Loathesome!: Characters We Hate

[bluegirl147]

19 hours ago, Katy M said:

Mary from Young Sheldon.

I liked Mary on BBT but do not like her on Young Sheldon.    I don't know if it's the way Zoe Perry plays or what but I just don't like her.  Laurie Metcalf (who is Zoe's mother) played her as much more likable on BBT.

13 hours ago, Katy M said:

Paris was much better in the later seasons. 

When I first watched GG I hated Paris but like you said she was better in later seasons so when I did a rewatch a few years ago Paris didn't bother me in the early seasons because I knew she got better.  

 

[Spartan Girl]

I’ve come to hate Fred on Angel. Not because she was dorky and annoying, but because she was so fickle. It was barely one hour after she and Gunn broke up that she started making out with Wesley, but once she found out he’d been sleeping with Lilah, she immediately backed off and tried to get back with Gunn, regardless of the way she’d up til then been lusting after Wesley behind his back. Gunn deserved better than the way she treated him, and thank goodness he had enough pride to reject her advances.

[Cloud9Shopper]

Haven’t seen all of Gilmore Girls yet but I’m on S3. I do think both Rory and Lorelai have over-the-top dramatic tendencies that make them insufferable at different times. My biggest one is when Rory was in the car accident with Jess and Lorelai knew she was fine other than her wrist, but yet went to Luke and carried on like Rory was on the brink of death. I think she could’ve communicated her worry in a less needy and crazy way.

For Rory, I think it was the way she gave Lorelai the OTT guilt speech about missing her graduation because she didn’t get back in time from visiting Jess for the ceremony. (Why did she even go in the first place if she knew the graduation was that day? She clearly knew it was important to Lorelai because she did a good deed and convinced Emily and Richard to attend.) 

Also to the person who mentioned the GG Reddit, there is a lot of drama over there right now it seems, although I don’t post much since I’m still going through the series. But show subs on Reddit in general tend to be filled with petty infighting and insults like that. I have legit had lots of things assumed about my life on another show’s sub for not liking a popular character. People get way too intense, which is why I prefer the more nuanced discussion of this place. 

[Katy M]

1 hour ago, Cloud9Shopper said:

Haven’t seen all of Gilmore Girls yet but I’m on S3. I do think both Rory and Lorelai have over-the-top dramatic tendencies that make them insufferable at different times. My biggest one is when Rory was in the car accident with Jess and Lorelai knew she was fine other than her wrist, but yet went to Luke and carried on like Rory was on the brink of death. I think she could’ve communicated her worry in a less needy and crazy way.

That and how she demanded unnecessary x-rays that I assume she made Luke pay for.  

 

[andromeda331]

14 hours ago, Cloud9Shopper said:

Haven’t seen all of Gilmore Girls yet but I’m on S3. I do think both Rory and Lorelai have over-the-top dramatic tendencies that make them insufferable at different times. My biggest one is when Rory was in the car accident with Jess and Lorelai knew she was fine other than her wrist, but yet went to Luke and carried on like Rory was on the brink of death. I think she could’ve communicated her worry in a less needy and crazy way.

Lorelai was horrible in that scene. I might buy it if she had been on her way to the ER with no idea how Rory is doing when she happened to see Luke or if Rory was seriously injured. But no, she knew Rory was fine. I hate Jess too. But there was nothing to flip out about. It was an accident.  

Edited March 2, 2022 by andromeda331

[SmithW6079]

On 2/24/2022 at 9:12 AM, bluegirl147 said:

I liked Mary on BBT but do not like her on Young Sheldon.    I don't know if it's the way Zoe Perry plays or what but I just don't like her.  Laurie Metcalf (who is Zoe's mother) played her as much more likable on BBT.

 

It might be because by TBBT, Mary had mellowed quite a bit from her younger days. She no longer catered to Sheldon's every whim and would call him out for being a spoiled baby. She'd also been widowed for almost 20 years. In "Young Sheldon," she still very much babies him and her marriage is bad. 

[RealHousewife]

I recently started watching Gossip Girl, and I have yet to get the appeal of Chuck Bass. He seems like an ass so far. I'm told I'll grow to love the character though. 

[Hiyo]

Chuck is a very problematic character. In many ways.

