing, yet much more confident woman, who thinks about others and acts on these thoughts.

All handled with consummate precision and economy of gesture by a fine actress.

And she is fucking hilarious with it.

I’m an Alexis fan.

Em

Have you seen Kevin Can F**k Himself? She was great in that too.

 

[EmilyMiller]

Have you seen Kevin Can F**k Himself? She was great in that too.

No. Was thinking of watching it.

Em

 

[stonedinstilletos]

Raylan Givens from Justified
Root from Person of Interest

 

[Rustyoznail]

Oh. I was thinking of this sort of multilayered characters (from Sense8)

 

[Ian_Snow]

Can I just nominate all the characters from Six Feet Under?

 

[onehitwanda]

Susan Ivanova from Babylon 5.

Incredibly tragic personal life that she hides under intense duty and loyalty to her friends - coupled with panache, sass, and a private girl's school worth of attitude.

 

[StillStunned]

Raylan Givens from Justified

I'd say that Boyd Crowder was much more multilayered than Raylan. That's not to say Raylan wasn't the coolest of the cool. "Wonderful things happen when you sow the seeds of distrust in a garden of assholes."

 

[AchtungNight]

Three of the female lead characters in Sex and the City, Samantha, Miranda, and Charlotte, were multi-layered characters whose romantic arcs over the course of the show ran counter to the way their personality types initially were introduced. I would exclude the character of Carrie, who, though nominally the lead character in the group and the narrator, was much less interesting.

I disagree. I would agree if you were talking about Mr. Big. He was… bland.

Let me add two characters named Isobel. From Roswell and General Hospital.

And President McKenzie Allen from Commander in Chief.

Also Mary Alice Edwards… heck, the entire cast of ABC’s one season masterpiece Six Degrees.

 

[SimonDoom]

I disagree. I would agree if you were talking about Mr. Big. He was… bland.

I disliked Big so much that my dislike bled into my attitude toward her character for liking him. I thought Carrie was clever but always shallow, from start to finish, and she was shallow in ending up with him. There was no growth or development in her case. But different opinions are what make these discussions interesting.

 

[AchtungNight]

Well, Carrie can always end up with someone else, Just Like That. [snaps his fingers] A Friend of mine just shipped her with Ferris Bueller.

 

[onehitwanda]

A Friend of mine just shipped her with Ferris Bueller.

 

[AwkwardlySet]

Wilson from House M.D.