Characters that hold shows back

Submitted by mranimal2 t3_zwtujf in television

Pretty much all of the other teens in Wednesday besides the title character

They are all just such stereotypical teen drama-esque characters

Also, look, I have nothing against the actors personally. I'm sure they're fine people, I know how hard it is to become successful as an actor, and it's great they got to be in such a huge show.

But good god they give terrible, wooden performances. I don't know if it's them or if it's the directing but they're just so stilted. Like Ortega's great and Ricci, Christie, Lindhome, and I'd argue even Jones are decent (Though Guzman is definitely miscast) so I'm not sure why the other kids are so bad.

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ErikMogan t1_j1x1x19 wrote

Wild that you don't like the teen drama for being a teen drama.

Anyway, I dislike Felicity on Arrow; she was basically used by Berlanti et al to be a source of drama. She started off as such a fun and interesting character but I feel like after a while it was just like "Ugggh. She's mad about something again."

I felt like Andy wasn't needed on The Office; he was always on that weird cusp of supporting and main character until, like, season 7 or something, and even after the bump to main I felt like he was holding the show back.

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usrnm45 t1_j1zu8jk wrote

Once her character started dating Oliver she became a stereotypical girlfriend and stage IV clinger. Just ruined her whole persona

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AKAkorm t1_j1y2zgi wrote

If not for Britta, Greendale definitely would have made the Regionals.

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dehehn t1_j20oxi6 wrote

I liked Britta season one. I hate how she was bullied so much and then Flanderized into a weird blonde bimbo.

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n1klb1k t1_j20tiab wrote

They really britta’d Britta in some of the later seasons.

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BigHobbit t1_j1x9gqu wrote

Kess & Neelix in Star Trek Voyager. Weird, awkward, boring and lame all around.

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Camper64 t1_j1zrrqs wrote

I agree with your take on kess, but by the end of the show I grew to really like neelix and what he brings to the crew. Definitely a glow up character in my book.

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BigHobbit t1_j1ztams wrote

True. Once kess was gone he became a lot better. Those first seasons though were ROUGH.

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nmyron3983 t1_j20d009 wrote

Agreed. His weird aggressive jealousy was hard to watch.

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BigHobbit t1_j20eckh wrote

Over his 2 year old girlfriend...

I get it, it's a short lived species that matures rapidly, but fuck that was weird and cringey.

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JohnCavil01 t1_j1wwa90 wrote

I think the problem that your running into is that despite the internet insisting to the contrary - Wednesday is fundamentally a fairly typical teen drama.

Of course, I also seem to be one of the only people who finds Wednesday as written and portrayed in the show to be completely insufferable so what do I know…

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IAmActionBear t1_j1xh434 wrote

I had similar feelings towards the show. Once it kind of hit me that it was more or less just a teen drama, I found the show very predictable and a little insufferable, largely because of Wednesday herself. I think the show was largely okay, but I definitely don’t understand the magnitude of the “hype”. But I mean, I also just might fall outside of the target audience/demographic and I’m sure there’s folks here who would think stuff I’m crazy about as just “basic” or whatever.

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Levonorgestrelfairy1 t1_j1x3i8x wrote

Its just like Strager Things

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thedon572 t1_j1y9wwp wrote

Woah woah woah woah woah. Whats wrong with stranger things

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Levonorgestrelfairy1 t1_j20o22h wrote

Nothing, its just that it started as yet another Netflix teen show, no one have expectations for how big it became.

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dehehn t1_j20rpi0 wrote

It's definitely wasn't made as "just another teen show". It was pitched and created as an homage to Stephen King books/movies of the 80s. And the young kids weren't even teens and were all nerdy outcasts. There was also an entire adult subplot. The teens only made up 1/3 of the show and they weren't the main characters.

When I saw the first trailers and info it never struck me as "yet another teen show". It seemed refreshingly different and something I instantly wanted to watch.

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Levonorgestrelfairy1 t1_j20yy0h wrote

Its nothing different than a season one of any other Netflix show though. Literally the same formula as Wednesday. Ya show that cashes in on nostalgia

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dehehn t1_j22l7gz wrote

Yeah it's quite a bit different. There's a reason it's one of the biggest shows Netflix ever made. Because it's different.