[RealHousewife]

7 hours ago, Hiyo said:

Chuck is a very problematic character. In many ways.

Thank you, that's my impression so far. In one episode I saw recently, he slut shamed Blair after he slept with her. 

 

Blair Waldorf : You're all I have left.

Chuck Bass : Actually, you don't even have me.

Blair Waldorf : Enough.

Chuck Bass : I'll try to be more succinct. You held a certain fascination when you were beautiful, delicate and untouched. But now you're like... one of the Arabians my father used to own. Rode hard and put away wet. I don't want you anymore and I can't see why anyone else would.

 

Was Chuck Buss such a hit just because of his looks or something? I do not see his charm yet. 

[Mabinogia]

5 hours ago, RealHousewife said:

Was Chuck Buss such a hit just because of his looks or something? I do not see his charm yet. 

I don't even find him physically attractive so I REALLY didn't get the appeal. He is one of the main reasons I just stopped watching the show. 

[scarynikki12]

5 hours ago, RealHousewife said:

Was Chuck Buss such a hit just because of his looks or something?

Chuck benefitted from Woobie Syndrome, aka Draco In Leather Pants, aka Villains Are Just Misunderstood. The characters who fall into this category will always be excused no matter what they do. Chuck tried to rape Jenny and Serena in the first episode of the series so you'd think the viewers would at least be eagerly waiting to see his comeuppance yet he was the most popular character on the show. His abuse of Blair, which was hardly subtle, was excused away because she's also an awful person. I remember talking to someone about it years ago and she said that he wasn't abusive because he never hit her. Meanwhile he destroyed objects around her, including punching  a wall mere inches from her face, which left her terrified and is a form of abuse but because it wasn't fist meeting face it was just a hiccup on the way to them being together forever. 

[Annber03]

6 hours ago, RealHousewife said:

Was Chuck Buss such a hit just because of his looks or something? 

From what I've seen online, yes, pretty much. I've not seen that show, but I know he was a very popular character, and that was a big reason why. That, and what @scarynikki12 said.

[Zella]

4 hours ago, Mabinogia said:

I don't even find him physically attractive so I REALLY didn't get the appeal. He is one of the main reasons I just stopped watching the show. 

I'd never watched the show but looked him up just now and was pretty unimpressed. 

[RealHousewife]

8 hours ago, scarynikki12 said:

Chuck benefitted from Woobie Syndrome, aka Draco In Leather Pants, aka Villains Are Just Misunderstood. The characters who fall into this category will always be excused no matter what they do. Chuck tried to rape Jenny and Serena in the first episode of the series so you'd think the viewers would at least be eagerly waiting to see his comeuppance yet he was the most popular character on the show. His abuse of Blair, which was hardly subtle, was excused away because she's also an awful person. I remember talking to someone about it years ago and she said that he wasn't abusive because he never hit her. Meanwhile he destroyed objects around her, including punching  a wall mere inches from her face, which left her terrified and is a form of abuse but because it wasn't fist meeting face it was just a hiccup on the way to them being together forever. 

At first I thought maybe he was like a soap character where they write him horribly, and we're supposed to forget some of his atrocities. But then he just continued to be bad. 

A bad boy character who was written well imo was Dylan McKay. He wasn't perfect, but he was mature, compelling, and decent. He didn't try to rape, prey on younger girls, make a point to be cruel, etc. 

[Mabinogia]

17 hours ago, RealHousewife said:

A bad boy character who was written well imo was Dylan McKay. He wasn't perfect, but he was mature, compelling, and decent. He didn't try to rape, prey on younger girls, make a point to be cruel, etc. 

yeah, Dylan was a bad boy who showed the possibility that he would grow out of it and could become a good man. Chuck was just an entitled asshole would would probably grow up to be a Weinstein type who takes whatever he wants and just pays off anyone who complains.

[truthaboutluv]

On 3/12/2022 at 4:23 PM, scarynikki12 said:

Chuck benefitted from Woobie Syndrome, aka Draco In Leather Pants, aka Villains Are Just Misunderstood.

Yes, it's the same one that sainted Damon Salvatore and ensured I stopped watching TVD consistently by season 4.

And time and distance and a supposed post-MeToo era hasn't changed much since I can't tell you how many Buzzfeed polls I still read declaring Chuck/Blair and Damon/Elena 4ever!

