Fav TV Characters

I have my chips and dip ready for the Banjo Bowl. So far, as long as Montreal continues to kill TO, I'm 3 for 3 in the CFL pool I'm in for this week. WPG and Sask should be good. Hopefully. If Winnipeg shows up it'll be good.

Onto my title subject... my fav TV characters. I figured I'd look at what stood out to me and try and see if I could piece together what makes a good character.

So...

1. Chandler Bing - Friends

Why do I like him? Well, he's a bit weird but pretty cute. He's a little clueless with the ladies and dates chicks like Janice but ends up with Monica. He's smart. Basically, I think Chandler is the guy that every reasonably smart girl wishes she could find. Not dumb... not a womanizer... a bit of a 'fixer-up-er'... and reasonably good looking.

2. James Wilson - House, MD

Why do I like him? He's smart but also a little stupid. I mean, he continues to let House destroy his life. This also shows how dedicated he is despite how many times he's been divorced. I'm pretty sure we're going to see Wilson get a backbone this season, though, after the whole 'Amber' thing. He's a nice guy. Tragically flawed, though.

3. Sam Carter - Stargate: SG1/Stargate: Atlantis

Why I like her? Sam is a great leader, a strong personality, a great character. She's also a girl through and through. She has problems with boys. She cries sometimes while still being strong. There's a great scene in the locker room with her and Teal'c -- when both Jack and Daniel are 'missing' -- where she breaks down. It doesn't take away from how strong she is... it just shows how caring she is. She pines over a guy for ten years. Ten years, people! So many writers (both male and female) struggle with writing female characters with any sort of depth acurately. You'll find that the 'shallow' characters all seem fine... the attorneys on procedurals, etc... but there's no real depth. Sam has depth. She's actually a developed character. She's realisitic (as much as she can be on Stargate!) and she's will written. That is so rare.

4. Leroy Jethro Gibbs - NCIS

Why I like him? Gibbs is like an onion... the writers are constantly peeling back layers. He seems to be 'all business' and kind of detached, but we quickly realize how dedicated he is to his team. His back story is very strong and it's still not completely told. The onion! I'm telling you! What he's managed to come through in his life is amazing but you still get the feeling that there's even more that you don't know about. I love Mark Harmon and I think he does a great job with the character.

5. Anthony Dinozo - NCIS

Why I like him? Tony is a bit nuts. He's always smiling and teasing, but when it comes down to it, he's a great agent. He might step a toe over the line a couple times, but he seems to know where to stop. Also, after seeing him serial date for a few seasons, it was nice to see him completely fall for Jean. Even though Tony is strong, you get a bit of a feeling of vulnerability from him... a need to be liked and loved. I've always wondered what made Jenny trust Tony oh-so-much, but I don't think we'll ever find out what it was now that Jenny is dead. I love NCIS. It's so well told. So well put together. Every time they start twisting a story, they give you enough info to placate you and then you realize that they've also opened up so many more questions. In my opinion, all aspiring writers should make a habit of watching NCIS. They know how to tell a story.

6. Elliot Stabler - Law and Order: SVU

Why do I like him? I like Elliot for the same reasons as I like Gibbs. But you also get a feeling of something being just a little 'off' with Elliot. That he could just snap. I haven't watched much of SVU in the last couple years, but Elliot is still up there on my list. Love him. Wish they would do a bit more character development with him, but it's a procedural... you take what you can get!

7. Huff - Huff

Why I like him? I love Huff... both the show and the character. If you've never seen Huff, the first season is worth picking up on DVD. It's one of the most screwed up shows you'll ever see, but it's like a train wreck. You can't stop watching. Huff is a psychiatrist and despite all of his knowledge, he finds himself slipping. He wants so much for things to work. He'll do anything to try and keep things together. But things start to get to be too much and he starts to crumble. His brother is sick. His mom is fucking his best friend. His best friend is a drug addict. His wife is leaving him. His son is up to questionable behaviour. I never did see the 2nd season and it isn't on DVD, but the first season is insane. Love Huff.

8. Fox Mulder - X-Files

Why I love him? Because his story is so sad. Because he's so dedicated and brave. He doesn't care what other people think about his views and that's very noble. Also, there also seems to be something 'off'. Like he could lock himself up in a house with posters all over, sporting a huge beard, scaring the hell out of Scully. Oh, wait, that happened!

Okay... so what do we see here? Most of the characters on my list are tragically flawed with a good heart. Well, all of them I guess. They're all 'fixer-up-ers'. They're also all frairly deep with an intricate backstory. They're also mostly male. Writing female characters is a a whole 'nother blog post, though.

I'm not sure if other people's lists would be the same, but I think that most people would list similar characters. We don't mind our characters being a little screwed up, but we want them to be good at the core. We want them to be realisic and yet still brave. I'm sure there's a whole lot more I could deduce from the above list, but to tell you the truth, this post is getting a little long... I'll leave further deduction up to you. It isn't rocket science.