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platitood t1_j1xxq0o wrote

>Wednesday is fundamentally a fairly typical teen drama.

Yes. I'm not interested in in per se, but it's high quality. When my teen wants to watch I am happy to watch too.

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OriginalUsername8000 t1_j212j4g wrote

I enjoyed Wednesday for the fun of it and taking it as it was. I'm not the target audience, but it was watchable. Wednesday herself WAS insufferable. The character doesn't really work well when she's outside of the confines of the Mansion or a certain summer camp. And as written, she was way too overconfident and shitty to people despite her constant failure.

I think I had as much fun with laughing at the ridiculousness of everything as anything else though (I was almost crying laughing at the last episode). My wife enjoyed it in a more legitimate way.

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Pleaseusegoogle t1_j1y0jnq wrote

Jess in New Girl. She isn’t quirky she is just annoying. Every other character in this show is great, down to Nick’s park friend Tran.

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Fair2Midland t1_j1zibxj wrote

I do like the old trope that she’s homely and weird and has problems finding men. Like, it’s Zoey Deschanel. She’s gorgeous and funny.

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Pleaseusegoogle t1_j1zooxn wrote

My friends call that the Liz Lemon effect. Where for the entire duration of 30 Rock we had to pretend Tina Fey is ugly.

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Pugduck77 t1_j20csd4 wrote

That was only the first episode, and a bit of the first season. After that, her being weird was dropped completely.

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thedon572 t1_j1y9y64 wrote

Zoey deschanels picture is literally in the dictionary besides quirky

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Fair2Midland t1_j203kym wrote

CeCe’s great?

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Pleaseusegoogle t1_j20fkx2 wrote

Cece rules. She has great chemistry with all of the cast. Her relationship with Winston got more laughs out of me than just about anything else on the show.

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ManicFirestorm t1_j20m8y0 wrote

I agree, especially in later seasons. She just becomes fairly insufferable and so stupid at points. She can make rewatching hard sometimes but the chemistry between the characters ultimately drags me back.

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no_dice__ t1_j1xnjrr wrote

Every random new character the walking dead added past season 6 (with the exception of like Aaron, Jesus, and Dwayne)

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mpc1226 t1_j1y1jaj wrote

How did it go, get any better? I gave up around when Rick bombed the bridge and got airlifted

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lacosaknitstra t1_j1y2y5r wrote

I quit when Glen got killed.

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ThowanPlays t1_j1y4lne wrote

Me too…it was just too heart breaking. I watched a few more episodes under pressure from my wife. But seeing Glenn die while being a prospective father and having my own kid just…broke me for a while.

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philouza_stein t1_j1z1w7b wrote

Same. Not really because of that one act but I was already losing interest up to that point.

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SereneAdler33 t1_j1z9fva wrote

Same. It was pointlessly cruel and I realized I hated the writing for just being sadistic. It knocked me out of the show completely.

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Skavau t1_j1zxd0q wrote

It was following the comics. It would have been a significant change to not do it, and comparable to GOT not doing the Red Wedding

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Axolotlinvasion t1_j21cmka wrote

It’s weird to see how many people say they dropped the show because he died when it’s one of the most iconic comic moments and sets the perfect introduction for Negan. I couldn’t get into the show past season 3 but I’ve never seen such a backlash by fans against a show for actually following the source material especially when that was one of the few later season things they didn’t change

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thedon572 t1_j1y7gaj wrote

I really enjoyed whisperers arc and the final one

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coriannelee t1_j1zahpt wrote

The Whisperers arc was absolutely brutal. The spikes on the hill broke me for a while.

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no_dice__ t1_j1zk0tk wrote

yeah that's pretty much when I stopped, as well, I think I may have caught a few random episodes on TV after that point but the show was just garbage after glen died imo

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jaymef t1_j1wzmw3 wrote

Liam in shameless

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Chicksan t1_j1wup5e wrote

I’m Supernatural, Mary Winchester. I despise this character with the power of 1000 suns and was so happy when Jack smoked her

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Dalek_Lunchbox t1_j1yaprq wrote

I always felt like Castiel and Crowley held the show back. Everyone loved them so the show was afraid to get rid of them, and as a result every story had to be about them

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RealSunglassesGuy t1_j1yww6u wrote

Oh man I forgot about just how terrible she was. In this case, I blame the actor. She didn't have the chops to make that character work.