Edited March 14, 2022 by truthaboutluv

[scarynikki12]

47 minutes ago, truthaboutluv said:

Yes, it's the same one that sainted Damon Salvatore and ensured I stopped watching TVD consistently by season 4.

And time and distance and a supposed post-MeToo era hasn't changed much since I can't tell you how many Buzzfeed polls I still read declaring Chuck/Blair and Damon/Elena 4ever!

We need a vomit reaction icon because it's the only appropriate one. 

The part of Chuck/Blair, Damon/Elena, Klaus/Caroline, Buffy/Spike, etc. that makes me craziest is that each of these is an excellent example of abusive relationships but the shows didn't know it and refuse to acknowledge it when it's pointed out. It is so frustrating. Chuck and Damon are textbook examples of abusive partners while Klaus and Spike are the stalkers who will one day try to kill you as proof of their love. Remove the "OMG aren't they so hot and romantic!!!" reactions and they're all great demonstrations of what you DON'T want in a partner. Yet they were never on purpose. Make it on purpose and I will be the Number 1 fan for life (like my love of season 5 of Vampire Diaries as it was the only time the show was honest about how Elena's "compassion" was nothing but bullshit and how similar she and Katherine really were. That was a glorious time).

[Featherhat]

There are a couple of youtube videos out there that analyse that in the first half of S1 Chuck is the bad guy for real. However by the back half and S2 the writers know that he's become the most popular character and they start Draco In Leather Pants-ing him. Thus comes the glossing over that he isn't some charming playboy but an actual abuser and his demons and issues whilst they explain some of his actions never excuse it. 

That show had plenty of loathsome characters though and whilst I was never a Dan fan "the reveal" makes the show un rewatchable to me. 

 

[Ambrosefolly]

One thing I will give Euphoria: Nate Jacobs is shown to be clearly controlling and abusive, as with his season 1 girlfriend Maddy (who isn't a shrinking violet herself) even verbalizing.  I hope the show doesn't try to fully redeem and pair him with Jules and she stays strong. 

Edited March 16, 2022 by Ambrosefolly

[SJC]

On 3/1/2022 at 9:55 AM, Cloud9Shopper said:

Also to the person who mentioned the GG Reddit, there is a lot of drama over there right now it seems, although I don’t post much since I’m still going through the series. But show subs on Reddit in general tend to be filled with petty infighting and insults like that. I have legit had lots of things assumed about my life on another show’s sub for not liking a popular character. People get way too intense, which is why I prefer the more nuanced discussion of this place. 

The GG sub on Reddit is getting worse every day IMO.
It's gotten to be the 'Emily Is The #1 Gilmore Girl And Her AYITL Storyline Was Awesome' sub now.
I find primetimer much better.  :-)

Edited March 18, 2022 by SJC

[Cloud9Shopper]

6 hours ago, SJC said:

The GG sub on Reddit is getting worse every day IMO.
It's gotten to be the 'Emily Is The #1 Gilmore Girl And Her AYITL Storyline Was Awesome' sub now.
I find primetimer much better.  :-)

The ER sub is getting like that too, except it’s Abby is the best character ever and Luka and Abby are the best couple on the show. Anyone who doesn’t like Abby is accused of not liking her because she’s not ultra-girly or because her boobs aren’t big enough or they don’t appreciate how “real” she is, or they have issues in their own life and see that in themselves. If you don’t like Luka and Abby it’s obviously your fault for not seeing what a healthy and loving relationship they have and how much Luka cares about her. And so on. It’s exhausting. Almost hit unsub a few times. 

[bluegirl147]

2 hours ago, Cloud9Shopper said:

The ER sub is getting like that too, except it’s Abby is the best character ever and Luka and Abby are the best couple on the show. Anyone who doesn’t like Abby is accused of not liking her because she’s not ultra-girly or because her boobs aren’t big enough or they don’t appreciate how “real” she is, or they have issues in their own life and see that in themselves. If you don’t like Luka and Abby it’s obviously your fault for not seeing what a healthy and loving relationship they have and how much Luka cares about her. And so on. It’s exhausting. Almost hit unsub a few times. 

