No matter the genre of a television show, from drama, to horror, to sitcoms, strong and well-written characters are what carry a television series. Whether it be shows with low-key storylines where the characters go to work and spend time with their friends, or more intense ones where the characters are risking their lives and trying to survive, nuanced and complex characters can make a series go a long way.
In an intense and dangerous drama series, the characters need to be ones that viewers can root for, and that would make the viewers sad if something happened to them. In a sitcom, these characters need to be entertaining and funny enough that they are interesting to watch in even the most mundane situations. Sometimes, a show will hit gold with a character, but not know what to do with them, and never utilize them to their full potential. These are the 10 most wasted sitcom characters, ranked.
10
Derrick
‘Happy Endings’
Among its six main characters, Happy Endings had enough hilarious and unique personalities to keep the show funny and entertaining all on its own, but its side characters were always a lot of fun as well. The most entertaining of this show’s recurring characters was Derrick (Stephen Guarino), who was first introduced when Penny voiced her feelings of being unsatisfied with Max as her “gay best friend.”
Derrick became the show’s funniest side character, for his strong personality, love of being messy, and penchant for singing, “Drama!” What started out as a satire of outdated tropes became a wonderful character on his own. Happy Endings brought Derrick back a few times after that, for some of the show’s best episodes, like to get married, and to participate in Penny’s play. That being said, as Derrick was the only person who fit in naturally with the central friend group, the show could have brought him back even more and done much more with him.
9
Kathy
‘Friends’
Monica (Courteney Cox) and Chandler’s (Matthew Perry) was one of the best parts of Friends. Their romance was very unexpected, and yet it also made a lot of sense, and they were really great for each other. Before that, though, Monica’s best romance was with Richard (Tom Selleck), and Chandler’s was with Kathy (Paget Brewster). While Chandler and Monica still should have ended up together, Friends should have done more with Kathy before then.
Kathy was Chandler’s most important relationship before Monica, and not just for the rift that it caused with Joey (Matt LeBlanc). It helped him grow as a character, both through the pining stage, and in the actual relationship. Kathy was a really compelling and fun character, so it was disappointing to see the show write her off in the way that it did, by having her cheat on Chandler and then basically just forgetting about her.
8
Gwenny Thompson
‘Alexa & Katie’
At the start of Alexa & Katie, Gwenny Thompson (Kerri Medders) was introduced as Alexa’s (Paris Berelc) archnemesis and rival on the basketball team. Gwenny was a hilarious side character who often stole the show, due to her mean comments, disdain for everyone around her, and ability to switch from the nastiest facial expressions and words to a sickeningly fake sweetness all in one swoop.
Gwenny became even funnier and more annoying to Alexa after she started dating Alexa’s brother, Lucas (Emery Kelly), although that didn’t last as long as it could have. In the later seasons, Gwenny took more of a backseat, and she was kinder and less herself. It was nice to see Gwenny become more of a frenemy to Alexa and Katie (Isabel May), but the show could have done even more with her character, particularly towards the end.
7
Ernie “Coach” Tagliaboo
‘New Girl’
After appearing in the pilot episode of New Girl, Coach (Damon Wayans Jr.) then disappeared for two seasons, as Wayans Jr. was on Happy Endings. The series brought him back halfway through Season 3, and it was fun to see him move back into the loft, and to gradually come into his own as a character. Coach had some serious funny moments, like his freak-out during the teachers’ conference, and his random choice of the name “Gladys” while throwing rocks in the pond to make wishes.
Ultimately, though, Coach was never fully utilized as a character in the way that Nick (Jake Johnson), Schmidt (Max Greenfield), and Winston (Lamorne Morris) were. There was a lot more that the series could have done with him, even with his Season 4 finale exit, but Coach never really got to his full potential as a funny and weird member of the loft.
New Girl
- Release Date
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September 20, 2011
6
Paxton Hall-Yoshida
‘Never Have I Ever’
At the center of Never Have I Ever was the love triangle between Devi (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan), Paxton (Darren Barnet), and Ben (Jaren Lewison). This love triangle had the potential to play out over all four seasons, but the show rushed it too quickly by having Devi and Paxton break up for good only three episodes into their official relationship. Never Have I Ever could have done more with Paxton after that, but it didn’t.