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jarroz61 t1_j21a6ov wrote

OMG I thought I was the only one who absolutely could not fucking stand her

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southernsideup t1_j1xomrz wrote

Mark Brandanawicz in Parks and Rec. Not sure if it was the writing or just the character but it really wasn’t a comedy at first.

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RSlickback t1_j20k6yk wrote

I think he was supposed to be the "straight man" in the circus of characters they had. But Anne Perkins was just such a better version of that and they didn't need two. Writing him out was one of the best things they could have done.

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lehigh_larry t1_j1wumm1 wrote

AJ in Sopranos

Page in The Americans (although she gets better eventually)

Zack in The Strain

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ThisIsCreation t1_j1wz8rr wrote

I can understand feeling that way about AJ at first but on rewatches I find him to be quite interesting. If you remove Tony's hard surface, him & AJ are exactly the same.

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hailwyatt t1_j1x57rb wrote

>Zack in The Strain

I dont want to say mean things about a kid who was just doing his best/possibly pressured to do something he wasn't passionate about by his parents/looking for a big break...

So I won't.

But I could. I love that show but It will be awhile before I attempt a rewatch.

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indocartel t1_j1yqkuz wrote

Disagree with AJ. Was a annoying little shit but added to the realness of the family relationship and showed a life outside of being in the mob.

As well, was a perfect balance with Tony’s fatherly love for Chris and what he wanted in AJ but never had.

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Kule7 t1_j214rbq wrote

Yeah, AJ was a good character and well acted IMHO by a child actor coming of age in the middle of a massive hit show. Fine to dislike the character, but I don't think there's really anything to complain of there in terms of holding back the show.

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Different_Papaya_413 t1_j20asbo wrote

AJ is one of the best characters and gets way too much hate

Of course he’s an insufferable pretentious douche. Look at his parents

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MikeDamone t1_j20aiv4 wrote

AJ will always be the character I loathe the most, but he was a 100% boon for the story as a whole. Tony's lack of meaningful fatherhood directly results in a son who's lazy, unmotivated, and unfit for a life in either the world of wealth he was born into, or the criminal life his father dominates. Some of Tony's greatest displays of hypocrisy and misplaced sense of values are shown through his relationship with AJ.

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sequosion t1_j20gvzj wrote

Hard disagree with AJ, his and Tony’s relationship is pretty integral throughout the show. Paige I agree with, though by the end of the show I think they were able to redeem her character

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KingOfDaNorf86 t1_j1z415j wrote

Bran Stark - Game of Thrones. Just came off as a creepy guy at the end.

Carl - Walking Dead. I stopped watching after season 4? 5? But he was the worst.

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Jmen4Ever t1_j1x022s wrote

Why do you say Guzman is miscast?

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Dayofsloths t1_j1x5qhh wrote

Lack of chemistry and energy. Maybe I'm biased because of Raul Julia' Gomez, but it seemed like Guzman's dialogue was screaming for more life and energy than he was putting into the role

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Jmen4Ever t1_j1xlvc5 wrote

I think this is fair criticism, but I would say this.

-The show is about Wednesday, and I can see them wanting to make her the focus.

-The basis of the original show and the subsequent movies was the Gomez-Morticia relationship, and they did not seem to really push that.

-The criticism I saw (I know sample size....) seemed to focus on the appearance, and while Julia and Astin were awesome Gomez Adams, they did not "look the part" from the original comics that Guzman does.

Guzman's portrayal in comparison to those is muted, but maybe that was done not to try to diminish Ortega's performance as Wednesday.

I don't know I am just a guy who loved the old show and the movies. I am by no means any kind of professional critic.

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platitood t1_j1xxgry wrote

The look is the ONLY axis where Guzman is a good fit. Very few of the critiques I see are about looks, and yet the responses always seem to bring up looks as if they can debunk the problems by pointing out the non-problem.

He's not dynamic enough.

The biggest problem is that, he and Morticia look like they're faking it. Past iterations have always looked like they couldn't wait to be alone together. These two look like as soon as they're alone they can change into sweats and go to separate rooms to relax.

