Loathesome!: Characters We Hate

[tennisgurl]

Very few characters can say that they, personally, sent a promising show down a spiral of doom that might never escape its tailspin of disaster, by their sheer lameness, lack of interesting personality, unintentional shadiness, and stupidity.

 

Katrina Crane from Sleepy Hallow can. 

[Wiendish Fitch]

So many loathsome characters on Boardwalk Empire, but the Commodore and Nucky Thompson top my list. The Commodore for being a pedophile and all-around monster, and Nucky for being a murderous, conniving, backstabbing, hypocritical, morally bankrupt piece of crap who enabled the Commodore in his disgusting appetites. I don't care how much Nucky loved his wife, I don't care how much he helps Margaret and her kids, when you hand over an innocent 12-year-old girl to a  pervert, irrevocably warping her psyche and destroying her life, you are no longer a "complex character", you are just filth.

[Amello]

For me Boardwalk Empire was an odd show in that I loved almost every character except for Nucky. The supporting characters on that show were immaculate.

[Chaos Theory]

I am trying to think is there a character I actively hate on a show I love? There really isn't. None that I can think of. Ezra Fitz is more a...I wish he was better written or actually "A". Fitz (side note maybe I hate the name Fitz) on Scandal is just boring and I wish he'd go away. I am really tired of all the quirky geniouses on my shows like Reid and Sheldon and I cannot watch Scorpion at all but that is a trope thing and not a character thing. And I never loved those shows anyway so I call it a wash.

All in all I don't really hate characters and don't really understand the urge to. I think it actually ruins the enjoyment of a show. Even bad characters and badly written ones are fun at times.

Edited February 3, 2015 by Chaos Theory

[Cobalt Stargazer]

I am really tired of all the quirky geniouses on my shows like Reid and Sheldon

 

*fake-shocked gasp*

 

Bite your tongue, Reid is nothing like Sheldon. Yes, Sheldon is very smart, and depending on the writing Reid can be socially clueless, but the similarities end there because Reid isn't a narcissistic douchenozzle.

[DiamondDoll]

I started catching up on L&O: SVU and discovered I really, really hate both Rollins and Amarro. Rollins is a obnoxious, selfish ass and Amarro just grates so hard in his Gary Stu-ness. The epic amount of suckage they are, I like Benson again as she's less grating in comparison. I miss Munch and Cragen, can they come back please?

[decembar13]

Rose from Dr Who, Dawn from Buffy, Fred from Angel, Marissa from The OC, Sky/Skye from S.H.I.E.L.D., the smart redhead from The Librarinas, Luke from Gilmore Girls, Chuck from Gossip Girl, and in the latest seasons Jack McCoy from Law&Order, the redhead jerk who was a priest (or he attacked a priest) from OZ, as well as Tim McManus from the same show... and that's just the tip of the iceberg.

 

Funny, but apart of Buffy, OZ and L&O, who I watched for the entire run, all the other shows I stopped watching (or skipped a lot of scenes), because of my dislike of the characters I've mentioned.

[amensisterfriend]

Luke from Gilmore Girls

 

Heh---I'm so glad I'm not alone! 

 

Fred from Angel,

 

I just can't with any character played by Amy Acker. 

[ChaseMCP]

Having watched a couple episodes of Law and Order: SVU recently, for me Olivia and Elliot belong here. Maybe not "hate" cause there are some episodes where they aren't too bad. But overall? Yup, can't stand them. Both have been unprofessional too many times to count and take it out on others when they're actually called out on it. The most annoying thing is they always excuse their actions with "we care about the victims!" and then they get mad at the ADAs who rightly tell them that acting like that will make it harder to prosecute the culprit. Just because some people know how to do their jobs professionally doesn't mean they don't care about the victims too, you two.

[ToxicUnicorn]

Reid isn't a narcissistic douchenozzle.

Where has this phrase been all my life?  I feel like running away with it for Valentine's Day.

[Actionmage]

Was that the guy who had his heart-to-be-transplanted eaten by a dog? In the hospital lobby? The clip of that made The Soup and that is how I know about that incident.

[lampshades]

Was that the guy who had his heart-to-be-transplanted eaten by a dog? In the hospital lobby? The clip of that made The Soup and that is how I know about that incident.