Unfortunately, Never Have I Ever wasted Paxton’s character after the breakup. The show didn’t know what to do with him, and it missed out on both his comedic potential, and the possibility to involve him in more of the other characters’ storylines. Worst of all, Paxton’s Season 4 storyline was a true disaster, as he wound up teaching at Sherman Oaks only a few months after starting college, and only found his way again in the series finale.
5
Dr. Sharon Fieldstone
‘Ted Lasso’
While the first season of Ted Lasso was funny and touching, there was always a bit of a gap in the show with regard to the overt emphasis on positivity at all times. The introduction of Dr. Sharon Fieldstone (Sarah Niles) in Season 2 was exactly what the show needed. She was able to help the members of the team in a way that Ted (Jason Sudeikis) couldn’t, and she pushed Ted to push past his discomfort by going deeper in relation to his own past.
After Dr. Fieldstone helped Ted to dig into his past and work through his grief and complicated feelings toward his father, she left the team and was barely in the show after that. Ted Lasso should have kept her as a main or even recurring character for Season 3, but the show didn’t utilize her character nearly enough. She was really just there to help out with Ted’s Season 2 arc, and then she disappeared.
4
The Guide
‘What We Do in the Shadows’
The main cast of characters of What We Do in the Shadows was always been well-established, with decades of knowing each other and living together behind them even by the start of the series. In Season 3, The Guide (Kristen Schaal) joined the main cast of characters after the vampires were made the Vampiric Council. In spite of the existing group dynamics, The Guide fit very well into the show, even when she was excluded from the group.
The Guide is such a funny and unique character, from her very particular voice, to her devotion to her job, to the major scheme she plans and executes in Season 4. She had a lot of potential as a character, and could have become an even larger part of the show, but she was sidelined and reduced to being an object of the male characters’ desires in Season 6, then given random bigoted opinions in the series finale. It was a disappointment to see the show waste such an interesting and funny character.
3
Luna Castillo
‘Unstable’
Luna Castillo (Rachel Marsh) was first introduced in the pilot episode of Unstable as one of the scientists working for Ellis (Rob Lowe). She was a major part of Season 1, through her close friendship with Ruby (Emma Pilar Ferreira) and her budding romance with Jackson (John Owen Lowe). She was a really compelling character, and her story arc showed her learning to let go of her plans and take risks.
It was a shame to see Luna pushed aside for other storylines, as she was previously such a well-written and sympathetic character.
In Season 2, though, Luna was completely sidelined and wasted as a character. The show pushed her aside to focus on Jackson’s new romance with Georgia (Iris Apatow), and her only real storyline reduced her to being angry, petty, and hurtful over Ruby’s promotion and Jackson’s new relationship. It was a shame to see Luna pushed aside for other storylines, as she was previously such a well-written and sympathetic character.
2
Britta Perry
Ask any Community fan about Britta Perry’s (Gillian Jacobs) story arc, and risk getting an earful about how the show quite literally “Britta’d” Britta. Britta started out as the voice of reason to the group’s wild antics, who was also desperate to prove herself as a moral person, often very overt in sharing her opinions, and insecure about her inability to be as fun and casual as the rest of the members of her study group.
In Season 2, though, Britta’s character drastically changed, as the show didn’t seem to know what to do with her when she was no longer a love interest for Jeff (Joel McHale). The show majorly flanderized her, reducing her passionate opinions to a joke every time, and making her seem much less intelligent than the rest of the group. This only got worse in the later seasons, as every single thing that Britta did was played off as a joke, and she didn’t get the same development or care as the other characters. Hopefully, this will be fixed in the upcoming movie.
1
Tracy McConnell
‘How I Met Your Mother’
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There is no sitcom character that was more wasted than How I Met Your Mother‘s Tracy McConnell (Cristin Milioti), who was built up for the entire series, then discarded and killed off in the series finale like she meant nothing. After the series spent eight seasons mentioning and working its way up to introducing this character, it seemed impossible that the unnamed mother would be able to live up to this, but somehow, she was even better than could have been predicted.
Tracy was absolutely perfect for Ted (Josh Radnor), and their first meeting was easily one of the best and most romantic scenes of the series. More than that, though, she really felt like a fully-fledged character, rather than just an idealized love interest. It was such a crushing disappointment after that to see How I Met Your Mother waste this phenomenal character by killing her off and putting Ted back with Robin (Cobie Smulders).