I didn't hate Abby but she was nowhere near being the best character. She wouldn't even be in my top 50. I watched the show when it aired so it was pre social media but I simply cannot imagine she would have had a rabid fanbase at that time.  Why she is now such a favorite of some people is baffling to me.  I could never figure out why the writers focused on her so much.  She wasn't all that interesting as a character.  And she was always so glum.  Actually sullen might be a better word.  And I wasn't a big fan of Luka either.  So when they were put together I had zero interest in them as a couple.  For me they just didn't have the rooting value of Carol and Doug.   Or even Carter and Del Amico who wasn't even really a couple.

Edited March 18, 2022 by bluegirl147

[Cloud9Shopper]

34 minutes ago, bluegirl147 said:

I didn't hate Abby but she was nowhere near being the best character. She wouldn't even be in my top 50. I watched the show when it aired so it was pre social media but I simply cannot imagine she would have had a rapid fanbase at that time.  Why she is now such a favorite of some people is baffling to me.  I could never figure out why the writers focused on her so much.  She wasn't all that interesting as a character.  And she was always so glum.  Actually sullen might be a better word.  And I wasn't a big fan of Luka either.  So when they were put together I had zero interest in them as a couple.  For me they just didn't have the rooting value of Carol and Doug.   Or even Carter and Del Amico who wasn't even really a couple.

Oh man I thought I was the only Carter/Anna shipper on the planet haha. Good to meet you! :) I wish her character had stuck around longer.

Abby to me was one of the worst characters on the show and the over focus on her really contributed to the downfall of ER IMO. I mean there were whole episodes around her childbirth (and why did she get a pregnancy storyline? My cat has better maternal instincts), hers and Luka’s wedding, her goodbye, and her pregnancy and her relapse dominated the show for almost the whole seasons she had those stories. It was like when she came along the concept of ER as a great ensemble drama went out the window and it became “The Abby and Luka Hour.” And Luka was no better IMO. He enabled her bad behavior and also had a lot of his own problematic incidents at work, all excused as “missing Abby” or “protecting/caring for Abby.” 

I was listening to an ER podcast yesterday and the hosts were covering the episode where Carol has her babies and Abby first appears as the OB nurse. They spent so much time talking about Abby’s amazingness and what a great character she is. Hello, I thought this was Carol’s episode! Can someone else have the spotlight for once?

I much prefer the earlier crop of characters who had flaws and personal problems without dragging the whole show down with them. 

From what I read on the Reddit, a lot of people say they identify with Abby and love how “she doesn’t hold back” and how “realistic” her stories were. So they tend to get defensive over criticism of her because they are projecting and identify with her so heavily. 

Edited March 18, 2022 by Cloud9Shopper

[bluegirl147]

9 minutes ago, Cloud9Shopper said:

I much prefer the earlier crop of characters who had flaws and personal problems without dragging the whole show down with them. 

I so agree with you.  The first few seasons the stories in the ER were the stories. We knew things about the main characters but their personal lives added to the stories. They didn't dominate them.   I pretty much hated any story that took place away from the hospital. I didn't mind so much if they were still in Chicago somewhere like Benton's sister's house. But hated Mark visiting his parents.  Hated Mark dying in Hawaii.  And don't even get me started on the Africa stories.  

 

[Cloud9Shopper]

43 minutes ago, bluegirl147 said:

I so agree with you.  The first few seasons the stories in the ER were the stories. We knew things about the main characters but their personal lives added to the stories. They didn't dominate them.   I pretty much hated any story that took place away from the hospital. I didn't mind so much if they were still in Chicago somewhere like Benton's sister's house. But hated Mark visiting his parents.  Hated Mark dying in Hawaii.  And don't even get me started on the Africa stories.  

 

Oh I am with you on the Africa episodes! But Mark’s death was like the end of an era for me (and the quality of the show proved it in the years after he died) so I have a soft spot for the Hawaii episodes. I remember back on message boards in the day that a lot of people wanted that storyline to hurry up and end, though.

The Africa episodes also brought us Carter’s girlfriend/wife Kem. I felt so bad that they had a stillbirth (I mean Carter got kicked around a lot too) but I just did not like Kem. She was so boring. 