 

Peyton was a girl so that wasn't her.

[Cobalt Stargazer]

Was that the guy who had his heart-to-be-transplanted eaten by a dog? In the hospital lobby? The clip of that made The Soup and that is how I know about that incident.

 

Wait.....what?!?!?! I demand some sort of context at once!

[ToxicUnicorn]

Gosh, this topic is owned by Louis on Suits.  I so enjoyed disliking him, especially before they showed his vulnerable side.

[Actionmage]

Back when I watched The Soup regularly, one week there was a clip from One Tree Hill where a character who was waiting for a transplant heart was just outside the hospital. The heart was being rushed inside in an Igloo-style cooler. Contrivance happened, the heart skidded along the lobby floor on some ice and an otherwise happy dog  ended up gobbling it up!

 

Here's a clip:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WzPDEirVTZk

 

I think I was okay with the clip because a) it's inane and b) Dan was a bastard character and he had earned this kind of karma, iirc.

Edited February 22, 2015 by Actionmage

[Ubiquitous]

My first TV character hate was Roz on L.A. Law, the bitchy lawyer who slowly took over the lawfirm, only to get shafted at the end.

Edited February 26, 2015 by Ubiquitous

[GHScorpiosRule]

For me, there's only ever been one character I've loved to hate-because of how he would screw over people he'd worked with over the years, but then said screwing was done as payback. I hated when he would screw over his family, especially his baby brother, but that's where love to hate comes in: because he was so cunning, charming and so remorseless.

Yes, I'm speaking of the ORIGINAL Magnificent Bastard, J.R. Ewing, played by the very talented Larry Hagman. He played that role with such charm and relish and deviousness, I couldn't outright hate him, like I hated Lana Lang, Lois Lane (Smallville) and that Shebeast on General Hospital, played by Laura Wright.

Edited February 27, 2015 by GHScorpiosRule

[Haleth]

My first TV character hate was Roz on L.A. Law, the bitchy lawyer who slowly took over the lawfirm, only to get shafted at the end.

I see what you did there.

[Wiendish Fitch]

I loathe Doug Stamper on House of Cards. He's a vile, creepy, evil, disgusting monster. Frank and Claire Underwood are monsters, too, but at least they're interesting monsters. They have ambitions, personalities, motives, and charisma. I'm entertained by them even as I root against them. Doug is nothing but a despicable toady, a soulless, not even interesting henchman that the show had the audacity to try and build sympathy for in early Season 3 (what was that all about?!). I'm sure Frank and Claire will suffer their comeuppance in some form or another in the future, but I sure as hell hope that Doug suffers just as bad (if not worse).

Edited March 2, 2015 by Wiendish Fitch

[Chaos Theory]

I actually have a lot of sympathy for Doug. All his loyalty goes to two people who when it comes down to it, don't give two shits about him and would throw him to the wolves if it would suit their needs (and he would go willingly). Through the first episode and season as a whole we were shown he had other options including a loving britger willing and able to take care of him but instead he chose to exact revenge and follow his masters blindly. I find that kind of loyalty interesting. It goes into maybe love to hate....note Loathe for me.

Edited March 3, 2015 by Chaos Theory

[DearEvette]

I don't love to hate this character, but I dislike her so intensely after watching just three episodes of her show that I basically stopped because I had no desire to spend any more time in her tv presence.

 

Carter from Finding Carter.

 

My god what an asshole she was.  I truly would not have faulted her birth mother for sending her back to her kidnapper.  I get the sentiment that she was just a teenager who shockingly found out that she was kidnapped as a baby.  And so she has a hard time adapting back to her birth family.  But the smugness, and judgement and the cruelty in her was repulsive.  And the heavy handedness of the writing was a factor too.  There was no nuance in the writing at all.

[Bruinsfan]

From an outside perspective, I would expect someone who was raised from infancy by their kidnapper to regard that person as their "real" parent regardless of later revelations about legalities. It would suck for the birth parents, but you don't get do-overs on child rearing more than a decade later, and the kid would have no emotional connection to them at all.

[blueray]

I couldn't stand Lana. I really wish they killed her off early on, like at the end of season 5 or beginning of 6. I liked Lois as a character.