It's also tricky that G&M have to do the "concerned parent" thing a few times. They skate awfully close to the thin ice of being "normal parents", threatening to put some of the core Addams on the wrong side of the "normal / weird" divide.

As others note, those latter two problems are writing and direction, not casting.

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jhudilluminati t1_j21en5p wrote

Why do people get upset by not liking Wednesday? It’s not a top tier show or anything

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Salarian_American t1_j1xtngv wrote

I agree about the way Gomez is being played, but that's not miscasting, that's down to direction.

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Dayofsloths t1_j1yvyup wrote

Not sure why you're downvoted, you're entirely correct.

He was presumably doing what the director told him to

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SmilingForStrangers t1_j1ztk13 wrote

Guzman could have brought a wonderful smarminess that he clearly wasn’t allowed.

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menlyn t1_j1yqzcf wrote

I mean he's supposed to be the same age as Morticia and he looks like 20 years older than her. (Guzman is like 15 years older than CZJ who looks great for her age..)

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MedievalBully t1_j1wra5k wrote

In Dexter, pretty much every regular character except Dexter

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tommy2guns91 t1_j1xazbg wrote

Brida on the Last Kingdom.

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SoupySpud t1_j1yqgm1 wrote

Book brida was awesome, The books are actually phenomenal, The show does an alright job as an adaption but there's a handful of characters that are just way cooler in the book

Alfred lived up to the books though in his time on the show, great performance

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ADecadentBeast t1_j1y8bwb wrote

Beth. Dutton.

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ShaoShaoUnicorn t1_j1yowxb wrote

I thought the guy with the art magic in Wednesday was superfluous. I don;t think the show needed a love triangle between the two men when it should have been Enid and the barista kid.

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ManicFirestorm t1_j20n7xc wrote

Don't you know? You need to Twilight everything up to that 2 guys, 1 girl love triangle, none of whom have any actual chemistry.

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Absentmindedgenius t1_j1x49og wrote

They're just window dressing. They have no lives outside of whatever concerns Wednesday and Enid. I guess that one guy was a little broken up over what happened to Rowan, but not much.

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dekabreak1000 t1_j1zzhw4 wrote

Snow and charming on once upon a time

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danstern11 t1_j1zq4at wrote

Kayla in Hacks.

It's clear the writers are really interested in her story but I just find her whole bit to be exhausting and unfunny.

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gary6265 t1_j20go0u wrote

For Wednesday you forgot Fred Armisen (uncle Fester). I thought he killed it!

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ElephantintheRoom404 t1_j1ww4sk wrote

Tasha Yar in Star Trek the next gen. Its ok though, they kill her off.

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mickeyflinn t1_j20jwba wrote

Yeah she was pretty lousy but Troi was the worst.

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LibertarianSuperhero t1_j1yoc8y wrote

Katie Cassidy as Laurel Lance in Arrow.

Terribly handled until her character was finally mercifully written out of the show.

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Batsy100 t1_j1zfhdh wrote

"The background characters are so background"

I'm sorry to tease, but really think about what you're saying.

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schwenn002 t1_j1zhouu wrote

Thank God that's just your opinion. People take shows that are meant for kids way to serious.

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LazyBanker t1_j21h1kc wrote

Jar Jar Binks, in all of them, for all of the reasons.

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knucklesx23 t1_j1z33j8 wrote

Could argue they make her stand out

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chesire2050 t1_j1z3trd wrote

Guzman's Gomez is a throwback to the original addams family comics..

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At0m_1k t1_j1zzool wrote

Yajirobe in the original DragonBall Z

I don't get why they included a character like him, though I don't remember much of the original DragonBall so maybe it's for continuity? Either way he doesn't line up with the rest of the z fighter's values and ethics, he's not a capable fighter either so like wtf is this guy doing in the show? Just for comedic relief?

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Brbaster t1_j20cyqd wrote

He exists so that Krillin's VA had something to do back in King Picollos arc. As soon as Krillin got revived he was more or less written out of the series.

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princesamurai45 t1_j2143hd wrote

He is an old character from OG Dragonball that Goku met while going train with Karin. He like Yamaha just become cannon fodder and comic relief by Z.