One out of ER episode I did like was the one where Benton goes to rural Mississippi and has to essentially run this run-down, limited resources clinic by himself. I didn’t like it at first! But when I saw it on my rewatch I was pretty interested in how he handled the cultural shock and not having a lot of help available to him. And it was only one episode, which made it easier to take than the Africa ones. I imagine if we had gotten several episodes of Benton in Mississippi it would’ve gotten boring too. 

I started watching ER in 1999 and then quit a season or two after Mark died maybe. Then I saw the whole thing on Hulu and took a few years to watch. But I wouldn’t watch the whole series again. I ultimately think they should’ve pulled the plug when Carter leaves, and when that happens in my next rewatch, I’ll probably just go to S15 after that. 

 

[bluegirl147]

7 minutes ago, Cloud9Shopper said:

Then I saw the whole thing on Hulu and took a few years to watch. But I wouldn’t watch the whole series again.

I watched it from the beginning. But the later years were tough to keep up with. They just weren't as interesting and not must see for me.  I would record them and watch them whenever I got around too it.  I also did a rewatch in the summer of 2012. I got the DVDS from the library and that is pretty much the only thing I watched for weeks.  I like you would not do a another rewatch.  I would possibly watch some episodes again but there is no way I'm watching them all again.  

 

[SJC]

4 hours ago, Cloud9Shopper said:

It’s exhausting. Almost hit unsub a few times. 

I know how you feel.

3 hours ago, bluegirl147 said:

And I wasn't a big fan of Luka either. 

I disliked him heartily !
Always sullen.

[Hiyo]

Quote

Abby to me was one of the worst characters on the show

I liked her. I also liked Luka. And I liked them together.

[proserpina65]

On 3/18/2022 at 2:23 PM, Hiyo said:

I liked her. I also liked Luka. And I liked them together.

I like both of them but had pretty much stopped watching before they actually got together.

[vibeology]

On 3/18/2022 at 2:23 PM, Hiyo said:

I liked her. I also liked Luka. And I liked them together.

I watched the show when it aired and at the time felt like Abby took over the show in a bad way. But I am now almost done my first whole rewatch since it aired and I like her so much more this time around.

For me, once we're in seasons 11-15, Maura Tierney is consistently the best actor in the main cast. She can take on the heavy stories. The episodes where she starts drinking again are frustrating because you want Abby to be better but I can't pretend that Maura Tierney's drunk acting isn't amazing. She understands that she needs to try to act sober. I was never disappointed with her performance.

Plus, by that point the show has written themselves into a problem. Every time they bring in a new doctor they make him or her a jerk so that we can get to know them and have them eventually either grow or be redeemed. They did it with Weaver, Malucci, Pratt, Gates, Brenner and Banfield plus with guests Stanley Tucci and John Leguizamo. But because they were repeating stories beats, every time they had to up the assholishness of the character. I hated most of the doctors added in the later seasons and the actors either didn't have the skill or the time to make them likeable.

Angela Bassett mostly managed because the writers gave her the strongest backstory, an episode with Mark and Angela Bassett can act. Tucci got close but the writing did him no favours. Leguiazamo's plot headed in a different direction and he did great acting but the rest of them, ugh. If I have to choose between an Abby story or a Gates story, I know what I'm invested in. 

And because Abby and Luka paired up quickly she had an interesting scene partner. Compared to Sam who had Gates or Neela who had Gates or Ray or Brenner much of the time, Abby was at least acting with other people I cared about.

And finally, when you watch 15 seasons in a compressed fashion, it's much easier to see that Abby had the same amount of DRAMA as Mark or Carter ever did. She's the lead or co-lead of the show in those last few seasons and her storylines and screentime reflect that. The issue isn't that she had too much but that most of the other characters were so flimsy that you don't remember them the same way. 

[Cloud9Shopper]

I didn’t like Gates, Brenner or Clemente (John Leguziamo’s character) either, but I never believed in Abby’s recovery arc. She never seemed that genuine about it or apologetic to the people she hurt. I wish she had ended up with some burned bridges or an affected career the way Carter seemed to earlier in the series. (I just rewatched an episode where Kerry tells Carter his chief resident application was pulled and asks him if he expected people would forget what happened, but Abby seems to suffer no such career consequences and is interviewed and offered jobs at prestigious hospitals and isn’t a flight risk at all?) Plus she ditched her child to go drinking on two occasions. She’s just such an awful person and mother to me, especially since she barely seemed to want the child in the first place. 

