Best TV Characters Ever Meme

*UPDATED — Now with more women! And vitamins!

I found Joss Whedon’s list of the best tv characters ever, and I thought it would make a great meme. He gave twenty-five, but I’m sticking to ten.

1. Pa Ingalls from Little House on the Prairie - Didn’t every little girl want to be his half-pint? The best daddy ever. Strong and kind and honest, but able to get all threatening when he had to.

2. Ken Titus from Titus - Obnoxiously real, cruel and abrasive, while managing to make us love him at the same time. If you haven’t seen the show Titus, be warned: it’s a little dark, but hilarious.

3. Bart Simpson from The Simpsons - The evil in us all. Though Homer may be just as bad in many ways, Bart is creative about it. The episode where he sold his soul? Or the Halloween episode where we learn of his evil twin? Genius.

4. Bob Newhart as Dick Loudon on Newhart - I may be the only person who actually enjoyed him more as a hotel owner than a therapist. Understated, wry, deadly funny, a man making his peace with an irritating world. (And did you see him as an action hero in The Librarian? I encourage you to see it just for the scene where he says “Semper Fi.”)

5. House from House MD - I am absolutely with Whedon on this one. Hugh Laurie does an amazing job with that character. And when is the last time you heard a Brit pull off an American accent that well? It ain’t common.

6. CatWoman from Batman - (as played by both Julie Newmar and Eartha Kitt) She made being bad look so good. She challenged Batman, and pulled off a little depth in a show that was all camp.

7. Columbo - There are layers to the man. Layers.

8. Dr. Perry Cox from Scrubs - I have had this teacher over and over again in my life, the crotchety curmudgeon with compassion and convictions that declare themselves even as he tries to keep them hidden. I would like the character even if I didn’t recognize the man.

9. I have to pick a character from Buffy/Angel. I love the shows so much. But just one? Angel is too easy. I guess Wesley. I loved the way he developed and tested his own convictions and loved Winifred. That scene where he read Frances Hodgson Burnett to her while she was dying? Amazing.

10. Okay, one more. Here I will reveal myself for the sci-fi dork I really am. I choose Nick Knight from Forever Knight, another vampire show. I loved the guy. I would wait till midnight on Fridays to watch it in syndication, and still be riveted when all he did was lie on his floor and muse silently to music.

So if you feel like joining me in this meme, just leave a link in the comments. Everybody’s welcome. I tag Pieces and Riley.

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You may notice that all the above characters share a certain unapologetic quality. They are who they are, and they are not craven. Even Dick Loudon is stubborn in his own way. And I think that’s why I had so few women. There aren’t a lot of strong women in TV who refuse to pander or simper. But here are a few I forgot.

Jean Pargetter from As Time Goes By. She’s a successful businesswoman whose employees call her “Iron Drawers.” She finds love on her own terms, and if she gets a little flighty sometimes, she still pulls dignity out of it.

Geraldine Granger in The Vicar of Dibley. I love Geraldine. She speaks her mind and she manages to love her parishioners while seeing how ridiculous they are. And anyone who has ever sat on a church council/session of elders/board of deacons must respect the way she manages hers.

I’ve already mentioned the show Scrubs, but I should have included Carla Espinosa. She’s strong, she’s competent, and she runs things her way. The only stronger woman on the show is Nurse Laverne Roberts, who scares everybody. There are few sweeter moments in tv than when Nurse Roberts makes the doctors quail by saying, “You don’t have to apologize to me. But you will have to answer to Jesus.”

Dr. Katherine Pulaski from Star Trek The Next Generation. Strong, unapologetic woman of conviction and accomplishment. She did not stay long on the show, but she was memorable.

And one more from Angel? Cordelia Chase was always the most interesting woman from the Buffy world. Whether she was the snob you loved to hate, or the magical mother to a crowd of misfits, she drew the eye and kept the attention.

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