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RSlickback t1_j20jlyk wrote

Connor in Angel. Worst character, worst plotline, single worst action I've ever seen in any tv show. Best thing they did was literally wipe everyone's memory of him and keep going as if it never happened.

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xSaffax t1_j20tmzc wrote

Jessica from the bastard and his son. There is almost no sense of character development, she is just evil. she makes decisions that don't make sense for who they've portrayed her as and every time she was on the screen all it did was made me want to turn the show off.

I'm glad they canceled it because if I had to put up with the planned 2nd season where she was the antagonist, just to get some more Gabriel and Nathan, I would have been so mad.

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violetbaudelairegt t1_j210662 wrote

Ill die on the Guzman hill. I was really against his casting at first, and I thought Zeta Jones would be fantastic. But she fell really flat and uninteresting where as I thought Guzman brought a new and different, and more indepth take to Gomez, who let's be real, hasn't always been played as a real three dimensional character and not just a zany goth horndog lol

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candymancan46 t1_j210eqn wrote

Piper in Orange is the New Black after season 2. They kept trying to force storylines with her when there were so many more important things.

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Bean_Storm t1_j2113a6 wrote

How dare you

-Team Enid

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j3ffUrZ t1_j213uz1 wrote

Mark Brendanawicz

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ChiggenNuggy t1_j20xghz wrote

The weirdo Salamanca twins in better call Saul and breaking bad. Am I expected to believe that two twins never speak to eachother because they are so no nonsense? Pulled me out of it every time.

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Ok-Blacksmith4364 t1_j1zbngz wrote

Jason from The Good Place annoys tf out of me. I hate when characters are made dumb as rocks for laughs.

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bibliographyfreak t1_j1zqi25 wrote

The wife in breaking bad

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HereNowBeing t1_j20ybtw wrote

I disagree. I thought she was perfect and devolved in a sad and beautiful way.

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bibliographyfreak t1_j20ypit wrote

I can see that. Just my take: for most of show she seemed like one-note character and was frustrating to watch.

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mickeyflinn t1_j20k6hc wrote

Deanna Trio, Star Trek the Next Generation. Her power was just bullshit from top to bottom and the episodes the focused on her where the worst. The moment her mother showed up I was done.

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Calvykins t1_j20q2ch wrote

Rob Lowe in parks and rec. Ron Swanson was a much better character and had the spotlight stolen from him.

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Rudi_Van-Disarzio t1_j1wsj2m wrote

Emma Myers only has one face and she makes it no matter what emotion she is attempting to portray and it makes me unreasonably angry.

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ExceptionCollection t1_j1yd36y wrote

Anyone played by: Katie Cassidy, Neal McDonough (except Sean Cahill, who fits perfectly with the rest of the cast), Summer Glau (except Cameron from T:TSCC; at least that character is supposed to be low-affect with a minor showing of emotions), Brian Austin Green, or Michelle Yeoh. Kristian Bruun from Orphan Black. Peyton List in pretty much everything.

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ShaoShaoUnicorn t1_j1yoscr wrote

I’m sorry but putting Michelle Yeoh on this list is insane- she’s fkn fantastic. and that’s not even the first questionable name on your list…

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ExceptionCollection t1_j1zr2zv wrote

She’s really not, though. Not in anything I’ve seen her in, at least. When she pops up on screen, I know I can expect a character that is stilted yet physically overacted, has comparatively little (like, TOS-era Spock is more expressive) movement to their face aside from her mouth, and aside from being pretty physically capable isn’t great at playing more than one or two types of characters - motherly & wise, or evil and violent. Either way brace for her character to be “instructive”.

That said, I will admit that I don’t really go out of my way to watch her movies and shows - the only thing I’ve seen her in that has her be more than a bit part is Star Trek: Discovery.

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Dab00z t1_j1zkxom wrote

Skyler in Breaking Bad. That character is a wet blanket come to life. Every time Walt does something interesting, she throws a bucket of cold water on it (“stop doing that thing that is so fun for viewers watch”). The character’s motivations are totally understandable and the actress playing her does a great job, but it ruined the show for me. Quit after season 2.

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sequosion t1_j20hf0f wrote

Yeah, fuck Skylar for not wanting to be married to a murdering drug dealer, am I right??

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