 

Rygel from Farscape: I couldn't stand him at first but he grew on me as the show went on.

[ParadoxLost]

The trouble with love to hate character is that the writers often react to the reaction by destroying what made the character 'love to hate'.  When that happens, sometimes the love survives and sometimes the hate but they generally can't coexist, which is too bad because the 'love to hate' character is usually the most deliciously snarky and fun to watch.

 

Three examples come to mind, Chuck Bass on Gossip Girl, Spike on BtVS, and Logan on Veronica Mars.  They started as mostly sociopaths.  They were the bad guys.  They ruined the good characters day.  Attempted rape, murder, exploitation etc., you name it and they tried it.  They were snarky and assholish; but they were entertaining and usually if you looked really hard you'd find a sliver of a redeeming quality that they never got credit for.  And then they got popular and they became your average leading man and you can either let go that karma never bit them in the ass or you can't, but they aren't the same love to hate character anymore.

[DearEvette]

From an outside perspective, I would expect someone who was raised from infancy by their kidnapper to regard that person as their "real" parent regardless of later revelations about legalities. It would suck for the birth parents, but you don't get do-overs on child rearing more than a decade later, and the kid would have no emotional connection to them at all.

 

Oh, I get all that.  I would have completely understood if that was all it was.  But, imo, it wasn't just her longing for her kidnap mother and feeling no connection to her birth family.  As a character she came off as needlessly cruel and judgmental to her birth mother from the jump.  She was barely even polite.  You don't have to love someone to have some compassion for their situation.  She never displayed even that.  Hence my comment about the lack of nuance in the writing. 

 

I can't help but draw a comparison to Callie on The Fosters.  The situation aren't exactly the same, but there are some similarities.  The writing for Callie allows for a lot more layers in her reaction to her birth father.

Edited March 18, 2015 by DearEvette

[memememe76]

I generally hate "love to hate" characters. Generally speaking, those characters aren't all that "hated" much, or we're supposed to enjoy them in some way even when they bad things. I would prefer that a character I hate is supposed to be hated. One "love to hate" character I truly hate is Sue on Glee. A character who is "hated" and entertainingly so was Dr. Romano on "ER", even though there were plenty of fans who thought it sooooo unfair that Elizabeth never ended up loving like he deserved it or something. 

 

All of these unpopular characters like Dawson or Lana or Laurel or that witch on Sleepy Hollow--I never quite get it. But generally "good" characters seem to get under a lot of people's skins. 

[ParadoxLost]

All of these unpopular characters like Dawson or Lana or Laurel or that witch on Sleepy Hollow--I never quite get it. But generally "good" characters seem to get under a lot of people's skins. 

 

I know why I do this.  I think I have a tendency to try to even the scales as a viewer.  I respond to the "good" characters doing mildly bad things, necessary fro drama and plot, while other characters continuing to look at them like they fart roses and poop sunshine with loathing.  But if a much worse character who does much worse things has a single redeeming attribute, well I have to love them because they get no credit from other characters and they deserve something for entertaining me.

 

So reasonable character reaction, reasonable viewer reaction.  Bizarre character reaction, opposite viewer reaction.

 

What I hate more than anything is the 'love to hate character' that gains popularity and then is redeemed by the writers in response; but only in that other characters act like they are now good even though they haven't changed any hateful behavior.  Like Regina on OUAT.

[Cobalt Stargazer]

I know why I do this.  I think I have a tendency to try to even the scales as a viewer.  I respond to the "good" characters doing mildly bad things, necessary fro drama and plot, while other characters continuing to look at them like they fart roses and poop sunshine with loathing.  But if a much worse character who does much worse things has a single redeeming attribute, well I have to love them because they get no credit from other characters and they deserve something for entertaining me.

 

See, I'm the opposite, because I hate the bad guy characters when they get criticized by someone who is less than morally perfect, because that usually results in the not-completely-scummy character being raked over the coals for being "self-righteous" or "hypocritical". Kill hundreds of people? Totally forgivable, even if you're not all that sorry. Occasionally lose your temper or raise your voice? How dare you pretend to be superior to the poor misunderstood murderer?