It would have been way more realistic to me if Abby had ended up with some poorer job prospects or a lost marriage or friendships the way Carter and her sponsor seemed to have. (They allude to the fact that her sponsor’s marriage collapsed but never detailed it.)

Edited March 23, 2022 by Cloud9Shopper

[bluegirl147]

For me it always felt like Abby (and I guess maybe Maura Tierney) was a favorite of the writing staff.  I didn't feel that away about any of the other characters.  Yes she was a lead character but it became the perils of Pauline with her.  There was always some big thing happening with her.  She was just such a downer character for me.

1 hour ago, vibeology said:

They did it with Weaver, Malucci, Pratt, Gates, Brenner and Banfield plus with guests Stanley Tucci and John Leguizamo.

I liked Malucci.  And I even liked Gates.  I could never warm up to Pratt. I didn't dislike him but he could have left the show and I wouldn't have minded.  One doctor I did come to like surprisingly was Morris.  

17 minutes ago, Cloud9Shopper said:

Plus she ditched her child to go drinking on two occasions. She’s just such an awful person and mother to me, especially since she barely seemed to want the child in the first place. 

Yes. She was just such an unlikable character for me.  

19 minutes ago, Cloud9Shopper said:

It would have been way more realistic to me if Abby had ended up with some poorer job prospects or a lost marriage or friendships the way Carter and her sponsor seemed to have. (They allude to the fact that her sponsor’s marriage collapsed but never detailed it.)

I usually want happily ever afters for characters but with Abby I didn't.  

If any show would be ripe for a reboot I would think it would be ER. They could  just pick right back up and have new characters and refer to original characters.   I'm actually surprised this hasn't been considered.

[Cloud9Shopper]

11 minutes ago, bluegirl147 said:

For me it always felt like Abby (and I guess maybe Maura Tierney) was a favorite of the writing staff.  I didn't feel that away about any of the other characters.  Yes she was a lead character but it became the perils of Pauline with her.  There was always some big thing happening with her.  She was just such a downer character for me.

I liked Malucci.  And I even liked Gates.  I could never warm up to Pratt. I didn't dislike him but he could have left the show and I wouldn't have minded.  One doctor I did come to like surprisingly was Morris.  

I liked Morris too! Especially since he got such a great girlfriend in the last season. They were a cute couple and I appreciated having a happy and functioning couple to watch onscreen after watching Abby and Luka and Neela and her various ick love interests for three years. 

I honestly think I wouldn’t have minded Abby as much had she hadn’t had as many major storylines or some of the stuff that took over whole episodes were relegated to the background a bit more. Like maybe skip the pregnancy and/or relapse, and have her and Luka do a courthouse wedding instead of a whole episode where he drags her to get married at a wedding he planned behind her back? Or even with her relapse. Why not show her sharing at an AA meeting or being genuinely apologetic to someone she lied to or hurt? Or have her admitting her character defects and making steps to change them? There are so many ways the writer could have made her a more sympathetic and likable character while still giving her flaws.  

[Spartan Girl]

Joey on Full House. Not a bad guy per se, just an immature idiot and his impressions and cartoon voices got on my nerves.

[Katy M]

25 minutes ago, Spartan Girl said:

Joey on Full House. Not a bad guy per se, just an immature idiot and his impressions and cartoon voices got on my nerves.

Yes.  They were super annoying.  Talk like a grown up.  And Michelle was the biggest brat on TV.

[janie jones]

1 hour ago, Spartan Girl said:

Joey on Full House. Not a bad guy per se, just an immature idiot and his impressions and cartoon voices got on my nerves.

I'm pretty sure I thought that even as a kid.

[Spartan Girl]

6 hours ago, Katy M said:

Yes.  They were super annoying.  Talk like a grown up.  And Michelle was the biggest brat on TV.

In fairness, she was fine when she was a baby and up through being two. But as Homer Simpson once said, the sooner kids talk, the sooner they talk back.

[Blergh]

On 3/23/2022 at 11:28 AM, Spartan Girl said:

Joey on Full House. Not a bad guy per se, just an immature idiot and his impressions and cartoon voices got on my nerves.

And what got me was that he seemed to be almost always 'on'! I can't say I saw the show that often but I can recall a time when he was supposed to be sound asleep and when he was unexpectedly awakened, he instantly did some kind of impression! Not even the late, brilliant but troubled Robin Williams was always 'on' so I thought it was a bit much that he never behaved as anything besides a cartoon character!  Yes, I know the show was a sitcom and not a documentary . .but still. .

P.S. I'd like to imagine that he'd have gone running for the hills if Alanis Morissette ever showed up as herself before she'd have been able to get one syllable sung! 

Edited March 25, 2022 by Blergh

[Spartan Girl]

13 hours ago, Blergh said:

And what got me was that he seemed to almost always 'on'! I can't say I saw the show that often but I can recall a time when he was supposed to be sound asleep and when he was unexpectedly awakened, he instantly did some kind of impression! Not even the late, brilliant but troubled Robin Williams was always 'on' so I thought it was a bit much that he never behaved as anything besides a cartoon character!  Yes, I know the show was a sitcom and not a documentary . .but still.

Even Robin’s Popeye impression was far superior to Joey’s. I swear whenever I watch one of the reruns and Joey took THAT voice out (or any other impression) I’m like

[RunningMarket]

It was the Rocky and Bullwinkle impression that annoyed me beyond all others. Even when I was younger, I never though Joey was that funny or cute. There was one episode where he goes "corporate" and I remember Jesse commenting how he replaced some goofy poster with one of Lee Iacoca on his door, and I thought, well maybe he's finally growing up. Of course, this wasn't for Joey, and they all encouraged him to go back to being silly!

I know that Joey and Jesse did a stint as jingle writers, but I feel like that was just another avenue for Dave Coulier to showcase his "humour".

[Katy M]

3 hours ago, RunningMarket said:

There was one episode where he goes "corporate" and I remember Jesse commenting how he replaced some goofy poster with one of Lee Iacoca on his door, and I thought, well maybe he's finally growing up. Of course, this wasn't for Joey, and they all encouraged him to go back to being silly!

I think he could have found a happy medium between the 2 extremes.  

And, realistically, right or wrong, when those girls hit their pre-teens/teen years, they would have been embarrassed to be seen around Joey.

[andromeda331]

He also had no real purpose on the show after awhile. No girlfriend, no life. All he really had was his jokes which weren't that good. Jesse at least got jobs and a family. Joey was just there.

[Blergh]

10 hours ago, Katy M said:

I think he could have found a happy medium between the 2 extremes.  

And, realistically, right or wrong, when those girls hit their pre-teens/teen years, they would have been embarrassed to be seen around Joey.

Not to mention, once Jesse married Becky and she moved in full time, it's surprising that they (especially Becky) wouldn't have tried to insist Danny boot Joey OUT since not only was he not a relative or in-law (even if they liked him as a person) but Becky would have been a third person to help out with the girls (and a woman to boot). But then again, while I can see a young bride perhaps moving into her husband's extended family abode as a stopgap measure until they could afford their own home, it was bogus that they  STAYED there even when they had their own sons despite both of them having rather steady and plush incomes (especially Becky having the same job as Danny who paid for the Frisco townhouse). Oh, and IIRC Joey became a host on a kids puppet show so it wasn't as though HE didn't have the means to find his own place. Seriously, what would have stopped   Jesse&Becky along with Joey from moving out out but visiting the Tanners on a regular basis like relatives who live in the same city often do?

[DrSpaceman73]

51 minutes ago, Blergh said:

Not to mention, once Jesse married Becky and she moved in full time, it's surprising that they (especially Becky) wouldn't have tried to insist Danny boot Joey OUT since not only was he not a relative or in-law (even if they liked him as a person) but Becky would have been a third person to help out with the girls (and a woman to boot). But then again, while I can see a young bride perhaps moving into her husband's extended family abode as a stopgap measure until they could afford their own home, it was bogus that they  STAYED there even when they had their own sons despite both of them having rather steady and plush incomes (especially Becky having the same job as Danny who paid for the Frisco townhouse). Oh, and IIRC Joey became a host on a kids puppet show so it wasn't as though HE didn't have the means to find his own place. Seriously, what would have stopped   Jesse&Becky along with Joey from moving out out but visiting the Tanners on a regular basis like relatives who live in the same city often do?

But then it wouldn't be a ......

FULL HOUSE!!!!  