 

Edited to add: Also, it seems to be even worse if the bad or morally gray characters are hot. Because obviously washboard abs or whatever are so much more important than not having the morals of a hungry weasel.

Edited March 19, 2015 by Cobalt Stargazer

[tennisgurl]

So,  have been meaning to post this for awhile, but now seems like the perfect time to declare my undying hatred for Sammi on Shameless. She was an alright supporting character last season, but this year, the writers have made the bizare choice to make her a series regular, and give her and her gross, daddy issues WAY may screen time than the other, better characters that have been here since season one. Shes nasty, immature, a terrible parents, annoying, and basically seems to exist to waste our time, and give the audience someone to hate besides Frank (who most of her scenes are with, and since he is the OTHER worst character on the show, that does not help her at all). I literally cannot fathom why she is even still here, to be honest. She adds nothing to the show, and is basically just the worst. 

 

But last night, she crossed the line into full on evil, hateful excuse for a human being. She is a mean, petty, nasty character, and I seriously hope that, after she completely crossed the line last night, that she will be off my TV soon. 

[Vixenstud]

So MeTV added One Day at a Time to its schedule, YAY!

 

When I watched the first run eppies during the 70's, I had no problem with the Julie Cooper character but now?  OMFG!  I am watching the first season and can't believe how much of a selfish drama queen she is.  EVERYTHING was THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IN HER LIFE! and god forbid if Ann didn't jump to what she wanted.  The way she spoke to her mother made my blood go up and makes me glad I don't have kids, 'cause if any of them had spoken to me like she does to Ann I'd be in fucking jail.

Edited April 10, 2015 by Vixenstud

[MaryPatShelby]

I hated Schneider; couldn't stand any scene he was in.  And I'm fairly certain that if Direct TV ever offered MeTV, and I could thus watch One Day at a Time, I would still hate Schneider.

[amensisterfriend]

I've grown to hate Gilmore Girls' Luke Danes, in part as a childish response to the (IMO, obviously!) excessive adoration he gets from most fans, who act like he's some sort of flawless romantic ideal instead of the alarmingly angry, bitter, boring, enthusiasm-squashing, evasive (you'd think someone so proudly rude would at least communicate honestly and directly!), depressing and borderline dishonest boor that he is.  I grew to dislike his joyless, chemistry-deficient romance with Lorelai so much that I now can't even enjoy him in the earlier episodes where he's just a friend. And I'm also pretty much the only Gilmore Girls fan on the planet who finds him really unattractive. *exhale* This was very cathartic :) 

[cpcathy]

I think I hated everyone on that show except for Barbara and Mark. OK, maybe just Mark.

[Danny Franks]

Laurel Lance, Agent Coulson and Katrina Crane all played major parts in completely ruining television shows for me, so they're high on my list.

 

Agent Shaw came so very close to ruining Chuck, but fortunately the writers saw sense (probably assisted by precarious ratings), and pulled back from the brink before the storyline got too unbearable.

 

I hated Elizabeth Corday, the shrieking harpy of E.R, so much more than I disliked self-righteous Carol, brooding, depressing Doug or wet lettuce Mark. 

 

Also, there's been plenty of talk about Phoebe on Friends being unlikable, and I don't disagree. Her 'oh, I'm so dippy, aren't I great?' schtick got very tired. But for me, the worst one was Monica. Selfish, neurotic, shrill, strident Monica. Ugh, from about season 5 onwards, I just could not stand her at all. By the end of that show, the only characters I still liked were Joey and Rachel.

[ABay]

Gordon on Halt and Catch Fire. Whoever called Diane on Mad Men the Human Eeyore--this is the male version.

[Spartan Girl]

Second everyone that hates Robin on How I Met Your Mother, especially in the last season.  I think almost all the characters degenerated over the years, but I really hate how the writers turned Robin from an independent woman to a one-dimensional emotionally challenged character that only wants what she can't have.  One of the many, many, many, many reasons why they loathed the finale is how they had Robin wind up with Ted even after she never really said she loved him romantically, she just kept calling him "the guy that she should have picked" .  Yeah, that's true love all right -- NOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I can't believe I might the first one that actually brought this character to the forums, considering how much she was loathed on TWOP: Carrie Bradshaw on Sex and the City.  Couldn't there be a more obnoxious, shallow, neurotic whiny female character on the history of TV?

[Spartan Girl]

There are a lot of characters on TV that got killed off last year, but there are plenty of characters that irk or bore us that never seem to die. So I thought I'd start a little wish list for all the TV characters that we'd like to see die, either because we hate them or because it would make the show more interesting.

I'm pretty sure almost all of us will list Fitz on Scandal. If Shonda can kill off McDreamy and the nasty husband on How To Get Away With Murder, then she can rid us of President Douchebag. Plus without him, Olivia might go back to the smart, independent woman she SHOULD be.

Also Grant Ward on Agents of SHIELD. Sure he's more interesting as a villain, but it's ridiculous that he's become the foe that just won't die. It's getting old really fast.

Edited September 12, 2015 by Spartan Girl

[Demented Daisy]

Crowley on Supernatural.  I know he's a fan favorite and TPTB seem to love him, but from a story standpoint, the Winchesters should have killed him a long time ago.  He has done some truly horrible, evil things.  And they continue to look the other way.  Not good for the supposed "good guys".

[Chaos Theory]

This is quickly going to turn into "Characters I hate" so I am going to bring up a character I don't just for balance: Leroy Gethro Gibbs On NCIS. I know the show will never ever ever go there considering about 85% of the people who watch the show watch it for him but it would shake the show up and ironically give it new life and force at least two characters (Toby and Abby) to grow up.

Edited September 8, 2015 by Chaos Theory

[joelene]

Alison, Toby and Ezra on Pretty Little Liars.

[spaceytraci1208]

If we can talk about shows no longer on the air, my vote goes to corrections officer Claire Howell on Oz. She was a despicable bitch, and her death would have been way satisfying

[Sheenieb]

 

I'm pretty sure almost all of us will list Fitz on Scandal. If Shonda can kill off McDreamy and the nasty husband on How To Get Away With Murder, then she can rid us of Oresident Douchebag. Plus without him, Olivia might go back to the smart, independent woman she SHOULD be.

Fitz gets on my nerves, but, he can stay for now.  He can't go before Huck does. I'm over Huck and the entirety of B613.

[Gudzilla]

Even though they've provided me with many laughs, Junior and Sam on Under the Dome. 

[Ohwell]

Carol from The Walking Dead  - hate

 

Darryl and Maggie from The Walking Dead - I think it would make the show more interesting with Darryl gone because then Rick would need a new best bud.  With Maggie gone, Glenn could get with Rosita.

 

Huck and Quinn from Scandal - hate

 

The Swede from Hell on Wheels - hate

Edited September 8, 2015 by Ohwell

[Spartan Girl]

Co-sign me to Team Kill Huck, not because I hate him, but because I honestly don't know what the writers can do to salvage him at this point. He's devolved into a full-blown psychopath that has killed innocent people not just to save his own ass, but because he actually admits that he loves killing. As someone else on the Scandal forum said, it's time for Old Yeller to be put out of his misery.

Edited September 8, 2015 by Spartan Girl

[Jack Shaftoe]

Bellamy from The 100. I have only watched up to episode 1.07 but I have already wanted to punch that guy in the face so many times that I have lost count. And I am positive he is going to survive to the very end like the cockroach that he is.

 

Helena from Orphan Black. Another cuddly psychopath that needs to go.

 

Alison and Mona should have stayed dead on Pretty Little Liars.

[blueray]

 

Also Grant Ward on Agents of SHIELD. Sure he's more interesting as a villain, but it's ridiculous that he's become the foe that just won't die. It's getting old really fast.

I agree, while I'm liking him as a villain I feel like this should be his last season. He should get a good death scene though.

[BellaLugosi]

Daryl on The Walking Dead.

[paulvdb]

Crash on Finding Carter, Matty on Awkward, Malcolm Merlin on Arrow, Enzo on The Vampire Diaries, Fitz on Pretty Little Liars.

[Brooklynista]

I can do without Madison on Fear the Walking Dead. She's just so UGH in only 2 episodes.

But I'm sure in true tradition, dozens will be eaten in sacrifice for her.