 

but I hated that show from the beginning, never watched more than a few episodes, so I don't know.  

I found all those characters and the writing plain, insipid and boring. 

[Egg McMuffin]

I’m trying to figure out if there’s any adult on Full House that I do like. I really dislike the show as a rule (yeah, I know I can’t throw stones because I liked The Brady Bunch, which is Gen X’s Full House). Joey is completely annoying, for the reasons mentioned above. I generally dislike most characters John Stamos plays, because they’re always trying to make him out to be really cool and suave, and I think he’s a total cheezeball. I found Bob Saget’s character awfully saccharine and bland. There’s something about Lori Loughlin that I don’t like either, she’s supposed to play these all-American types, but comes across as cold fish. Oh, and I don’t like the oldest daughter too.  I guess that takes care of Full House. 🤪

The actor who played Chuck Bass on Gossip Girl absolutely stunk, so that didn’t do anything for my dislike of Chuck, a truly loathsome character. His idea of good acting is to speak all his lines in a low whispery voice.

[Spartan Girl]

Honestly, I never understood why Danny asked Joey to move in to “help out” in the first place. Jesse was at least the girls uncle, so that made sense, but Joey was just Danny’s single friend, a guy whose ONLY expertise in child-rearing at the time was those stupid cartoon voices. And yet he was somehow the best person to take care of two little girls and an infant? Even for an 80s sitcom that’s a stretch.

[DrSpaceman73]

1 minute ago, Spartan Girl said:

Honestly, I never understood why Danny asked Joey to move in to “help out” in the first place. Jesse was at least the girls uncle, so that made sense, but Joey was just Danny’s single friend, a guy whose ONLY expertise in child-rearing at the time was those stupid cartoon voices. And yet he was somehow the best person to take care of two little girls and an infant? Even for an 80s sitcom that’s a stretch.

Let's face it they were probably a gay couple you just couldn't do that at the time on family sitcoms.  

[bluegirl147]

Dave Coulier was one of those actors I could never figure out how he had the career he had.  I mean with Joey he was basically playing himself right?

1 hour ago, DrSpaceman73 said:

I found all those characters and the writing plain, insipid and boring. 

While I acknowledge I doubt I was their target audience (I was in my early 20s when this premiered) I did watch the first couple seasons and have seen the rest in reruns years later when channel surfing  and I have to agree with you.  I don't think I ever laughed once.

 

[Katy M]

2 hours ago, Blergh said:

Not to mention, once Jesse married Becky and she moved in full time, it's surprising that they (especially Becky) wouldn't have tried to insist Danny boot Joey OUT since not only was he not a relative or in-law (even if they liked him as a person) but Becky would have been a third person to help out with the girls (and a woman to boot). But then again, while I can see a young bride perhaps moving into her husband's extended family abode as a stopgap measure until they could afford their own home, it was bogus that they  STAYED there even when they had their own sons despite both of them having rather steady and plush incomes (especially Becky having the same job as Danny who paid for the Frisco townhouse). Oh, and IIRC Joey became a host on a kids puppet show so it wasn't as though HE didn't have the means to find his own place. Seriously, what would have stopped   Jesse&Becky along with Joey from moving out out but visiting the Tanners on a regular basis like relatives who live in the same city often do?

Becky had an apartment.  They moved in because...reasons.  But, I don't think either of them had a leg to stand on to insist that a homeowner kick someone else out of a house. That would have been highly inappropriate.

Nobody could move out because it was a TV show called Full House.

[Annber03]

I remember that there was an episode where Danny got an offer on their home, and they were all excitedly talking about the possibility of moving into a bigger place and having their own spaces at long last in whatever new home they would've moved into and all that. Of course, Michelle didn't like this idea, so it never went through.

But that episode always struck me so odd because if Jesse, Becky, and their boys moved into their own place, and Joey found his own, that would've left more than enough room for Danny, DJ, Stephanie, and Michelle. And what's more, I believe this was at the point in the show's run when DJ was about ready to graduate high school and go to college, so once she left, then Danny, Stephanie, and Michelle would've each had all the space they needed and wanted for themselves. Yet nobody really seemed to seriously entertain this option, if I recall rightly. 

But as others noted here, the title of the show was "Full House", so... And what Michelle wanted, Michelle got.